What do you think?
Rate this book
Tales to Astonish
Ant-Man #40
Originally printed as Tales to Astonish #40
Ant-Man meets a worthy opponent in the The Hijacker, a supervillain interested in building a personal armory. When Ant-Man fails to save the day, who has he disappointed? A humbling moment for one of Marvel's mightiest heroes.
Ant-Man meets a worthy opponent in the The Hijacker, a supervillain interested in building a personal armory. When Ant-Man fails to save the day, who has he disappointed? A humbling moment for one of Marvel's mightiest heroes.
- GenresComicsMarvelComic Book
12 pages, Kindle Edition
First published February 1, 1963
2 people are currently reading
22 people want to read
About the author
Stan Lee
7,571 books2,353 followersStan Lee (born Stanley Martin Lieber) was an American writer, editor, creator of comic book superheroes, and the former president and chairman of Marvel Comics.
With several artist co-creators, most notably Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko, he co-created Spider-Man, the Fantastic Four, Thor as a superhero, the X-Men, Iron Man, the Hulk, Daredevil, the Silver Surfer, Dr. Strange, Ant-Man and the Wasp, Scarlet Witch, The Inhumans, and many other characters, introducing complex, naturalistic characters and a thoroughly shared universe into superhero comic books. He subsequently led the expansion of Marvel Comics from a small division of a publishing house to a large multimedia corporation.
With several artist co-creators, most notably Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko, he co-created Spider-Man, the Fantastic Four, Thor as a superhero, the X-Men, Iron Man, the Hulk, Daredevil, the Silver Surfer, Dr. Strange, Ant-Man and the Wasp, Scarlet Witch, The Inhumans, and many other characters, introducing complex, naturalistic characters and a thoroughly shared universe into superhero comic books. He subsequently led the expansion of Marvel Comics from a small division of a publishing house to a large multimedia corporation.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
March 8, 2020
THE HIGHJACKER! HE STEALS ARMORED CARS! HE USES 'PERUVIAN' KNOCK OUT GAS TO MAKE THE ARMORED CAR PERSONNEL FORGET! HE IS REALLY HOWARD MITCHELL - OWNER OF HIS OWN ARMORED CAR COMPANY! WATCH OUT ANT-MAN! Laughed so hard! One of my favorite comics of the 60's!
July 9, 2020
The Hijacker is robbing armored cars and making off with huge amounts of money from customer payrolls. The guards don’t remember anything and no one can identify the Hijacker. How can even Ant-Man catch this devious crook?
This story is pretty straight-forward and follows the formula of previous issues, but this mystery was pretty clear from the get-go. Stan got a little lazy on this one and telegraphs the entire plot and resolution in the first page or two. There might as well have been big signs pointing to things and saying, “this is a major plot element!” Normally, I enjoy the mystery format where Ant-Man relates how he solved the crime since it’s so different from the other books Marvel is doing at this time. Stan is just caught up in the “Scooby Doo” of it all at this point and needs to do some more original plotting.
Sol Brodsky joins Jack Kirby on the art this issue and I’d say it was a pretty noticeable improvement! Brodsky’s linework seems to more closely mimic Kirby’s original art really highlighting the details and bringing that to the forefront. I really enjoyed each panel and the intricacies of Kirby’s machinery is really brought out in all it’s glory here. Very nice pairing! But I have to say I do enjoy the detail on the cover as well here - especially the people in the background. It highlights a fun part of the story in which Ant-Man is trapped in a car engine!
There are two other fairly standard stories with art by Don Heck and Steve Ditko in the issue as well, but they’re nothing to really highlight.
A solid Ant-Man tale, but we need a little more originality to keep this book interesting.
This story is pretty straight-forward and follows the formula of previous issues, but this mystery was pretty clear from the get-go. Stan got a little lazy on this one and telegraphs the entire plot and resolution in the first page or two. There might as well have been big signs pointing to things and saying, “this is a major plot element!” Normally, I enjoy the mystery format where Ant-Man relates how he solved the crime since it’s so different from the other books Marvel is doing at this time. Stan is just caught up in the “Scooby Doo” of it all at this point and needs to do some more original plotting.
