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Mike Dell reviews an issue of the classic Marvel Comic!
Luke Cage, Hero for Hire #9 (1972)
Writer: Steve Englehart
Penciler: George Tuska
Inker: Billy Graham
Letterer: Denise Vladimer
Colors: Stan Goldberg
Editor: Roy Thomas
With Luke Cage being all the rage on Netflix, now seems like a good time to look back at a memorable moment from the character’s early days as a Hero for Hire. The Flea Market Fantasy column usually involves me reaching into my magic longbox and pulling out a musty Bronze Era gem, but this time, since I don’t actually own any old Luke Cage stuff, I had to rely on the technological wonder that is the Marvel Unlimited app. Not to be a shill or anything, but Marvel Unlimited is amazing. Best money I ever spent. And I once had to bail myself out of a Turkish prison.
BACKSTORY
For the uninitiated, Luke Cage was born Carl Lucas, and he and his pal Willis Stryker were members of a Harlem street gang known as the Rivals. Lucas eventually decided to go straight and gave up the gang life. When Stryker’s girlfriend, Reva Connors, had enough of his violent lifestyle, she bailed and went to Lucas for help. Needless to say, Stryker was not amused, so he did what anyone would do: he planted heroin in Lucas’s apartment and ratted him out to the cops. Happened to me twice back in grade school.
Lucas eventually ends up in Seagate Prison, a brutal hellhole off the coast of Georgia. Albert “Billy Bob” Rackham is the sadistic, racist bastard in charge, and he takes a personal interest in trying to break the defiant Lucas. While imprisoned, Lucas learns that Stryker had weaseled his way back into Reva’s life and ended up getting her killed in one of his gang disputes. News of Reva’s death only further enrages Lucas. He’ll do anything to get out of prison, including volunteering for an experimental medical procedure under the guidance of Dr. Noah Burstein. Promised a possible parole if he survives, Lucas climbs into a vat of electro-biochemical solution meant to stimulate human cell regeneration. That’s when Rackham, irate that his hatred for Lucas had cost him his job, barges into the laboratory and sabotages the machine, causing the experiment to go haywire. Lucas, now transformed into a powerhouse with unbreakable skin, busts free from the machine, coldcocks Rackham, and smashes his way to freedom. The prison guards give chase and gun down Lucas, sending him toppling into a river. The guards never find his body, but they do recover his bullet-riddled prison shirt and assume he didn’t survive. Suckers.
Lucas pulls himself out of the river and is stunned to discover that the bullets had merely bounced off his steel-like body. After months of making his way back north, Lucas finally arrives in New York and serendipitously uses his new powers to thwart an armed robbery. The rescued parties are overjoyed and claim he’s a superhero. That gives Lucas an idea. He gets a swank silk shirt, some fancy pants, a chain belt, and a metal headband and goes into business as Luke Cage, Hero for Hire. And as Cage says in issue #1, “Yeah! Outfit’s kinda hokey – but, so what? All part of the superhero scene.”
Cage gets his revenge on Stryker and officially begins his career as a Hero for Hire. He works for a variety of unusual clients, including one Mr. Victor Von Doom. That’s right. In issue #8, Doctor Doom hires Cage to track down some runaway robots. One problem: Doom skips town without paying. Big mistake.
PLOT
That finally brings us to our featured issue, which opens with a glorious splash page of Cage blitzing the Fantastic Four’s headquarters in search of a rocket. Yes, a series grounded in street crime, drugs, and racism is now, just nine issues into its run, having its hero chasing robots and flying rockets. What. The. (Sunshine).
Cage and the Thing trade punches, but cooler heads prevail, and Cage explains that he needs to get to Latveria to beat $200 out of Doctor Doom. And Doom better have not some, not half, but all his cash. Being the swell guy he is, Reed Richards programs a rocket and sends Cage on his way. Sure, it seems like a lot of grief for $200, but it’s the principle. If Cage lets Doom skip, then the next thing you know, the Red Skull won’t pay up for finding his lost kitten. Word is Cage’s determined pursuit of his money inspired the maniacal paperboy in “Better Off Dead.”
Cage arrives in Latveria and tries to storm Doom’s castle (no, that’s not a euphemism) only to run into a bunch of laser-toting lackeys. In the middle of the subsequent slugfest, a robot horde descends from the forest and decimates Doom’s guards. The robots lead Cage to a nearby cave and introduce him to their leader, a space alien named the Faceless One who has a basketball for a head.
Once again, please take a moment to reflect on Luke Cage, Harlem hero and people’s champ, having a chat with a space monkey and a bunch of robots in a cave somewhere in a Latverian forest. What the hell was happening in that Marvel bullpen of the early 1970s? Cocaine is a hell of a drug.
Turns out this Fearless One isn’t just an alien, he’s also a Norma Rae for robot rights. He’s leading a robot revolt against Doom because the nefarious Latverian emperor treats them like slaves. Fight the power!
Cage and the Faceless One join forces and breach Doom’s castle defenses. This brings Cage face to metal-covered face with Doom. The good doctor is bemused that Cage has flown halfway around the world to claim a paltry $200, and he tells him to go spit. Wrong answer. Cage beats respect out of Doom, jackhammering the same spot on Doom’s chest until his armor finally gives way.
With new respect for his adversary, Doom begs off. But before they can forge an official truce, the Faceless One swoops in, declaring his robot revolt was just a ruse so he could get close enough kill Doom and end their vicious blood feud. Always the hero, Cage protects the weakened Doom and brings a balcony crashing down on the Faceless One. Trapped beneath the wreckage, the Faceless One disengages his head from his battered body and scurries away on creepy spider legs, vowing revenge.
