More Marvel Team-Up dreams- without Spider-Man!

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Imagine if Marvel Team-Up could’ve been more experimental and not had to rely on their mascot Spider-Man nearly every issue: more stuff like this cool Deathlok/ Devil-Slayer story I’m about to read, in the last issue of Marvel Spotlight.

One imagines a decent tale, for every era of the title, without Spidey, easily, at least, potentially- so, it’s too bad they were locked into that mold, and make their black and white magazines print better. Granted, they didn't want to break an unbroken thing, trying to fix it.

1972 team-up? Ah, Black Widow and Iron Man, by Gene Colan
Luke Cage and Iron Man, by Billy Graham and Ron Wilson.

’73? Conan the Barbarian and Dr. Strange.
The Cat and Shanna the She-Devil, guest-starring Night Nurse.
’74 The Vision and the Scarlet Witch versus Dracula!
I thought of lots of interesting things about Dracula and Vision, but then I got one helluva Hex Wanda could throw that seemingly cures Dracula. I'll say no more.

’75 The Black Panther and Iron Fist. Or: Ghost Rider and Satanna.
’76 Shang-Chi and Captain America (Capt. America / Iron Fist was an awesome suggestion with good notes by Alan Barberi- yes, Byrne and K'un L'un and the Living Legend needed space to thunder!) (Yes, Byrne and Team-Up Anything, like Brian Talley said.)

’77 Warlock and Howard The Duck Steve Gerber and Jim Starlin's 2nd collab. Or maybe bring back Val Mayerick?

’78
(If Jack Kirby couldn't be sweet-talked into teaming up Thor with Machine Man...yeah, can't imagine..)
(If Jack Kirby can’t be sweet-talked into teaming Mighty Thor w/ Machine Man..) I don't have much better ideas of what to do with anything fresh in '78 than Marvel did.

’79 The Incredible Hulk and Star God
Just take Spidey out of one chapter of that Black Widow four-parter so another co-star, like Shang-Chi, could interact with her. Their backgrounds would’ve made a compelling match-up. That might’ve made a very cool ‘downtime’ epilogue?
’80 Moon Knight and the X-Men a Hellfire Club tie-in with Claremont/Byrne/ Austin.
’81 Daredevil and Dazzler by Frank Miller

(I love it that Devil Slayer was in my first MTU – one of the first three comics I ever bought with my very own change- but I know I had to have it because Spider-Man. That was late the summer of 1981.)

Imagine if one of those Stern/ Miller Doctor Strange strips we were teased got finished and published in humble Marvel Team Up?

1982 Paul Smith draws Kitty Pryde teaming up with Power Man and Iron Smith, with Jo Duffy writing.

1983 would've been a great time to spotlight G.I. Joe with X-Men.

1984 would've been an awesome year to team up Captain America with one of the Further Adventures of Indiana Jones. At this stage, a cover with Magneto and The Submariner would've had a different context, given where those characters were that year.

Or maybe, to be story-driven, imagine
a 1974 Rick Jones Rock Tour
, taking him and Captain Marvel to the 'round the way heroes of the era, like:

St. Louis - Daimon Hellstrom
Detroit- Iron Man
Atlanta- Man-Thing, during his brief rampages there.
Austin- Ghost Rider
Los Angeles- Werewolf By Night
Jersey City- Namor

maybe culminating in NYC with a Hulk and Captain America teaming.

Comment! Comment! Go for it.

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