Happy Friday, folks!
It's time for me to talk about the thirty-fifth issue of Marvel Two-In-One. The cover showed the Thing dispatching baddies alongside Skull the Slayer. The tale was titled "Enter: Skull the Slayer and Exit: the Thing!" The issue had a publication date of January 1978.
The story started in Cape Canaveral, Florida. Ben Grimm had recently returned from London, England, and had been recruited because of his experience as a test pilot to fly a new experimental vessel to the Bermuda Triangle. Grimm agreed to the mission and soon found his craft ensnared by a giant flying dinosaur.
The ship soared through a vortex and wound up in a land full of prehistoric creatures. Ben had no idea where or when he was, but there were others below who would enter the fray. Skull the Slayer (real name: Jim Scully) and his companions were engaged in a conflict with a mad priest. The Americans wound up in this predicament after their plane journeyed to the same unexpected destination some time before.
Skull's comrades, Jeff Turner, Ann Farrow Reynolds, and Raymond Cory, had been tied to a column, which left their friend all alone to face their foe. That is, until their enemy's dinosaur returned with Ben's plane clasped in its jaws. Grimm emerged from the experimental craft after the beast set it down, and he was recognized almost immediately by one of the captives.
It didn't take Ben long to sort out the good versus bad, and he went to fight the priest's warriors. Facing the priest himself proved to be a bit more of a challenge, but the strongest member of the Fantastic Four found a way to ascend the stone stairs before the temple started to collapse. He helped Scully free his partners before more of the priest's men were upon them.
Skull was wanted for murder back home, although his comrades knew that the death of Scully's brother was an accident. They were more than willing to assist him in overcoming the onrushing natives. After the battle, Scully introduced himself and his companions to Grimm, and explained where they were and how they'd arrived there.
Grimm's plane might be the answer to their problem, but it would need a bit of work first. An idea was shared to use the craft that Jim and his crew had arrived in to repair the jet. The plan was agreed upon, but now they had to reach the downed aircraft. The journey proved to be difficult, as several dinosaurs got in their way.
Ben and Jim led the way once more, but just when they thought they were free and clear, things turned from bad to worse. They had no sooner escaped a large dinosaur and dove into the water, when they surfaced to find four more dinosaurs staring down at them. It seemed as if the goal might be almost impossible at that point.
Skull the Slayer was a title that ran for eight issue before being cancelled. It was an interesting premise, one that was popular at the time because people were always wondering about the Bermuda Triangle and making all kinds of wild theories as to what really happened in that area. It's a good book, but I can see that it probably suffered from low readership/subscriptions and changing creative teams.
Aside from this two-part story, Scully doesn't appear in very many Marvel comics afterward. He hasn't been featured in any Marvel issues since 2015. That's a shame, because I felt that a limited series or a brief run in a tryout mag like Marvel Comics Presents or something similar might bring back fans of his old series or introduce him to new readers.
If you want to find out what happened to Ben and company, tune in tomorrow for my synopsis of the thirty-sixth issue of Marvel Two-In-One. Grimm, Skull, and the rest of the gang in the unknown Bermuda Triangle region will be featured, along with another member of Ben's regular team. Until then, have a great week and don't forget to be kind to one another.
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