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Post by BrodietheSlayer on Aug 1, 2018 1:32:29 GMT -5
No, I still need to.
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Post by BrodietheSlayer on Aug 1, 2018 2:10:05 GMT -5
West Coast Avengers Assemble"Various Material From AVENGERS # 239, 243-244, 246"Cover Date: January-August, 1984 Writer: Roger Stern Artist: Al Milgrom & Carmine Infantino Featured Character(s): The Avengers (Hawkeye, Captain America, Thor, Scarlet Witch, Vision, Starfox. She Hulk, Captain Marvel II, & The Wasp) Villain/s: The Dire Wraths (Behind the Scenes) & ISSAC (Behind the Scenes) Guest Star/s: Mockingbird, Bill Foster, & Raymond Sikorski Official Plot:After operating for years out of New York, the Avengers form a second team - this time based in California! Fresh off their honeymoon, Hawkeye and Mockingbird - under the direction of the Vision, chairman of the East Coast Avengers - gather Tigra, Wonder Man, and Iron Man (secretly James Rhodes) to fight the forces no single super hero can withstand! See the team's earliest adventures against the deadly Maelstrom and his Minions! The malevolent Crossfire! Spider-Man foe the Blank! The ionic-powered Goliath (later Atlas of the Thunderbolts)! The all-powerful Graviton! Guest-starring the Shroud, Tony Stark, and honorary Avenger Moira Brandon! Brodie's View: Okay, I said I was going to do some little runs before I get started on another long one, and for this run, I'm doing a trade paperback as single issue reviews. However, this review will cover the brief prologue we get for the main story, collected from THE MIGHTY AVENGERS # 239, 243, 244, and 246. Most of this follows Hawkeye, who after appearing in his own limited series (and gaining a new love interest in the former SHIELD agent Barbara "Bobbi" Morse, AKA Mockingbird ), returns to Avengers Mansion to find things a bit....different. For one, The Vision, who had been critically injured in the pages of THE FANTASTIC FOUR, has been hooked up to Titan supercomputer, ISSAC, which has allowed Vision to take a more proactive role with the team. This starts out well, but eventually the computer influences Vision into trying to take over the world in order to save it. However, we get only slight hints of that in this trade, but a couple major things happen on that front during this prologue. For one, The Vision uses his heightened power to influence his way into becoming Avengers Chairperson, and the second being the decision made by the android to form this team in the first place. So, due to threats such as the shape changing alien threats we saw during our UNCANNY X-MEN run from around this period, The Dire Wraths, The Vision decides to make a West Coast branch of The Avengers, based out of Los Angeles, and he decides to make Hawkeye the leader of that team. We see Clint and Bobbi heading to L.A, where they are met with a guy we remember from the MARVEL TWO IN ONE run, Bill Foster (AKA Giant Man/Goliath II), who surprisingly doesn't join the team, but that's okay. The team that we Will get is pretty kick ass, and one I preferred to the time over the main team, as Hawkeye ended up getting a lot of the cooler Avengers characters, IMO. We'll start to see that team assemble over the new few reviews, as we see the forming of THE WEST COAST AVENGERS(!!!). GRADE: B (Hard to really judge sections of issues, but for what we got it was pretty solid, despite the Al Milgrom art )
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Ultimo Gallos
Grimlock
Dreams SUCK!Nightmares live FOREVER!
Posts: 14,559
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Post by Ultimo Gallos on Aug 1, 2018 11:51:01 GMT -5
West Coast Avengers was a fun series. One of the few long running series from Marvel that I read from start to finish.
