Retro Comic Recap: Marvel Two-In-One #22

Hello there,

Today's topic is the twenty-second issue of Marvel Two-In-One. The cover showed the Thing and the mighty Thor battling an army of skeleton warriors with an unidentified villain gloating in the background. The tale was titled "Touch Not the Hand of Seth!" The issue had a cover date of December 1976.

The story started with Ben, Johnny Storm (aka the Human Torch), and Janice Lightner huddled together before the form of Janice's brother Thomas, who had engaged the Fantastic Four members and others in his identity of Blacksun in the previous issue. The unconscious form before them didn't move.

Although they'd just fought him not long before, Ben and Johnny knew they had to do something to help Thomas. Johnny used his flame powers to send bursts of concentrated heat at the body in front of him. They weren't sure if his efforts were effective, but thankfully, Johnny knew the name of a physician that the Avengers trusted.

That man was Doctor Don Blake, who was focused on an urgent surgical procedure at the moment. His presence was detected by a cloaked stranger, who stepped out of the hospital elevator and immediately demanded to see the doctor. She was scared enough to fall down. Her scream brought other medical personnel to the front desk, only to be accosted by the intruder.

The masked man then burst into the operating room, still insisting on seeing Blake. He encountered more resistance until he broke through the windows that overlooked the surgical chamber. Fortunately, Blake and his associates were able to wheel their patient to safety. Once he was finally alone, Blake took his walking stick and tapped it on the ground to transform into the Avenger Thor.

Thor's mighty Mjolnir whirled in the air, revealing that the stranger was the Egyptian god of death (last seen in issue numbers 240 and 241 of the Asgardian's own mag). Meanwhile, the Thing and the Torch were traveling with the Lightners via Fantasticar to the same hospital where Thor's confrontation was taking place. Ben landed the craft perfectly on the roof, and the trio walked in, carrying Thomas as they went. 

 None of them expected the chaos that they found inside the building. Grimm grabbed one of the fleeing employees, and learned that Blake had disappeared and that Thor had arrived minutes later. Thor was still locked in battle with his one-handed foe. Seth had his eyes set on revenge for the loss of his right hand (during combat with Thor's father Odin) and the imprisonment of his brother.

Once Thomas Lightner was secure with Johnny and Janice, Ben went to investigate the source of all the commotion. He burst through a wall and launched a few blows at Seth. The angered god soon opened a portal between Earth and his native Heliopolis, unleashing a horde of skeleton soldiers at his enemies. 

This was the first chapter of a two-part epic. I'm not a huge fan of Marvel's Thor, but I can appreciate and enjoy some of his tales obtained from a comic book store's discount bin. One of the earlier issues from my collection was part of Thor's earlier meeting with Seth, so of course I found this Bill Mantlo-penned script interesting. My only question was how or if Blacksun would be connected with all the goings on in this issue. 

Next time, I'll cover the conclusion of this saga, which was published in the twenty-third issue of Marvel Two-In-One. We'll see how the Avenger and FF members fared against the undead forces, and learn what other suprises the villain had in store for our heroes. Until then, have a great week and don't forget to be kind to one another.