Claws Across the Water!

A prisoner of the Yellow Claw, a woman named Shu Han has constructed a hidden transmitter where she sends out a distress call out via Morse Code. She has to quickly stop when Yellow Claw enters her room and demands to know if she will accept his offer to be her bride. Shu Han tells him that she hasn’t decided yet and the villain decides to give her three more days to make up her mind.

The next day, at Avengers Mansion, the team is bidding farewell to Hawkeye who has to return to his job as head of security for Cross Technological Enterprises. That’s when Jarvis arrives with the mail and Captain America becomes interested in a letter marked “life or death”. It’s from a radio operator working out of Hong Kong who picked up Shu Han’s distress call. Learning that she is a prisoner of his old foe, the Yellow Claw, Cap insists that the Avengers should get involved. While the Avengers agree that something needs to be done, the Vision points out that they need to tread carefully since the Yellow Claw’s hideout is on an island in contested waters and their involvement could cause an international incident. Still, Cap wants to take the risk, hoping that by exposing Yellow Claw’s latest scheme they can justify their presence.[1]

Meanwhile, Yellow Claw goes over his plans with one of his scientists, Doctor Lu, who informs him everything is going according to plan. That’s when security alerts the Claw of the approaching Quinjet, prompting the terrorist to prepare a warm welcome for the Avengers. Circling the island, Captain America sends the Wasp and the Vision to scout ahead while they find a place to land. While the Vision uses his phasing powers to attack the guards and create a distraction, the Wasp manages to sneak in through a sealed pipe that takes her into Yellow Claw’s lab. When she buzzes by to get a better listen to Yellow Claw’s schemes, the villain dismisses her as an insect and gets upset that the the air tight seal around his base has been compromised and orders his men to make repairs.

By this time, the Avengers have made a water landing and are making their way to the island when they are attacked by a mutated jellyfish monster created by Yellow Claw. At that same moment, the Vision confronts Yellow Claw directly but is quickly knocked out by the villain’s high tech weaponry. Seeing how quickly the Vision was defeated, the Wasp decides against attacking Yellow Claw alone and hopes the rest of the team will make it soon.

Elsewhere on the island, the rest of the Avengers continues to fight through Yellow Claw’s defenses. When they reach the center of the island, the Claw appears before them as a massive hologram. He gives them the opportunity to turn around and leave, but they refuse. This prompts Yellow Claw to send a flock of robotic birds of prey on them. The team quickly destroys these robots and make their way into Yellow Claw’s lair. There, they discover the Vision has been taken prisoner and has been strapped to one of the Claw’s machines. Since he has the android a prisoner and has no idea what the Avengers want, Yellow Claw decides to call a truce to find out what the heroes have come for.

Entering Yellow Claw’s throne room, the Avengers reveal that they received a distress call from Shu Han and have come to rescue her. The Yellow Claw is surprised by this betrayal and has Shu Han brought into the room. She tells the Avengers that many years ago, the Yellow Claw came to her father and arranged to marry Shu Han when she came of age. For years, Shu Han ignored the fact that she was sold off to be married and pursued her career until Yellow Claw came to claim her as his bride. Afraid of what Yellow Claw might do to her, Shu Han panicked and sent out the distress signal. Yellow Claw then explains that the elixers he uses to prolong his life no longer work and with his days numbered was seeking a suitable woman to give him an heir. Since Shu Han wants nothing to do with him, Yellow Claw dismisses her, revealing that he has an harem of concubines willing to produce a child for him.

With that, Yellow Claw releases the Vision and sends the Avengers and Shu Han on their way. Once they are gone, Yellow Claw muses how the other women will produce many offspring which he will train so they can fight to the death to determine which child will be his true heir and that they will be the last children on Earth.

Recurring Characters

Avengers (Captain America, Iron Man, Wasp, Hawkeye, Scarlet Witch, Vision, Wonder Man, Beast, Jocasta), Yellow Claw, Edwin Jarvis

Continuity Notes

1. Captain America states here that he faced Yellow Claw many times in the past. Actually, he only fought Yellow Claw once, in Captain America #164-167. An earlier battle in Strange Tales #161-167 turned out to actually be a robot of Yellow Claw created by Doctor Doom.

Topical References

• In this story it is stated that Shu Han won the gold in track during the 1968 Olympics and won the 1974 Nobel Prize in physics. These dates should be considered topical references.