The Classics - Strange Tales #123

In the world of comics today, it's not unusual for comic books characters from different companies to meet.

But in the early days of the Silver Age, a crossover into a character's comic book was a rare event, even within the same comics company (not counting books designed to be crossovers, like Justice League of America, World's Finest or the Avengers).

But it was a tool Marvel used to great effect. Sometimes the "crossover" would last all of a panel or two, like the time Thor flew past Spider-Man and kept right on going. It wasn't unusual for heroes to call each other on the phone to ask for advice.

This issue of Strange Tales (cover date August 1964) is one I fondly remember for the double-crossover it includes. The comic's pages were split evenly between the Human Torch's solo adventures and the mystic adventures of the (relatively new) hero Dr. Strange.

The comic features a great Kirby cover, although Kirby's art never looks right on Ditko's characters for some reason - he always seemed to struggle with Dr. Strange and even moreso with Spider-Man. But he co-created four of the six characters on the cover, so we can easily forgive him (and yes, I'm kidding - Kirby was ever the master).

The first story features the first appearance of The Beetle, and features as a guest star The Thing (who would soon become a regular co-star on the comic).

The art is by Carl Burgos, who created the original Human Torch in the Golden Age, and demonstrated that he'd lost none of his skill. It's an entertaining, fast-paced adventure that veers over onto the silly side occasionally, but it's so much fun you can't help but enjoy it.

But as much as I enjoyed the lead-in story, it's the backup feature that really made the comic. Dr. Strange was the most unusual hero Marvel had on its roster in the '60s, as much for Steve Ditko's amazing art as for his fantastic adventures written by Stan Lee.

Here he is fooled by Loki, the Norse God of Mischief, into stealing Thor's hammer - which quickly escalates into an all-out battle between a mortal and a god. It's a battle that pushes Strange right to the brink of defeat, and it's only his quick wits and his courage that allows him to survive.

This was the issue that made me a Dr. Strange fan (and Lee and Ditko fan) for life - he was a "normal" person who used his special education (magic, natch), to fight the forces of evil, succeeding thanks to his determination and intelligence. The stories bristled with imagination and amazing adventures!

I've been reading his adventures faithfully every since. Well, when they appear.

Grade: A-