BHOC: MARVEL TWO-IN-ONE #56

When writers Ralph Macchio and Mark Gruenwald took over the reins of MARVEL TWO-IN-ONE, the series that featured stories of the Thing teaming up with a diverse assortment of other Marvel superstars, they decided to challenge themselves. They didn’t really like the contemporaneous FANTASTIC FOUR era, so they set out to make MTIO a better book than the character’s home series. And to a great degree, they accomplished this, thanks also to terrific art from first John Byrne and then George Perez, both of whom were good friends with the two writers. They also decided to kick their run off with an extended epic of six parts, in contrast to the typical one-and two-part stories that had been the title’s regular offerings. The Project: PEGASUS Saga was well regarded, to the point where it eventually received a trade paperback collection of the work at a time when very few Marvel stories got to enjoy that format. I’m sure some of that had to do with the fact that Ralph and Mark were both still on staff, both still among the decision makers–but their story was good enough to warrant collection on its own merits.

As mentioned earlier, with this issue, and for the back half of the six issue, superstar George Perez stepped in to provide artwork for the series, or at least breakdowns. They were finished by the illustrative Gene Day, who maintained Perez’s penchant for detail but also gave the pages a bit more mood and atmosphere through his spotting of blacks and his textured line. So the series continued to look good. Sadly, Gene Day passed away relatively young, and so has been somewhat forgotten in the years since he was last working regularly. That’s a shame on multiple levels, as he was a fundamentally excellent artist with a great sense of design and page layout.

This issue opens up with Thundra and a quartet of super-powered lady wrestlers, The Grapplers, attempting to break into the alternate energy source concern Project: PEGASUS to plant a specific piece of technology at a key strategic point for shadowy masters who appear to be connected to the Corporation, one of Jack Kirby’s last creations that had been turning up across the Marvel Universe of the period. The Grapplers were loosely inspired by Kirby’s Female Furies from MISTER MIRACLE, but they were also named after people in and around Marvel’s staff at the time, so there was a bit of a double-joke to them. Thundra has taken on this assignment largely because she’s at loose ends at the moment, and she has no idea that the Thing, with whom she’s shared a flirting relationship, is staying there and helping out security.

Thundra and the Grapplers carry out their mission, but it turns out that the wrestlers have also been given other objectives that Thundra is unaware of, and so they leave her in the dust. At this point, Thundra happens to come across Ben Grimm, who is hustling in response to the break-in alert. Thundra can’t really explain her presence there, so she and the Thing get into a slobberknocker, punching one another off the walls. The Grapplers, meanwhile, split up, with Letha and Screaming Mimi running into Quasar, the base’s Chief of Security, as they penetrate deeper into it. Quasar is new enough at the super hero game that the two Grapplers give him a hard time of it, Mimi’s sonic scream causing him to see them as horrific monsters. But he’s eventually able to pull himself together enough to zap them both with his Quantum Bands.

Elsewhere, Poundcakes and Titania run afoul of the new Giant-Man, formerly Black Goliath and secretly scientist Bill Foster who worked at the installation. Bill isn’t at his best here–it hasn’t been revealed yet, but he’s suffering from radiation poisoning due to a battle he’d had with a radioactive super villain some time ago in his own title. Still, he’s able to use his colossal size to bring the two Grapplers’ rampage to a premature end. Most of this issue is devoted to a series of brawls, which aren’t terribly heavily story-oriented but which do give George and Gene an opportunity to show off their chops.

As the issue heads towards its climax, the focus shifts back over to the Thing and Thundra, who are tearing it up. As always, Thundra declares her romantic affection for Ben, couched in the terms of her female-superiority Femizons civilization. But Ben simply isn’t interested, and continues to insist that to Thundra, who simply will not relent on this point. Thundra is also patronizing to Ben, telling him that she’s ashamed of battling an inferior foe who is also injured–the Thing had been shot by Deathlok a few issues before and his arm still wasn’t good as new. So the intensity of the brawl escalates–and then, at a key moment, the entrance of other people into the scene brings the bout to a premature conclusion.

It’s Project: PEGASUS’ security team, with the rest of the Grapplers in custody. With her gang taken down, Thundra doesn’t see any point in continuing to fight. But she also refuses to reveal anything about the shadowy employers that sent her and the Grapplers on this mission. While this is going on, Dr, Lichtner, who had once been the villainous Black Sun, collects the component that had been left in secret by Thundra and the Grapplers. He thinks to himself that it’s the last piece he needs to construct his Nth Projector, which he’ll use to destroy the Project and everyone in it. And on that dire note, we are To Be Continued!

The Ever-Lovin’ Blue-Eyed Letters Page this issue included another bit of correspondence from future Marvel writer Kurt Busiek. Kurt was commenting on a pre-Project: PEGASUS issue that had been one of the first jobs drawn by a young Frank Miller. For what it’s worth, Busiek liked it, as you can see for yourself above.