Marvel Compass #4

Fantastic Four #3

 “If we're a team, we should look like a team" -Invisible Girl 

The Menace of the Miracle Man 

by Stan Lee, Jack Kirby, Inks by Sol Brodsky, Colors by Stan Goldberg, Letters by Artie Simek  

The latest sensation in the New York of the Marvel Universe is capturing the citizenry’s attention. He is called the Miracle Man, and at this particular show, the Fantastic Four are in attendance. Miracle Man spots them, and calls them out. He proclaims “Next to my power, they are nothing!” At which point, he grows to a huge size, turns his body to a gas form, and then unleashes bolts of lightning. He then challenges the Thing to a test of strength, revealing two large tree stumps, one for Ben to cut through with his hand, and one for himself. It takes Ben all of three hits to smash the stump in two. When it’s the Miracle Man’s turn, he cleaves his stump with only one swipe of his finger through it. Angered, the Thing tries to attack Miracle Man, but his fist bounces right off. The rest of the Fantastic Four hold Ben back, and leave the show. On their way home, Reed contemplates what would happen if Miracle Man turned out to be a criminal. After the success of his show, the Miracle Man is now plotting to strike fear in humanity using the display of a statue outside a movie theatre.

The Fantastic Four reach their headquarters, a large tower in the middle of New York. At home, Johnny decides he’ll see what’s on TV and finds that they’ll be premiering the movie at the theatre. Sue reveals that she has made costumes for them all to wear the cement their roles as crime fighters. On the TV, Johnny notices that the Miracle Man is at the movie premiere, he makes some odd gesture and suddenly the monster display comes to life. It starts attacking everyone. The Fantastic Four call the commissioner, who has received a note from Miracle Man declaring war on the human race, for him to conquer.

The Fantastic Four split up in the Fantasticar in search of Miracle Man. Reed finds the monster, just as it is destroying and robbing a jewelry store. He stretches his body into a net to stop it, but is knocked out when the Miracle Man throws a brick at his head. At the police headquarters the commissioner tells Reed how disappointed he is in him.The Human Torch finds the monster as it is battling the army, trying to destroy their new atomic tank.

Sue and Ben see Johnny’s flame in the sky. They follow it to where he is battling the monster. Before they reach him, the Human Torch manages to burn the monster down to cinders, since it is just made of wood and plaster. The Miracle Man shoots a chemical foam at Johnny, snuffing out his flame. The Thing prepares to retaliate, but the Miracle Man causes the ground beneath Ben’s feet to tremble and swallow him up to his shoulders. The Invisible Girl tells Johnny and Ben that she’ll capture Miracle Man on her own. She sneaks into the back of a truck he has stolen, that carries the atomic tank.

Back at their headquarters, Ben, Johnny and Reed argue over Sue trying to take action by herself. Ben recounts their origin if you’re new. Johnny and Ben get into it for a bit, with the Human Torch storming off. Meanwhile, Sue has followed the Miracle Man to a junkyard full of cars. He plans to hide the atomic tank there. Suddenly, Susan is alerted by a dog who has caught her scent while she’s invisible. The Miracle Man figures out she must be there, and hypnotizes her into revealing herself. Under his spell, the Invisible Girl fires her Fantastic Four flare to summon the others, so that Miracle Man can dispose of them. Ben and Reed see it from the roof, and take off in a helicopter.

Meanwhile, Johnny is at a soda fountain where his friends are annoying him, asking if they can join the Fantastic Four. He sees the flare in the sky, and takes off as his friends beg him to join the group “Where the Human Torch goes, he goes alone!”

Reed and Ben reach the junkyard first, where Miracle Man is pointing a giant key at them. The key transforms into a machine gun that he starts firing and Mr. Fantastic and Thing. Mr. Fantastic rolls up into a rubber ball to bounce fast enough to avoid the bullets. Thing lunges between Reed and the bullets, taking the full brunt of them on his rocky exterior until the gun runs out of ammo. The Miracle Man tries to flee, with Sue in tow, using the atomic tank, when Human Torch finally arrives.

They grab an antique car that happens to be lying around, and chase after the atomic tank. The tank fires back at them, hitting a tire. Mr. Fantastic stretches into a tire to replace it, fitting himself to the spokes. Johnny leaps out of the car, flaming on after the tank. Human Torch burns so brightly that it blinds the Miracle Man, forcing him to stop and get out of the tank. Thing nearly clobbers Miracle Man, when he is stopped by Reed and Johnny. Reed makes Miracle Man take Sue out of her trance or he will sic Thing on him.

Reed has figured out that all off Miracle Man’s “miracles” were actually acts of hypnotism that he used to fool everyone into seeing his tricks. Human Torch’s brightness canceled his powers out by nearly blinding him. Thing can’t get over the fact that the Human Torch was the one who saved them all. This causes Johnny to leave the team. Reed worries about what would happen, should the Human Torch decide to fight against them.

Bearings

• The Fantastic Four will appear again in Fantastic Four #4

• The Miracle Man will appear again in Fantastic Four #138

Notes/Observations/Thoughts

• Impact on the world: Since there are people like the Fantastic Four in the world now, people are ready to see even more impossible things, whether they are real or not.

• It’s funny that Sue, the one who turns invisible, is concerned with their appearances. Maybe she is over-compensating with how tenuous the group seems to be holding. Especially as we see at the end where Johnny, her own brother, leaves. 

• Sue finally does something useful. She trails the Miracle Man to the junkyard, unfortunately she’s caught, but without her the rest of the Fantastic Four would not have shown up. It’s a shame how the rest of the group react to her going after him by herself.

• Thing shows both sides of himself in this issue, he risks his life blocking the bullets from Miracle Man’s machine gun for Reed. However, he also annoys Johnny to such an extent that Johnny leaves the team.

• Reed doesn’t do a whole lot in this issue except getting hit a lot. His leadership does show up at the beginning where he’s already thinking what would happen if the Miracle Man turns against humanity, which he does.

• Human Torch saves the day! And then quits. What an angsty teen-ager.

• The Fantastic Four are now officially superheroes! In the last two issues they were on the run from the military and wearing civilian clothing. With this issue they get their costumes and live in the Baxter Building.

• It’s ironic that the Miracle Man was trying to launch his plan by becoming celebrity, that when he is beaten, it launches the Fantastic Four even more, into their superstardom.

• Next issue brings back one of my favorite characters to the Marvel Universe: Namor, the Sub-Mariner: Marvel’s First Mut... No, Marvel’s first anti-hero.

Quotes

“I ain’t gonna wear this fool outfit!” -Thing

“One Invisible Girl can sometimes accomplish more than a battalion!” -Invisible Girl

“Do as I say, or I’ll turn you over to the Thing!” -Mr. Fantastic

The images, story, and all character names on this page are trademarked Marvel Characters, and used without permission. No infringement is intended.