Man-Thing #2
Man-Thing #2 (cover-dated February 1974) is the single most character-dense issue of Steve Gerber's landmark Bronze Age run, introducing three figures who would anchor the series and reach well beyond it. Richard Rory — a self-described down-on-his-luck loser whom Gerber openly conceived as a surrogate for himself — and nurse Ruth Hart both debut here, becoming the primary human anchors for a title whose protagonist literally cannot speak; their double act gave Gerber the vehicle to explore alienation, bad luck, and social conscience in ways the mute muck-monster never could alone. Professor Slaughter (Hargood William Todd Wickham) and the Skull-Crushers motorcycle club also make their first appearances, establishing the twin antagonist tracks — corporate villainy through F. A. Schist and street-level brutality through the gang — that would define the book's early issues. Rory in particular became one of Gerber's most durable creations, crossing over into The Defenders, Omega the Unknown, and multiple She-Hulk runs, making this issue a genuine creative launching pad for the Marvel Bronze Age's most idiosyncratic corner.
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We Buy Collections ▸History
The issue was produced by the same core team that launched the solo title one month earlier: writer Steve Gerber, penciller Val Mayerik, and inker Sal Tarpani, all under editor Roy Thomas. It went on sale November 6, 1973, carrying a February 1974 cover date — standard Marvel practice at the time. Jim Starlin, who had been contributing to the Man-Thing's pre-solo run in Adventure into Fear, supplied the cover with inks by Frank Giacoia; his involvement was a holdover from that creative transition period when Mayerik had taken over interior pencilling duties but Starlin remained associated with the title's look. The letters column for this issue carries a notable early response from a young Nancy A. Collins, who would later become a prominent writer on DC's Swamp Thing — an almost-too-perfect piece of comics-history symmetry given the longstanding comparison between Marvel's and DC's swamp-creature franchises.
Trivia · 8 facts
- First appearance of Richard Rory, introduced by Steve Gerber as a self-described 'down on his luck' loner camping in the Florida Everglades; Gerber conceived Rory partly as an authorial stand-in for himself.
- First appearance of Ruth Hart, a nurse from St. Louis who patches up Rory after Man-Thing saves him from an alligator attack; Hart and Rory would become recurring figures across multiple Gerber-written Marvel titles.
- First appearance of Professor Slaughter, whose full name is given as Hargood William Todd Wickham (also rendered 'Hargood Wilbur Todd Wickham' in the Marvel Database) — an M.I.T. graduate hired by F. A. Schist to destroy Man-Thing via a sonic-and-flame 'Slaughter Room.'
- First appearance of the Skull-Crushers Motorcycle Club, including members 'Darby' (Ernest Logan), 'French' (Morton Small), and their president 'Snake,' who dies in this issue when Man-Thing inadvertently strikes him with a chain.
- Written by Steve Gerber, pencilled by Val Mayerik, inked by Sal Tarpani; cover art by Jim Starlin and Frank Giacoia; edited by Roy Thomas. The issue went on sale November 6, 1973, with a February 1974 cover date.
- The story is titled 'Hell Hath No Fury…!' (the running tagline) and also referred to as 'Nowhere to Go But Down!' — the GCD and Marvel Database list both titles in association with this issue.
- The letters column in this issue contains an early letter from Nancy A. Collins, the future Swamp Thing writer — a coincidence that has since become a frequently cited piece of Bronze Age comics trivia.
- The issue has been reprinted in: Eclipso (Arédit-Artima, 1968 series) #53 (1975, black-and-white, reformatted); The Man-Thing (Yaffa/Page, 1980 series) #8 (1982); Essential Man-Thing Vol. 1 (Marvel, 2006, black-and-white); and is included in the Marvel Masterworks: The Man-Thing Vol. 2 hardcover collection.
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Reprints
Reprinted in The Comic Reader #100 (1973), Eclipso #53 (1975), The Man-Thing #8 (1982), Essential Man-Thing #1 (2006), Man-Thing Omnibus #[nn] (2012), Man-Thing by Steve Gerber: The Complete Collection #1 (2015), Marvel Masterworks: Man-Thing #2 (2025)
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