Appearing in "Vengence in Viet Nam! - or - An Origin for Mantis!"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
- Libra (Main story and flashback) (Origin revealed)
- Lua (First and only known appearance; dies) (Only in flashback)
Antagonists:
- Monsieur Khruul (Main story and flashback) (Origin revealed) (Death)
- Khruul goons and assassins (Main story and flashback)
- Star-Stalker 🢒 (First appearance) (Cameo)
Other Characters:
- Zodiac Crime Cartel (Cameo)
- Taurus (Cornelius van Lunt) (Cameo)
- Capricorn (Cameo)
- Leo (Cameo)
- Cancer (Cameo)
- Richard Nixon (Mentioned) (Topical Reference)
- French Army (Only in flashback)
- Priests of Pama (First appearance) (Main story and flashback) (Death of several)
- Devil (Invoked)
- Odin (Invoked)
- Captain America (Steve Rogers) (Mentioned)
- Eddie March (Mentioned)
- Marty March (Mentioned)
- Errol Flynn (Mentioned) (Topical Reference)
- T'Chaka (Referenced)
Races and Species:
- Humans (Main story and flashback)
- Asgardians
- Synthezoids
- Kree (Only in flashback)
- Pigs (Invoked)
- Toads (Mentioned)
- Sharks (Mentioned)
- Mutant Vorms (First appearance) (Unnamed)
Locations:
- Earth (Main story and flashback)
- United States
- Zodiac's Headquarters
- New York
- New Jersey (Mentioned)
- Asia (Main story and flashback)
- United States
Items:
Vehicles:
- Avengers Quinjet
- Wakanda Aircraft (Mentioned)
- Zodiac's Star Cruiser
Events:
- Vietnam War (Only in flashback)
Synopsis for "Vengence in Viet Nam! - or - An Origin for Mantis!"
Continued from the last issue, the Avengers have just defeated the Zodiac Cartel when Zodiac member Libra reveals that he is the actual father of Mantis. His real name is Gustav Brandt, he admits. (He does not add that he was calling himself by the alias of Lloyd Willoughby while in pursuit of a career as a criminal.) He explains further that he was a US soldier who fought in Vietnam; there, he ended up falling in love with a Vietnamese woman who was the sister of a crime boss called Monsieur Khruul and they had a child together.
When the evil, xenophobic Khruul, who hated "Europeans," learned of this, being enraged by his sister's marriage, he had them all burned alive, and Libra's wife Lua died. However, Libra himself, though blinded, managed to escape with his child and found the ancient city of the Priests of Pama, who took them in and trained his daughter in their ways; they isolated her from him because he was a soldier. They tried to teach him their philosophy as well, but eventually, he left. All he gained from them was the ability to "see," presumably psychically, despite his physical blindness.
The Avengers end up having to rush to Vietnam when they learn that Jacques Duquesne, the Swordsman, in an effort to prove himself worthy of Mantis's affections, flew there to take down Monsieur Khruul. Upon their arrival, they find that the Swordsman was captured and tortured instead until he revealed the location of the temple of the Priests of Pama.
Arriving there too late, the Avengers find that the evil Khruul and his henchmen have all slaughtered the Priests, but also that Khruul himself has ended his own life by freeing a creature known as the Star Stalker, which was the Priests' captive.
Notes
- Zodiac appear only as a cameo in this issue.
- This issue contains a Series "A" Marvel Value Stamp: Vol 1 4 - The Thing
- Lua was Libra' wife and Monsieur Khruul's sister as well as Mantis's mother.
- This issue contains two-page letters section, Avengers Assemble! Letters are published from David Burcia, Paul Loper, Kim (?), Joe Cicala, and Nan Brower.
- This issue also contains a Statement of Ownership, Management, and Circulation.
- On page 22, Khruul says that Swordsman mentioned Mantis, but in fact, no such dialog occurred.
