2015 Reading Challenge Book 051 Essential Marvel 2 in 1 volume 1

TITLE-Essential Marvel 2 in 1 Presents the Thing Volume 1
AUTHOR-Roy Thomas,Bill Mantlo,Steve Gerber and others
FORMAT-Trade paperback
FIRST TIME READING-No
COST-$12

Back when I was a pre-teen the library in Moss Point had a comic book trade. You traded one issue for 1 issue. I would get any comic I could for free. So I would have stuff to trade. Quickly I became a fan of Marvel 2 in 1. Which was a monthly team up series. Most issues have the Thing teaming up with another hero or team of heroes.

When Instocktrades opened the above pictured trade was in my first order. I hadn't read these early issues of 2 in 1 in over 20 years. After reading 4 or 5 issues I was hooked again. And have been slowly building a complete reading set.

This trade reprints,in black and white,issues 1-20,22-25 and annual #1 of 2 in  1. Issue 21 isn't reprinted in here. Because it has Thing teaming up with Doc Savage. When the issue came out Marvel had the comic publishing rights to Doc Savage.  Since then they have lost the rights. The trade also reprints the following.
Marvel Feature 11 and 12-This is where 2 in 1 started. And until I got this trade I had never read them.
Marvel Team Up #47-Which had the same premise as this title. But instead of the Thing it was Spiderman teaming up with another hero each issue.
Fantastic Four Annual #11

One thing I realized is while lots of the time the artwork is average,the stories are normally really good. Steve Gerber,who is one of my favorite comic writers,has a nice long run in this trade. And so does Bill Mantlo.

As for stand out issues in this trade you got...

The two Marvel Feature issues. The first of which has Thing teaming with Hulk and the other has Thing tagging up with Iron Man.

Issue #1 Thing finds out about Man-Thing. And travels down to the Everglades "Cause there can only be one hero with thing in their name!" Yeah I know it is goofy. But Gerber wrote it and Gil Kane drew it.

Issue #7 Where Thing meets up with longtime Defenders member Valkyrie. She is my favorite female Marvel superhero. And one  I wish was used more often.

Issue #8 A X-mas issue. Thing teams up with the Johnny Blaze Ghost Rider. And they fight the old Fantastic Four villain the Miracle Man.

Issue #14 Thing teams up with the Son of Satan and they fight a twister loaded with ghosts.

And the final issue in this trade,Issue #25. Where Thing and Iron Fist team up.

Sometimes the stories are a bit cliche. And the art rarely raises above average. But a combination of nostalgia,good writing and the oddball team ups makes me love this title.

Essential Marvel 2 in 1 volume 1 gets a 4.00 outta 5.

Iron Man/X-O Manowar Heavy Metal Marvel Edition

Iron Man/X-O Manowar Heavy Metal Marvel edition

This is the second part of the Iron Man and X-O crossover. We start with a group of Iron Man villains being led by one of the members of HARD Corps. But  the Avengers show up. And the team has long time members like Crystal,Quicksilver and Captain America. Plus  Rai,Solar and some lady called Windstorm. I have no idea who Windstorm is. Maybe she was in the Harbinger series. And I haven't read much from that series. Well all of the sudden during the battle reality starts shifting and then we see all the heroes and villains fading out.

We cut to a ship way out in the ocean and Armin Zola and some wizard guy are trying to find all the scattered pieces of the cosmic cube. It seems that this merged reality is going to implode unless someone can put the cosmic cube back together.

We next jump back to the dark ages and Aric is being chased by Romans. He hides in a cave. And finds a briefcase. This case contains the Iron Man armor and Aric puts it on. We go back to modern time and Tony Stark is a young kid and his dad is showing him an alien egg that SHIELD has lent to him. The elder Stark is suppose to find out how to make the egg hatch. Well Tony gets near it,and the X-O Manowar armor jumps out and attaches itself to Tony.

We jump ahead a few years I think and X-O and Iron Man are working together to get the last piece of the cosmic cube. They find it ,but have to fight off the Masters of Evil and some Spider-Aliens. But they triumph over the villains and head off to the ship when Zola is.

They arrive on the ship and through a very complicated way manage to get the entire Cosmic Cube. And then use it to change reality back to the way it is suppose to be.

This issue was written by Fabian Nicieza. With Tom Grindberg doing the pencils and the team of Bill Anderson,Al Milgrom and Larry Mahlstedt doing the inking. Now first off I haven't read the first part of this 2 part crossover. But besides the fun of seeing Valiant heroes teaming up with Marvel heroes,this comic is very lame. Iron Man/X-O Manowar Heavy Metal Marvel edition gets a D-.