The Unmasked Raider

Defenders #5 (March 2022) followed the characters to the Third Cosmos, home to the concepts of "Is" and "Is Not." In that early plane of existence, time-traveling scientist Carlo Zota unmasked the Masked Raider only to see that the Raider looked like Zota himself—a suitable revelation given the Raider's ability to mimic his opponents and his preoccupation on stopping Zota. Equally satisfying was the revelation that the Eternity Mask worn by the Raider was a personification of Eternity, or rather one aspect of the entity known as Eternity. Having left behind the laws of science in the Sixth Cosmos, this issue brought the limited series to a poetic close.

Names of the archetypes from #4 did not appear as expected, but the credits page noted that the Defenders will return in Summer 2022.

Man from Atlantis

Back when Sub-Mariner was appearing semi-regularly in Super-Villain Team-Up, a Marvel comic book featuring another water-breather made its debut. Adapted from a live-action television series with the same name, Man from Atlantis ran (or swam) for seven issues (with cover dates Feb.-Aug. 1977). Though set outside the world of superheroes, this new Man from Atlantis shared a few traits with Sub-Mariner, the Prince of Atlantis.

When introduced on TV and in the comics, the Man from Atlantis (a.k.a. Mark Harris) suffered from amnesia—reminiscent of Sub-Mariner, who had amnesia when he resurfaced in Fantastic Four #4 (May 1962). Additionally, Mark Harris was reportedly the last citizen of Atlantis, just as Sub-Mariner long considered himself the sole survivor of Atlantis. During his science-fiction adventures, Mark Harris wore only yellow swim trucks, not unlike the green trunks commonly worn by Sub-Mariner. Whereas Sub-Mariner had pointed ears and winged ankles, however, Mark Harris had webbed fingers and toes, making the characters physically distinct.

The cover of Man from Atlantis #1 (Feb. 1977) shows the character's visual similarities to Sub-Mariner, pictured here on Super-Villain Team-Up #13 (Aug. 1977).

Archetypes

Defenders #4 (February 2022) continued the team's pursuit of time-traveling scientist Carlo Zota. The elusive quest brought the heroes to the Fourth Cosmos and then to the Third Cosmos (having skipped over the Fifth Cosmos of pure magic). Stunningly illustrated, the issue brought the Defenders in conflict with an assortment of archetypical beings. Betty Ross (a.k.a. Harpy) was quick to point out that the creature called One-Is-Four looked like the Hulk (but with four heads). An editorial note encouraged readers to try identifying which Marvel characters were the basis for all of Archetypes and then send their best guesses to mheroes@marvel.com!

Ken Nimura illustrated this variant cover. Javier Rodríguez illustrated the interior.

Wedding Bells

As a teenager, Patsy Walker dreamed of one day marrying her high-school sweetheart, Buzz Baxter. Bursting her bubble, however, Patsy Walker #97 (Oct. 1961) offered the young protagonist an unromantic vision of married life. In the dream sequence, Buzz proved to be a klutzy and inattentive husband, burying his head in the newspaper over breakfast, spending his evenings watching baseball on TV, and leaving Patsy feeling unfulfilled.

Ultimately, the couple would eventually marry and divorce—setting the stage for Patsy to become the happy-go-lucky Hellcat and Buzz to become the supervillain Mad-Dog.

Space Invaders

Unlike the other exploits featuring Dr. Droom, a story published in Amazing Adventures #4 (Sept. 1961) was not reprinted a decade later when the character was reintroduced as Dr. Druid. That tale's title ominously asked, "What Lurks Within?"

When a spacecraft resembling a jack-o'-lantern landed on Earth, Dr. Droom used his telepathy to intimidate the extraterrestrials into leaving by convincing them that Earthlings were cranes with wrecking balls.

Dr. Droom: They were our first invaders from outer space. But we defeated them by our wits! As long as we use the brains which destiny gave us, we will always be able to meet threats to our survival--no matter where they come from--or how strong the enemy may be!

That sentiment might have confused readers who had been following the adventures of Dr. Droom, as this was not his first encounter with extraterrestrials. Dr. Droom had previously thwarted the conniving Zemu from the planet Saturn in Amazing Adventures #3 (Aug. 1961).

When that story reprinted in Weird Wonder Tales #20 (Jan. 1977), Dr. Droom became Dr. Druid, Zemu became Zamu, and Saturn became the planet R'Zahn.