Good morning,
Hope all's well with everyone. I'm starting the day with a recap of the ninety-fifth issue of Marvel Two-In-One. The cover depicted Ben Grimm and the Living Mummy battling several large green snakes, with a trio of unidentified people behind them. The story was called "The Power to Live...The Power to Die!... The issue had a publication date of January 1983.
The tale began at Alicia Masters' studio apartment in New York. Her boyfriend Grimm (aka the Thing) had intercepted a package delivery for her. As Alicia opened the box, Ben read the inscription on the included card. It mentioned becoming a new powerful Egyptian god. Inside the box was an ornate headdress. Once Masters donned it, she started to glow and seemed to be under the influence of the strange hat.
Alicia exclaimed that she was the new bride of Nephrus, and a beam emitted from the headpiece knocked Grimm across the room. She swore his death if he continued to intervene in the activities of immortals. Ben recovered, but by the time he left the apartment, Alicia was nowhere in sight.
He decided to get a little insight on the situation by visiting the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The Thing arrived at the ancient Egyptian exhibit, where he was met by a curator named Lillian Temple-Worth. She initially rebuffed Ben, but changed her mind after showing him a picture of the headdress that Alicia now wore. Temple-Worth then showed Grimm a photo of Gamal Hassan, the man who had stolen that artifact from the museum.
Ben had never seen the man before. Lillian replied that he'd been her superior before going off on his quest for a power stone that Hassan was certain had belonged to his Egyptian ancestors many years ago. By then, Alicia had arrived at the New York harbor and used the headdress's power to transform an ordinary-looking boat into a historic-looking skimmer that she flew off in as Ben was convincing Lillian that they needed to go to Egypt to address the threat.
In that very land, the figure known as the Living Mummy sat alone. He thought about some of his many adventures over the years. He'd survived for three thousand years and continued on to pursue power. He was determined to either live as a man once more or die so that his abnormal imitation of life would finally cease.
As he sat, the mummy noticed a caravan carrying a chariot that bore Alicia and Gamal. They were heading to a small dwelling nearby, one that Hassan was convinced contained within it the secret to immortality. They came across the building, which was supposedly constructed by Nephrus himself. Once they disembarked, Hassan bid Alicia to eliminate their servants, so they could continue on in peace.
While Hassan began his search with the aid of the purloined crown of Hathor that Alicia wore, Ben and Lillian were busy acquiring supplies in a local town. This included a pair of camels, who were initially a bit reluctant to obey the whims of their new owners. Ben fought off a few invaders before the duo rode off into the desert.
At the same time, Alicia and Gamal entered the temple to find the spirit gem of Nephrus. Hassan stood guard while Masters searched and dispatched defenses upon seeing the pair of camel riders. The cannons were somewhat effective against Ben and Lillian, but he hadn't counted on the Living Mummy's intervention.
The mummy entered the room where Hassan was watching the heroes and demanded that Nephrus make him human. Gamal fled, leaving the Living Mummy to look for the same power source that Masters and Hassan were searching for. Alicia eventually uncovered the stone, which Gamal grabbed and brought toward his chest.
As Ben and Lillian were wandering the tents surrounding the small domicile, the mummy emerged from one of them moments before the newly powered Gamal and Alicia burst into view. Grimm threw the first stone before Hassan, with the spirit of Nephrus inhabiting him, relished the thought of facing his old enemy N'Kantu (the Living Mummy) again after many long years.
Hassan was about to fire a beam at the Thing before Temple-Worth jumped forward holding a mirror, which reflected the bolt back at the villain. He was temporarily incapacitated, and the Living Mummy moved closer to him. Lillian tossed an electrical cable at Alicia, which severed her link with the helmet.
Masters was back to her old self again. Temple-Worth brought her to Ben, right before the mummy and his longtime rival renewed their centuries-old rivalry. Ben interfered, tearing down a stone pillar that he hurled at Hassan. His foe used his supernatural abilities to transmute arrows into large snakes at the mummy. Lillian advised Alicia to use the crown she wore against their common foe. She used it to fire a beam at Hassan, which cleaved the jewel from his chest.
Gamal fell to the sand below, and the gem landed in one of Ben's mighty palms. Hassan pleaded for its return, but soon disintegrated into dust after Ben crushed the jewel in his hand. Grimm held Masters close to him, as Lillian looked on and the Living Mummy wandered off on his own, knowing that part of his past was permanently over.
I don't know much about the Living Mummy, but I have read a few of Marvel's other monster titles from the 1970s. I guess this was a bit of closure for that character. He would return again from time to time, but this was a satisfying single-issue story that ended a threat before it could have had far-reaching repercussions across the entire world.
That's it for now. Later today, I'll discuss the seventh and final Marvel Two-In-One annual for this series' run. The Thing joins several other similarly strong adventurers in a battle royale against an intergalactic menace. Until then, have a great Sunday and don't forget to be kind to one another.
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