Random Happenstance

I'm mildly surprised I don't have more of a soft-spot for the Inhumans, since they appeared in some of the first instances of continuity I noticed in the Marvel U: from 1984, Avengers Annual #12, "Moonrise" Written by Bill Mantlo, breakdowns by Butch Guice, finishes by Rick Magyar. City on the moon--how did it get there? The Avengers are called in front of the National Security Council, who are giving the Fantastic Four the stinkeye, for helping the Inhumans move their city Attilan to the moon; in Fantastic Four #240, one of the first regular issues I read of that book! While the FF vouches for the Inhumans, the government is not trying to hear that. It's mildly surprising they aren't more pissed, but this was before every little thing would be justified by yelling "national security." Couple other things: I don't know when they lost it--maybe the Nick Fury vs. S.H.I.E.L.D. series--but I miss the old, boxy S.H.I.E.L.D. space platform; which lost Attilan's flight over Africa, possibly over Wakanda. Reed recaps the Inhumans history, and explains how they were being poisoned by man's pollution, then offers to go to the moon to open up formal diplomatic relations; but since this is their comic, duh, that's gonna be the Avengers' job.

It's a pretty solid roster, and Cap and Wanda are pretty happy to see Quicksilver, whose wife Crystal had recently given birth to Luna. While the Inhumans' royals are a bit weird, everyone's getting along well, although there's a weird side trip to pay respects to Black Bolt's brother, Maximus--usually known as "the Mad"--in state, in a glass coffin. Maximus had betrayed the Inhumans to the Enclave--the scientists that built Adam Warlock! Then he turned on them, but was killed driving them off. But Lockjaw, sniffing the coffin, notices "an impossible scent," and later Medusa confides in Wanda that Black Bolt had been inexplicably distant of late...Later that night, "Black Bolt" visits "Maximus," and speaks!

Cap gets a message from S.H.I.E.L.D. that someone is launching moon rocks at earth, and Thor has to fly into action to stop them. Tensions rise, until Black Bolt signals attack; which the Inhumans go along with, since he was the king, right? Quicksilver sides with them, attacking Captain Marvel; the Avengers make a pretty poor showing until Cap starts to turn the tide, by finally getting his shield out of Lockjaw's bite! A steamed She-Hulk was about to pop Black Bolt one: this was early in her career, and she impulsively forgot, if Black Bolt spoke, he could probably blow a good chunk off the moon. So it's surprising when instead, he whines at her: of course, he was really Maximus. Lockjaw leads the heroes to free Black Bolt, who remains silent, so it's hard to tell how pissed he was; and Black Bolt quickly takes down the Enclave and the Alpha Primitives they were using as slaves. (They were slaves: the Alpha Primitives really drive a stake through the heart of any likeability the Inhumans have.) The Inhumans promise peaceful relations in the future; and lived fairly quietly on the moon for at least a decade or two thereafter? I feel like the next time I would see them in a comic would be New Warriors #6 in 1990, but that can't be right...

No take! Only throw!