Marvel Two-in-One Ever-Lovin' Blue-Eyed Home Page: MTIO #37

Marvel Two-in-One #37: Game Point!

Writer: Marv Wolfman
Penciller: Ron Wilson
Inker: Pablo Marcos
Letterer: John Constanza
Colorist: Roger Slifer
Editor: Marv Wolfman

The Guest Star:
      Matt Murdock, a.k.a. Daredevil
The Villain:
      Alex Stone; the Thinker
Guest Shots:
      Foggy Nelson
The Set Up:
      Ben's crashed on his bed reading a horror novel and feeling vaguely self-pitying when he suddenly feels a mysterious sting which causes him to lash out. Puzzled and annoyed, he gets up and heads out. Outside, on the city streets, he soon feels the same sting, and lashes out uncontrollably in the same way, causing major property damage. This happens about three or four more times, and Ben soon finds himself alone in the middle of a devastated street. A local shopowner demands his arrest, and Ben finds himself taken to the local precinct station, where he's fingerprinted, he gets mug shots, and he goes through a police line-up. A couple hours later, a morose and resigned Ben is met by his lawyer, Matt Murdock, also known as Daredevil...

Clobberin' Time?:
      There's nobody to clobber in this issue!
Petunia's Patch:
      No Petunia either.
Things of Interest:
      This is part one of a three part storyline. Parts two and three are issues 38 and 39.
     Ben seems to be a Stephen King fan. In MTIO Annual 2, he was readng 'Salem's Lot'. Here, he's reading 'The Shining'.
     This is rather an enjoyable issue, simply because its all character. There are no villains for Ben to fight. Sure, we know something his causing his 'outbursts', but on the whole, the issue is more about Ben trying to deal with his place in life (or lack thereof) with the Fantastic Four being disbanded (as of FF 190).
     Occasionally brought up in the letters pages (though not in this particular issue) is the suggestion that MTIO be made into a solo magazine for Ben, with the villain filling the 'two-in-one' portion of the title. This issue, (and also issue 31), was probably a test of that- issues specifically made to _not_ have superhero guest stars, and see how well it sells. If true, I'd guess the answer was 'not as well', as MTIO stayed a team-up magazine until issue 100, when it was cancelled and replaced by Ben's solo comic, "The Thing". Of course, the solo comic then only lasted 36 issues...
     Original art from my small (but getting bigger!) collection. Unforgettable images: our criminal justice system at work!