1987: The Dreadful Druid part II: The Doctor Is In Over His Head

By Jef Willemsen (clarmindcontrol.blogspot.com)

The year is 1987 and thanks to their newest member, Earth's mightiest were about to become Earth's most diverse heroes as well. That is, if you consider adding a balding white guy in a cape diversity. Don't worry if you don't... Doctor Druid will literally change your mind. 

Who will lead the Avengers?

A fair question. After an extended tenure as chairperson, the Wasp officially stepped down in Avengers I#279. Exhausted following the Masters of Evil's recent, devastating invasion of Avengers Mansion, Janet van Dyne was in desperate need of a break. Doctor Druid was the one who helped her decide to resign, thereby cleverly creating a slot in the roster he could fill.

"On to new business! I invited Doctor Druid to be here today"

With Jan gone, the obvious question was who would replace her. Normally, with founders like Thor and Captain America on the team, the answer would be easy. Either one of them would step up, but this time around, Cap was too wrapped up in his own affairs and Thor was secretly a cripple after the vindictive Norse goddess of death cursed him. His bones had become so brittle, the only thing keeping him going was the elaborate Asgardian armor he's wearing.

Instead, Captain Marvel gets the nomination much to her own surprise. Not to mention Druid's!

"If only new members were allowed to take office during their probationary period...
But, no matter... I shall bide my time." 

... Talk about major foreshadowing, even if writer Roger Stern wasn't planning on turning Druid into the deluded, manipulating mastermind he would turn out to be. In fact, Stern has gone on record to state his original plans for Druid were to have him be a cultured, somewhat pompous and self important elder statesman of the superhero scene. He planned to pattern him after major Charles Winchester III, the snobby surgeon played by David Ogden Stiers on the classic comedy M*A*S*H*.
Visually, there are certain undeniable similarities...

But while Winchester often found himself the butt of the joke because of his snootiness, Doctor Druid went the other way and proved to be something of a cruel practical joker. For instance, in Avengers I#279 he used his mental powers to make the unsuspecting She-Hulk believe Hydrobase was attacked by Gorgilla, a monster he'd once encountered when he was still Dr. Droom. Oh, what fun!

"No good will come of this... I just know it!"

Yeah, definitely not the kind of stunt to pull during your probationary period. And I'm not just talking about parading around the beach in bright orange speedos. Still, Druid proved to be a welcome addition to the team because of his unique abilities. For the first time, the Avengers had a member skilled in telepathy and mysticism. That added a totally new flavor to the book and the team dynamic...

All that didn't amount to a hill of beans when the Grandmaster used the Avengers and their west coast counterparts during the 1987 annuals. Over the course of the adventure, Druid had two major fights: one against Tigra and a little while later he faced Dracula. Though his fellow Avengers could sniff out Druid's illusions, she was no match for his hypnotic mind power.

As for Druid versus the undead vampire king...

*KRACK*

Druid fared slightly better in the Avengers versus X-Men limited series published that same year. He tricked the Soviet Super Soldiers into believing the X-Men were the Avengers and he even succeeded in infiltrating the mutant team when they managed to escape with Magneto, who the Avengers were tasked to bring in for trial.

"I have managed to mentally screen my presence from them so far...
But I cannot do so indefinitely."

Very true, he was discovered and taken captive in the next issue, but not before his astral form mentally contacted his teammates which led to the eventual capture of Magneto. So, Druid's earliest outings showed him to be a pretty handy guy to have around. Let's see how he did on his first proper mission with the team in their own book. In Avengers I#281, the team is called in to investigate the disappearance of Hercules, who at the time was still comatose and hospitalized after the Masters of Evil almost beat him to death. His sudden departure baffles them too, until Thor spots someone and rushes off without bothering to explain who he's chasing and why.

"The public shouldn't see the Avengers discuss internal matters...
If nothing else, it's bad form"

Lines like that clearly show what Stern was trying to do with Druid: slightly haughty and devoted to decorum, the good doctor uses his powers to hypnotize half of downtown Manhattan. It's best not to wonder why unsuspecting New Yorkers weren't bumping into the now invisible giant crate She-Hulk was lugging around. Speaking of She-Hulk, while the others discuss Thor's possible motives, she  decides to get some ice cream from a nearby street vendor... Only to get the worst possible case of blood sugar rage.

Turns out the friendly vendor was the Greek god Dionysus who scooped her up some elixir of frenzy. The Avengers tried to slap some sense into the now murderously furious She-Hulk, but when she remained a raging loon even after Captain Marvel's shock therapy, it was time for Druid to try his headgames on her.

