Stumblebum Studios Archives

	Home	Archives	Features

Down But Not Out

by Drew Clements westofmiskatonic@gmail.com

This is it! This is the big one! It's the one so many (um... really!) have been asking for. The question on everyone's minds: Who watches the Wat... no wait, who is the Hypno Hustler???? Yes, this is the column where you find out! Peter Parker: The Spectacular Spider-Man #24 -"Spider-Man Night Fever" Original Release Date: November 1978 Writer: Bill Mantlo Artist: Frank Springer Letterer: Joe Rosen Colorist: Bob Sharen Editor: Bob Hall Editor-In-Chief: Jim Shooter Sometimes it's easy to become lost in though, especially when you're worried about a sick family member. That's exactly what's going on with Peter Parker as he sits, silently thinking about his hospitalized Aunt, while three goons attempt to mug a man and his wife on a train. Just as one of these no-good-niks slaps the woman and takes her bag, our hero, sans costume, jumps up and puts distance between the thugs and the innocent civilians. Worried about giving his identity away using his spider-strength, Parker hesitates, but the perfect moment presents itself: the train enters a tunnel, blacking out the interior. Pete takes advantage of the darkness, beating and webbing up the thugs and exiting the train before the lights come back on, leaving the civilians inside baffled. Parker eventually exits an underground subway terminal and heads home with the intent to spend his Saturday evening hitting the books. Peter recently found out (Amazing Spider-Man #185, 1978) that he wouldn't be graduating from Empire State University with his class due to lack of credits, so he plans on making up those during the summer semester. Nothing is going to stand in the way of him studying, nothing at all! Yeah, you know better than that! As soon as Peter opens the door to his apartment, he is greeted with shouts of "surprise!" Six of Pete's closest friends have gathered together to throw an "ungraduation party." They've got a table reserved at Beyond Forever Disco and they also happen to have some stylin' duds for our favorite un-stylin'-duds-wearin'-hero (try saying that... uh, once!), so there's no way he's weaseling out of this! Let's get introductions out of the way, the six close friends are: Harry Osborn (Norman Osborn, the Green Goblin's son), Flash Thompson (Peter's high school bully-turned-friend), Flash's girlfriend, Sha Shan, Holly Gillis, Betty Leeds (formerly Brant), and Liz Allen. If you're not familiar with who these people are, then it's no big deal. All you need to know is that they're his friends! So, after putting Pete in a hideous John Travolta suit (Harry even comments as such), the seven head over to Beyond Forever Disco. Peter looks to be having less than a fun time and the night gets even worse when Mary Jane Watson spots him. Apparently she had spent much of the previous night trying to get in touch with him so she could go with him to this hip disco place. Pete and MJ's relationship has been a bit strained in the past few months, so they're not exactly on great terms, which is obvious when MJ struts past him. Peter sighs and asks Betty to dance; he might as well try to have a good time. Unbeknownst to the massive crowd in the disco, a mysterious man is currently looting a safe in the manager's office. Unfortunately for the manager, he discovers the man, who isn't just some goofy simpleton stealing his cash, but a goofy villain with some astounding powers! Okay, so I'm making his "powers' sound as if they're something spectacular, but they're just a pair of goggles that can hypnotize people using sound waves. We witness the might of the Hustler as he hypno-hustle-tizes (I made that up!) the manager, making him give the Hustler all his money (poor sap!) just before he collapses! We learn that the Hustler has a trio of backup singers, known as the Mercy Killers, and apparently their singing compliments and amplifies the effectiveness of the Hustler's hypnotic goggles, making this team an unstoppable (and absurd!) force. Back at the dance floor we find a bored Peter and a worried Betty. While Betty's mind is on her husband Ned, Pete's got his on the lovely MJ. It's a rather depressing moment for both, but they continue their dance as if nothing were the matter. Fortunately the frustration is obliterated as the main attraction mounts the stage: The Hypno Hustler and the Mercy Killers!!! But something isn't right as Peter's spidey-sense begins blaring right as the act's music begins. Peter, fighting the weird audio assault, clutches his ears and watches in pain as the rest of the crowd becomes little more than drooling zombies. The Hustler jams on his electric guitar, making sure each and every disco occupant is fully under his and the Mercy Killer's groovy hypnotic sound wave spell. Meanwhile, our hero manages to slide under a covered table, switch to his Spidey outfit, and stuff balled up webbing into his ears to block the sound. The Hustler jumps off the stage and instructs the enchanted crowd to place all their valuables into the bags the Mercy Killers are holding. Spidey, stuck to the underbelly of a massive disco ball (what else?) shouts to the Hustler, "You're a crook, Hustler, with an interesting angle--" and oh how right he is. After grabbing the villain's attention, our hero attacks, but the Hustler proves to have more gadgets in his arsenal than Iron Man has in his armor. The Hustler motions for the Mercy Killers to begin their beguiling belting of baneful bop, but our hero, with his ears stuffed full of webbing, stays on his feet just long enough to remove the Hustler's headphones! With the dazzling voices of the Mercy Killers still in full effect, the Hustler is immediately put under their spell. To take care of them, Spidey quickly webs up the Mercy Killers' mouths, which releases the crowd from the hypnotic spell. The baffled crowd finds the Hustler webbed up to the disco ball, with their valuables underneath. A smart Peter Parker uses the crowd’s befuddled minds to suggest that Spider-Man saved the day for them all! Before you go throwing this in the "worst Spider-Man story ever written!" pile, you should know that there isn't any point in this story where Spidey doesn't realize just how goofy this guy is. There really isn't any point in this story where the reader doesn't realize just how goofy this guy is. How can he take himself seriously if no one else can? Honestly, that's why this is such a cool little tale; it's really more a parody of the egotistical, out-of-control villain type. Bill Mantlo, who was the victim of an unfortunate accident in 1992 that left him irreversibly mentally impaired, was an excellent Spider-Man scribe. The man did a fantastic run on the Spectacular title that included (with Mike Zeck penciling) the first meeting between Moon Knight and Spider-Man that goes down as my favorite meeting of the two, as well as the best characterization of MK yet. Mr. Mantlo's other work includes the creation of Cloak and Dagger, as well as runs on The Incredible Hulk, ROM, Micronauts, and Alpha Flight. The ROM and Micronauts books had a tremendous cult-like following that still exists to this day, but Bill still seems to remain a pretty underrated writer, which is unfortunate. Frank Springer's work on this issue was pretty good, but it doesn't stand out like the other artists' previous work on this book. Sal Buscema and Jim Mooney made this title their own on their respective runs, while Mike Zeck (who is amazing!) and Frank Miller did a couple of fill-in issues (like Springer). You can find this book in The Essential Peter Parker, The Spectacular Spider-Man volume #1 (whew!) and that’s probably your best bet. The single issue isn’t worth a lot per se, but Hypno does have a cult status, so I don’t think you’ll find it too easy on your own. I’ve been known to be wrong (really, all the time) though, so check eBay and MileHighComics.com if you really gotta have it! Well there you have it. That's your introduction to the Hypno Hustler. You will officially now be able to live your life to the fullest! I personally don't know where to go from here... but I'll figure it out!                                                                  - Dedicated to Bill Mantlo -