Into the Anthill pt 12 - Punch First, Ask Questions Later
Hank Pym may be good at quitting but he’s terrible at keeping it that way. He returned to the Avengers again as Yellowjacket after a brief stint with the Defenders despite still suffering from the effects of the microbe when shrinking and psychosis when enlarging. Honestly, not a great blend. We start to see Hank really cut loose with violence here, often having to be restrained by his teammates. Everyone has a limit before they snap, but Hank’s was shrinking fast.
Luckily there was another scientific genius named Hank on the team looking out for him once Beast joined up.
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Giant-Size Defenders vol 1 #4
Nighthawk was attacked in his civilian identity, nearly dying when his car exploded. While the Defenders assumed he was the target, Hank heard about it on the news and immediately knew the real target was the woman who had also been in the car, Egghead’s niece Trixie Starr. Because she helped Hank when he was trapped at ant size he swore to get vengeance for her as Yellowjacket. Hank assaulted Egghead in the street and got him to confess that he’d caused the explosion, hoping to disfigure Trixie as revenge for her siding against him. Back at the hospital, Nighthawk revealed his identity to Hank and sent him to save Doctor Strange, Valkyrie, and Hulk, who had pursued the wrong lead and attacked the Squadron Sinister.
Defenders vol 1 #23-25
The Sons of the Serpent burned down an apartment building because it’s residents were predominantly black, latino, and elderly people. They also hijacked the local television signals in an attempt to recruit more racists to their cause. Yellowjacket assisted the Defenders as they went after them, but he, Valkyrie, Doctor Strange, and Nighthawk were captured. Clea summoned Daredevil and Daimon Hellstrom to free the captured Defenders, but passed out before she could reach Luke Cage so they just called him on the phone instead. The Serpents planned to burn Valkyrie to death on an upside-down cross as a show of force, but they were stopped by the good citizens of New York who caught them by surprise and proceeded to beat the shit out of them while the Defenders attacked their base.
Avengers vol 1 #137-140
After Mantis and Swordsman were married, as well as Vision and the Scarlet Witch, the four of them left the Avengers for their respective honeymoons. Because Hawkeye was the only remaining active member, Moondragon was offered a trial membership. Iron Man called on all of the former members to rejoin but only Wasp and Yellowjacket accepted. To fill the remaining gaps, Hank suggested tryouts and Beast responded eagerly. The tryouts were interrupted by an attack from The Stranger, who injured Wasp badly enough to hospitalize her. When Beast was able to prove that this was actually Toad using machines to impersonate the Stranger, Hank lost his temper and pummeled him.
Hank finally realized that Jan’s chauffeur was Whirlwind after he tried to kill her again at the hospital. Enraged, he altered his size recklessly in pursuit of Whirlwind, although ultimately it was Beast who felled him as a token of their budding friendship. The strain of the fight caused Hank to collapse in front of the hospital and he continued to grow steadily with no signs of stopping. Beast was able to synthesize a cure for the microbe he’d been infected with by experimenting on Jan’s blood and Vision phased it directly into his heart to save him.
Avengers vol 1 #141, 146, 148, 150-153
After spending several issues in the hospital recovering, Hank and Jan got out in time for the Avengers to officially determine their lineup moving forward. Iron Man was named the leader when Thor opted for reserve membership. Captain America, Scarlet Witch, Vision, and Wasp voted to stay on active duty. Yellowjacket opted out, again hoping to pursue the life of a scientist rather than a superhero. Beast accepted, while Moondragon and Hellcat left with Thor for more training. With one spot remaining, Yellowjacket walked back in and changed his mind. Much as he would rather be a simple bio-chemist, he couldn’t bring himself to give up the life of a superhero either.
Tomb of Darkness vol 1 #22
This story showed Hank as a much younger man as the assistant to Albert Poole, a scientist who dreamed of becoming huge and taking over the world. Since he could not figure out the formula to change his size he instead had Hank help him build a giant robot suit named Grutan. Once the suit was finished Albert fired Hank and sent him away. Albert accidentally left the keys to operate the suit outside of it after sealing the hatch and wasn’t strong enough to free himself. It is implied that he died inside Grutan since only Hank knew his whereabouts.
Minor/Cameo appearances from this period:
Black Goliath vol 1 #1
Avengers Annual vol 1 #6
Avengers vol 1 #154-156
Super-Villain Team-Up vol 1 #9
Marvel Treasury Edition vol 1 #13
