Comic Book Review: Man-Thing by Steve Gerber: The Complete Collection Vol. 1 by various creators
You may have heard a story like this before. A biochemist working for a secret agency develops a chemical that evil people want to steal. They come to his place in the swamp, and he winds up with the serum inside him, and burning, he plunges into the murky slime. Remarkably he does not die, but some combination of the chemicals, the matter of the swamp and mystic forces causes him to become a being more plant than man, a Man-Thing!
In this case, the scientist is Theodore “Ted” Sallis, the swamp is the Florida Everglades, the chemical was meant to create super-soldiers that could breathe polluted air, the government agency was S.H.I.E.L.D., the criminals were A.I.M., and Ted’s lover Ellen was the one who had betrayed him.
This swamp creature’s origin/first adventure first appeared in Savage Tales as a backup to Conan the Barbarian. Per Wikipedia, the very basic idea came from Stan Lee, Len Wein did the detailed plot, and Gerry Conway did the final script. The art and Man-Thing’s distinctive appearance were created by Gray Morrow. A second story was mostly completed, but the magazine was cancelled before it could be published.
Instead, it was incorporated into Astonishing Tales #12 as a flashback within a Ka-Zar story. Ka-Zar, basically Marvel’s answer to Tarzan, was called in by SHIELD scientist Bobbi Morse (later code-named Mockingbird) to investigate the disappearance of Ted Sallis. He and Man-Thing initially clash, but Ka-Zar quickly realizes that AIM (Advanced Idea Mechanics) are the real villains here, and they end up destroying the baddies’ secret base together. Ka-Zar strongly suspects Man-Thing and Ted Sallis are connected somehow, but never finds out how.
Man-Thing then moved into a solo series in Adventure Into Fear #10. But it was #11 when he was first written by Steve Gerber, who would become the writer most associated with Man-Thing. Mr. Gerber had a distinctive authorial voice even in this first work for Marvel. This issue introduced Jennifer Kale, a teenage girl who wanted to dabble in magic, and accidentally summoned the Nether-Spawn called Thog. (Basically a demon.)
This kicks off a longer arc about the swamp near Citrusville, Florida being the Nexus of Realities, a place where it’s easier to get from one dimension to another, but due to disturbances in the flow, those realities are getting jumbled, converging and colliding.
But Steve Gerber was also interested in the social issues of the 1970s. #12 is a standalone about a black fugitive being pursued by a racist sheriff. Man-Thing’s empathetic abilities draw him to the fugitive’s side, but the situation is more complex than first presented and there’s no good guy here. It’s also the issue that debuts the classic line “for whatever knows fear…BURNS at the Man-Thing’s touch!”
#14 introduces Dakihm the Enchanter, a slippery mage who is on the good side. Probably. It’s interesting how he always disappears when things get rough. He eventually becomes Jennifer’s teacher in the mystic arts.
#16 starts another long plot thread involving the construction company of F.A. Schist which has been hired to drain the swamp and build an airport. Despite their boss’ bad guy name, only some of the construction workers are outright evil. Many of them are just working stiffs who need the money to feed their families, and callous towards the damage they might be doing to the ecosphere.
#17 introduces Wundarr, Steve Gerber’s Superman homage. Wundarr’s father was a scientist who discovered that the planet Dakkam’s sun was about to go nova. The authorities rejected his findings, so he built a rocket ship to carry his infant son to Earth. During the launch, Wundarr’s parents were killed by government troops to avoid society being disturbed. (It would later be discovered that the calculations were incorrect and Dakkam’s sun failed to go nova. But too late now.)
Upon arriving on Earth, two elderly Floridians see the rocket landing, but fearing alien attack, chose to ignore it. So Wundarr grew to physical adulthood, nourished by the ship’s systems, but without any education. So when Man-Thing wrecks the rocket and releases Wundarr, it’s a superpowered young man with the mind of a toddler that is unleashed on the world.
A quick side trip to Marvel Two-In-One #1, in which Ben Grimm and Ted Sallis (temporarily returned to humanity) fight the Molecule Master’s son. This is where someone actually learns that Ted Sallis and the Man-Thing are the same person for the first time.
