Much like every other form of media out there, comic books can draw from what's going on in the world for stories. Marvel is no different. In the 1960s and 1970s, the Vietnam War was in the background of the Marvel Universe. Flash Thompson would join the military to fight in it, and the war played key roles in certain characters' origins, mainly Tony Stark/Iron Man, James "Rhodey" Rhodes/War Machine and Frank Castle/The Punisher.
However, as time went on, it became a problem. You see, the modern Marvel Universe operates on the literary device known as the sliding timescale or the "floating timeline". As real time went on, tying characters to the Vietnam War became less and less plausible as the war was a fixed point in time (1955 to 1972), but the characters couldn't age to match it.
During his run on Iron Man's book in the 1990s, Kurt Busiek suggested a solution to the problem: a fictional war in an equally fictional Southeast Asian country. Luckily, the Marvel Universe had one perfect for the role: Sin-Cong. First appearing in Avengers #18 (May 1965), Sin-Cong had made appearances in various stories over the years since. Sadly, Busiek never got to implement the idea...at that time.
Fellow Marvel writer Mark Waid had championed the idea of a "Sin-Cong War" for years, and in the 2019 miniseries History of the Marvel Universe, he was finally able to establish that yes, there was a war in the country (whose name was modernized to Siancong) there for years. Later on, Busiek would write a series called The Marvels. The book was meant to tell big event-type stories, without having to break into ongoing series. It was also an opportunity for him to tell the tale of the Siancong War. The first issue of that book is what we'll be looking at here. This is The Marvels #1!
The cover is an Alex Ross piece. And of course, it's awesome. I doubt he could do a bad piece if he wanted to. While he is more known for his renditions of Silver Age-era heroes, it's shown he can do more Bronze Age-era characters like Storm and the Punisher really well, too.
"Part One: ...the Birth of Madness"
Writer: Kurt Busiek
Penciler: Yildiray Cinar
Inker: Yildiray Cinar
Colorist: Richard Isanove
Letterer: Simon Bowland
Editors: Martin Biro, Alanna Smith, Tom Brevoort
Editor-in-Chief: C.B. Cebulski
The story begins in French Indochina, in the year 1947. In particular, in a place known as the Sin-Cong Province.
World War II had only just ended a couple years earlier. During the war, the province was occupied by the Japanese. The French had returned to reclaim their old territory, but the people of the province have grown fed up with occupation. They want a free Sin-Cong. We focus on three men in particular: an arms dealer named Jacques Duquesne, a Communist revolutionary named Wong Daochu, and a gangster named Monsieur Khruul. The three are discussing a potential arms deal when they get approached by a beautiful Asian woman in a torn dress. She pleads for the men to help her, and the three spot members of the All-Winners Squadron in the sky looking for her: the original Miss America (Madeline Joyce), The Original Human Torch (Jim Hammond), Toro, and Namor.
The three men realize that if they are after her, she must be a big deal. They agree to help the woman, and she assures them, it will be worth their while.
We then push ahead to 17 years ago. The province has now become known as the Free State of Sin-Cong. A group of soldiers is going through the jungles of the southeastern Asian nation. They are accompanied by two guests: a pre-Fantastic Four Reed Richards and Ben Grimm. The narrator points out that a second war of liberation has begun. The French have returned, but this time, they are on the side of the rebels. And they have American "observers" with them, presumably Richards and Grimm. And they find something...extraordinary.
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| "Come to Siancong. We'll get together, have a few laughs..." |
Yeah, the Doom-Slayer's been through here. He left the Icon of Sin's head lying around again. Seriously, dude. Pick up your demon body parts! They stink up the place!
We next go forward, to twelve years in the past.
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| Most modern Daredevil fans would be very confused by this... |
Daredevil is performing some acrobatic feats for the troops thanks to the U.S.O. This is from Daredevil #47 (December 1968). One of the soldiers watching the Man Without Fear perform is one Eugene "Flash" Thompson. He had joined the Army in Amazing Spider-Man #47 (April 1967). Flash thinks the Devil of Hell's Kitchen is alright, but he's no Spider-Man. Flash overhears a whispered conversation.
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| "Khruul goes bonkers if he does not get his cookies, Jenks! You know this!" |
Evidently, some of "our boys" were in Khruul's pocket. Flash demands to know what is going on, but one of the soldiers tells him there are no heroes in Sin-Cong, and if Flash wants to be one, he'll find out just how dangerous the jungles can be.
Time passes. We then go to the Chukchi Sea near Point Hope, Alaska. Seven years ago. Iron Man (Tony Stark) and Thor Odinson are battling a dragon. The two Avengers manage to defeat the dragon. The beast ends up dissolving away, leaving a putrid stench.
Thor finds it odd, as dragons in Asgard don't dissolve like that when defeated. In fact, this particular dragon is not known to him at all.
Time passes again. We now go to near-Earth orbit, in the future. Ten days in the future, to be exact. A Wakanda Design Group jet is preparing to drop Steve Rogers off. Rogers falls towards the Earth, heading towards a large black dome covering what is now the Socialist Republic of Siancong. Thanks to special armor provided by Tony Stark and a magic vambrace from Doctor Strange, Cap is able to get into the dome. Cap lands nearly 70 miles away from his target. The Star-Spangled Man with a Plan makes his way through the jungle, noting that said jungle is...rather quiet. It's creepy.
