Marvel Feature #2

Title: “Nightmare on Bald Mountain”

Writer: Roy Thomas

Penciller: Ross Andru

Inker: Sal Buscema

Editor: Stan Lee

On Bald Mountain, near a town in Vermont, a witch’s sabbath holds an unholy ceremony on the night before Halloween. Each of the witches and warlocks say that they can feel the Master drawing closer. The witches had failed numerous time, but this ceremony works. A red spiral begins to open and the dread Dormammu is seen on the other end. Dormammu tells them all to be quiet, and that their little rituals were always more important to them that it ever was to them. The head warlock tries to tell Dormammu what is written, but Dormammu interrupts him saying that he just told them to be quiet. Dormammu says that they are all aware that tomorrow night is the only day that he can cross into our dimension and attempt to make it his own. Dormammu asks if they have the one who must be sacrificed. The head warlock says that his minions are out finding him. Dormammu corrects him again and says that they are Dormammu’s minions and never “his”. Dormammu says that he will return at the appointed time, and that everything had better be ready if he valued his immortal soul.

In Greenwich Village, Dormammu’s minions climb along the roof of the house of Dr. Strange. Inside Strange is using the Eye of Agamotto to try and learn why he feels this “night press in upon me, like a great shroud”. Strange sees in the globe the huge figure of Dormammu stepping into out dimension. Strange realizes that he must be seeing the future, as the earth would already be trembling under Dormammu’s tread if he were already through. Strange knows that Dormammu has sworn never to enter this dimension, but he also knows that Dormammu’s lust for power probably means he is coming. Strange decides that if Dormammu is coming that he should get some help. Strange locates the Hulk in a forest upstate. Strange also finds Namor napping on a nearby shore. Strange decides to let him sleep when suddenly the astral form of the Ancient One visits him. He tells Strange to come to the garden in the sky and he will tell him about Dormammu. Strange’s astral form heads into the sky, but when he gets there he finds the Ancient One fade in front of him. Strange realizes that he has been tricked, but when he returns to his body he finds Dormammu’s minions have placed a spell upon him that blocks his astral form from rejoining his body. Wong enters to find them there. He tries to fight them off, but they beat him unconscious. As Dormammu’s minions carry off the body of Strange, one thinks of killing Wong, but another says that he won’t wake up until it is too late. Luckily for Wong he had been on the phone with Clea and left the phone off the hook. Clea comes over and revives Wong.

Wong tells Clea that Strange has been taken captive by the robed men. Despite her waning mystical abilities Clea attempts to use the Eye of Agamotto to locate Dr. Strange. Clea is concentrating on an image of Strange so intensely that the Eye projects the image to both Namor and the Hulk. Namor immediately starts swimming to Strange’s aid. Hulk dimly remembers Strange, but he does remember that Strange wasn’t afraid of him and decides that now that he needs help that he will go to help him. Hulk leaps onto the train.

Roy and Jeanie Thomas make it out to Vermont to be with their friend Tom Fagan. They tell Tom that they heard on the radio about a strange light that was coming from Bald Mountain. They ask Tom to tell them about it. Tom tells them all kinds of stories about the mountain’s reputation as a “place of uneasy spirits”. He says that everyone knows that it is a good place to steer clear of.

Namor thinks that he isn’t sure that the summons was really from Dr. Strange, but that Strange has fought against many threats that Namor dare not take the chance. At the same time Hulk has rolled into the train station. Two guards start to open fire on the Hulk, but Hulk throws a train car at them and leaps away.

Tom Fagan says that while last year the Avengers showed up for their Halloween parade this year they are going to have to settle for a bunch of comic fans in dyed long johns unless that red glow is for real.

Down the way Dormammu’s dominions arrive at a cabin with the body of Dr. Strange. They say that they’re going to have to wait there until later because the writings say “the host body shall ascend the face of the mountain by the early light of the moon”. They carefully lay down Strange’s body on a table so that it isn’t damaged. They wonder what happened to Strange’s astral form, but decide that it is only important that the body is uninhabited so that Dormammu can enter it that night.

