Sub-Mariner #68
☆ Be the first to review + Add to your collection — Join freeSub-Mariner #68 is the formal first appearance of Force (Clayton Wilson) in his armored super-villain identity — a Bronze Age character who would later become a recurring figure in the Iron Man mythos, most memorably as a catalyst for the 'Armor Wars' storyline. The issue also marks the first named, on-panel appearances of amphibian scientists Professor Henry Croft and Dr. Joseph Jennings, whose roles at Hydro-Base would extend into Super-Villain Team-Up and beyond. Narratively, it anchors Steve Gerber's late-series attempt to give Namor a sustained quest — saving a comatose Atlantis — that provided the series with a sense of serial tension absent from its earlier years. Within Marvel's Bronze Age ecology, the issue also spotlights the Hydro-Base location, which would reappear for decades as an active setting in Avengers and related books.
In "On the Brink of Madness!", Namor returns to Atlantis to find its people frozen in a mysterious coma, leaving the Amphibians desperate for a cure. With help from Dr. Walters on the horizon, Namor must navigate treacherous waters—both literal and personal—when he encounters Wilson, the doctor’s assistant, who’s taken a dangerous leap into powered armor with unpredictable abilities. Written by Steve Gerber and illustrated by Don Heck, with inks by Jim Mooney and colors by Geo. Roussos, this 1974 Marvel classic features a striking cover by John Romita and Tony Mortellaro.
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By mid-1973, series writer Steve Gerber had taken sole charge of a book that was, by his own public admission in the Sub-Mariner #67 letters-page editorial, struggling creatively after Bill Everett's declining health and subsequent death had disrupted its direction. Gerber's solution was to pivot the title toward a multi-issue survival arc centered on a nerve-gas catastrophe threatening all of Atlantis, giving Namor a long-form problem to solve rather than another throne-usurper to repel. Issue #68 — scripted by Gerber, penciled by Don Heck, inked by Jim Mooney, and edited by Roy Thomas — was produced under that new mandate, with a cover by John Romita Sr. The issue was notable enough behind the scenes to warrant an in-book note from both Thomas and Gerber acknowledging a printing error that affected approximately 50,000 copies.
Trivia · 8 facts
- First appearance of Force (Clayton Wilson) in his armored super-villain identity; his civilian identity had been introduced in Sub-Mariner #66; he was created by writer Steve Gerber and penciler Don Heck.
- First on-panel, named appearance of Professor Henry Croft and Dr. Joseph Jennings (the Hydro-Men scientists), who would continue to appear in Super-Villain Team-Up and later become governors of Hydro-Base.
- Story title: 'On the Brink of Madness!'; written by Steve Gerber, penciled by Don Heck, inked by Jim Mooney, cover by John Romita Sr., edited by Roy Thomas.
- Force's origin: Clayton Wilson, a graduate student at Empire State University, stole a prototype force-field device from his supervisor Dr. Damon Walthers, built a battle-suit around it, and clashed with Namor in his debut outing.
- The issue includes cameo appearances by Spider-Man, Doctor Strange, the Fantastic Four (Mr. Fantastic, the Thing, Human Torch, Medusa), and Triton (in flashback), making it one of the more densely populated late-run issues of the series.
- A bullpen note from Roy Thomas and Steve Gerber, included in the issue's letters page, explicitly acknowledged a printing error on 50,000 copies of the issue.
- The issue contains a house advertisement for Man-Thing and Ka-Zar, reflecting Marvel's concurrent Bronze Age expansion of adventure-driven titles.
- The stories in this issue are collected in Marvel Masterworks: The Sub-Mariner Vol. 8, which reprints the complete final chapter of the original 1968–1974 series.
Cast · 24 characters
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▸ Reveal full plot — may contain spoilers
Namor returns to Atlantis and finds its inhabitants in a comatose state. The Amphibians believe they can cure them but they need the help of Dr. Walters. Namor goes to find Walters but encounters his assistant Wilson who has built himself a suit with force powers.
Plot details indexed by the Grand Comics Database (CC BY-SA).
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