2023 was an anniversary year for a certain time-traveling adventurer. Now who could that adventurer be? That's right, Doctor Who. Since 1963, the Doctor has traveled through time and space fighting villains like the Daleks, the Cybermen, the Autons, the Zygons, etc.
Now, I know what you're thinking, what does Power Man and Iron fist have to do with Doctor Who? Well, because in 1982, Marvel had published Doctor Who comics for its UK-centered line. They had been doing so since 1979, and this would continue until 1995, when Marvel UK shut down and Panini Press took over. These stories weren't published in the United States. However, the show did get a fanbase in the US thanks to PBS stations broadcasting the show in the 1970s to the 1990s. As such, it makes sense it would get homaged. So, in honor of Doctor Who's 60th Anniversary, let's look at a Marvel comic that pays tribute to the good Doctor. This is Power Man and Iron Fist #79!
The cover is an Al Milgrom piece, and it's really cool. It shows our men fighting Dalek-esque metallic monsters, showing why no one messes with the Heroes of Hire. I do think that the bright red background is a bit distracting. Don't get me wrong, I like that there's no background, as it is meant to make the eye focus on the characters on the cover, but I do wish they chose a different color. Maybe black or a dark blue? I find the red a bit distracting.
"Day of the Dredlox!"
Writer: Jo Duffy
Penciler: Kerry Gammill
Inker: Ricardo Villamonte
Colorist: Christie Scheele
Letterer: Jim Novak
Editor: Dennis O'Neil
Editor-in-Chief: Jim Shooter
The story begins with our heroes looking into the shiny surfaces of the titular Dredlox, pepperpot-shaped automatons. These babies were just recently used in a Broadway play, starring an ally/friend of theirs: one Robert "Bob" Diamond, formerly of the martial arts-packing adventurers known as the Sons of the Tiger.
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| "And they make a fantastic espresso!" |
Diamond is starring in the play as Professor Justin Alphonse Gamble, an eccentric yet brilliant and heroic Victorian gentleman who is the Dredlox's nemesis. It's the most advanced play on Broadway, with the finest special effects. And thankfully, a lack of disasters unlike Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark. He invites the two to join a party he's attending to celebrate his return to the role. Luke and Danny agree to join in. After all, who doesn't love a good party? For me, the best part of a party is food. Mmm...food...
As the group leaves, they are unaware that a light on one of the Dredlox starts to glow. Yeah, that's not worrisome in any way...
That night, a janitor is hard at work cleaning up the place, grumbling about how Diamond gets to be a famous movie star and he has to bust his butt to earn a buck. As someone who works in a supermarket, I can empathize a bit. I understand what it's like to work hard and not feel appreciated. People like janitors do important work, even if you don't realize it.
On one of the seemingly harmless Dreadlox, the red light turns on again. The janitor spots this light...and it ends up being the last thing he sees.
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| "AUGH! SO BRIGHT! MY EYES! MY BEAUTIFUL EYES!" |
I can imagine he got zapped right in the face.
The next day, Luke Cage is in his home above the Gem Theatre, a small theatre in New York City's 42nd Street. The theatre is run by Luke's friend D.W. Griffith, as his uncle Max owns it. The theatre is known for showing mostly Westerns, as they're cheap to rent. D.W. is reading a newspaper, and he says the Heroes for Hire's partying with Bob Diamond and then-girlfriend Colleen Wing is in the gossip page. Cage isn't amused by it. D.W. thinks it's awesome as Cage got to meet the producers and directors. Cage grumbles that's it's not that great.
Over at Danny Rand's brownstone, he and Bob are practicing their martial arts. You see, in Power Man and Iron Fist #74 (October 1981), Diamond had ended up getting stabbed in the stomach by a ninja. I am not kidding. It happened. I read the comic. After spending some time in the hospital, he and Danny are training as a form of therapy. Because 1970s martial arts cure everything, even in the 80s!
Bob confesses he has a bit of a problem, and he wants Luke and Danny to look into it. At the offices of the Heroes for Hire, he explains that there's been some weirdness going on at the theatre he's performing at. Strange noises, vanishing people, props being destroyed...not to mention the dead janitor. Cage thinks he's making it up for publicity, but Rand believes him. Jennie Royce, their secretary, points out that Heroes for Hire needs money, and Diamond is willing to pay. The almighty dollar speaks again.
The three head out of the offices and get attacked.
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| When they said 1980s New York City was a tough town, they weren't kidding. |
Luke and Danny work to protect civilians, as it looks like there are multiple assailants, and they don't care about innocent pedestrians. Using a limo door as a shield, Cage runs to the alley the blasts are coming from, only to find...nothing there.
