The Avengers #239

Avengers #239 (January 1984)
Writer: Roger Stern
Penciller: Al Milgrom
Assistant Editor: Mike Carlin

Over the last 30+ years, David Letterman has hosted over 6,000 talk shows. Whether it was Late Night on NBC or the Late Show on CBS, Dave has always been a fixture in late night talk shows for decades. Truthfully, the type of work that we see out of Conan, Jimmy, & Jimmy would not have been possible without the groundwork put in place by Dave. And late last night, Dave aired his final show. (Excuse me for a moment while I weep quietly in the corner for a minute or two.)

Doing a quick check on comicbookdb.com, Dave has also been featured at least 16 times in comics and graphic novels. His very first comic book appearance came out in late 1983, in the pages of Avengers #239. This was one I picked off the shelf at Clint’s South when it came out, as my copy has the direct market logo in place of the UPC code on the image above.

Avengers #239 was also part of the infamous Assistant Editor’s month. This was a gimmick that Marvel did throughout most of their books with the January 1984 release date. The story was that all of the Marvel editors left New York City to attend the San Diego Comic Con, and left the assistant editor’s in charge for a month. Trust me, I was a naive 13-year-old kid back then, I believed it completely. So for this one month, a lot of quirky stories took place in the Marvel universe – some better than others. Personally, I would put Avengers #239 towards the top of the list.

When the story starts, Hawkeye and his new bride, Mockingbird, arrive at an empty Avengers Mansion. Wonder Man calls in with the news that his agent has arranged an appearance on “Late Night with David Letterman,” but only if he can bring the other Avengers with him. Phone calls go out, and reservists Black Widow, Black Panther, and the Beast join Hawkeye and Wonder Man on Letterman.

So the “Avengers” find themselves on stage with Dave. Unfortunately, wherever the Avengers go, trouble follows – this time in the form of long-time foe Fabian Stankowicz (Look him up!). The Avengers are kept busy fighting Fabian’s killer robots, while our foe wanders down on stage to get in an interview with Dave. Letterman finds out that the robots are controlled by a belt that Fabian is wearing, so Dave takes matters into his own hands, knocking out Fabian with a giant doorknob. (Seriously, I cannot make this stuff up if I tried.) The crowd goes wild, cheering on our host, while the Avengers do clean-up. When things are finished, the Avengers return to their mansion, only to discover that the Letterman show had been pre-empted on the East Coast due to other breaking news.

This comic has not been reprinted very often, so your best bet may be to dive into a back-issue bin to track it down. For those readers in the Kansas City market, I would point you downtown to Clint’s Comics. Located at 3941 Main Street, Clint’s has one of the greatest back-issue selections in the midwest, as well as new comic books, trade paperbacks, toys, t-shirts, and more. Whether tracking down a copy of Avengers #239 or some other prized book from your past, Clint’s is a great place to start your back-issue treasure hunt!

Categories: Jerry

Tags: Avengers, David Letterman, Jerry McMullen, Throwback Thursday