Or – “LIVE FROM THE 70′s! IT’S COMIC-BOOK GOLD!”
Many a comic writer has tried to add verisimilitude to an otherwise bald and insipid narrative by chucking in a topical reference or two. Witness Captain America’s battles against both Nixon AND Reagan, Alison Blaire’s original gimmick as Disco Dazzler, or the double-shot of concentrated 1990′s that is Doc Samson’s second uniform. And then, there was this issue…
Or – “Truth In Advertising Dept.”
NOT A HOAX!
NOT A WHAT IF!!
NOT AN IMAGINARY STORY!!!
The staggering tale that could change Spidey’s life FOREVER!!!!
Or – “From The Major Spoilers Request Line!”
Of all the writers at 70′s era Marvel, Bill Mantlo’s work has more meaning for me than any save the late Steve Gerber. Mantlo’s greatest triumphs were in turning some of Marvel’s earliest toy tie-in books (Rom: Spaceknight and The Micronauts) into three-dimensional heroes in their own right, and it’s a downright shame that those series likely won’t see reprints because of their licensed nature. Bill had a hand in Deadly Hands of Kung-Fu, Howard the Duck, The Defenders and more of my favorite vintage books, and brought in the unlikeliest antagonist of all for Spider-Man in the arc leading up to this issue: 16th Century Puritan Minister Cotton Mather, key figure in the Salem Witch Trials!