Namor is running through the alleys to escape the notice of the police who were alerted to a prowler who is only wearing a swimming suit. Namor is hit by some boxes that someone threw at him. Namor lunges only to find that the Hulk is his attacker. They both realize that they were summoned by Dr. Strange. The go together towards Strange’s house. Clea calls to the both and introduces herself. She tells them that Strange needs their help and that he has been taken captive. Neither Namor nor Hulk trusts the girl, but agree to be accompany her. Wong gives Namor a suit to allow him to blend in while Clea hypnotizes the Hulk and turns him back into Bruce Banner. They also give Bruce some clothes and a bottle of powerful tranquilizers. They start to head to Vermont where Clea has traced Strange’s physical form. The police stop the four and tell them to get off the streets since the Hulk and Namor have been spotted on the streets.

Dormammu’s minions light some black candles to keep their spell blocking Strange’s astral form strong. One of the newer guys asks why Dormammu would want to enter the body of his greatest enemy. He is told that Dormammu’s vow prevents him from physically entering our realm, but that after tonight it is Dormammu who will stand beside them and not a mortal magician.

As they ride on a bus towards Bald Mountain, Namor tells Bruce that he looks pale. Bruce says that it is only the tranqualizers that he keeps taking, but that it is probably for the best so that he doesn’t become the Hulk.

The Halloween party begins and Dormammu’s minions begin to ascend Bald Mountain with Dr. Strange’s body.

The bus finally arrives and Namor, Bruce, Clea, and Wong are let out near a Halloween parade. Clea spots the errie red light above Bald Mountain. They begin climbing. As they near the top Namor sheds his disguise. Clea says that it is worse than she feared as she spots the image of Dormammu in the sky above the mountain. Bruce accidentally hits a rock and the noise alerts the witches to their presence. The witches start to attack, but Bruce finds that he cannot become the Hulk because of the tranqualizers. He says that he needs some time and so Namor leaps into the fight to by him time. As Bruce tries to change into the Hulk he notices that the witches have maintained their circle. Bruce tries to break them up, but a bunch more witches leap onto him. It is the Hulk that smashes them off. Hulk looks over and spots that Namor is having a hard time. Hulk throws a rock that breaks loose some water that bathes Namor. Namor tells Hulk to keep fighting towards Strange’s body. Hulk wants to know why, but Namor says there is no time to explain. The witch says there is no time at all as Strange’s body starts to elevate towards the dimensional portal. Wong tells Clea that he feels odd and to cast a spell on him. Clea thinks she understands and does so. Strange’s astral form lifts off of Wong. The spell blocking him from his body is lifted as it ascends towards the portal. Strange quickly enters his body.

Strange, now united in body and astral form, passes through the dimensional portal to confront Dormammu. Dormammu attacks Strange, but Strange repels the attack. Dormammu realizes that his powers are diminshed because of the portal opening to the Earth. Dormammu taps into his “power beyond power”. The mountain starts to crumble and the witches are swallowed up. Namor and Hulk use their bodies to shield Wong and Clea. Strange emerges victorious as Dormammu can’t summon the power to defeat him. Strange emerges from the portal just as it closes. Strange grabs Clea and Wong’s hands. Namor and Hulk dig their way out of the rubble.

Dr. Strange’s review: 9 out of 10

The scope of this story is huge. Strange vs. Dormammu how do you top that? Namor and Hulk even get to serve a purpose in this story instead of just being an additional impediment as they were in Marvel Feature #1. Buscema’s inks work so much better on Andru’s pencils to the point where they look like they were done by another penciller. Excellent art.

Title: “The Hidden World”

Note: This story is reprinted from the 1950’s and no credits are given for the story

A second moon creates an eclipse of the sun. Suddenly all the world’s water is sucked off the planet. Everywhere people are rocked by the effects. One of the representatives of the United Nations accuses Sub-Mariner of doing this.

Betty Dean, Namor’s only American friend, tells Namor that they are accusing him. Namor goes outside and digs a hole. He hits water and the water rockets off the ground carrying Namor with it. Namor meets some aliens. They tell Namor that the Earth will get all it’s water back as soon as their planet passes out of Earth’s orbit. Namor tells them to keep it all as revenge against those that accused him of taking it. Sometime later Namor realizes that without water all his people will die too. He tells the aliens to send the water back, but now the aliens want to keep it. Namor starts fighting. Namor enters the water and releases a flood valve that sends him and the water back to Earth.

Dumb Magician’s Review: Again the art is really pretty cool, but the story is almost gibberish.