Giant-Size Man-Thing #5

History

The Giant-Size Man-Thing quarterly (1974–75) ran five issues under editor-in-chief Len Wein, combining new Man-Thing stories with vintage horror reprints; the format gave Steve Gerber room to expand Howard the Duck beyond the tight page counts of the regular Man-Thing monthly. Gerber scripted the 'Hellcow!' Howard backup with penciller Frank Brunner and inker Tom Palmer — the same team that had handled the preceding Howard installment in Giant-Size Man-Thing #4 — while the Man-Thing framing sequence ('Fear Times Three!') and the three embedded Man-Thing tales were parceled out to Ed Hannigan, Tom Sutton, Len Wein himself, John Buscema, Frank Springer, and Marv Wolfman. An editorial note in the issue acknowledged explicitly that this was the final entry in the series, explaining it would be replaced by a Giant-Size Guardians of the Galaxy title that ultimately never materialized as a giant-size format — the broader Giant-Size line was phased out around this time. The cover was rendered by Gil Kane with inks by Dan Adkins.

Trivia · 8 facts

• First appearance of Hellcow (Bessie), a vampire cow created by writer Steve Gerber and artist Frank Brunner; she first appeared in the 9-page Howard the Duck backup story titled 'Hellcow!'
• Hellcow's in-universe origin: circa 1675, Dracula — unable to find human prey in rural Switzerland — fed on a farm cow named Bessie, inadvertently turning her into a vampire; she subsequently rose from her grave seeking revenge on Dracula.
• This issue marks Howard the Duck's final appearance before his own solo title launched with Howard the Duck #1 (January 1976), making it the last stop in the character's two-issue Giant-Size tryout run (following Giant-Size Man-Thing #4).
• The Howard backup ('Hellcow!') was written by Steve Gerber, pencilled by Frank Brunner, and inked by Tom Palmer; all Man-Thing stories in the issue were edited by Len Wein.
• The Man-Thing framing sequence, 'Fear Times Three!', depicts Ted Sallis and Ellen Brandt visiting fortune teller Madam Swabada at a Citrusville carnival; set before Sallis becomes Man-Thing, it serves as a narrative wrapper for three embedded Man-Thing tales by Len Wein, Steve Gerber, and Marv Wolfman.
• Dracula appears only in flashback/cameo within this issue — specifically in the Hellcow backstory — making it a rare intersection of the Tomb of Dracula corner of the Marvel Universe with the Man-Thing/Howard milieu.
• This is the final issue of the Giant-Size Man-Thing quarterly series (1974–75); the editorial pages note it was to be replaced by Giant-Size Guardians of the Galaxy, a title that ultimately launched as a regular-sized comic when Marvel phased out the Giant-Size format.
• The 'Hellcow!' story has been reprinted numerous times, including in Silver Surfer vs. Dracula (February 1994), Essential Howard the Duck Vol. 1 (2002), the Howard the Duck Omnibus (2008), Howard the Duck: The Complete Collection Vol. 1 (2015), and Marvel Masterworks: Howard the Duck Vol. 1 (2020).

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Key issues in Giant-Size Man-Thing

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