Luke Cage, Defender for Hire

Working as a security guard for Richmond Enterprises, Power Man first accompanied the Defenders in #17-19, when Nighthawk's corporation came under attack by the villainous Wrecking Crew.

Lacking the inheritance of Nighthawk, or the taken-for-granted resources of other heroes, Power Man kept a realistic approach to fighting crime. During his recurring adventures with the Defenders, Power Man often was the first to point out the bizarre nature of magic or superheroics in general.

When Bruce Banner telephoned Luke Cage in #24, requesting help on another mission, the hero for hire responded skeptically to Hulk's alter ego.

Power Man: (Speaking into the phone) Bruce who? No , man, I ain't never heard o'--Oh, uh-huh. You're the Hulk--an' I'm George Wallace!

Although Hulk was more powerful than Power Man, Luke Cage had enough strength and invulnerability to save the team more than once, and without any hulkish drawbacks. Further, Power Man seemed physically stronger during his stints with the Defenders in the 1970s than he did in the 1980s, when Marvel Comics estimated that he could lift only a few tons (far less than most heavy-hitters at the time).

This scene of Power Man vs. Piledriver of the Wrecking Crew appeared in Defenders #19.

Hulking Cover Versions

Poor Hulk. These covers gave the impression that the Defenders spent much of their time stopping the good-intentioned goliath from smashing someone who shouldn't be harmed or breaking something better left alone.

But covers aren't always right. In Defenders #41, for instance, no one was encased in a crystalline cage, and the Hulk posed no threat to his teammates. The cover simply gave Hulk a bad reputation.

The Somber Surfer

A backup story reprinted in Giant-Size Defenders #1 helped explain the brooding disposition of one of the team's strongest affiliates.

"The Peerless Power of the Silver Surfer" opened with the cosmic champion waxing philosophical as he rode across the skyline. Speaking to himself, in his customary style, the hero in exile projected his own frustrations onto the inhabitants of Earth. Adding to the Surfer's own despondence was this seldom-discussed hypersensitivity to the feelings of others.

Silver Surfer: Thru how many ages shall they be condemned to dwell--like insects in a hive--never knowing the glories of the endless universe? … I cannot endure being near them for more than a few of their minutes--the waves of human emotion which I sense are overwhelming! Fear--envy--greed--and hatred engulf me in ever-increasing torrents!!

Sensing a specifically inhuman torment, the Surfer discovered Quasimodo, the living computer with human-like emotions who longed for his abandoned master, the Mad Thinker.

Wielding cosmic energy, the Surfer forged a robotic body to liberate Quasimodo. But with powerful arms and legs, Quasimodo returned to his original programming and set forth on a destructive rampage. The Surfer felt responsible for the outcome.

As the robot tried to escape, the Surfer again enveloped Quasimodo in cosmic energy, this time transforming him into a motionless statue, resting on a clock tower. Because his best intentions had backfired, the Surfer questioned his own ability to understand or act in the defense of others. No wonder he felt most comfortable alone.

This story originally appeared in Fantastic Four Annual #5 (1967). Stan (The Man) Lee and Jack Kirby (King) Kirby, F. Giacoia (inking), Artie Simek (lettering). The illustration of Quasimodo appeared in The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe.

By the Seven Circles

During a surprise party at X-Mansion, Nightcrawler received a sabotaged gift on his 21st birthday, triggering a mystical explosion that rendered him unconscious. Called in as a consultant, Dr. Strange diagnosed the condition: someone had taken Nightcrawler's soul (X-Men King-Size Annual #4). The story that followed played off many of the themes prevalent in the Defenders.

Although Dr. Strange initially pegged Nightcrawler as half-demon, the Eye of Agamotto revealed that there was nothing supernatural about the mutant's appearance. Accepting a metaphysical challenge to save the young hero, Dr. Strange accompanied members of the X-Men through a magic portal and into the Inferno from Dante's Divine Comedy.

The heroes fought harpies and other threats as they traversed down the Seven Circles. Yet all along Dr. Strange doubted they were in true hell, as he did not sense evil, just a strong anger toward Nightcrawler.

At the center of the Inferno, Dr. Strange detected that the giant creature calling itself Satan was part of an elaborate illusion created by Nightcrawler's foster mother, Margali. The powerful sorceress wanted to punish Nightcrawler for murdering his foster brother shortly before joining the X-Men. But Margali had a change of heart after discovering that her biological son had become violently crazed, prompting Nightcrawler to stop him.

The X-Men were glad to have their friend restored to health, and Dr. Strange pondered why he was only now learning of Margali, whose powers rivaled his own.

X-Men King-Size Annual #4. 1980. "Nightcrawler's Inferno." Chris Claremont (writer), John Romita Jr. and Bob McCleod (artists), Tom Orzechowski (letterer), Glynis Wein (colorist), Louise Jones (editor), Jim Shooter (editor-in-chief). The Nightcrawler image comes from The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe.

Death Becomes Her

The forces of evil finally got the better of Dr. Strange, transforming the sorcerer supreme into a werewolf (Marvel Team-Up #80-81).

After Spider-Man and Clea jointly discovered the horrific truth, an equally unsettling guest arrived, offering her assistance. It was Satana, the younger sister of Daimon Hellstrom. Daimon and Satana's mother had unwittingly married an evil entity who had taken human form. But while the Son of Satan hated his hellish heritage, the Devil's Daughter seemed to revel in human suffering, acquiring a vampiric thirst for syphoning life energy from others.

At the Sanctum Sanctorum, Satana said she could reverse the curse, as Dr. Strange had neither killed nor tasted human blood since becoming a werewolf. (In that case, she planned to shoot the werewolf-supreme with a silver bullet to put him out of his misery.) Spider-Man sensed that Satana was dangerous yet somehow could be trusted in this instance. This left Clea to question why a servant of evil wanted to save Dr. Strange.

Satana: Perhaps because it amuses me? Or because I am part human, and it is human nature to change. To grow. To rebel. I bow to neither heaven nor hell, Clea. In that, I am much like my satanic sire. I would rather live on earth and be free, whatever the cost--than serve in hell.

Whether or not she was repentent, Satana's act of goodwill established her own free will. Removing the curse of the werewolf greatly weakened Satana, as her body meditated while her spirit entered the astral plane, where malevolent forces tried to stop her. At the end of the mystical ceremony, Dr. Strange was cured, but the Devil's Daughter died for her disobedience in asserting her independence.

Marvel Team-Up. Vol. 1. No. 80. April 1979. "A Sorcerer Possessed!" C. Claremont (author), M. Vosburg (guest penciler), G. Day (inker), D. Wohl (letterer), P. Goldberg (colorist), A.L. Milgrom (editor), J. Shooter (editor-in-chief).

Marvel Team-Up. Vol. 1. No. 81. May 1979. "Last Rights." Chris Claremont (author), Mike Vosburg (penciler), Steve Leialoha (inker), Rick Parker (letterer), Ben Sean (colorist), Allen Milgrom (editor), Jim Shooter (editor-in-chief).