Giant-Size Avengers #3
… What TIME Hath put Asunder!
Lost in the catacombs beneath the castle of Immortus in Limbo, Mantis has found the Vision. He has been gravely wounded and is on death’s door. He tells her how he just clashed with the Flying Dutchman, a wraith with similar intangibility powers to his own. Although the Vision could not harm his opponent, the Dutchman was able to cause severe internal damage to his body. Becoming delirious from the pain, the Vision thinks he is speaking to the Scarlet Witch. Mantis is suddenly ambushed by Midnight, as the ninja seeks to have a rematch with her. This time he comes at her with throwing stars and nunchucks. However, even though her opponent is armed, Mantis is able to easily disarm him in combat. She manages to catch Midnight in her death grip and squeezes him into unconsciousness. With the battle over, Mantis discovers that someone has made off with the Vision.
The Vision was taken by the Frankenstein’s Monster who has been drawn to the android as if sensing that they are both synthetic men created by science. As the monster shambles down a hallway he is unaware that he is being spied upon by Hawkeye. He debates going after them, but after Iron Man was killed by the Human Torch, he decides to go looking for Mantis and Thor, hoping that they might be alive to avenge their fallen comrades.
Elsewhere in the labyrinth, Kang leads the rest of his Legion of the Unliving: Baron Zemo, Wonder Man, and the Human Torch. Zemo is starting to shake off the effects of Kang’s mind control and begins bickering with the time-master and threatening to replace him as a leader. Kang sends Wonder Man and the Torch off to find the remaining Avengers. With them gone, Kang warns the Nazi scientist that if he continues to disobey him, Zemo will be returned to the moment of his death.[1] In yet another part of the tunnels, Thor continues his search for his comrades. He comes upon Iron Man’s dead body and tries in vain to resuscitate him. When this fails, Thor becomes enraged and vows to destroy Kang to avenge his fallen comrade.
Back on Earth, the star signaling the coming of the Celestial Madonna continues to shine high above Avengers Mansion. When the police arrive looking for the Avengers, Jarvis tells them that other than the Scarlet Witch, who has been training with Agatha Harkness, the rest of the team is not home. The officer then relays a message from the police commissioner. He tells Jarvis that Libra, one of the Zodiac Cartel, has mysteriously broken out of his cell.[2] Jarvis decides to interrupt Wanda’s training to tell her what happened. However, when he knocks at the door, Wanda — in a menacing voice — warns the butler to go far away if he values his life, leaving Jarvis to wonder what has befallen her.[3]
While in Limbo, Wonder Man and the Human Torch continue their search for the remaining Avengers. The longer they are away from Kang, the more they are regaining their free will. This has caused Wonder Man to start questioning their mission, dismissing the Vision as a worthless android. An android himself, this angers the Torch who warns him to watch what he says.[4] That’s when they run into the Frankenstein’s Monster, who is still carrying the Vision’s body. When Wonder Man tries to finish off the android, the monster speaks for the first time, warning Wonder Man not to touch the Vision. Wonder Man has had enough and takes off to find the others, leaving the monster and the Torch behind. The Human Torch convinces Frankenstein’s Monster to set the Vision down so he can examine his fellow android and is shocked by what he has discovered.[5]
Elsewhere in the tunnels, Kang has gotten fed up with Baron Zemo’s constant bickering and sends him off to guard the throne room where he has imprisoned both Rama-Tut and Immortus.[6] No sooner is Baron Zemo gone that Kang is ambushed by Thor. The thunder god seeks to end Kang’s life but before he can kill the time traveler, Wonder Man arrives to save his master.[7] Unfortunately, Thor proves the stronger opponent, and rather than risk defeat, both Wonder Man and Kang flee. In order to bar Thor’s path, Wonder Man causes the tunnel to collapse.
Meanwhile, Hawkeye manages to find the throne room where Rama-Tut and Immortus are still being held prisoner. Rama-Tut quickly tells the archer how both he and Kang ended up here.[8] However, before he can free the two masters of time he is ambushed by Baron Zemo. Although Hawkeye manages to disarm his foe but makes the mistake of turning his back on the Nazi. While Hawkeye isn’t looking, Baron Zemo pulls out a paste gun and incapacitates Clint with Adhesive X. With their savior trapped, Immortus then decides to bargain with Zemo, telling the Baron that he can help the Nazi cheat death.
At that same moment, the Human Torch has determined that the Vision is him. Leaving him to wonder how he could be the Vision when he is supposed to be dead.[9] Back in the throne room, Immortus continues to distract Baron Zemo. This allows Hawkeye to string an arrow into his bow using his feet and teeth and prepares to make a 100-to-1 shot at the control panel that will free his allies. At that same moment, Thor manages to catch up to Kang and Wonder Man. Before another fight can break out, the Torch and the Frankenstein’s Monster also arrive and reveal that they have made some rudimentary repairs to the Vision. Although he cannot move his arms, the Vision is fully functional and willing to fight, despite his handicap. Simultaneously, Hawkeye makes his shot and frees the captive time-masters. Immortus then uses his powers to de-evolve Baron Zemo into a protoplasmic state. Meanwhile, Wonder Man attacks the Vision and Thor battles Kang.[9] While the Vision is able to defeat Wonder Man, Kang decides to retreat and vanishes into the timestream once again.
