One of my biggest problems with Marvel Team-Up was the book's frequent lack of any A-list Spider-Man villains. Too often, the top villains were saved for Spider-Man's solo titles, leaving relatively minor and unimpressive bad guys for Marvel Team-Up. But while that became a problem in later years, it certainly wasn't in the third and fourth issues, as one of Spidey's deadliest and most famous foes returns - Morbius the living vampire! Morbius first appeared in Amazing Spider-Man #101, the middle part of the classic three-issue storyline where Spider-Man grows two extra sets of arms (seriously, you need to read these issues if you haven't). Michael Morbius was a Nobel Prize-winning scientist who was dying of a rare, incurable blood disease. He devised a cure for his illness, but the treatment turned him into a super powered vampire who needed human blood to survive. However, unlike vampires of legend, Morbius was not undead - hence the name "Morbius the living vampire." This issue marks his first appearance since his much-talked-about debut storyline. Morbius quickly became one of Spider-Man's most popular villains and even had his own series for a while in the 1990s.

At the start of this issue, two brothers - Jacob and Jefferson Bolt - argue about the company Jefferson keeps. Jacob, a college student, believes his brother is heading down the wrong path. Jefferson responds, "You gonna shine Mr. White Man's shoes all your life?" One thing about 1970s comics - the blaxploitation movie dialogue can be both entertaining and embarrassing. Jacob walks off, leaving an angry Jefferson to notice a man treading water in the nearby river (Morbius appeared to drown at the end of Amazing Spider-Man #102). He rushes to pull the man out, only to discover that he has rescued none other than Morbius. "I...live. But I am weak," Morbius says. ""And when the man called Morbius is weak..he must feed!" So the living vampire attacks Jefferson to drain his blood. Flash forward a few weeks to the present. Spider-Man is swinging around town, but he feels terrible. He nearly falls mid-swing, and only his spider-sense saves him from a deadly fall. "Must've caught myself a bit of that flu virus going around," he thinks. But it's much worse than that, as Spider-Man collapses unconscious on a rooftop. He is able to drag himself back to the Empire State University campus, where he is scheduled to attend a lecture by biology professor Hans Jorgenson. At the same time, Johnny Storm and the rest of the Fantastic Four are visited by a young woman named Martine, who informs the team that her fiancé, Michael Morbius, has transformed himself into the living vampire. Mr. Fantastic mentions that he and Dr. Morbius traded letters, along with a third man - Hans Jorgenson. So the Human Torch decides to head over to campus himself to check things out and visit professor Jorgenson. "Who knows? Maybe it's time Spidey and I teamed up again," the Torch says. "Thought why I even bother with that egotistical costumed wall-crawler I'll never understand!"

As for our third player, Morbius has been holed up in an abandoned warehouse regaining his strength. Jefferson Bolt is there, too - as he has become a vampire himself, thanks to Morbius' deadly bite. "Oh, Lord in Heaven--what have I done?" Morbius asks. "Was my sin not great enough, to seal myself within this damnable coil?" But Jefferson says he likes being a vampire. Morbius says there is one man who may be able to help both of them, and he glides away to find that man. Guess who that man happens to be? It turns out that Professor Jorgenson doesn't have much useful information for Spider-Man or the Human Torch (although we'll see him again next issue). However, just as they are wrapping up their discussion, they hear a scream across campus. They discover Morbius feeding on a homeless man. "He--he killed that guy--like--like a filthy vampire!" Spider-Man shouts. He brutally assaults Morbius, overwhelmed by the brutality of the living vampire's crime. The Torch pulls Spider-Man off before he can do too much damage and Morbius presses the attack. Spider-Man, who is still quite ill, is spent after his initial burst of energy. He can't even fire his web-shooters in a straight line.

Hearing the commotion, Jacob Bolt enters the scene and tries to pull Spider-Man away from Morbius, not realizing that Spidey is only trying to stop a murderous villain. This allows Morbius to kick Spider-Man in the face and get the upper hand. Also, Jefferson Bolt turns a crowd of college students against the Human Torch: "Those costumed freaks were tryin' to kill that dude!" he says. They start throwing rocks at the Torch. With the battle seemingly going against the good guys, Morbius grabs Jacob Bolt and tries to take a bite out of the college student. Jefferson Bolt comes to his brother's aid, but is struck and killed by Morbius. Morbius then makes his escape and the fight winds to an uneasy close. "He's dead. He was gone for a month and now he's gone forever. Why? What did I do wrong?" Jacob Bolt asks. "I never knew him, kid. But maybe it wasn't what you did wrong that counts now, but what you did right...that made him, in the end, understand what it means to be a man," the Torch replies.

Those final two panels provide a nice ending to a creepy, well-told tale. Although we only meet the Bolt brothers on page 1 of this comic, we understand them and care about them by the story's end. While Spider-Man, the Human Torch and even Morbius will come back to fight another day, Jacob Bolt's pain and loss seem quite real and give this story some real power beyond just a standard punch-'em-up.

Next issue: Spider-Man's battle with Morbius continues, and this time, he's joined by the uncanny X-Men!

Reviewed by Bruce Buchanan.

Reprinted In:
Spectacular Spider-Man #6
Spider-Man Megazine #3