Issue(s): Man-Thing #2
Cover Date: Feb 74
Title: "Nowhere to go but down!"
Credits:
Steve Gerber - Writer
Val Mayerik - Penciler
Sal Trapani - Inker

Review/plot:
This story introduces Richard Rory, who replaces Jennifer Kale as the point-of-view character for this series.

He's described as a character who never had anything go right for him, right from when he was born and the doctor dropped him.

After nearly getting eaten by an alligator...

...and rescued by the Man-Thing...

...he meets up with Ruth Hart...

...who is on the run from a motorcycle gang because the gang's leader, Snake, has accused her of stealing the gang's money (in fact Snake spent the money himself on heroin).

Meanwhile, F.A. Schist gathers a group of scientists and asks them to help him kill the Man-Thing. They refuse, which befuddles Schist since, after all, he offered them a lot of money. But one scientist, dubbed Professor Slaughter, remains, and Schist helps him build a "Slaughter room" that will supposedly destroy the Man-Thing once it is lured there.

The plots come together when the Man-Thing is able to use Snake's motorcycle chain, previously lodged in its body...

...to escape the Slaughter room, and then casually tosses the chain, killing Snake while Snake is beating up Rory, which Rory takes as a sign.

Ruth Hart will also be a recurring character for a while and then part of the cast for Omega the Unknown.

Quite a departure from the arc that ended last issue, but then that's the schizophrenic nature of this book.

Val Mayerik, normally a good artist for this sort of thing, was a bit awkward this issue (note that panel with the alligator leaping at Rory, and even Snake throwing his chain - would he really just throw it as opposed to swinging it?). And while the story is more down-to-earth than previous issues, the "Slaughter Room" portion is a little silly. This issue is more interesting thanks to the eventual significance of the two supporting characters rather than anything specific in the plot. A note in the lettercol actively solicits feedback on Richard and Ruth.

I've always wondered why Richard Rory wasn't used much outside of the Man-Thing series since he has a Rick Jones type of potential, but i think it's because Rory was essentially a stand-in for Gerber so probably he felt off limits to other writers (except David Anthony Kraft, who was hugely influenced by Gerber and uses Rory in his She-Hulk run).

Quality Rating: C

Historical Significance Rating: 4 - first Richard Rory and Ruth Hart

Chronological Placement Considerations: N/A

References:

• The Man-Thing became a problem for F.A. Schist beginning in Fear #16. The fact that the Man-Thing has attracted other creatures, like Wundarr in Fear #17, is also used in Schist's pitch to the scientists (Go ahead and try to say "Schist's pitch to the scientists" out loud).

Crossover: N/A

Continuity Insert? N

My Reprint: N/A

Professor Slaughter has a few more appearances, including one in Man-Thing 3-4.

Thanks, Michael. I'll start tracking him as a Character Appearing.

I'm trying to read this and the only thing I can focus on is... Oh my gosh, The doctors going to slap the wrong side of the baby!

Lol@ Silverbird Now that's doubly unlucky!
Seems really inventive and you can tell they've almost got something here. (I mean the characters not the slap.) Marvel guys of this era had a freer hand to experiment than nearly any Marvel creators after- agreed?
I love characterization and bits of real world stuff in comics, and there is no fear of literary pretension. It can be disheartening to be told to write with the lowest common denominator in mind.

Yeah, Richard should consider himself lucky the doctor dropped him as an infant. Otherwise, he would've been singing (and speaking) soprano permanently, severely curtailing his disc jockeying career.