Russkie-Smashers YOUNG MEN COMICS "Return of...the Human Torch"

When Atlas revived Timely's "Big 3" golden age heroes in 1953...

...look who got the spotlight!

(Heck, colorist Stan Goldberg couldn't even get Captain America and Bucky's costumes correct on the cover by Carl Burgos!)

Though no Russkies are seen in this tale from Atlas' Young Men Comics #24 (1953), they did supply the criminals with Solution X-R and brainwashed Toro into fighting for fellow Communists in Korea!
(And they do appear later on, though the strip emphasizes homegrown American criminals!)

Written by Hank Chapman and illustrated by Russ Heath (with the Human Torch in the splash panel rendered by his creator, Carl Burgos), this story actually handles the explanation of where the flaming felon fighters were for the previous four years very well! 

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Marvel MasterWorks

Atlas-Era Heroes

Volume 1

(which features this tale)

Russkie-Smashers ASTONISHING ANT-MAN "Part 3: The Ant-Man's Revenge!"

When Last We Left The Ant-Man...

...research scientist Henry Pym and his team, working on an anti-radiation gas, have been captured by Russkie spies.

Donning his protective uniform, Pym becomes ant-sized, uses his cybernetic helmet to contact ants and begins freeing the other scientists!

And now the mayhem begins...

Pym battled a number of Russkies during his run in Tales to Astonish!

Trivia: you may not realize it, but the original Ant-Man/Giant-Man costume has a reverse color scheme from Spider-Man's outfit!

Was it a deliberate choice to point up the difference between insect and arachnid heroes?

Only editor Stan Lee and colorist Stan Goldberg knew, and (sadly) we can no longer ask them!

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Ant-Man

Ant-niversary

TPB collection of mini-series about all four people who have been Ant-Man in the Marvel Comics Universe!

Russkie-Smashers ASTONISHING ANT-MAN "Part 2: An Army of Ants!"

We Have Already Seen...

...research scientist Henry Pym and his team, working on an anti-radiation gas, have been captured by Russkie spies...who have no idea what they're in for as Dr Pym becomes The Ant-Man for the first time!

Tomorrow:

The Ant-Man's Revenge!

Don't Dare Miss It!

Plotted by Stan Lee, scripted by Larry Lieber, penciled by Jack Kirby, and inked by Dick Ayers, this series premiere from Marvel's Tales to Astonish #35 (1962) clearly demonstrates how Henry Pym differed from most other costumed heroes by using brains over brawn!
BTW: Ant-Man would soon incorporate a microphone and speaker into his helmet so normal-sized humans could hear him when insect-sized.

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Essential Ant-Man

Volume 1

Russkie-Smashers ASTONISHING ANT-MAN "Part 1: Return of the Ant-Man"

We Have Already Seen...

...after Dr Henry Pym's Hungarian-born wife was kidnapped and (supposedly*) killed by Russkies, the embittered scientist took his wife's comment "Go to the ants, thou sluggard!." literally...

Tomorrow:

Army of Ants!

Dare You Miss It?

Plotted by Stan Lee, scripted by Larry Lieber, penciled by Jack Kirby, and inked by Dick Ayers, this series premiere from Marvel's Tales to Astonish #35 (1962) clearly demonstrates how Henry Pym differed from most other costumed heroes by using brains over brawn!
*Years later, it was revealed Maria Trovaya Pym was killed, but resurrected and subjected to experimentation by A.I.M., turning her into a MODOK-like creature known as SODAM/MODAM!
In addition, Maria was pregnant at the time of her kidnapping, though Hank didn't know it.
Maria was kept alive by the Russians long enough to give birth to a daughter, Nadia, who was trained from infancy to become a "Black Widow" agent (like Natasha Romanova).

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Marvel Masterworks

Ant-Man/Giant-Man

Volume 1

Silver Age Marvel's FIRST Russkie-Smasher Isn't Who You Believe It Is...

It ain't Iron Man or Thor, neither of whom appeared until 1963!

And, while the Fantastic Four made their space flight in 1961 to beat the Russkies into space, they didn't face a Russian foe until the Red Ghost and his Super-Apes in FF #13 (also in 1963)!

Technically, The Incredible Hulk was the first to actually face Russkies in combat in the premiere issue of his own title...cover-dated May, 1962!

But another character, introduced several months before Bruce Banner, was the first to appear in the pages of Atlas/Marvel Comics...cover-dated January, 1962!

...Henry Pym, the man who would soon be The Ant-Man!

His initial appearance was in Tales to Astonish #27, where he appeared to just be a hapless scientist who inadvertently created a formula to reduce himself to ant-size!

But, there was an unrevealed, Russian-related, reason for his project, which we discovered in Tales to Astonish #44...

This week, on the one-year anniversary of imperialist running dog Vlad Putin's unprovoked invasion of Ukraine, we're presenting the Astonishing Ant-Man's premiere adventure from September, 1962...which was against (who else?) Russkies!

Tomorrow:

Return of The Ant-Man!

Dare You Miss It?

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Marvel Masterworks

Ant-Man/Giant-Man

Volume 1