Adventure Into Fear #18 is another one-shot about five survivors of a car-bus collision trying to make it across the swamp with the partial assistance of Man-Thing. Politics and personal flaws doom several of them.
#19 starts the climax of the Nexus of Realities story, introducing Korrek the Barbarian and fan favorite Howard the Duck, who is a “funny animal” from a world where talking ducks are normal. Howard doesn’t stick around long, but popped back up later to be another Steve Gerber classic. This arc wraps up in The Man-Thing #1 as the much monster got his own title.
#2 introduces perpetual loser and radio personality Richard Rory, who gets stranded in the swamp when he runs out of gas, then gets involved with the troubles of Ruth, a “biker babe” fleeing her old gang and especially abusive ex Snake who framed her for stealing the gang’s money. The Man-Thing naturally gets mixed up in this. Meanwhile, F.A. Schist hires Hargood Wickham, known as Professor Slaughter, to come up with a way to kill the Man-Thing.
Dr. Wickham is…a little too enthusiastic about the horrific murder method he’s invented, which was rejected by the military as too inhumane even for them. He’s even found a way to cause enough pain to force Man-Thing to enter the deathtrap–Professor Slaughter relishes the thought of inflicting pain.
The plotlines collide, Snake inadvertently giving the Man-Thing a way to escape the trap, which also results in his own death after Rory proves Snake’s treachery.
#3 introduces Foolkiller, a religious fanatic who has appointed himself judge, jury and executioner of all “fools”, and has a grudge against Richard Rory, F.A. Schist and Ted Sallis, the last of whom he has independently realized is now the Man-Thing. This version of the character dies in this story, but several imitators would pop up.
Side trip to Monsters Unleashed #5, where Ted Sallis’ traitorous lover Ellen returns. At the end of the origin, she had her face horribly burned by the Man-Thing’s touch, and has since undergone extensive plastic surgery. Now she needs to confront her past before she can move on, even if that means facing the muck monster she helped create. This story was written by Jenny Blake Isabella, writing as Tony Isabella.
Man-Thing #5 & 6 have the “Night of the Laughing Dead” story in which the swamp creature, Rory and Ruth have to assist circus folk in a bizarre psychodrama to determine if a clown who committed suicide will be allowed into the afterlife. This story is very trippy, kind of profound, and had a massive impact on me as a teen.
#7 & 8 have the end of the F.A. Schist plotline. The 1973 Oil Crisis has put plans for a new airport on hold, so the draining of the swamp is no longer necessary. Schist confides to Wickham that he had another motive for being so fanatical about the project. He’s narrowed down rumors of the Fountain of Youth to this area, and had hoped to find it. The two bad men decide to do one last search before leaving.
As it happens, the inhabitants of La Hacienda have been looking for the Man-Thing for…reasons. And this leads Schist to their hideout. Turns out the Fountain of Youth is very real. But there is, as you might expect, a catch or two. Man-Thing must give up its chance of being returned to humanity to defeat Schist once and for all.
Which is as good a place as any for this volume to end.
The Man-Thing, unlike DC Comics’ Swamp Thing created about the same time (both drawing heavily from earlier comics character The Heap) did not possess human intelligence, only vague half-memories and instinct. and could sense emotions and the general “vibe” of an area or person. Thus most of its stories aren’t really about the Man-Thing as such, but the characters around the Man-Thing, acting as a catalyst or force of nature to advance their plotlines and character development.
There’s some excellent art here, most commonly by Mike Ploog.
Some of the “issues” writing is dated, and the purple prose can get a little turgid.
Content note: Murder, suicide, violence in general. Man-Thing frequently kills alligators and snakes. Body horror. Threats of sexual assault, some characters clearly are having extramarital sex (usually consensual.) Racism, sexism. Children in peril. Bullying. Most teens should be able to handle this.
This volume is a must have for Steve Gerber fans or folks who really are into Man-Thing. The more casual fan might want to check it out at the library before deciding to spend money on it.