In the aftermath of the battle, the Vision reveals to Thor that his body was constructed from that of the Human Torch. This explains why the Vision had been freezing up in combat whenever around water or was at risk of being entombed.[11] This is because he was reliving past traumatic memories that dated back to the creation of the original Human Torch. When the Torch first came online he was imprisoned in concrete by his creator, and later trapped in a swimming pool by a mobster.[12]
As they try to make sense of this new mystery, all of the Avengers and Legion members find themselves teleported back into the throne room by Immortus. Immortus thanks the Avengers for freeing him by restoring Iron Man to life and repairing the Vision, he has the power to do so because Limbo is a timeless realm. He then returns all of the Legion of the Unliving to the points in history they were plucked from, even restoring Baron Zemo to human form and returning him to his fate.[13] After Rama-Tut returns to the time-stream, the Avengers are still left with questions about the origins of both Mantis and the Vision. As payment for their assistance, Immortus agrees to explain everything.[13]
Recurring Characters
Avengers (Iron Man, Thor, Hawkeye, Scarlet Witch, the Vision, Mantis), Kang, Immortus, Rama-Tut, the Legion of the Unliving (Baron Zemo, Wonder Man, Human Torch, Midnight, Frankenstein’s Monster, the Flying Dutchman), Edwin Jarvis, Libra, Space Phantoms (unidentified)
Continuity Notes
The members of the Legion of the Unliving were all plucked from time moments away from their alleged deaths, as detailed in Avengers #131. In the case of Zemo, he is very much dead having been killed during his final battle with Captain America in Avengers #15. For the others, the claims of “death” is a little more dubious, but we’ll get into that as we move along.
Libra willingly surrendered to the authorities in Avengers #125, after he told Mantis the truth about her past.
It’s later revealed in Giant-Size Avengers #4 that the Scarlet Witch is being enthralled by Dormammu.
Wonder Man mentions reading comic books about the Human Torch’s adventures here. The Torch responds that those were “just stories.” That is partially right. As detailed in Young Allies Comics 70th Anniversary Special #1, all Timely era stories were published as comic books that were based on real events. This is a means to maintain continuity while also side-stepping some of the dated aspects of older stories from the 40s and 50s.
He has discovered that the Vision’s components are the exact same as his own. This is because the Vision was created out of the original Torch’s body, as we’ll discover in Avengers #134-135.
Kang took over Immortus’ castle in Avengers #131.
Thor refers to Wonder Man as deceased. Per Avengers #9, the powers that Simon Williams was given to become Wonder Man were apparently killing him and he seemingly died helping the Avengers stop the Masters of Evil. What everyone doesn’t realize is that Williams did not die, but entered a death-like trance. He will turn up alive again in Avengers #151.
Kang and Rama-Tut ended up lost in the time stream in Giant-Size Avengers #2 and were rescued by Immortus in issue #131.
Ah, the ever confusing life of the Human Torch. As detailed in Avengers #134, the Human Torch’s power burned out in 1954 leaving him lost in the Nevada Desert. This is where Kang plucked him out of time in Avengers #131. When he is later returned to that moment, he will be uncovered in the Modern Age by the Mad Thinker who would revive the android to battle his foes, the Fantastic Four, in Fantastic Four Annual #4. Rendered inert there, the Torch’s is body would later be recovered by Ultron to be used in his creation of the Vision, as seen in Avengers #135.
It is mentioned here that the Vision’s mind was created using the brain patterns of Wonder Man. See Avengers #57-58.
The Vision has frozen up in combat in Avengers #118, 122, and Giant-Size Avengers #2.
The Torch was buried in concrete by his creator, Phineas Horton because the press and the scientific community saw the Torch as a threat. Freeing himself later, the Torch was trapped in the inground pool of a local mobster before bringing him to justice. See Marvel Comics #1.
So some details on everyone brought back to their native times here:
Baron Zemo, as mentioned above was killed in an avalanche of his own making in Avengers #15. He is the only character who remains dead (at least at the time I’m writing this in December 2021!) His son, Heinrich will attempt to resurrect him with the Bloodstone in Captain America #356-362, but fails. Zemo is later seen in Hades among other villains trying to get resurrected in Incredible Hercules #129-130. That was also a failure.
The Flying Dutchman is returned to the moment of his defeat at the hands of the Silver Surfer in Silver Surfer #9. Mephisto will use him as an agent against the Devil-Slayer in Marvel Comics Presents #46-49.
Frankenstein’s Monster is returned to the ice that he has been frozen in back in the 1800s. He will be revived in the modern age in Monster of Frankenstein #12.
Midnight returns to death during battle with Shang-Chi, the so-called Master of Kung Fu, circa Special Marvel Edition #16. Strangely enough, he will be resurrected by the Kree in their ongoing conflict with the Skrulls in Silver Surfer (vol. 3) #29.
Little does anyone know that Immortus was actually manipulating all of these events as part of his long-running scheme to manipulate the Avengers’ destiny as seen in Avengers Forever #9. This story is also expanded upon from Kang’s perspective in Fantastic Four Annual #25.
Topical References
Any reference to the Modern Age taking place in the 20th Century should be considered topical per the Sliding Timescale. It has pushed forward so that does not begin until the 21st Century.
