Vision and the Scarlet Witch #8

1958 marked the first of many appearances of civil rights leader, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr in a comic book. Martin Luther King and The Montgomery Story tells of the Atlanta preacher's involvement in the Alabama bus boycott that came about from the incarceration of Rosa Parks after she refused to give up her seat to a white patron. What I am not certain about is the first instance of a comic book to take place during Martin Luther King's birthday, I very much may have read the very first one. 

The first push for a federal holiday honoring King was in 1968 just a few days after his assassination. The push for the ratification of a bill had gained enough momentum by 1981 that the US Senate was presented with a petition signed by some 6 million people after a brief march through the nation's capitol, led by King's widow, Coretta. After a few committee stalls and some contentious debate, a vote took place in the fall of 1983. The bill was signed into law by Ronald Reagan in November with the first official Federal holiday of Dr. King's birthday to take place in January, 1986.

This issue of Vision and the Scarlet Witch hit store shelves on February 4th, 1986, just 2 short weeks after the first official MLK, Jr. holiday observance. Other books might have come out before celebrating the unofficial observances of King's birthday. There might have been other books released by DC and Marvel (or some of the smaller publishers) earlier that year that also have stories that take place during that first MLK Day. I just don't know. For a fan of holiday themed comic books, this is my first experience with a story set during this event. There's been a couple of books I've read that mention the Federal observance as a part of King's legacy. But usually those books only have a single panel set during the holiday. This story is 24 pages of super heroes operating during the night of January 20th, 1986.

Quicksilver and wife Crystal are visiting with Vision and the Scarlet Witch when Luke Cage comes crashing through the living room window of the former Avengers. This is supposed to be a peaceful day for Cage, reflecting on the legacy of Dr. King. Instead, a magical death cult has other plans for the Hero for Hire. 

Followers of a demon called Zor are looking for a set of idols that Luke Cage and partner Power Fist once confiscated and gave to Wanda for safe keeping. Wanda hid the idols somewhere in the World Trade Center. With brother Pietro in tow, Cage, Vision and the Scarlet Witch head over to the WTC to destroy the relics once and for all.

You might think that a story such as this has minimal references to MLK Birthday and you're right. Unlike an issue set at Christmas, Halloween or just about any other holiday, the settings are not full of posters of Dr. King and other decorations. We get Luke Cage reflecting on the civil rights icon. Scarlet Witch bestows Cage a blessing of the 'new holiday'. Then as things end for the story, Quicksilver makes a racist statement against humans and Cage comments that making strides for racially equality includes mutants and that was what Dr. King's dream was all about.

Yes- this issue really ends with Luke Cage doing his best impression of Linus from A Charlie Brown Christmas! The sapping ending kinda gives new meaning to Cage's trademark exclamation of 'Sweet Christmas.' Yet, in a time when not every state was willing to celebrate a holiday devoted to a black American, this issue was a big deal. Remember it wouldn't be until 1993 before Arizona would finally observe MLK Day and another 7 years before South Carolina would pay state employees for the day off work. So to have January 20th the setting of this Marvel issue, as passing or trite as the creative team might have made it's usage in this story, it was a huge step forward in bringing about normalcy and acceptance to the new holiday celebrating the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 8 out 10 stars.

March: Book Two (2023 Comic Book & Graphic Novel Reading Challenge)

At the 2015 San Diego Comic-Con, Congressman John Lewis led a ceremonial march, cosplaying as himself- only 40 years younger. Not only was it the 40th anniversary of the march from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama in hopes of procuring voting rights for African Americans, 2015 marked the debut of volume 2 of Lewis' graphic novel trilogy March, recounting his role in the civil rights movement. 

Volume 2 covered the following events-

Having successfully participated in a boycott protesting Nashville restaurants refusing to serve black customers, Lewis turns his sights to other cities before planning on joining a Quaker relief organization in India.

In 1961, a group calling themselves 'The Freedom Riders' plan on travelling from Washington DC to Louisiana, protesting the Federal Government's refusal to enact a Supreme Court ruling that called segregated interstate travel by bus to be unconstitutional. Lewis joins CORE as one of 13 black and white riders. During the initial trip, the Freedom Riders were assaulted by the Ku Klux Klan in Alabama. Lewis is beaten unconscious and sent back to Tennessee to recover. 

While recuperating, the bus is firebombed and CORE ends their freedom ride plans.

Forgoing his mission trip to India, Lewis instead works with other college students in another series of Freedom Rides. Lewis is arrested several times, including a stint towards the end of 1962 that will inspire Dr. Martin Luther King to participate. The following year, King will be arrested in Alabama where he will write his 'Letter From a Birmingham Jail', a response to criticism that King and others allowed themselves to remain unjustly imprisoned rather than posting bail.