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Post by BrodietheSlayer on Aug 4, 2018 2:27:00 GMT -5
West Coast Avengers #1"Avengers Assemble"Cover Date: September, 1984 Writer: Roger Stern Artist: Bob Hall Featured Character(s): The West Coast Avengers (Hawkeye, Mockingbird, Iron Man II (James Rhodes), Tigra, & Wonder Man) Villain/s: None Guest Star/s: The Shroud, Jessica Drew, Lindsay McCabe, The Vision, Edwin Jarvis, Freddy, Carol, Harry, & Shawn Official Plot:Hawkeye and Mockingbird are in California inspecting the Avengers West Compound, where they also await the arrival of possible members sent to them by the Vision. Iron Man (Jim Rhodes) and Tigra arrive. While they are there, an intruder is detected. This turns out to be the Shroud, who is keeping an eye on Tigra at Jessica Drew's request. They offer him a spot on the team, but he turns them down. Brodie's View: Boy, I remember picking this up when it came out. I was always a Hawkeye fan, so, I was thrilled that he was getting his own team of Avengers to lead. What made it better was that I liked all the members of the team that ended up being (although, some of the characters pictured in the cover looked like they could have been interesting), although, with the exception of Mockingbird and the second Iron Man (James Rhodes, who would later go on to be War Machine), the formation of the team just kind of happens by manipulation and happenstance. Tigra, who we see working for Ex Spider-Woman Jessica Drew's relatively short lived detective agency (with Lindsay McCabe), and Wonder Man, who is working as a Hollywood stuntman due to his near indestructible nature, are summoned to Hawkeye's Avengers West Compound due to manipulation of The Vision, who summons both there by way of claiming an "Avengers Emergency." Needless to say, neither are happy with what they find when they arrive, and are about to leave when suddenly an shadowy intruder is detected on the grounds. The team is actually forced to act as a team to take out this threat, who turns out to be Ex Spider-Woman side character, The Shroud, who Jessica hired to find out what happened to Tigra (who left Jessica's office under "mysterious circumstances" earlier). After a bit of a scuffle, the truth is revealed, and Hawkeye offers the Shroud membership to the WCA, which Shroud politely declines. This, however, sets our original team, which has the same number of "founding members" as the original Avengers (not counting Cap, who was added as a "founder" later on), 5. Obviously this sets up a lot of potential stories involving the various characters in the team, along with, as one can kind of tell, will involve, at least early on, some former villains/supporting characters from Spider-Woman's old book. Plus, of course, some villains that were regulars for the original/East Coast Avengers as well. We'll see one of these start to make their presence known soon, but for the next review, we'll get our first full on mission for the team....in an IRON MAN Annual. Ah well. It definitely makes a certain sort of sense, as it does kind of explain more why James Rhodes is in the Iron Man armor for those unfamiliar with the events that caused this to happen, and we get to see one of those former SPIDER-WOMAN villains I mentioned a few sentences ago. GRADE: B+
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Post by BrodietheSlayer on Aug 11, 2018 1:58:43 GMT -5
Iron Man Annual #7"When Giants Walk the Earth!"Cover Date: October, 1984 Writer: Bob Harras Artist: Luke McDonnell Featured Character(s): Iron Man II (James Rhodes) Villain/s: Goliath II, Karl Malus Guest Star/s: The West Coast Avengers (Hawkeye, Mockingbird, Tigra, & Wonder Man), Tony Stark, The Vision, Morley Erwin, & The U.S. Coast Guard Official Plot:Jim Rhodes spends some time with his new teammates the West Coast Avengers. He is bothered however by the fact that his colleagues think that he is the original Iron Man. After helping to install a heavy scanner, Iron Man flies back to Circuits Maximus. He gets into an argument with Tony Stark, then flies off to rescue some workers from an oil rig platform that is collapsing into the ocean. Elsewhere, down-and-out small-time criminal Erik Josten seeks out the Power Broker, Karl Malus. He wants Malus to give him better super-powers so he can make it in the big leagues. In exchange for his services, Josten agrees to work as Malus' hired muscle. Malus performs the experiment, transforming Josten into the size-changing Goliath. Josten reneges on his vow however, and destroys the laboratory. Goliath then begins terrorizing the streets of Los Angeles. Iron Man arrives and begins fighting him, but he underestimates Josten's newfound powers. He laughs at Iron