Cap gets ambushed by soldiers. This would be a problem for any ordinary man, but Steve Rogers is no ordinary man. He is a super-soldier. The super-soldier. He's likely single-handedly punched more Nazis than anyone else on Earth. These soldiers are going to need a lot of backup.
The All-American Avenger heads to his target: A mysterious temple known as "The Hollow Place".
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| This new design for the Disney Castle is weeeird... |
The Hollow Place is an ancient building, so ancient that it's not even known who built it, and what it was built for. Cap notes that the building has gotten some renovations over the years, so clearly someone is using it right now. Not to mention the soldiers he's fighting appear to be zombies. The current resident of the Hollow Place decides to introduce herself.
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| "I didn't order any pizza!" |
Meet Lady Lotus. Captain America knows her well. A Japanese villainess with psychic powers, she first appeared in Invaders #37 (February 1979), created by Don Glut, Rick Hoberg, Chic Stone, and Alann Kupperberg. In-universe, Cap and his WWII-era super-comrades, the Invaders, fought her. I love Lotus's design here. It's a great updated take on the purple low-cut dress she wore in the 1970s Invaders series, and the headpiece makes her looks very regal. I dig it.
Lotus taunts Cap about coming alone. However, Cap corrects her in the form of his throwing some spheres on the ground. The spheres spew orange smoke, allowing some allies Steve Rogers recruited to arrive on the scene: Fellow Golden Age-era hero Aarkus, the original Vision. Tony Stark, the Iron Man. The Spider-Man ally/antagonistic thief known as the Black Cat. Storm of the X-Men. Johnny Storm of the Fantastic Four. Aero of the Agents of Atlas (in particular, the incarnation of the team that was primarily comprised of Asian and Asian-American superheroes). And two new friends who will be expanded on in the series.
We next go back to the present day. In particular, Prospect Park in Brooklyn. On a nice warm sunny day, Steve Rogers and Carol Danvers/Captain Marvel are having lunch together. Steve is enjoying a sandwich. Mmmm, sandwich...
He's rather fond of the "artisanal food" movement, as it reminds him of the food he ate as a boy. Made by craftspeople, less modern processing, that kind of thing. Remember, Steve's original heyday was the 1940s. Carol teases Steve about being a hipster. Meanwhile, the two were being unknowingly photographed by this man.
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| "Man, I love New York!" |
Meet Kevin Schumer. He runs a business called #KSHOOM, which specializes in superhero sightings and tours of superhero headquarters. He hangs out with a ladyfriend of his, but gets a call about his business.
We then go to the night before, in the Manhattan neighborhood known as Little Siancong. There, one Frank Castle, aka the Punisher, is watching a bunch of men carrying a large box around like it's a coffin.
Back to the present! In Midtown, a pair of tourists wait for someone. That someone is Mr. Schumer.
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| "...just don't ask how I got this." |
As part of his business, Kevin ferries tourists around New York City, in particular to the various headquarters of the superhero teams native to the city. I can imagine he also ferries them to places where major battles happened. During the tour, Kevin and his tour group encounter the Peter Parker Spider-Man battling the Vulture. During the fight, a massive explosion erupts in a building.
Kevin is confused by this. Which makes sense, the explosion was clearly not the result of Spider-Man and the Vulture fighting. But he'll have to put that aside, as he gets a call from his "Uncle T". Kevin takes the tourists back to their hotel, texting Uncle T on the way. What caused the explosion, you may ask? Well, we'll have to go back twenty minutes.
I know, I know. Remember Frank Castle's appearance earlier? Well, he was doing what he does best: filling the dealers with lead. A shot hits what looks like a black egg, causing the explosion. Through the sheer power of his orneriness, Frank survives the explosion, with only a hurt shoulder and damaged t-shirt for his trouble. His leaving is being observed by another figure.
This dude is a rather obscure character. Say hello to Mr. Ace Spencer. Spencer debuted in Peter Parker, the Spectacular Spider-Man Annual #5 (1985). He was a former gang member who was shown to be a skilled fighter able to dodge Spider-Man's punches and was somehow also able to short out the hero's danger-detecting Spider-Sense. He also was able to deduce that Peter Parker and Spider-Man were one and the same. His only other appearance before now was in the next year's Annual. Fun fact, he was based appearance-wise on the now sadly deceased artist M. D. Bright. Rest in Peace, Mr. Bright.
Ace rides his motorcycle into what appears to be a chimney's shadow. The final page reveals he has a new boss: a mysterious David Bowie-looking dude called Threadneedle.
I loved this comic. As a Marvel history buff, I thought this was a great peek into what was an untold piece of the Marvel Universe's history. We get an intriguing mystery about the nature of Siancong. The jumping back-and-forth through time can be a bit of a downside, and I understand that. Still, I really enjoyed the story. The new character of Kevin Schumer is really neat. I find him likable, and his occupation makes perfect sense in a universe like this. I also was genuinely and pleasantly surprised to see Ace again.
Yildiray Cinar is a spectacular artist, and I'm shocked he hasn't done more work for Marvel. His pencils and inks have a very clean style that works for a series like this. His work is detailed, and just a joy to look at.
If you want to read this for yourself, I recommend tracking down the 2021 trade paperback The Marvels: The War in Siancong. Thanks for reading this blog entry! 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!
