Tales to Astonish #43

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Cover Date: May 1963

Plot Overview: Ant-Man runs into a crowd of admirers and makes a hasty retreat as the issue opens. We switch scenes to Professor Elias Weems. He's excited that his grandson is coming to visit him but tragedy strikes a week later when he's fired for being too old. Weems panics and decides he's going to build a ray that will make people old.

Weems easily conducts the ray and then tests it on a tree, an elephant and a random woman on the street. With the tests a success, he names himself the Time Master and sends a threatening letter to the police. Ant-Man's network of ants picks up the conversation and Ant-Man leaps into action. He visits the police and they update him of the situation.

Ant-Man decides to ask around and learns of Elias Weems being fired. He visits Weems' home and Weems uses the ray on him. Weems has no desire to kill the aged Ant-Man. He just wants him out of the way so he places him at the bottom of a flower pot. Weems leaves and Ant-Man grows to human size to escape his situation.

Weems climbs to the top of a building and uses his ray on a large crowd of people to have his revenge. His grandson walks into the fire zone and suddenly begins to age. Weems decides to reverse the aging effect but drops the gun. Ant-Man's ants catch the gun and he reverses the aging process on the crowd. Weems realizes what a fool he had been as he goes to his grandson. Ant-Man defends Weems in court and Weems' old boss hires him back. The issue ends with Weems showing his grandson his lab and Ant-Man gives a small speech about not judging people based on age as the issue ends.

My Take: This was a fun issue. Again, it seemed to work with the Ant-Man concept and didn't feel very ridiculous. Ant-Man also got a little character development as they showed that he tends to be a shy introvert. It was a very tiny amount of development but it's really the first hint of personality he's been given over the 10 issues he's appeared in so far.

The villain was also interesting as he repented by the end of the story. That hasn't happened a lot in the early Marvel Comics.

The art was also good for this issue. Marvel seems to have a consistent artist schedule going now as the last 2 or 3 issues for each book has looked roughly the same. For awhile there, you didn't know what you were going to get with any particular issue of a Marvel book. The Marvel U is really shaping itself up right now and building some nice momentum.

I'd give this **1/2 out of *****.

Notes: Nothing of note happened in this issue.

Next Issue: Tales of Suspense #41

Posted in: Henry Pym,Tales to Astonish