                                             "This Doctor Druid is quite talented..."

I'll say. But this wasn't a fight the Avengers were supposed to win. Not yet, anyway. Turns out Hercules had been taken to Olympus by the fleet footed Hermes under orders from Zeus who blamed the Avengers for his son's injuries. That's why he sent his other children to Earth to capture the heroes in preparation for their Olympian trial. But that didn't mean ol' Dionysus couldn't have a little fun along the way.

"Hard as nails despite his rotundity"

In the end, the team is captured, brought before Zeus and quickly sentenced to suffer for all eternity (or as long as they live) in Pluto's Hades. The Avengers would probably still be there, if Zeus hadn't made the mistake of going after Namor the Sub-Mariner. Why? Well, though absent during the Mansion Siege, he was still on the roster at the time and technically counts as an active Avenger... Boy, for a god that liked to turn into a bull to impregnate women, that Zeus is quite the stickler for technicalities.

Namor is captured by Poseidon in Avengers I#282, and delivered to Hades as well. There, he quickly escapes and with a little help from the mankind loving Titan Prometheus finds out his teammates are being held in fortress Tartarus. Namor frees the Avengers who fight their way to Pluto's palace where Thor is being tortured by his old enemy Pluto. Druid does his part...

"I can still cut into their numbers"

Once they liberated Thor and pissed off Pluto, the team crossed into Olympus proper in Avengers I#283, fighting their way past a Centaur or two before Prometheus showed up again to inform them what Zeus was up to. Turns out he was still mad as heck at the heroes, especially because none of his attempts to heal Hercules were effective. Unsure what to do next, the Avengers decided to try and convince the other Greek gods of their innocence so they might try and intercede on their behalf. While Aphrodite was receptive, her brother Hephaestus was decidedly less eager to hear the heroes out. The god of blacksmiths even sent his golden girls after the Avengers. 

"... No psyches to be deceived by my mental illusions!"

Here's where Stern showed the audience that Druid was more than a Uri Geller knock-off in a bedsheet. Not only did Druid defeat the golden warriors by telekinetically tossing them in Hephaestus' nearby foundry, he even showed off his powers of levitation when the foundry was smashed and the place got flooded in liquid metal. Clearly, Druid's mental mastery was on full display and he wasn't done!

"Let your mind join mine... let me show you the way back!" 

After Aphrodite helped convince Hephaestus of the Avengers'  good intentions, the two gods make sure the team gets to Apollo's temple where Hercules is being treated. However, Ares spots the heroes and runs off to tell Zeus who arrives right in the middle of Doctor Druid's mental probe. Now, before you ask why Druid didn't try this back when Hercules was still in the hospital... Because that would have eliminated the need for this awesome story. Even in good storytelling, logic sometimes has to take a backseat. 

Avengers I#283 ends with a furious Zeus unleashing his signature lightning bolts at them. This attack seriously injures both Captain America and Doctor Druid, but as the opening pages of the next issue show: Prometheus is on the scene to take care of them. Teaming up with Zeus' wife Hera, he has Hermes take the injured off the battlefield and when they come to, they're surprised to find the Wasp there as well. Janet van Dyne had been taken during her holiday, as part of Zeus' completist kick that resulted in Namor being there. Cap and Druid literally remain on the sidelines as Prometheus tries to heal Hercules... However, that results in him reviving in a delusional, hopping mad state.

So, head injury or not...

"TRICKS! You play tricks with m-m-mind!" 

When even a brain damaged dimwit as Hercules catches on to your shtick, it's time to get a new act. Still, Druid's desperate attempts at calming the maddened Hercules in Avengers I#285 proved that he wasn't a coward, But does it make him a hero? Did he act because people's lives were in danger or did he intervene because he'd be a dead man if he sat this one out? We'll never know for sure and the point is moot anyway. 

Druid is unable to stop Hercules who stumbles out into Olympus and happens to come across the Avengers who were fighting Zeus. When the all father accidentally strikes his now ambulatory offspring, he calms down and listens to what Hercules has to say about the Avengers. After a serious attitude adjustment, Zeus extends the proverbial olive branch and the Avengers bathe in the lap of Olympian luxury for a few days, with Apollo healing Druid and Captain America in the process. Then, they're returned home and all seems right in the world...

Only it isn't, as we'll see in part III of The Dreadful Druid: The Doctor is Insurrection Bound

Doctor Strange vs. Dracula by Norm Breyfogle

1987 - Marvel Graphic Novel - Dracula: A Symphony On Moonlight And Nightmares by Jon J. Muth.

