MODOK: Head Trips

M.O.D.O.K. 
'Head Trips'
Marvel, 2019

'Head Trips' (456 pp) was published by Marvel in December 2019. This is a well-made slab of a trade paperback, printed on glossy paper with good-quality color reproductions.

It includes the following comics:

Tales of Suspense #93 and #94 (1967)

Captain America #133 (1971)

Iron Man King Size Annual #4 (1977)

Incredible Hulk # 287 – 290 (1983)

Super Villain Team-Up: MODOK’s 11 #1 – 5 (2007 – 2008)

Marvel Adventures: Avengers #9 (2007)

Marvel One-Shot #1, The Fantastic Four in ‘Ataque del MODOK’ (2010)

MODOK: Assassin #1 – 5 (2015)

I remember reading those issues of Tales of Suspense back in '67, and thinking that MODOK was a cool villain……. much, much cooler than supervillains like Braniac, or Lex Luthor, or the Joker, or the Green Goblin.

The initial appearances of MODOK are sure to bring feelings of nostalgia to those who remember him from 'way back when', i.e., 1967. But it's certainly true that Jack Kirby's design for the character was imaginative - a giant head in an anti-grav chair ?! And No Pupils ? Far-out ! 

But also, there was a touch of pathos to the character that made him a bit special...........

Some of the comics included in this compilation offer some interesting twists on the MODOK character. Without disclosing spoilers, I'll say that the issues of The Incredible Hulk give us an unexpected wrinkle on the theme of creating an evil super-genius. And while it's handicapped by being a 22- page, 'all ages' one-shot, Marvel Adventures: Avengers #9 brings an offbeat sensibility to its treatment of the theme.

Somewhat surprisingly, it's the more recent storylines that are the best of the comics collected here. Super Villain Team-Up: MODOK’s 11 has MODOK assembling a team of Z-List supervillains to steal an artifact called the Hypernova. There is an undercurrent of facetiousness that makes this miniseries an engaging read.

MODOK: Assassin is one of the 30-odd spinoff series shoveled out in the wake of the stupefyingly bloated 2015 Secret Wars / Battleworld Marvel Universe 'reboot'. It turns out one of the Battleworlds created by God-Doom is called 'Killville', and MODOK is its chief enforcer - although he chafes having to be under the command of Baron Mordo. 

When a female member of the 'Thor Corps' gets caught up in the infighting between MODOK and the Assassin's Guild, there is plenty of tongue-in-cheek humor. 

The only real dud in this compilation is Marvel One-Shot #1, The Fantastic Four in ‘Ataque del MODOK’. It's primarily a vehicle for Marvel to introduce a new superhero ('El Vejigante') aimed at a Puerto Rican / Spanish readership. The cartoony art style used in this comic really didn't mesh well with the storyline, which primarily is devoted to Reed and Sue getting all lovey-dovey during their second honeymoon............meh !

Summing up, if you are a fan of the MODOK character, than this compilation is well worth the investment.