After the relative success of these second rounds of protest rides, Lewis was elected president of the SNCC- the Student Non-violent Coordinating Committee, in 1963. As a result of his new status, Lewis is invited to participate in a massive march planned to be held in Washington, D.C.. This new role puts John Lewis shoulder to shoulder with several prominent civil rights leaders, including NAACP leader Roy Wilkins and Dr. King. The march would be held in August with John Lewis being the youngest keynote speaker and the last to talk before King delivers his iconic 'I Have A Dream' speech.

The volume ends with the tragic youth Sunday bombing of the 16th Street Church in Birmingham.

Returning to the 2015 march reenactment in San Diego. Rep. Lewis marched throughout the San Diego Convention Center hand-in-hand with hundreds of kids. According to March co-writer (and Lewis congressional aid) Andrew Aydin, John Lewis wanted to show comic book loving youth that not all superheroes wear capes or have superpowers. 

To properly recreate his 1965 march cosplay, John Lewis wore a tan overcoat with a backpack, just as he did when Lewis led about 600 people across the Edmund Pettis Bridge. John Lewis wanted to make sure for this anniversary event that his backpack contained everything the original had with him during the protest. Those items were 2 books, a toothbrush, toothpaste, an apple and an orange. According to Aydin, only the orange was missing to complete the ensemble. 

John Lewis earned a lot of fans during his 2015 Comic-Con activity. Not as many admirers as he did throughout his life as first a civil rights leader and later as a representative of the people of Georgia's 5th District. But thanks to this event and his graphic novel memoirs, John Lewis reintroduced himself to a new generation.

Book Three of March would be released in 2016 with a deluxe trilogy box set available the following year. Artwork for the trilogy was by Nate Powell. Lewis and Aydin would later publish a sequel called Run, detailing Lewis' life and career after the passage of the 1965 Civil Rights Act. 

John Lewis passed away in 2020 at the age of 80; a year before Run would debut in stores.

Completing this review completes Task #40 (Set in the 1960s) of the 2023 Comic Book and Graphic Novel Reading Challenge.

1977: A Madman Turns 40: 2017- Day 137

   For today's look at A Madman Turns 40 we go on a manhunt. On this day in 1977 history, the man convicted of killing Martin Luther King Jr., James Earl Ray, escaped from a Tennessee prison along with 6 other convicts.
    

James Earl Ray, far right, being returned to prison, June 13, 1977.

    The escape put Ray at #351 on the FBI's Most Wanted List. However, Ray didn't stay on the list for long as on June 13, he was recaptured. 

    This was actually the second time Ray escaped prison. In 1967, Ray escaped in a bread truck from a Missouri prison. 

     Now here's where things get a little weird with me and the whole Martin Luther King assassination. I said earlier that the man convicted in killing King escaped from prison. I'm not 100% convinced that James Earl Ray did it. I think he was set-up like Lee Harvey Oswald was in the 1963 killing of President Kennedy. I think it's a conspiracy of some sort! Let me high-light some inconsistencies in the case below:

1. James Earl Ray was serving a 20 year sentence in 1967 when he first escaped prison. He only had 2 years left in a burglary charge when he escaped! Why would you do that? If you made it 18 years, 2 more would be a piece a cake?
2. Ray fled the US, going to Canada, Mexico, and eventually back to the US where he worked on segregationist presidential candidate George Wallace's campaign in North Hollywood. In that nearly 18-month span, he never got caught? Doing all those things- nobody caught on? Come on!!!
3. Ray claims that he was set-up by a man named Raul and was even contacted by government agents to assist with the assassination of Dr. King. But he claims he didn't pull the trigger. Some reports claim he never had gunpowder residue on him. I think Ray was a patsy like Oswald was with JFK.
4. James Earl Ray would soon recant his confession and later ballistics testing on the gun found with Ray were inconclusive in matching the bullets found in Dr. King's body. Sounds awfully familiar to JFK's autopsy reports not matching with the gun Oswald had in his possession.
5. Lastly, The family of King has even stated that after meeting with James Earl Ray in the late 90s and conducting their own research, they believe that Ray was set up. Yet, the US government has constantly refused to reopen the case. The King family is American Civil Rights royalty and yet the FBI refuses to reopen the murder of their father? That seems really odd to me.

Moments after Dr, King is shot, associates point to the direction in which the shooter fired, April 4, 1968.

    One last thing that seems off but might just be bad research is that several sources say that James Earl Ray escaped on June 10, 1977. Yet others put the date as June 11th. Again, this could be an oversight or just another small clue in an otherwise possible conspiracy.

     My wife is big into the murder of JFK. I really think she'd be very interested in the case of James Earl Ray and the death of Dr. Martin Luther King. The two murders have too many similarities and mystery surrounding them. I think the only reason the King assassination does get as much publicity is not because he was black but because there weren't as many witnesses to his death as there were when Kennedy was shot in Dallas.

Segment of the New York Times detailing Ray's escape.
Note the date of June 11th.

     Well, that's my look at 1977 for today. If you never hear from me again, you'll know that this Madman was on to something in the James Earl Ray case. Hopefully, I'll be posting again real soon.

      Until then...