Man's feeble attempts to bring him down with repulsor blasts, and hurls him far away from the city. Frustrated, Iron Man returns to the West Coast Avengers compound to marshal a new strategy. The West Coat Avengers want to help him tackle Goliath, but Iron Man wants to go it alone. They convince him to let them help out, and they fly out to face Goliath once again. The Avengers use sound bound strategies and teamwork to keep Goliath off his feet. Iron Man amplifies the ultrasonics in his armor and eventually defeats Goliath. Unconscious, Goliath reduces in size to a mere twenty-feet tall (which is still several times larger than his normal size). Brodie's View: Yes, an IRON MAN Annual, but it also kind of ends up being at least the male part of the WCA taking on their first actual full on villain, so, it's fair to include here. (as it's included in the trade I'm reviewing, so....) The Iron Man we're dealing with is James Rhodes, who would later go on to be War Machine, but here has taken over the armor from the original Iron Man, Tony Stark, who had his rock bottom with his alcoholism shortly before the original SECRET WARS mini series, hence, why Rhodey was also IM there. This is the Post SECRET WARS continuity, but by SECRET WARS II, Stark would be back in the Iron Man armor, as Rhodes would start to go crazy due to the mental calibration of the Iron Man armor being set for Stark. We see hints of that starting in this issue, as Rhodes both suffers from headaches (that would increase), as well as an inferiority complex that also fed into James not wanting to give up the armor. We see that in this, as Iron Man would take on the new Goliath (Future Thunderbolt Erik Josten), who, also suffering from an inferiority complex, is given new Pym based powers by former SPIDER-WOMAN villain, Karl Malus. However, inferiority complex aside, the newly powered Jostin ends up thumping Iron Man, as he tries to stop the rampaging new Goliath from destroying all in his path. Soon, Rhodes is joined by Hawkeye and Wonder Man, and the three of them end up taking on Jostin....and losing again. Finally, the three end up deciding to work as a team, and exploiting Goliath's inferiority complex, they end up taking the big man down. This ends up both giving James some much needed confidence, but it helped with the evolution of the WCA's themselves, as we're starting to see the team bond as a team. I was pleasantly surprised by this issue, as I figures since it was written by Bob Harras (who, while decent as an Editor, was kind of hit or miss as a writer), it was going to suck, but what I got was a pretty simple, yet effective, little story that gave us a little preview of the team working as a full team. However, there's still a bit of bonding to do; in the next review, we return with the rest of the WCA Mini Series that makes up the bulk of the trade I'm doing. However, there are a few extra stories tacked on at the end of this. Back to the WCA though, in the second issue of the mini, we see the WCA taking on a minor villain, but we get the Main Villain of this story being revealed as well. GRADE: B+
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Post by BrodietheSlayer on Aug 13, 2018 3:12:19 GMT -5
West Coast Avengers #2"Blanking Out"Cover Date: October, 1984 Writer: Roger Stern Artist: Bob Hall Featured Character(s): The West Coast Avengers (Hawkeye, Mockingbird, Iron Man II (James Rhodes), Tigra, & Wonder Man) Villain/s: The Blank and Graviton Guest Star/s: Freddy, Harold, & Raoul Official Plot:The new West Coast Avengers are training on the grounds of their new compound, with Iron Man serving as the attacker. Hawkeye fires a smoke arrow to provide cover, but Iron Man switches over to Infrared lenses to see through it. He attacks Tigra, but she's too fast for him and manages to swing around and jump on top of him, blocking his sight. Hawkeye takes the advantage and fires an arrow which releases an adhesive putty into Iron Man's jet repulsers, sending him tumbling to the ground. But Iron Man uses his glove repulsers to create a concussive blast into the ground and knocking the rest of the Avengers off their feet. Defeated, Hawkeye ends the training session. Hawkeye comments that having everyone together reminds him of the old days, and Iron Man contemplates telling everyone that he's not the man they think he is. Meanwhile, Freddy arrives at Simon Williams' house to find him using his strength to remove the walls, making it easier to move his belongings out of the house. Freddy asks Simon if he's really serious about going back to being Wonder Man and joining the Avengers, and Simon explains that Wonder Man is who he is and always will be and that the Avengers will always be