The Defenders #138
☆ Be the first to review + Add to your collection — Join freeDefenders #138 marks the first appearance of the Dragon of the Moon, the ancient demonic entity whose slow corruption of Moondragon would drive the entire climactic arc of the Gillis run through to the series finale in issue #152. The issue simultaneously formalizes Candy Southern as the team's operational leader — a rare instance of a non-powered civilian holding that role on a Marvel superhero squad. It is also the issue where writer Peter B. Gillis most explicitly uses Cloud's involuntary gender-shifting as a vehicle for social commentary on identity and acceptance, drawing a direct parallel to the mutant metaphor through Iceman's hypocritical discomfort — material that contemporary critics have described as remarkably progressive for a Comics Code-approved book in 1984.
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We Buy Collections ▸History
Peter B. Gillis inherited the series from J.M. DeMatteis, actively lobbying editor Carl Potts for the assignment, and issue #138 falls squarely within his core creative partnership with penciler Don Perlin and inker Kim DeMulder — a team that held the book from issue #132 through #144. Gillis has noted that a close friend of his was transitioning during this period, which directly informed the sensitivity with which he handled Cloud's fluid gender identity throughout the run. The issue was produced under editor-in-chief Jim Shooter with Carl Potts as series editor, and went on sale September 18, 1984, carrying a December 1984 cover date.
Trivia · 8 facts
- First appearance of the Dragon of the Moon, created by writer Peter B. Gillis and penciler Don Perlin; the entity is introduced in flashback as the ancient evil that has been slowly corrupting Moondragon since her training days on Titan with the Priests of Shao-Lom.
- Candy Southern (Angel's girlfriend) is formally appointed operational leader of the New Defenders — the issue's climactic team decision — making her one of the very few non-powered civilians to hold a leadership role in a Marvel team book of the era.
- The story is titled 'Three Women' and is written by Peter B. Gillis, penciled by Don Perlin, inked by Kim DeMulder, colored by Petra Scotese, and lettered by Janice Chiang; cover art is by Chris Warner (signed as CMW).
- Cloud's involuntary shift between female and male forms is front and center, with Valkyrie explicitly rebuking Iceman's hostility toward Cloud's gender-fluidity — one of the earliest direct analogies between gender identity and the mutant metaphor in a mainstream Marvel comic.
- Gargoyle reveals to Cloud (in private) the full origin of Moondragon's name: that young Heather Douglas believed she had defeated the Dragon of the Moon in spiritual combat on Titan, never told the priests, and took the name 'Moondragon' in pride of that victory — while the Dragon secretly took up residence in her mind.
- Candy Southern's new headquarters upgrades include a holographic security system capable of projecting the likenesses of the Hulk, Sub-Mariner, Silver Surfer, Captain America, the Thing, and even Galactus — accounting for the large roster of character 'appearances' in this otherwise intimate issue.
- The issue exists in three contemporaneous editions: a direct-sale edition, a newsstand edition, and a Canadian price variant, as well as a Mark Jeweler insert variant.
- The issue has been reprinted twice in trade format: in Essential Defenders vol. 7 (May 2013) and in Defenders Epic Collection vol. 9: The End of All Songs (2019).
Cast · 22 characters
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Reprinted in Essential Defenders #7 (2013), Defenders Epic Collection #9 (2019), De Verdedigers #54
Key issues in The Defenders
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