I: Feature Story: "A Skrull Walks Among Us!"

Pages: 21

Script: Stan Lee
Pencils: Jack Kirby
Inks: Dick Ayers
Letters: Artie Simek

First Appearance: Super-Skrull, Specto-Fish

Villain: Super-Skrull, Skrull Supreme Majesty, Skrulls

Origin: Super-Skrull

Cameo Appearance: Mabel and Zelda

Marvel Milestones: First usage of FF's Passenger I.C.B.M., Specto-Fish, Crater Isle

Gadgets & Technology: Skrull World Cosmic Generator, Remote Control Orbital Public Address System

Setting: Crater Isle

Synopsis: The Fantastic Four are watching the evening news, which relates the FF's battle with Doom, and that the villain is still at large. Thing throws a tantrum when shots of him fighting Doom are pre-empted by a dogfood commercial. After calming him down, Reed and Sue board their experimental passenger I.C.B.M. which will take them to their Hawaiian vacation in only a half-hour.

On the Skrull homeworld, the Supreme Majesty has never forgiven the Fantastic Four for defeating him (see FF #2). That’s why he’s spent a fortune developing the Super-Skrull, a soldier who can mimic the powers of the Fantastic Four. The Super-Skrull can stretch one hundred miles to retrieve a Specto-fish from the Skrull sea. He can fly faster and longer than the Human Torch. He can lift the Cosmic Generator, which powers theentire Skrull homeworld and weighs over one hundred tons. As well, he can sneak up on his prey with his invisiblity powers. The scientistwho helped develop his powers also tells the Supreme Majesty that the Super-Skrull has another powerwhich will remain secret. The leader is overjoyed to know he has a weapon with which he can destroythe Fantastic Four!

Back on Earth, the FF are shopping in a department store. Thing wants a bowling ball but his giant mitts crush the store’s largest model. The team is mobbed by fans so Thing grabs Reed and he stretches out of the mob carrying Sue and Johnny. Hiding in the electronics section, they hear a newsbreak announcing that an alien space ship has landed in Times Square.

The Super-Skrull is the alien in Times Square causing a ruckus. He tries to plant a Skrull flag in the sidewalk, but it won’t go through the concrete. He melts the sidewalk with his flame. The crowd doesn’t believe the Super-Skrull is a big threat and he tosses them back for their insolence. The emperor watches through a view-screen and is pleased when the Super-Skrull overpowers the Human Torch using black carbon, a heat bomb, and a flaming club. Reed catches Johnny and climbs up the side of a building to meet the Super-Skrull.

Thing is still stuck in the department store. He flattens an escalator and slides down it to reach the battle, worried he's too late.

Reed faces off against the Super-Skrull on a rooftop. He wraps around the Super-Skrull but the alien uses his own stretching powers to expand until Reed snaps off. Reed forms a sledge hammer with his arm but the Super-Skrull stretches his own arm all the way to the Palisades, where it grabs a boulderthat he uses to shield himself from Reed’s blow. Mr. Fantastic doubles back in severe pain from smashing his handagainst the boulder.

Thing reaches them and punches through the boulder shield. The Super-Skrull turns into a battering ram and knocks the Thing off the roof and onto the Chrysler Building. Reed glides off the roof and the Skrull chases him until he is briefly blinded by the Torch’s sun-burst. The Torch flies up for a rematch but the Skrull turns invisible and snares him with a fire-chain. A police helicopter rescues the Thing from the Chrysler Building as the Super-Skrull, still invisible, forces them to retreat by launching fire-arrows at themfrom a flaming bow.

The team retreats and the Super-Skrull lets them, confident that he has beaten them and willing to letthem stew on their defeat for awhile.

Meanwhile, Reed works in his lab until he discovers ultra sonic power rays in the atmosphere. Hedetermines that the Skrulls are powering the Super Skrull all the way from their home world with these rays. He develops a "jammer" to block that power, and then sends out his remote control Orbital Public Address System out to announcetheir challenge to the Super-Skrull for another fight. They meet him on Crater Isle, a distant and lonelyisland where no innocents will be hurt. As the Supreme Majesty watches on his television screen, the Super-Skrull gets the early advantage on the FF with his secret power- hypnosis! He freezes the three men but Sue sneaks up behind him invisible and plants the jammer on him. He loses much of his power ability, but still clings to his Skrull powers. He chases Sue to the edge of a crater and she trips him. He falls down into the crevasse and the Torch melts the crater hole shut and traps him inside. Without his Super-Skrull powers, the Super-Skrull can’t escape.

--synopsis by Jonathan Clarke, aka doesitmatter, with Gormuu

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