FANTASTIC FOUR #266

"CALL HER... KARISMA!"
Story & Inks: John Byrne | Guest Penciler: Kerry Gammill
Letterer: Diana Albers | Colorist: Glynis Wein
Editor: Bob Budiansky | Editor-in-Chief: Jim Shooter

The Plot: As they sit in the waiting area near Sue’s hospital room, Alicia tells She-Hulk the story of an adventure shared by the Invisible Girl and the Thing some months earlier: Ben attempted to stop a robbery but was ensnared by the criminals’ leader via mind control. The woman, Karisma, sent Ben on a rampage to which Sue responded. She battled the Thing to a standstill and eventually unmasked Karisma, realizing that the woman’s makeup gave her complete control over men’s minds. Sue rendered Karisma’s head invisible and she and Ben turned her over to the police.

In the present, Reed and his advisors, the finest minds in the field of radiation, are stumped over Sue’s condition. But Doctor Walter Langowski suggests there is one man they have yet to consult: Doctor Otto Octavius, a.k.a. Doctor Octopus.

Sub-Plots & Continuity Notes: The scientists Reed has assembled for help are Doctor Bruce Banner (the Hulk), Doctor Michael Morbius (Spider-Man’s occasional vampiric enemy), and the afore-mentioned Walter Langowski (a.k.a. Sasquatch of Alpha Flight). Langowski reveals that Doctor Octavius was his teacher for one semester in college.

THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #252

"HOMECOMING!"
Plot: Roger Stern | Script: Tom DeFalco
Pencil Breakdowns: Ron Frenz | Finished Art: Brett Breeding
Letters: Joe Rosen | Colors: Glynis Wein | Editor: Danny Fingeroth
Editor-in-Chief: Jim Shooter

The Plot: One week after disappearing into the huge alien structure in Central Park, Spider-Man emerges from it in a new black costume, with Dr. Curt Connors in tow. After returning Connors to his family, the web-slinger catches up on his personal life as Peter Parker and patrols the city in his new outfit. While out and about, he bumps into a pair of quarreling teens and takes them up above the city, letting them see the environment, good and bad, that they take for granted.

The Sub-Plots: Spider-Man's black costume is somehow alive, responding to his thoughts by disappearing and changing into street clothes when necessary.

Despite having taken several photos of his adventures on Battleworld, Peter decides that he can't sell them to any respectable newspaper or magazine, both because Reed Richards of the Fantastic Four advised all the kidnapped heroes to keep their adventure a secret from the general public and because the photos are simply too unbelievable to be taken seriously.

Peter also gives Aunt May a call to check in and agrees to join Nathan and her for Sunday dinner.

HERCULES: PRINCE OF POWER, VOLUME 2

"MY LOVE IS... GREEN?" | "RED WOLF STALKS THE STARS!"
"DEADLY LEGACY" | "A PEARL OF GREAT PRICE!"
Writer/Artist: Bob Layton
Letterer: Rick Parker | Colorist: Christie Scheele | Editor: Bob Budiansky
Editor-in-Chief: Jim Shooter

Something became clear to me as I began reading Bob Layton's second HERCULES mini-series. This is all one big "What If" story. I recall that Volume One began with narration stating that Hercules was returning to Olympus following his adventures with the Avengers. I simply took this to mean that he had recently left the Avengers in the continuity of the time, but apparently not. It actually meant that the story was starting after all of Hercules's adventures on Earth, at some undisclosed time in the future. Layton did not do a good job of explaining this.

However, Volume Two clears things up right off the bat as we join Hercules, 400 years later and still on his exile to learn humility. Narration indicates that Hercules spent some time on the brewery planet we last left him on, before returning to his travels across the universe with the Recorder.