Marvel Milestones: Legion of Monsters, Spider-Man & Brother Voodoo

    (Marvel, 2006)
™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc.

What could possibly get Ghost Rider, Morbius, Werewolf by Night, and Man-Thing into the same comic book? Nothing less than a bizarre threat only slightly more contrived than those that have brought other teams together before. The Legion of Monsters, naturally, spends as much time fighting among themselves as battling evil. In the stories collected here, Spider-Man meets up with the mysterious Brother Voodoo, and Dracula meets up with the previous Lord of the Undead.

This one-shot features some very offbeat and obscure tales from the shadowy corners of the Marvel Universe, with writers including Bill Mantlo and Len Wein and artists like John Buscema.

— Andy Richardson


What wonderful 1970s lunacy. In the lead story, a mountain appears in downtown Los Angeles. Who should appear to investigate but Ghost Rider, Werewolf by Night, Man-Thing, and Morbius the Living Vampire? (Where are all the super-heroes? I guess Reed and Cap didn’t get there in time.)

Aside from the fact that they are all monsters, it is an odd gathering. For starters, Man-Thing and The Werewolf don’t talk. (Morbius, on the other hand, won’t shut up.) Also, Man-Thing is based in the Florida Everglades, which is apparently a mere stroll from Los Angeles.

Next up, Spider-Man and Captain Triumph — excuse me, Brother Voodoo — battle an off-Broadway voodoo cult in a Marvel Team-Up tale that appears to have been striving for racial relevance. It’s fun and does have some wonderful Jim Mooney art.

Finally, we get a black-and-white flashback to how Dracula became Lord of the Undead.
The lead stories are kind of wacky and would probably never fly today, but they’re great as nostalgia for simpler times and simpler tales.

–Jack Abramowitz
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