Sol Brodsky joins Jack Kirby on the art this issue and I’d say it was a pretty noticeable improvement! Brodsky’s linework seems to more closely mimic Kirby’s original art really highlighting the details and bringing that to the forefront. I really enjoyed each panel and the intricacies of Kirby’s machinery is really brought out in all it’s glory here. Very nice pairing! But I have to say I do enjoy the detail on the cover as well here - especially the people in the background. It highlights a fun part of the story in which Ant-Man is trapped in a car engine!
There are two other fairly standard stories with art by Don Heck and Steve Ditko in the issue as well, but they’re nothing to really highlight.
A solid Ant-Man tale, but we need a little more originality to keep this book interesting.
December 25, 2025
The Ant-Man story initially starts off well, both in its opening and in the hero’s original plan, but I think it loses control during the confrontation with the thief, especially when it comes to the villain’s motivations.
The section explaining Pym’s new invention and the fact that it later becomes relevant to the plot is a narrative device that is still widely used even today, so I didn’t find it particularly lazy. That said, the mask itself looks less like an advanced technological creation and more like a thin layer of laminated paper, which undermines its credibility.
I also appreciated the near-mistake in the use of the catapult, since it makes Ant-Man feel more human and shows something slightly different from the usual flawless execution. Still, I find it hard to believe that he was able to discover the thief’s identity solely through his connection with the Peruvian statues. On top of that, the villain’s plan is largely nonsensical and feels forced. I also don’t understand why, in stories like this, the antagonist always has to be someone who was already introduced earlier in the issue.
And out of all the possible places where Ant-Man could have hidden, did it really have to be the truck’s engine?
The artwork in this issue is very similar to the previous ones, and there is still no substantial leap in overall quality.
The section explaining Pym’s new invention and the fact that it later becomes relevant to the plot is a narrative device that is still widely used even today, so I didn’t find it particularly lazy. That said, the mask itself looks less like an advanced technological creation and more like a thin layer of laminated paper, which undermines its credibility.
I also appreciated the near-mistake in the use of the catapult, since it makes Ant-Man feel more human and shows something slightly different from the usual flawless execution. Still, I find it hard to believe that he was able to discover the thief’s identity solely through his connection with the Peruvian statues. On top of that, the villain’s plan is largely nonsensical and feels forced. I also don’t understand why, in stories like this, the antagonist always has to be someone who was already introduced earlier in the issue.
And out of all the possible places where Ant-Man could have hidden, did it really have to be the truck’s engine?
The artwork in this issue is very similar to the previous ones, and there is still no substantial leap in overall quality.
December 17, 2017
I enjoyed The Hijacker. Ant Man is summoned to help solve robberies of an armored truck company. Ant Man prominently announces that there will be a big payroll transfer the following day. Upon loading the truck, Ant Man becomes ill and cannot participate in protecting the truck. Sure enough, the truck is hijacked. A gas is pumped into the truck. The hijacker wears a gas mask. Suddenly, Ant Man arrives to save the day. He had feigned his illness thinking nothing would happen if it was thought Ant Man was aboard. Cute.
There was an interesting story of a boy who wanted a parakeet like all the other boys had gotten in town. His family had sacrificed a lot for him so he wouldn't ask for one. He runs into a guy in town who claims he can speak to pigeons. The boy gets ahold of the device and sure enough he can too. He becomes the envy of all the other boys for having many birds.
The final story was also interesting. The worst man on earth, a career criminal, is arrested and sentenced to life in prison in the year 2000. He thought it was a joke since they didn't have the death penalty. He vowed to escape. And escape he did. Of course, he didn't quite realize where he was being held captive. Indeed, he was in solitary forever.
There was an interesting story of a boy who wanted a parakeet like all the other boys had gotten in town. His family had sacrificed a lot for him so he wouldn't ask for one. He runs into a guy in town who claims he can speak to pigeons. The boy gets ahold of the device and sure enough he can too. He becomes the envy of all the other boys for having many birds.