Doom thanks Cage for the assistance and surrenders the $200. You think he could have at least tipped him or something. Triumphant, Cage returns the Fantastic Four’s rocket. The Thing is less than thrilled to see him and points out that the newspapers are reporting Doom squashed a Latverian rebellion and remained in power. But who gives a damn? Luke Cage got his money. And that’s what’s really important.
CREATORS
In 1972, one year after John Shaft went to war with Bumpy Jonas in the streets of Harlem, Marvel comics saw an opportunity to cash in on the Blaxploitation craze and created its own African-American superhero: Luke Cage. Sure, the Black Panther is technically the first Black superhero, making his debut in Fantastic Four #52 (1966), but Luke Cage was the first African-American hero to headline his own book. So, naturally, Marvel entrusted Luke Cage’s creation to… Archie Goodwin and John Romita Sr., two definitely not Black dudes. In fairness, it was a different time back then, and without those early struggles, we would never have achieved the wonderful diversity we have in the comic book industry today. Oh, wait. Never mind.
Anyway, Goodwin helmed the ship for the first four issues of the series and did a pretty amazing job establishing the groundwork for ongoing conflict. Goodwin gave Cage a dangerous secret (that he was really an escaped prisoner who was presumed dead) and then introduced one character who knew the secret (Dr. Burstein) and another who was determined to uncover the truth (news reporter Phil Fox). As a result, Cage spent those early issues in a constant state of panic, always wondering when the other shoe would drop. Could he trust Burstein? Would Fox ruin him? Goodwin also gave Cage a love interest with Claire Temple, which was just another reason for Cage to sweat the truth. And without Claire Temple, I would have less Rosario Dawson in my life. God bless you, Archie Goodwin.
After issue #4, Goodwin handed the reins to Steve Englehart, who was 25 at the time and still cutting his teeth at Marvel. Englehart would go on to have memorable runs on The Avengers, Captain America, and Dr. Strange. Despite his later success, Englehart’s work on Luke Cage paled in comparison to Goodwin’s expert plotting and subtle nuance. Englehart’s plots were hackneyed and his dialogue strained. He tried to tap whatever street lingo he knew and peppered conversations with such gems as “So sit easy while I run my rap!” and “Don’t play that song for me, darlin’, I can dig it right enough!” and “Jivin’ don’t hook Luke Cage.” Groovy.
While Goodwin created the character and then went on to write the series for a few issues, Romita Sr. bowed out after the creation process. The art chores fell to George Tuska, who appeared to be about the whitest guy ever. Tuska was already an industry stalwart by the time Luke Cage rolled around, having broken into comics in 1939. After finding a home at Marvel in the 1960s, Tuska would pencil such titles as X-Men, Sub-Mariner, and Ghost Rider, but he’s most famous for a remarkable 10-year run on Iron Man (1968-1978).
I was really impressed with Tuska’s art during his entire Luke Cage stint. His stuff was very reminiscent of Jack Kirby, and he brought tremendous energy to each panel. His style embodied the “Marvel” way, employing bold compositions, dramatic poses, and dynamic action to bring the story to life. Some of his best work is seen in the fight between Luke Cage and Doctor Doom. I may not have been too familiar with Tuska’s work going in, but I left a fan. Englehart? Not so much.
Billy Graham, who inked the issue, actually drew the cover. Even though it’s not up to Tuska’s level, the cover still shows Doom blasting Luke Cage with an energy bolt. I would have bought the hell out of it when I was a kid.
MEMORABLE QUOTES
“Nothin’, handsome! Just want ta borrow a rocket.” – Luke Cage
“I need a rocket, hot stuff. To put the screws to Doctor Doom.” – Luke Cage
“’Sides you got rockets, an Luke Cage don’t. An’ I’m in a great rush.” – Luke Cage
“When my men reported a crazy Black man in the Fantastic Four’s craft, I knew it had to be you.” – Doctor Doom
“Your tiny capitalistic enterprise half a world away means nothing to me, Cage – not compared to my globe-girdling plans. Now take your peasant’s hands off my royal personage!” – Doctor Doom
FIGHTS
Luke Cage isn’t scared to throw hands, and there are fistfights o-plenty. He mixes it up with the Fantastic Four, some punk castle guards, that alien fella, and Doctor Doom. The battle with Doom is the best, and we get to see Cage’s brute strength and determination overwhelm Doom and earn his respect. They say this cat Cage is a bad mother—Shut your mouth!
SWEET CHRISTMAS
I still can’t pinpoint the precise origin of Luke Cage’s infamous catchphrase “Sweet Christmas!” I read the first 16 issues of Luke Cage, Hero for Hire, and “Sweet Christmas!” is actually never used. Goodwin used “Sweet Sister!”, and Englehart introduced “Christmas!” as an exclamation, but unless I missed it, the combined form of “Sweet Christmas!” never appeared during the Hero for Hire days. My guess is the two exclamations eventually morphed into “Sweet Christmas!” at some point during the book’s Power Man incarnation, but I can’t give you the exact issue.
Here’s the late
Dwayne McDuffie discussing how the term “Sweet Christmas!” made its way into Luke Cage, with the street lingo being lifted from detective fiction.
FINAL THOUGHTS
If you want to experience the best Luke Cage has to offer, read the first four issues that Goodwin penned. There was a dramatic drop in quality once he left the book. That said, issue #9 is still a fun read due to its sheer insanity. Luke Cage trying to strong-arm a rocket out of the Fantastic Four? An alien-led ro-bit uprising? Cage flying across the globe to smack $200 out of Doom? Sweet Christmas! It’s a bizarre fever dream of lunacy.
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