part of his life. Realizing that he's out of nails to finish the moving job, he asks Freddy to go into town with him. But as they are leaving the hardware store, the alarm at a nearby bank sounds. The Blank is robbing the bank in broad daylight. Wonder Man moves in to stop him, and the Blank opens fire but the bullets just bounce off. One swift punch and the Blank is send flying back through the doors of the bank to smash into a desk across the room. Wonder Man wrestles for control of the gun, but the Blank slips out of his grasp and crashes through the front window to escape. Wonder Man rushes out, but the Blank is nowhere to be seen. Later, back at his apartment, Clyde watches the news report about the robbery. He remembers how he came about his powers, waiting at the bus stop. There he met a disgruntled scientist for Stark International who had built a wearable force-field generator but, upset that the company had been taken over and changed by Obadiah Stane, quit his job.The scientist, too impatient to wait for the bus, was hit by a car, and Clyde stole the scientist's briefcase in the confusion. It took him a few months to figure out how it works, but now that the trial tests are over he's ready for the big money. As Clyde walks out of the room, he doesn't hear the pleas for help emanating from the force field generator. Back at the Avengers Compound, Wonder Man expresses his frustration about the Blank's escape. Hawkeye assures him that they'll get full cooperation from the police, and that they have a better chance of finding the Blank if they work together as a team. Wonder Man agrees, and the five Avengers use their skills to comb the city in search of the Blank. That evening, the Blank arrives at his next target - a Wells Fargo armored truck outside of Emilio's on the outskirts of town. He attacks the guards, shooting and injuring one. As they try and drive off, the Blank leaps into the back of the truck and threatens to kill the guard if they don't pull over. When the guards refuse to cooperate, the Blank bails out, grabbing as much loot as he can carry. Mockingbird, having heard about the robbery over the radio, pulls up just as the Blank jumps out. She chases him, reporting her location to the others. Within minutes, both Hawkeye and Iron Man show up and are able to corner the Blank at a gas station. The Blank, knowing that he can never fight the Avengers together, leaps for the gas pumps. He knocks them over, and sparks land in the leaking gas. The entire gas station explodes, allowing the Blank the chance to escape unharmed while the Avengers deal with the raging fire he created. Arriving back at his apartment, Clyde realizes that Los Angeles may be too hot for a small time crook like himself, and makes the decision to take what little money he stole and leave town. But as he begins to recharge the force-field belt, a figure emerges from the energies. It takes human form... revealing that the man trapped inside the force-field was Graviton! Brodie's View: The West Coast Avengers face their first threat as a full team here, although, it's revealed to be some schulb that just happened to pick up a Stark designed stealth suit (complete with its own mysterious power source ). Calling himself The Blank, said schlub uses his stealth suit to rob banks, where he happens to run across Wonder Man (in some daisy duke shorts....ah, the 80's). Because this stealth suit is also hard to grab, The Blank manages to escape poor 80's fashioned Simon, who ends up going to Hawkeye and the rest of the team with his problem. The team ends up cornering The Blank, who fakes his suicide by causing the gas station he was standing near to blow up (inadvertently, but still). With the world thinking he's dead, The Blank decides to take his money and skip town before someone gets wise, and fires up his suit's power source for one more recharge to ensure his escape. However, a being ends up materializing (as he was trapped inside it) out of the energy source, a being that ends up being long time Avengers villain, Graviton(!!!). It's nice that we used a, let's face it, one shot villain that might have popped up in an issue or two of MARVEL TEAM UP or TWO IN ONE, been trounced by Spidey or The Thing and whoever they were teaming with this particular issue, and then met his end at the hand of Scourge a few years later, but the lead up to releasing a major baddie like Graviton at the very end of the issue is pretty awesome. We also get some conflict within the team that Hawkeye, as leader, has to step up and quell. Clint even notes that he used to often be "That Guy" that Cap or whoever was Avengers leader at that time has to quell (in this case, it's Wonder Man, who is pissed after The Blank escapes him), and it's a nice moment that cements his role as the leader of the team. We also get a fun little "training session" pitting Iron Man against Hawkeye, Mockingbird, and Tigra. The three end up taking down IM, but Iron Man still has enough charge to knock the three on their asses to end the "session." We still get some inner conflict with IM and Tigra, as each are worried about their places on the team in differing ways. This was a nice second issue, and a nice lead in to our "Big Threat (who should be obvious by now)." In the next issue, Graviton makes his move, and The West Coast Avengers must truly gel as a team, or die before they even get a reagular series. (Double ) GRADE: B+