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| Luke Cage really needed a drink. |
However, Luke Cage has brought his girlfriend Harmony Young over as well for a night of canoodling...as he couldn't take her to his place at the Gem Theatre. What, it was too far away?!
And things get awkward.
Luckily, a ringing phone manages to get their attention and end the awkwardness. It's Bob, calling for help. Luke and Danny race over to Broadway. They make their way to the theater Bob called from, and they find themselves facing the Dredlox.
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| Good thing Luke and Danny were skilled at dance-fighting. |
The two manage to escape despite being outnumbered and outgunned. The Dredlox pursue them, and the Heroes for Hire decide to hide out in a bookstore. Once they get inside, they find another surprise. This is no bookstore.
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| He also had crumpets. Luke hates crumpets. |
The proprietor is a Professor Justin Alphonse Gamble...the character Bob Diamond was playing in that Broadway production.
Much to Cage's shock, the place is much bigger on the inside than the outside. He introduces himself, but Iron Fist is understandably freaked out. After all, Professor J.A. Gamble is supposed to be a fictional character, the creation of an author named Sergius O'Shaugnessey. Yeah, this was an homage to Denny O'Neil. This was a pseudonym he used when writing for DC and Charlton Comics.
Gamble explains that he wrote the play based on his diary. He thought it would make for some nice entertainment. Unfortunately, he didn't expect that his old nemeses, the Dredlox, would find a way to travel time like he can, nor would they use the play as a way to infiltrate the Earth in the present. Luke sees something out the window.
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| "🎵 They're coming to take him away, ha ha! They're coming to take him away, ha ha, ha ha!🎵" |
The Dredlox have prisoners, Bob Diamond among them. Gamble explains they think that Diamond is Gamble himself. Unlike the Daleks who can recognize the Doctor, no matter what they look like, they think Diamond is Gamble. They're unaware of how much he's changed in the last 95 years. Luke is like "That's it, I'm going out there and fighting them!" Gamble is all for it, he just needs Luke to let him finish his little gadget: A Temporal Polarization Destabilizer. He can use the TPD to send the Dredlox back to their proper time. Problem is, he needs to get it into their headquarters. But where there is a problem, there is a solution.
You see, during his decade in K'un L'un, Danny Rand picked up a bit of ninjitsu, the art of invisibility. He can easily get the TPD to their HQ. Presumably, Gamble knows where it is, and told Danny where to take it. In their HQ, the Dredlox try to get Bob to fix their damaged time-travel machine, still thinking he is Gamble. Iron Fist sneaks his way in, taking down the Dredlok sentries guarding the building. With that, the Heroes for Hire and Gamble bust their way in.
As Cage and Rand engage the metal monsters, Bob helps evacuate the other prisoners and Gamble races in to place the TPD. Hoping this works, Gamble activates the machine. Thankfully, it does work, and the Dredlox vanish.
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| And all that was left was the fresh scent of pine. |
Bob returns with the police to find not only have the Dredlox vanished, but Gamble himself has as well. And he took his bookshop with him, too. It's like he was never even there. The story ends with everyone being completely befuddled by the whole thing, with Cage telling Diamond to not ask him to explain this. After all, this whole thing was a publicity stunt...wasn't it?
This comic is awesome. It really is. It's a fun little adventure tale of our resident Heroes for Hire being caught in a situation that is rather...unusual, even for them. Gamble and the Dredlox are clearly expies of the Doctor and the Daleks, but it's fine. It's still a fun story. And Kerry Gammill is a rather underrated artist, in my opinion. The man deserves a LOT more love. His art is fantastic. It's very detailed, and I think he's a good storyteller.
Gamble himself would appear again in the future. Avengers Annual #22 (1993) would establish that the good professor was actually once a member of the Time Variance Authority, until he decided to quit and made off with one of their time machines. That annual would also reveal the Dreadlox were actually known as the Incinerators and were originally created by the TVA to help clear up time debris. Like Gamble, they also went rogue, but instead of having adventures like Gamble, they dedicated themselves to destroy the space/time continuum. Which made them enemies of Professor Gamble. In fact, the second season of Loki has a character named "Judge Gamble", as a nod to the good professor.
If you want to read this story for yourself, and you should, I recommend tracking down the 2016 trade paperback Power Man and Iron Fist Epic Collection Vol. 2: Revenge! Thanks for reading this blog entry1 If you liked it, show it off! Take care of yourselves and each other! Stay safe, stay healthy, stay home, wash your hands often, wear a mask, and get your vaccine/booster! See you next time!
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