Issue(s): Strange Tales #148, Strange Tales #149 (Nick Fury stories only)
Cover Date: Sep-Oct 66
Title: "Death before dishonor!" / "The end of A.I.M.!"
Credits:
Jack Kirby - Writer on #148
Denny O'Neil - Script on #149
Stan Lee & Roy Thomas - Plot on #149
Jack Kirby - Breakdowns
Don Heck / Jack Kirby - Finishes
Don Heck / Ogden Whitney - Inker
Roy Thomas - Editor

Review/plot:
SHIELD tests out a Nick Fury Life Model Decoy, those great inventions that solve up to 94% of all Nick Fury continuity problems. AIM is jealous of SHIELD's LMDs and they decide to steal one.

Meanwhile, Fury is brought to trial to see if he is still fit to run SHIELD. He proves his ability by throwing a temper tantrum and then jumping out a window off of the Helicarrier. Somehow, Fury manages to swap himself with the LMD so when AIM steals it they wind up with him instead. He basically takes out an entire squadron of AIM flunkies himself (hey, they're just scientists) while waiting for Dum Dum to show up with the a SHIELD unit (for some reason, Dugan mistimed the unit's deployment, an interesting subplot that isn't followed up on). They go on to capture the rest of AIM.

Fury's handling of AIM for some reason convinces everyone that he's OK to run SHIELD, even though last time his personal involvement in missions demonstrated a lack of leadership skills.

In a scene excluded from my reprint, Gabriel Jones returns from his mission infiltrating the Secret Empire.

He, Fury, and Dugan put their heads together and figure out that AIM, Them, Hydra, and the Secret Empire are all part of the same organization. The evidence leads them to believe that Hydra is once again operative.

Quality Rating: C-

Historical Significance Rating: 4 - revelation that AIM, Hydra, and the Secret Empire are all part of the same uber-organization.

Chronological Placement Considerations: Takes place before Tales To Astonish #84-87, since AIM is shown to already be defeated in Tales To Astonish #85. In issue #149, we see the AIM base being destroyed. In a "meanwhile" segment in Tales of Suspense #82, we see SHIELD agents investigating the rubble of that explosion and pull out Count Royal, who is ranting about the Adaptoid. So this should take place before Tales of Suspense #82.

References:

• Gabriel Jones' Secret Empire mission was chronicled in the Hulk story in Tales To Astonish #83.
  
• Similarities between AIM, the Secret Empire, and the Red Skull's gang from Tales Of Suspense #78 are also noted.

Crossover: N/A

Continuity Insert? N

My Reprint: Nick Fury and his Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. #2

Ogden Whitney was known primarily for drawing Herbie for ACG. This is his only Marvel work that I know of, and he died fairly soon after this.

Per Denny O'Neil in Alter Ego #123: Stan Lee and Roy Thomas plotted #149 and Denny only dialogued it.

Thanks, Mark. I've updated the credits here.

"Per Denny O'Neil in Alter Ego #123: Stan Lee and Roy Thomas plotted #149 and Denny only dialogued it."

Denny O'Neil-- one of the worst writers in the biz-- is full of S***.

JACK KIRBY write the story and did the layouts. Why would one of the best writers in the biz need not one but two halfwits to supply him with story plots?

This is all part of a concerted effort to diminsih the real work Jack Kirby put in on so many series. He was a freelancer who did his work at home with zero input from anybody else, and with NO contracts.

It was vital for the company to make it seem like a full-time salaried employee was supplying the ideas, in order for them to be automatically considered "company property". That's what it ALL comes down to.

*cough*

http://captaincomics.ning.com/forum/topics/henry-r-kujawa-has-been-banned-from-the-comics-round-table

As someone who's never visited that site before, I'll say its mods come across as the lesser party. It's pretty reasonable to be pissed at someone who did what the italicized quote describes, and I hate the farce of pretending speech one doesn't like is an attack.

I know nothing about this site of the poster being complained about but to call Denny O'Neill one of the worst writers in the biz is absurd. Denny modernized Batman to great acclaim, recreated Green Arrow into a more relevant and interesting character and made a write up in Time Magazine for his work on Green Lantern/Green Arrow among many other achievements. I liked this first A.I.M. story and the revelation that A.I.M. and the Secret Empire were branches of Hydra. That was why all these things were being crossed off of a list. They were all delaying tactics while Hydra rebuilt from their previous defeat. Both A.I.M. and the Secret Empire were later rebuilt as independent organizations.

At times I have found Denny O'Neil to be somewhat hit or miss, but he has certainly written a number of very good stories over the years.

This story must have had much more of an impact back when it first came out. If you were a Marvel fan reading Strange Tales, Tales to Astonish and Tales of Suspense in real time, it must have been pretty cool to suddenly have this revelation that the seemingly-separate threats of AIM, the Secret Empire and the Red Skull's forces were all connected to Hydra.