Marvel Super Hero Contest of Champions #3 (1982)

The third contest pits the Unknown's team (Vanguard, Angel, and Black Panther) against the Grandmaster's team (Wolverine, the Thing, and Peregrine) in a mountainous region of China. When they materialize, Wolverine, Peregrine, and the Thing make brief introductions before Wolverine stalks off alone to locate the prize, one quarter of the Golden Globe of Life. Meanwhile, Black Panther and Angel reunite and dispute leadership with Vanguard, who is eager to command. Black Panther dismisses the need for a leader, but Vanguard's attempts to boss the group result in his isolation. Black Panther explores on the ground and discovers a vast archaeological site filled with ceramic warriors. Wolverine, tracking Black Panther by scent, launches a sneak attack. Simultaneously, Peregrine confronts Angel in an aerial battle high above the ancient city, stunning Angel and causing him to plummet. On the ground, the Thing battles Vanguard atop an unexcavated burial mound, overpowering him with brute strength. Angel recovers mid-fall and escapes into a nearby village, using a paralyzed peasant's staff to knock out Peregrine during a chase. The Thing disarms and knocks out Vanguard before aiding Black Panther in a crucial moment, distracting Wolverine and allowing Black Panther to flip the attacker away. Sensing the prize with their heightened senses, Black Panther and Wolverine converge on the Golden Globe quarter just as the Thing unearths it with a powerful punch. Both teams vanish with the Grandmaster now leading two contests to one. The fourth contest transports the Unknown's team (Storm, Shamrock, and Collective Man) and the Grandmaster's team (Sasquatch, Captain America, and Blitzkrieg) to a dense South American jungle. After polite introductions, the teams scatter. Storm clashes with Blitzkrieg in the air, easily breaking free from an electrified cage. On the ground, Captain America swings through vines until Shamrock, camouflaged in her green costume, surprises and topples him. Sasquatch faces off against Collective Man, whose martial arts skills are overwhelmed by Sasquatch's raw power. Meanwhile, Shamrock narrowly escapes Captain America thanks to her incredible luck when a python strikes at him, and Collective Man calls upon the strength of all China to repel Sasquatch, only to faint from the exertion. Captain America is rescued from the python by Blitzkrieg, and together they locate the prize hidden in a tree. As Captain America leaps to seize it, Shamrock snatches the prize at the last moment. The teams disappear again, with the Grandmaster now leading three contests to one. Returning to the orbiting space stadium, the heroes regroup to present the four halves of the Golden Globe of Life. With the Grandmaster's victory secure, he promises that Earth's heroes will be spared from future games. As he attempts to claim the power to resurrect his brother, the Collector, the Unknown reveals a cryptic warning that the power and the choice to use it are his alone. Some of the heroes suspect a trap, and Talisman ventures into dream-time, selecting Invisible Girl to uncover the Unknown's true identity. Invisible Girl exposes the Unknown as Death herself, whose terrifying demeanor causes the heroes to recoil. Death reveals that the Golden Globe is a hollow vessel that cannot resurrect the Collector unless one of equal power sacrifices their life. She offers the Grandmaster an alternative: to use the life forces of all Earth's heroes instead. Choosing self-sacrifice, the Grandmaster imbues the Globe with his own life force, vanishing as the Collector is reborn. The Collector, enraged, vows to confront Death by gathering every hero in the cosmos. Death accepts the challenge, proposing a game under her rules, and they both depart. The arena collapses, the heroes are returned to Earth, and time resumes with less than an hour having passed. At Avengers Mansion, the team reflects on the staggering events, the passing of the Grandmaster, and the unprecedented event they will remember as the Contest of Champions.