Marvel Team-Up #55
Spider, Spider on the Moon!
Spider-Man is hallucinating from lack of oxygen as the rocket he is aboard speeds into space. Meanwhile, on Earth, the Hulk watches as the rocket disappears from sight, and growing weary of his interactions with humans, he bounds away. Elsewhere in the facility, Woodgod realizes that his entire family and friends have all been slain and decides that he is going to strike out against humanity.
In space, Spider-Man realizes he is about to die and just as his oxygen runs out, his rocket is intercepted by Adam Warlock. Warlock uses his Soul Gem to transport himself and the rocket to the oxygen-rich Blue Area of the Moon. Pulling Spider-Man free from the craft, the Wall-Crawler is grateful for Warlock's help, when he suddenly realizes he's on the Moon. As Spider-Man attempts to figure out how he's going to get home, they are attacked by the Stranger, who has come to claim Adam's Soul Gem. He downs Warlock in one blast, prompting Spider-Man to attack the Stranger for his savior. Spider-Man is easily overpowered by the Stranger, who tosses him away into the Blue Area's teeming forest. Knocked out from impacting with a tree, Spider-Man's body is found by another being who happens to be on the moon.
As the Stranger and Warlock continue to fight, the Stranger gains the upper hand and knocks out Warlock, and restrains him in order to remove his Soul Gem. Spider-Man is revived by the Gardener, who is in the Blue Area with his own Soul Gem using its power to cultivate the garden in the Blue Area. When Spider-Man learns that the Gardener is not a fighter, he leaves to go and tackle the Stranger alone. Using all his webbing Spider-Man ensnares the Stranger in a cocoon of webbing. However, this only proves to anger the Stranger, who busts out of the webbing.
As the Stranger attempts to kill Spider-Man, the Gardener looks on, struggling to decide whether he should get involved or not. It's not until the Stranger destroys one of his plants that the Gardener decides to get involved and attacks the Stranger. Freeing Adam Warlock, both he and the Gardener combine their powers. Although this causes the lush forest to die off, the power is sufficient enough to force the Stranger to retreat to avoid his own destruction. In the aftermath of the battle, the Gardener realizes the folly of his ways and now that he has turned his Soul Gem into a weapon, refuses to use it again. He then teleports away to seek out a new place to create a garden.
With the battle over, Adam Warlock takes Spider-Man back to Earth before heading onto his next destination - Counter-Earth. He leaves an unseen metallic egg behind, waiting for the right moment to open.
Recurring Characters
Spider-Man, Adam Warlock, Gardener, Stranger, Hulk, Woodgod
Continuity Notes
The Scream that Woodgod is referring to is a biological weapon that wiped out everyone in the city of Liberty, as seen in Marvel Premiere #31.
Warlock mentions his recent travels, as seen in Warlock #15.
All the Infinity Gems seen here are identified as Soul Gems. However, they are the Soul, Time and Power Gems, as clarified in Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A-Z #5. The Infinity Gems are not properly identified until Silver Surfer (vol. 3) #44.
They mysterious capsule left on the moon will be explored further in Champions #12.
