I just came across edition 8 of the comic book ‘Narmor – The Sub-Mariner’ with this specific edition published in December of 68 by Marvel Comics. I had to look twice while reading it. Now I know that when it comes to Zodiac, it’s very easy to read too much into things and interpret something that is pure coincidence into something specific and significant. But even acknowledging this, I think this comic edition and storyline and antagonist are extremely interesting whether it’s down to coincidence or really is a blueprint for what was to come….
" We open with a splash of a copy of the Daily Bugle in the trash, its front page headlines trumpeting a battle royal between Namor and the Thing. Apparently in the last issue Namor was at odds with a certain Paul Destine, who ended up dead. (I mean come on, Paul De-Stine, who ends up dead? That is a one in a million coincidence). As we join our cast here we find that the Lady Dorma has passed out from a lack of oxygen. She had been taking some sort of pill to aid her in breathing the surface air, and the time for the pill’s effectiveness had lapsed. So Namor feels an urgent need to tend to his lady. Problem is, the Boys in Blue have arrived and want to ask the Avenging Son some questions about Destine’s demise.
"Well, we’ve all known Subby long enough to know he’s not in a talking frame of mind. So, one bull rush through the cops later, and Namor’s in the air. He and Dorma were with a woman named Diane, and she hails a cab. Once inside she directs the hack to head down the alley, slowly. The driver doesn’t go very far when the cab suddenly stops moving! Looking behind, he sees that Namor has landed and has grabbed hold of the back bumper. He and Dorma enter, and the cabbie takes the now-three passengers to a false address. A short walk later, and they are in Diane’s apartment. Our narrator tells of Namor’s destructive tendencies as he battled the humans. We meet policewoman Betty Dean, who was brave enough to confront Namor face-to-face. She asked him to stop, and to leave. Namor, respectful of her bravery, complied. But as he left he was confronted by one who could actually match him — the hero we call the Original Human Torch!
"But as they talk, Namor’s suddenly alerted to a bulletin on the radio. The police have in their custody the helmet that Paul Destine had worn while he had battled the Sub-Mariner. They plan to study it. Namor blasts forth from the sofa and out the window — the police have no idea of the power."
There is more than that but I am only reading a synopsis of edition 8 that I found online. I was struck by the appearance of the antagonist ‘The Human Torch’ and his very familiar placement of the chest emblem…..
"So it’s sorta social. Demented and sad, but social, right?" Judd Nelson.
The synopsis concludes with:
" So after 7 1/2 pages of "serious scrimmagin’", as Ben put it, Namor is urged to stop just as he intends to land the final blow on his orange-plated nemesis. Namor turns with a typical "Who dares?!?" to be greeted by a Mrs. Prentiss. Namor recognizes her and instantly puts to rest the huge chunk of building he had only moments before held aloft over the Thing. The woman, sensing she has completed her mission, turns to fade back into the shadows. Namor asks her to wait, that they could talk. She declines and says a final good-bye. Namor’s face is now calm, as he says that he, too, will leave. Ben comes to his feet for the next round, but Namor almost-politely suggests that they will fight no more — the helmet came from the depths and to the depths it will be returned. Ben doesn’t protest, and asks himself if he somehow won today. Sceneshift to the apartment where we began, to find the same woman completing her journal entry. It was Namor and Dorma’s friend Diane Arliss (help me out — is she Tiger Shark’s sister?) who had come to her for aid this day — come to a woman, now a widow, once known to Namor as Betty Dean."
Also, Wiki has the abilities of the ‘The Human Torch’ listed as, among others, "Ability to absorb heat energy. Skilled race-car driver, auto-mechanic, and designer."
"So it’s sorta social. Demented and sad, but social, right?" Judd Nelson.