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Post by BrodietheSlayer on Aug 14, 2018 1:57:46 GMT -5
West Coast Avengers #3"Taking Care of Business!"Cover Date: November, 1984 Writer: Roger Stern Artist: Bob Hall Featured Character(s): The West Coast Avengers (Hawkeye, Mockingbird, Iron Man II (James Rhodes), Tigra, & Wonder Man) Villain/s: The Blank and Graviton (Malekith The Accursed & Surtur Behind the Scenes) Guest Star/s: The Shroud, Mouse, Lenny, and various looters Official Plot:The West Coast Avengers have their hands full helping Los Angeles out of the freak snowstorm it's experienced. While Iron Man helps dig out stranded commuters and their cars, Wonder Man uses a giant snow plow to clear away the snow from the Santa Monica Freeway. Iron Man comments that the weird weather has done some strange things to peoples heads but, after spotting people skiing in bikinis and shots, decides he's just being paranoid. Others, however, are taking advantage of the chaos the freak weather has caused to break into an electronics store and help themselves to the goods. The robbery is thwarted by Hawkeye and Mockingbird, who have taken to patrolling the streets to help out the police during the emergency. One robber manages to get away and make it back to the getaway car, but not before Tigra does. She manages to convince the robbers to give themselves up and beg to be taken to jail. By midday. the snow has completely melted away leaving no trace. The Avengers regroup at the base of the Hollywood sign. Hawkeye, proud of how his new team worked together during the crisis, rewards the team with a special barbeque back at the compound. As Hawkeye and Mockingbird return in the Quinjet, Tigra convinces Iron Man to give her a lift in order to talk to him. She is worried about Wonder Man, who has been hotheaded and distant over the last few days. She hopes that Iron Man, who has known Simon for a long time, can talk to him and find out what's wrong. Iron Man explains to he that he's just met Wonder Man, and is forced to reveal that the man under the armor is actually Jim Rhodes. In the Manta Monica mountains, Graviton overlooks the city below thankful that the snow has disappeared. The Blank arrives, informing Graviton that his orders have been carried out and the messages delivered. But the Blank is nervous, worried about starting something big with the Avengers in town. Graviton tells him not to worry, a she has dealt with the Avengers before. When the Blank reminds him that he also was defeated by them, Graviton gives him an example of his incredible power. He then agrees that it would be best to be cautious, and states that by the time the Avengers realize he's back on Earth it will be too late. Down on the beach within the Avengers Compound grounds, Tigra finds Wonder Man lost in thought. She tells him that she's worried about him, and is willing to lend an ear if he wants to talk. Simon is worried that maybe rejoining the Avengers was the right thing to do, and tells her of his past with the Avengers and what led him to originally quit and become a stunt man in Hollywood. At the time, he says it felt right to accept Hawkeye's offer to join but after letting the Blank escape he's now beginning to doubt himself and his choices. Tigra can sympathize, and reveals to him her ability to create an illusion that changes her back to normal using the amulet the Cat People gave her when they transformed her into Tigra. She tells him that she doubts herself every day, and is not sure she's ready to be a full-time Avenger. Tigra then convinces Simon to go with her into town. She has an idea on how they can track down the Blank. On Sunset Boulevard, Tigra and Simon arrive at the Cat's Jazz Club, the same place where the Shroud said they could reach him if needed. When they enter, they find the place ransacked and the staff beaten and bruised. The Shroud finally appears, having returned from San Francisco, and demands to know who did this. He asks that the Avengers not contact the