The final story was also interesting. The worst man on earth, a career criminal, is arrested and sentenced to life in prison in the year 2000. He thought it was a joke since they didn't have the death penalty. He vowed to escape. And escape he did. Of course, he didn't quite realize where he was being held captive. Indeed, he was in solitary forever.
April 12, 2021
20/100
August 9, 2019
TALES TO ASTONISH 27, 35-52 (Ant-Man's First Arc)
Stan Lee made the fantastic decision when taking over this magazine to make it entirely dedicated to stories featuring Ant-Man from that point onward. This was really the right move, seeing as that was the only story in this magazine that was unique let alone deeper in its thematic content.
ANT-MAN has a great dynamic, where you can achieve suspense with something as simple as his size comparable to his enemies. The tactics one might use to kill an ordinary insect, like flypaper, are equally lethal against someone of Ant-Man's size. It's also a nice visual metaphor, as he is forced to understand and appreciate the perspective of someone much smaller than himself. He no longer can view the world as inferior or insignificant to himself; its an interesting dynamic, as his villains always are a reversal of this notion by using this very thinking of superiority as justification for their crimes.
The biggest flaw with the stories up to this point is the dialogue… unsurprising of comic books in this era, but surprising for the man writing it. Ant-Man has no-one to really interact with, so it feels really unnatural for him to be talking to himself all the time. It also makes all his dialogue really expository, leaving no room for character accessorization. It is something Lee quickly realized though, prompting him to introduce the Wasp in issue 44; It provides an interesting character dynamic, a bickering husband and wife, because it makes them feel much more real and consequently make us career about the danger they’re in even more.
The other big flaw is that all the villains are one-off villains of the week; if the villains are always defeated, it leaves the reader feeling as if these stories are inconsequential to the protagonists and thus eliminating any sense they’re ever in real danger. But more importantly, it misses a valuable opportunity for character development; if there is a re-occurring antagonist, it mirrors the re-occurring protagonist. The villain and the hero grow and change together, each progressing alongside each other. By having no re-occurring villains, it makes the hero unchallenged and makes us fear the villains even less.
Despite these flaws, the issues are worth reading for the character interaction between the Ant-Man and the Wasp, which is really what carries these stories.
Stan Lee made the fantastic decision when taking over this magazine to make it entirely dedicated to stories featuring Ant-Man from that point onward. This was really the right move, seeing as that was the only story in this magazine that was unique let alone deeper in its thematic content.
ANT-MAN has a great dynamic, where you can achieve suspense with something as simple as his size comparable to his enemies. The tactics one might use to kill an ordinary insect, like flypaper, are equally lethal against someone of Ant-Man's size. It's also a nice visual metaphor, as he is forced to understand and appreciate the perspective of someone much smaller than himself. He no longer can view the world as inferior or insignificant to himself; its an interesting dynamic, as his villains always are a reversal of this notion by using this very thinking of superiority as justification for their crimes.
The biggest flaw with the stories up to this point is the dialogue… unsurprising of comic books in this era, but surprising for the man writing it. Ant-Man has no-one to really interact with, so it feels really unnatural for him to be talking to himself all the time. It also makes all his dialogue really expository, leaving no room for character accessorization. It is something Lee quickly realized though, prompting him to introduce the Wasp in issue 44; It provides an interesting character dynamic, a bickering husband and wife, because it makes them feel much more real and consequently make us career about the danger they’re in even more.
The other big flaw is that all the villains are one-off villains of the week; if the villains are always defeated, it leaves the reader feeling as if these stories are inconsequential to the protagonists and thus eliminating any sense they’re ever in real danger. But more importantly, it misses a valuable opportunity for character development; if there is a re-occurring antagonist, it mirrors the re-occurring protagonist. The villain and the hero grow and change together, each progressing alongside each other. By having no re-occurring villains, it makes the hero unchallenged and makes us fear the villains even less.
Despite these flaws, the issues are worth reading for the character interaction between the Ant-Man and the Wasp, which is really what carries these stories.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews