AVENGERS #9
- MARVEL COMICS
- OCTOBER 1964
- 12¢
- 32 PAGES
FIRST APPEARANCE OF WONDER MAN (SIMON WILLIAMS)
Baron Zemo has returned, and this time he has created a weapon powerful enough to destroy the Avengers from within! Teaming with the Enchantress and the Executioner, Zemo transforms disgraced industrialist Simon Williams into Wonder Man, a super-powered being with strength rivaling Thor and Giant-Man. Sent to infiltrate Earth’s Mightiest Heroes, Wonder Man must gain their trust before delivering them into Zemo’s deadly trap. But as the Avengers fight for their lives, Wonder Man discovers that loyalty, friendship, and honor may be stronger than Zemo’s control. Can a man created for evil find redemption before time runs out?
CREATORS
STAN LEE
WRITER/EDITOR
DON HECK
PENCILLER
DICK AYERS
INKER
STAN GOLDBERG
COLORIST (UNCREDITED)
ARTIE SIMEK
LETTERER
CHARACTERS
MAIN CHARACTERS
CAPTAIN AMERICA
STEVE ROGERS
IRON MAN
ANTHONY 'TONY' STARK
THOR
THOR ODINSON/DONALD BLAKE
GIANT-MAN
HENRY 'HANK' PYM
WASP
JANET VAN DYNE
ANTAGONISTS
BARON ZEMO
HEINRICH ZEMO
ENCHANTRESS
AMORA
EXECUTIONER
SKURGE
SUPPORTING CHARACTER
WONDER MAN
SIMON WILLIAMS
ANCILLARY CHARACTERS
BUCKY
JAMES BUCHANAN BARNES
JANE FOSTER
JANE FOSTER
PEPPER POTTS
VIRGINIA 'PEPPER' POTTS
HAPPY HOGAN
HAROLD 'HAPPY' HOGAN
THE COMING OF THE...WONDER MAN!
Captain America is still haunted by memories of his greatest enemy, Baron Zemo. During an Avengers training session, Cap suddenly believes he sees Zemo standing before him and charges forward, determined to finally capture the villain responsible for Bucky’s death. However, Iron Man and Thor quickly stop him, revealing that there is nothing there. Captain America realizes that he has been experiencing a hallucination brought on by his obsession with finding Zemo.
Thor reminds Cap that their last battle sent Zemo and his allies, the Enchantress and the Executioner, into a space warp, meaning they could have ended up anywhere in the universe. Unknown to the Avengers, Zemo’s spacecraft is trapped between dimensions, where he, the Enchantress, and the Executioner struggle to return to Earth. Using her powerful magic, the Enchantress eventually guides their ship back to their home dimension, and they emerge in a hidden jungle base in South America.
Once reunited, the three villains begin planning their revenge against the Avengers. While the Executioner and Enchantress possess incredible power, Zemo insists that his scientific genius and strategic mind make him the most valuable member of their alliance. He explains that he defeated Captain America once and will do so again by using a weapon unlike anything the Avengers have ever faced.
Their plan begins when they discover Simon Williams, a wealthy industrialist whose company collapsed after being unable to compete with Tony Stark’s inventions. After Williams is arrested for embezzlement, the Enchantress and Executioner approach him and offer him a chance at revenge against Stark and Iron Man. Desperate and disgraced, Williams accepts their offer and is taken to Zemo’s hidden laboratory.
There, Zemo subjects Williams to an experiment using powerful ionic rays. The process dramatically enhances Williams’ strength, endurance, speed, and durability, transforming him into a super-powered being. Zemo declares that he has created a “new breed of man” and gives Williams the identity of Wonder Man.
Wonder Man quickly demonstrates his incredible abilities. He uproots trees, smashes massive boulders, and proves that his strength rivals that of Giant-Man and Thor. He even defeats the powerful Executioner in combat, surprising Zemo’s allies. However, Zemo reveals the secret behind Wonder Man’s power: the same ionic process that granted him his abilities is slowly killing him. Only Zemo possesses the antidote, meaning Wonder Man must obey his commands if he wishes to survive.
Zemo then reveals his ultimate plan—Wonder Man will infiltrate the Avengers and destroy them from within.
Meanwhile, the Avengers continue their normal lives. Iron Man struggles with the fact that his closest allies still believe Tony Stark has mysteriously disappeared, unaware that Stark himself is secretly operating as Iron Man. Thor returns to his identity as Dr. Donald Blake, Giant-Man and the Wasp continue their playful disagreements, and Captain America remains consumed by his desire to bring Zemo to justice.
Soon afterward, a robbery brings the Avengers into action. When they arrive, they encounter Baron Zemo, the Enchantress, and the Executioner. During the battle, Wonder Man dramatically appears and seemingly turns against Zemo’s group. He destroys Zemo’s equipment and prevents the Enchantress from using her magic, making the Avengers believe he is an ally.
After the villains escape, Wonder Man explains that he was captured by Zemo and forced to undergo experiments. He claims that he escaped and wants to join the Avengers. Although Captain America remains suspicious, Wonder Man’s heroic actions convince the team to give him a chance. When Wonder Man reveals that he is dying from a mysterious condition, the Avengers immediately offer to help save him.
The team dedicates themselves to finding a cure. Giant-Man studies his condition through biochemistry, Iron Man investigates whether his technology can help stabilize him, and Thor’s alter ego, Dr. Donald Blake, examines his medical condition. Meanwhile, Wonder Man secretly reports back to Zemo, revealing that the Avengers have accepted him.
Zemo orders Wonder Man to lure the Avengers into a trap by claiming he and the Wasp have been captured. The Avengers rush to rescue them, unaware that Wonder Man is leading them directly into danger. Iron Man arrives first and is immediately trapped by a massive magnet designed by Zemo specifically to defeat him.
Captain America and Thor arrive soon afterward, and the Avengers battle Zemo’s forces. Wonder Man turns against them, revealing his true allegiance. He strikes Thor by surprise and traps him beneath a massive boulder, separating him from his enchanted hammer. Without his hammer, Thor will eventually revert to his mortal identity, Dr. Donald Blake.
Wonder Man then battles Giant-Man, proving to be one of the strongest opponents the Avengers have ever faced. Although Giant-Man’s enormous strength surprises him, Wonder Man eventually overpowers him. Meanwhile, Captain America fights the Executioner, and Iron Man attempts to free Thor.
However, Wonder Man begins questioning his actions. Despite being created as a weapon, he remembers how the Avengers treated him with kindness and respect when they believed he needed help. He begins to realize that Zemo only views him as a tool.
Before Zemo can activate a machine designed to destroy the Avengers, Wonder Man turns against his creator. He uses his incredible strength to disrupt Zemo’s plans and attempts to free Thor. The Executioner attacks him, but Wonder Man manages to knock away the obstacles trapping Thor. With his hammer returned, Thor transforms back into action and defeats the Executioner.
The Avengers regain control of the battle. The Enchantress uses her magic to create a smoke screen, allowing Zemo and his allies to escape. Captain America nearly follows Zemo, but Giant-Man and the Wasp realize that the villains have prepared a trap and warn the team before the tunnel collapses.
Although Zemo escapes once again, the Avengers survive. They then turn their attention to Wonder Man, who is dying because of Zemo’s experiment. The team realizes that despite all their combined abilities, they cannot save him.
In his final moments, Wonder Man admits that although he began as an enemy, he is glad he was able to perform one truly heroic act. He dies knowing that he saved the lives of the very people he was sent to destroy.
The Avengers mourn their fallen ally, recognizing Wonder Man as a tragic figure who was manipulated by evil but ultimately chose redemption.
REVIEW
AVENGERS #9 is one of the defining stories of the Avengers' early Silver Age run, blending superhero action with genuine emotional drama. Stan Lee crafts a story that initially appears to be another battle between the Avengers and Baron Zemo, but quickly evolves into a tragic tale of manipulation, redemption, and sacrifice. The introduction of Simon Williams, better known as Wonder Man, gives the issue an emotional core that separates it from many superhero comics of the era. Rather than focusing solely on spectacle, the story explores loyalty, guilt, and the cost of heroism, resulting in one of the series' most memorable early adventures.
The issue's greatest strength is its cast of characters. Wonder Man is immediately established as more than a powerful newcomer; he is a flawed man driven by desperation, manipulated into becoming Baron Zemo's unwilling weapon against the Avengers. His growing admiration for the heroes he was sent to destroy gives his inevitable redemption real emotional weight. Baron Zemo continues to prove himself one of the Avengers' most dangerous enemies, while the Enchantress and Executioner provide strong support as members of the Masters of Evil. Captain America's relentless determination to capture Zemo, fueled by memories of Bucky's death, adds another compelling emotional thread that enriches the story.
Don Heck's first regular interior artwork on AVENGERS, inked by Dick Ayers, represents a noticeable shift from Jack Kirby's explosive style. Heck places greater emphasis on expressive faces, character interactions, and clear storytelling, allowing Wonder Man's emotional conflict to take center stage. While some of the action lacks the overwhelming visual impact that Kirby was known for, the battles remain exciting and easy to follow. Jack Kirby's dynamic cover, meanwhile, delivers exactly the kind of dramatic excitement expected from an early Marvel superhero comic and remains one of the issue's visual highlights.
Stan Lee's dialogue is unmistakably rooted in the Silver Age, featuring dramatic speeches, colorful villain monologues, and plenty of exposition. Yet each character maintains a distinct voice, particularly Wonder Man, whose internal struggle grows increasingly convincing as the story unfolds. The pacing is well balanced, moving naturally from Wonder Man's origin to his infiltration of the Avengers and finally to the climactic confrontation in the Amazon jungle. The final pages are especially effective, as Wonder Man's selfless sacrifice transforms what could have been a routine superhero battle into a surprisingly poignant conclusion.
More than sixty years after its publication, AVENGERS #9 remains one of the landmark issues of the series. It introduced one of Marvel's most enduring heroes while demonstrating that superhero comics could deliver meaningful character drama alongside exciting action. Wonder Man's debut, Baron Zemo's elaborate scheme, and the issue's bittersweet ending have ensured its lasting place in Avengers history. Although later stories would expand Simon Williams' legacy, his unforgettable first appearance remains a Silver Age classic that continues to resonate with readers and collectors alike.
NOTES
This issue marks the first appearance of Wonder Man (Simon Williams), who is introduced as a powerful new character created by Baron Zemo to infiltrate and destroy the Avengers. After being exposed to Zemo's experimental ionic-ray treatment, Wonder Man gains superhuman strength, durability, stamina, and enhanced physical abilities, making him a formidable opponent capable of matching several Avengers in combat. Although he appears to die at the conclusion of this issue after sacrificing himself to save the team, Wonder Man's story was far from over. His inert body would later be seen in AVENGERS #102 (1972), before he was eventually revived and returned from the dead in AVENGERS #151 (1976).
During the Avengers' attempts to find a cure for Wonder Man's deteriorating condition, Giant-Man (Hank Pym) records scans of Wonder Man's brain patterns. These recordings would later become a crucial component in the creation of the Vision, whose artificial brain patterns were based on Wonder Man's mental engrams, as revealed in AVENGERS #58 (1968). This connection would eventually lead to a unique relationship between the two characters, as both Wonder Man and the Vision develop romantic feelings for the same woman, the Scarlet Witch. Their shared emotional connection would become one of the most significant and enduring storylines in Avengers history.
Iron Man's comments about Pepper Potts and Happy Hogan's distrust of him are a direct reference to the ongoing storyline in TALES OF SUSPENSE. In recent issues, Pepper and Happy had begun to suspect that there was something unusual about Iron Man, unaware that the armored hero was actually their employer, Tony Stark. This subplot continues to build the tension surrounding Iron Man's secret identity, as his personal and superhero lives become increasingly difficult to keep separate.
Baron Zemo, the Enchantress, and the Executioner were previously banished to a space warp between the sixth and seventh dimensions by Thor in AVENGERS #7 (1964). In this issue, the trio escapes their dimensional imprisonment when the Enchantress uses her powerful sorcery to reopen a path back to the present day, allowing them to resume their plans for revenge against the Avengers.
This issue marks the debut of Don Heck as the new regular interior artist for AVENGERS, replacing the legendary Jack Kirby, who illustrated the first eight issues of the series. Heck brought a more character-focused and refined style to the title, becoming the primary artist for many issues during this era. Although Kirby departed from interior artwork, he continued to contribute his iconic cover illustrations for the series until AVENGERS #30 (1966), leaving a lasting visual impact on the series.
During this same month, the Avengers make a brief guest appearance in FANTASTIC FOUR #31 (1964), where they attempt to assist the Fantastic Four in capturing the Mole Man. Although their role in the story is brief, the appearance helps further establish the growing connections between Marvel's superhero teams during the Silver Age and reinforces the shared universe that was becoming a defining feature of Marvel Comics.