police, as he wishes to keep his reputation as a undercover crimelord. Wonder Man and Tigra agree to help him track down the culprits, as well as keep the Shroud's secret. At the house of "Lucky Max" Galeno, the Shroud and a disguised Wonder Man crash a party of some of the city's low life. The Shroud demands to speak to the boss which, to their surprise, is the Blank. The Blank tells them that he's planning a consolidation of all the west coast mobs under his leadership. Simon attacks the Blank, but before he can reach him both he and the Shroud are seized by and unknown force in mid-air. Their plan failed, Simon pulls off his disguise and reveals himself as Tigra, who was watching outside, crashes through the window to surprise the Blank from behind. Finally, the true leader reveals himself as Graviton steps into the room. He easily takes out Wonder Man by increasing his gravity and sending the Avengers crashing through the floor. He pins the Shroud and Tigra to the wall, but Wonder Man frees himself and smashes his way back into the room. He immobilizes Wonder Man, and then using his great power throws the Shroud, Tigra, and the Blank, whom he has no further use for, miles through the air and into the depths of the Pacific Ocean. Back at the Compound, Hawkeye fires up the grill to start the barbeque. Mockingbird is worried that both Tigra and Simon have been gone for so long. Hawkeye tells her not to worry, as the two of them can take care of themselves. Little do they know that at that moment, Graviton holds Wonder Man underwater, waiting for him to take his last breath... Brodie's View: With last issue's revelation of of our Big Bad, Graviton, we start to head towards the big ending of this limited series. However, there is some filler here, back stories of how Graviton came back from being turned into pure energy after getting his ass kicked by Thor (speaking of Thor, we see the WCA cleaning up a freak snow storm in L.A. at the beginning of the issue; this is the result of events that took place mainly in Thor's book involving Surtur), wound up being able to reform his physical form after getting an energy burst from what would end up being The Beyonder, tying things back together with the SECRET WARS mini series that was going on while this mini series was happening (but took place before the events of the WCA mini). Finally, thanks to schlub turned criminal, The Blank, Graviton was able to come back fully, and with the assistance of his would be savior (though not for long, as Graviton quickly tires of The Blank being such a schlub, and tosses him away with the two Avengers that foolishly try to take him on; Tigra and Wonder Man, but we'll get back to them in a second), tries to become the head of Los Angeles' crime syndicate. This leads to the other major part of our story, as Tigra tries to help Wonder Man try to deal with his doubt concerning his abilities as a super hero, which leads to more flashbacks of Simon's history so far. Mainly this concerns Wondy's inability to take down The Blank last issue, which eventually leads to the two WCA's teaming up with the vigilante they took on in the first issue, The Shroud. This then leads to the three taking on The Blank and then Graviton, who hands all three (and The Blank with them) their asses, leaving Wonder Man to drown( ) at the bottom of a swimming pool at the end of the issue ( ). Of course, this leads up to the rest of the team (who are attempting to have a cookout for most of this particular issue) getting involved with their first MAJOR threat, and we will definitely see that next issue (well, we'll have to, as it's the last issue of this Limited Series ). Also, we'll finally see if James Rhodes reveals to the rest of the team that he's not Tony Stark, which has been a cause of worry to the fill in Iron Man since this run began (he does reveal that he's not Stark to Tigra in this issue). GRADE: B
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Post by BrodietheSlayer on Aug 21, 2018 2:00:14 GMT -5