Some Great Spooky Halloween Reads From The 1980s

Here's a handful of great horror reads from the 1980s.

Captain America vs. Baron Blood by John Byrne and Roger Stern

Captain America #253-254

Daredevil #208 by Harlan Ellison and David Mazzuchelli

Dracula vs the X-Men

Uncanny X-Men #158 and Annual #8 by Chris Claremont and Bill Sienkiwicz

Doctor Strange vs Dracula - Montessi Formula

Doctor Strange #58-63 by Roger Stern and Dan Green

Thor vs Dracula

The Mighty Thor #332-333, by Alan Zelenetz, Bob Hall, and Vince Colletta

Doctor Strange and Doctor Doom - Triumph and Torment Graphic Novel

by Roger Stern, Mike Mignola, and Mark Badger

Moon Knight vs The Werewolf By Night

Moon Knight #29-30 by Doug Moench and Bill Sienkiewicz

Marvel Classic Comics

Classic 1970s Monsters by John Byrne

From the collection of Clint Ludwick.

Happy Halloween!

1981: The Defenders Go Demonic Part II: Night of the Geriatric Gargoyle

By Jef Willemsen (clarmindcontrol.blogspot.com)

In the second part of The Defenders Go Demonic, the mysterious Six Fingered Hand slowly made a fist as the team gained an unlikely new member, while two of their oldest are forever changed after feeling the touch of darkness. All that and a popular sucker too!

For the past several issues, incoming Defenders-writer J.M. DeMatteis had the team teleporting around the world in an attempt to deal with the constant threat of enemies. Their adventures made them unaware of a growing darkness that had been slowly gathering its forces… Issue # 94 finally revealed what the team was going up against, just as longtime Defender Hellcat fell prey to their influence.

The last issue ended with the Defenders in London, dealing with Namor’s latest invasion attempt. But the minute they received word Hellcat was in trouble, Doctor Strange teleported himself, Daimon Hellstrom and Valkyrie to the small town of Montclair, New Jersey. Patsy had been staying at her late mother’s house to sort out her affairs.

Searching the ruins, the Defenders discovered Patsy’s housekeeper Dolly Donahue, who despite her severe injuries, rather conveniently, filled them in on what had happened.

After getting Dolly  medical attention, the three remaining Defenders finally took a moment to compare notes. Daimon Hellstrom finally filled in Doctor Strange about the evil he had been aware of.

Apparently, six relatively minor demons had joined forces as the Six Fingered Hand, proving that even in hell there was strength in numbers. This Six Fingered Hand was responsible for Patsy’s disappearance and the Defenders used their unique talents to trace the Hand’s eldritch energies back to its source.

While doing so, Doctor Strange’s astral form even briefly returned home to check in with Clea…  Eventually, they tracked their foe to the quiet town of Christiansboro, Virginia. But, as Clea got ready to tend to the recently paralyzed Nighthawk, she made a disturbing discovery herself…

Completely unaware of all the Clea subplot, the Defenders travelled (again via teleportation) to Christiansboro to find the town deserted. Making their way towards the center, they are besieged by a horde of demons. However, their ringleader is rather familiar…

As the remarkably well-spoken demon attacked the Defenders, everyone noticed the shimmering lights emanating from Christianboro city hall, signalling the final surprise guest in this little drama.

Yup… the Gargoyle who abducted Patsy was working for Avarrish, one of the Six Fingered Hand. The demon turned the carefree young woman into a true Hellcat. In an interview with writer J.M. DeMatteis remarked on this rather sudden change: “It was a way to take Patsy down an intense, character-revealing road; a way to dig deeper into her character, to turn her relationship with Hellstrom on its head, and a perfect piece of manipulation…”

A manipulation… On whose part? Nahh, that would be telling.

The Defenders fought their former teammate, but she gained the upper hand because they couldn’t  hurt a creature they still considered to be Patsy. Thankfully, all hope wasn’t lost… A point Valkyrie hammered home when she went head-to-head with her former best friend…

Confronted with the undying love Valkyrie felt for Patsy, Hellcat suffered a severe case of identity crisis. In the end, Patsy won out and remained a Hellcat in name only. With Avarrish gone, that still left one question unanswered…

Who was that eloquent Gargoyle that had abducted Patsy? The Christiansboro townsfolk knew the answer. It could be none other than their resident demonologist, former mayor and local curmudgeon Isaac Christiaans… a man so dedicated to keeping his beloved hometown prosperous he’d sell his soul to the devil… and, as Doctor Strange and the others realized once they entered Isaac’s home and literally shed some light on the matter… he went the proverbial extra mile…

After some initial mistrust, both Doctor Strange and Hellstrom recognized a deep, inherent sense of goodness within Isaac, who wanted to help stop the Six Fingered Hand… even though he didn’t know what they were up to.

DeMatteis revealed he was especially fond of the Gargoyle. And rightly so, after all by 1981 there weren’t that many kind, elderly gentlemen who turned to super heroics after being trapped in a demon’s body.  

Or, as the author put it himself: “(Gargoyle was)… This horrific, demonic figure that’s really this sweet, gentle old man.  Don Perlin came up with a great design for the character and, as the storyline progressed, Gargoyle became more and more important to the team.  I loved that character; in fact the Gargoyle mini-series I did with Mark Badger remains one of my favorite projects out of all the stories I’ve done for mainstream Marvel.”

While the Gargoyle joined the Defenders, their recently rescued member Hellcat revealed why the Six Fingered Hand were out to get her, by dropping another bombshell…

Promised? Promised by whom?

Turned out that Patsy’s recently deceased mother Dorothy had promised her daughter to the demon Avarrish… While this came out of left field, let’s not forget her mother had been relentlessly pushing Patsy to become a success as soon as she learned to walk.

Actively trying to make money off her daughter through comics and other publications (as documented in pre-Marvel continuity) it wasn’t unthinkable that Dorothy could made a deal with Avarrish (read: avarice) to stay in the limelight some more.

Speaking of light, that was the last thing the guest star in issue # 95 needed…

Teleporting home from Christiansboro, the Defenders were in for another surprise as they discovered Nighthawk is back in action. A fact that startled Clea as well, by the way.

Yes, for some unknown reason the previously paralyzed Nighthawk had regained the full range of his mobility once the sun set. An unexpected development for the character, but as writer J.M. DeMatteis explained, it also made more than a little sense: “I think I was playing to his name:  ‘Night’-hawk.  Thus he only functioned at night.  During the day he was paralyzed and when the sun went down he came alive.  I thought it was a fun idea.  I still do.  Whether I executed it well is another story!”

Before they were grasped the consequences of these changes in Nighthawk, let alone planned their next move against the Six Fingered Hand, another enemy barged into Strange’s Sanctum Sanctorum…

Yup, that’s the original vampyr, straight from downtown Transylvania… Ladies and gentleman, please welcome Vlad “show me your impaler”… Dracula! However, despite throwing around the Defenders with shocking ease, Daimon Hellstrom soon realized Dracula wasn’t himself… he was being controlled by demons. 

Luckily, Hellstrom’s trident is always ready to perform an exorcism…

How the lord of all things undead still had a soul to control was never explained. Fact remained that the Six Fingered Hand had plans with the vampire population, but no hopes of swaying the undead while Dracula still ruled them. That’s why one of the Hand, the demon Puisshant, empowered the lowly vampire Gordski to betray his master.

Hoping this betrayal would make him puissantly powerful (notice a theme here?), Gordski agreed to Puisshant’s wishes and sent out a possessed Dracula to kill the Defenders. The demon cabal assumed this ploy would lead to an altercation in which both their enemies would perish…. However, once recovered, Dracula joined forces with the Defenders and travelled back with them to his castle to settle some scores…

For those of you keeping score at home, yes… Doctor Strange once again bowed to circumstance and teleported the heroes, ignoring his own rules and predictions that using so powerful and volatile a spell could have grave consequences in the long run.

However, no one had any time to fully contemplate the implication of the mage’s continued abuse of the inter-dimensional space/time continuum… Especially after the castle gates opened and the six superheroes found themselves overwhelmed by surge after surge of undead warriors pouring from castle Dracula.

Just as all hope seemed lost, Daimon Hellstrom saved the day... Literally. Using a powerful incantation, the son of Satan controlled time itself and forced night to give way to the light of day. Exposed to the sun's rays, the vampire armies  turned to dust. Dracula would have been among the victims, if Hellstrom hadn't told him to take cover. A decision that baffled his fellow teammates.

With Gordski dead, well, dead-er… Puisshant was rendered powerless without a host… Dracula resumed control of his castle and the surviving vampires, while after losing both Avarrish and Puisshant the Six Fingered Hand was left with four viable members… But that didn’t mean they wouldn’t go out swinging…

More on that in part III of The Defenders Go Demonic: “Demonic Ditties versus Semi-Seraphimic Saviors”