1983
The Last Enchantment!
by Peter Gillis, Brian Postman, Kim DeMulder, Diana Albers, Bob Sharen, Mark Gruenwald
The Cosmic Cube, which is carefully guarded at Project Pegasus, awakens. The changes in its status quickly comes to the attention of three entities: the Shaper of Worlds, the Aquarian, and the scientists of Advanced Idea Mechanics (AIM). The latter group decides that the time is right to attack Project Pegasus and retrieve the cube. They launch an all out assault on the research facility.
A distress call is sent out from Project Pegasus but the only one to respond is Captain America. He arrives just in time to stop the Aquarian from walking away with the cube. Cap doesn’t buy into Aquarian’s reasoning for why he is the best caretaker of the Cosmic Cube. They argue and fight over the cube until it is grabbed by a tractor beam from one of the jet planes of AIM.
The jet planes quickly depart. Cap follows in the Avengers Quinjet. He urges Aquarian to join him but Aquarian declines saying that he has his own way of getting things done. Captain America follows the jet planes of AIM back to their base and is soon involved in a heated battle with AIM security forces.
Bernard Worrell, the last remaining scientist of AIM who was there at the cube’s creation, is running the operation. He explains his reasons and the Cosmic Cube’s history before taking personal possession of it. Captain America and Aquarian break in and try to take the cube back but Worrell proves to be too adept at using the cube. He uses its power to reshape the world and strike them down. His control over it doesn’t last as the Cosmic Cube reaches out and strikes him down.
The Shaper of Worlds arrives on the scene and takes control of the cube. He sets things back to the way they were and explains who he is to Captain America and the others. He departs taking the cube with him.
Thoughts
This feels like the middle chapter of a longer story. The early chapters, some of which I have read, are shown in flashback sequences. Most of the flashback scenes are missing footnotes to inform the reader in which issues of which comics the stories took place.
Notes
According to my research and as is revealed in this story there is more than one cosmic cube. The one that first appeared in Tales of Suspense 79 (Jul 1966) was created by AIM. There was another cube created by the Red Skull but that one was never as powerful as the original, which the Red Skull did possess for a time.
MODOK, who first appeared in Tales of Suspense 93 (Sep 1967), plays a role in the backstory of the Cosmic Cube. He was originally MODOC (Mental Organism Designed Only for Computation) but the cube’s power changed him and he was reborn as MODOK (Mental Organism Designed Only for Killing). Thanos also possessed the Cosmic Cube for a time but it was seemingly destroyed by Captain Marvel.
The Shaper of Worlds first appeared in Incredible Hulk 155 (Sep 1972). He made a few more appearances in that book plus a couple in Fantastic Four before this appearance. His most recent appearance prior to this story was in Incredible Hulk 267 (Jan 1982). He was a creation of the Skrulls and was originally a cosmic cube that the Skrull emperor wielded.
Dr. George Clinton, Bernard Worrell’s mentor, first and only other appearance was in Super Villain Team-Up 17 (Jun 1980). That is the story in which the Red Skull created a second Cosmic Cube. Dr. Clinton was killed by the Red Skull in that story and only shows up in this story in flashbacks.
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