Marvel Team-Up #20
Dinosaurs on Broadway!
Spider-Man clings to the side of Stegron's ship as it flies from the Savage Land to New York City carrying a load of dinosaurs. As they approach the city, Spider-Man recounts how he and Ka-Zar failed to stop Stegron from escaping from the Savage Land in an insane plan to take over the Earth with an army of dinosaurs. Spider-Man tries to get the drop on Stegron, but his dinosaurs raise the alarm, allowing the man-monster to strike the wall-crawler with his tail. Spider-Man tries to gain the upper hand by webbing Stegron's tail to the floor. However, his foe rips free and knocks out Spider-Man with another blow, then tosses him over the side of the ship into the waters below.
Moments earlier, at Avengers Mansion, butler Edwin Jarvis alerts the only Avenger present -- the Black Panther -- of the approach of Stegron's ship. Deciding to investigate, the Panther takes a Quinjet out to investigate. He arrives just as Spider-Man was tossed overboard, and manages to save the wall-crawler from a fatal fall. When Spider-Man recovers from the blow, he takes the Black Panther to see Curt Connors and get everyone up to date on the threat of Stegron. Connors blames himself for allowing this to happen and begins working on a cure for Stegron as soon as possible. Since both the Panther and Spider-Man have backgrounds in science, they get to work with Connors in the hopes of finding a cure.
Meanwhile, Stegron and his dinosaurs have hit New York City, starting with Central Park where they interrupt a mugging before going on a rampage. Soon, Spider-Man and Black Panther are forced to go out and handle the creature while Connors works alone. By this point, Stegron and his dinosaurs are rampaging through Times Square. As Spider-Man begins webbing up the dinosaurs, the Black Panther takes on Stegron. At that moment, at the Daily Bugle, Mary Jane Watson has stopped by looking for Peter Parker. Joe Robertson hasn't seen Peter, but when J. Jonah Jameson comes in to tell them about the dinosaurs rampaging on Broadway, Mary Jane knows exactly where to find Parker and heads off to check it out, despite warnings from the two newspapermen.
When Mary Jane arrives on the scene, she manages to slip past the police blockade and tries to get close to the action. She narrowly avoids being crushed by a toppled dinosaur, thanks to Spider-Man who gives her a good scolding. With most of the dinosaurs wrapped up, Spider-Man joins the Black Panther in trying to contain Stegron. That's when Curt Connors arrives on the scene and tells Stegron that his condition is incurable. Stegron lashes out at Connors and then makes an attempt to escape on a pterodactyl. Spider-Man attempts to stop him and the two begin fighting high above the Statue of Liberty. During the fight, Stegron loses his balance and falls into the water below. There, much to his horror, Stegron realizes his new body is not buoyant and he can't swim and quickly sinks to the bottom where he seemingly drowns.
Later, Curt Connors and the Black Panther find Spider-Man on the docks. The wall-crawler feels terrible for not being able to save Curt's friend. However, Connors points out that Vincent Stegron was doomed before he ingested the serum that turned him into the Dinosaur Man. Even though Spider-Man thinks Connors is right, it still doesn't make him feel any better.
Recurring Characters
Spider-Man, Black Panther, Stegron, Curt Connors, Mary Jane Watson, J. Jonah Jameson, Joe Robertson, Edwin Jarvis
Continuity Notes
Black Panther mentions the troubles in his homeland of Wakanda. He is referring to the danger posed by Killimonger as seen in Jungle Action (vol. 2) #6-7.
Although Stegron seemingly perishes here, he survives and resurfaces again in Amazing Spider-Man #165.