West Coast Avengers #4"Finale"Cover Date: December, 1984 Writer: Roger Stern Artist: Bob Hall Featured Character(s): The West Coast Avengers (Hawkeye, Mockingbird, Iron Man II (James Rhodes), Tigra, & Wonder Man) Villain/s: Graviton & his Henchmen Guest Star/s: The Shroud, The Vision, & various partiers Official Plot:Twenty miles out from shore in the Pacific Ocean, Tigra emerges from the surface holding the unconscious Shroud afloat. She uses her emergency signal beacon to call for help. She remembers being thrown through the air by Graviton, along with the Shroud and the Blank, who is nowhere to be seen. Just as the Shroud begins to regain consciousness, Iron Man appears to rescue them, having heard their signal. Back at the Avengers Compound, Tigra relays the story of what happened to the others. She is worried about Wonder Man, whom nobody has heard from since the attack. Iron Man it tired of waiting, and wants to attack Graviton head on. Hawkeye reminds him that Graviton is one of the most powerful super-villains the Avengers have ever faced, and that Iron Man should know that as he was there during their initial battle years ago. Iron Man decides it's time to tell the truth to the others, removing his helmet to reveal to them his true face, Jim Rhodes. Hawkeye is shocked and angered, unable to believe that they've been working with an amateur. Rhodes strikes back at the remark, reminding Hawkeye of how he helped them escape on Battleworld when the Molecule Man dropped an entire mountain on top of them. Hawkeye backs down and, remembering how much of a hothead he used to be to Captain America when he first joined the Avengers, realizes he was out of line and apologizes. The team then puts their heads together to come up with a plan to rescue Wonder Man and defeat Graviton. Later, at Graviton's Santa Monica retreat, he is paid a surprise visit by the notorious Madam Masque, head of the Maggia crime family. She tells Graviton that she had heard that he was working to consolidate the Southern California gangs, and is interested in hearing more. When she informs him of her worries with the Avengers moving into the west coast, he laughs at her and shows her an example of what he can do to the Avengers - Wonder Man, who lies unconscious at the bottom of his pool. Graviton notices a look of shock on Masque's badyguard's face upon seeing Wonder Man, and she strikes him threatening to have him join Wonder Man at the bottom of the pool. Just then, they are attacked by Iron Man from above. Within seconds Graviton acts, taking control of Iron Man with his gravity power and disabling the Avengers. Inside, Bobbi, who has masquerading as a bartender, sneaks away and slips into her costume as Mockingbird. She contacts Hawkeye by radio, putting the second phase of their plan in operation. As Graviton brings Iron Man to his knees, unknown to him Wonder Man has regained consciousness at the bottom of the pool. Mockingbird and Hawkeye join the fight, keeping Graviton distracted enough to allow him to slip, releasing Wonder Man. The entire pool collapses as Simon breaks free. He climbs out of the water just in time to deliver a well-timed punch to Graviton, forcing him to bring down his gravity force shield. Iron Man swoops in and grabs Madam Masque, flying off with her. Graviton pursues Iron Man, but the Avenger has set up a trap. Hooking his armor directly into the power line for the Southwestern Grid, he fires an incredibly powerful repulsor blast directly at Graviton and his force shield. The immense power disables both Graviton and Iron Man. Madam Masque rushes up to Graviton, laying a tight fisted punch across the villain's jaw. Pulling off her mask, she reveals herself to be Tigra in disguise, having used her amulet to give the illusion of Madam Masque. With the West Coast Avengers back together again, they attack Graviton as a team. He finds himself to be overwhelmed, and his disabled and knocked unconscious by Hawkeye's tranquilizer gas arrows. The police arrive to haul away the defeated Graviton, and the news cameras capture the results of the new Avengers first victory as a team. The next day, the Avengers sit around the pool at their Compound watching the news story while finally having the barbeque that Hawkeye promised. Tigra tells Simon that when she saw him at the bottom of Graviton's pool, she was so terrified for him. He reassures her that ever since he rose from the dead those years ago, he hasn't needed things like food, water, or air. They then receive a call from the Vision on the East Coast, congratulating the team on a job well done. With all doubts now gone, the West Coast Avengers are ready to stand among the best. Their saga is just beginning... Brodie's View: We start this issue in the aftermath of Graviton taking out Wonder Man, Tigra, and The Shroud; sinking the first in his pool (and holding him at the bottom with his powers), and tossing the other two (plus The Blank, who we don't ever see again, at least not here) into the Pacific Ocean. The two heroes are quickly rescued, and after a strategy session (where Iron Man finally reveals to the (non Tigra) rest of the team that he is James Rhodes; Hawkeye balks at this, but quickly chills out when he learns Rhodes was IM during SECRET WARS as well), they work out a plan. And a kick ass little plan it was, as we do end off on a good note in the "Grand Finale" of this mini series. Basically, Mockingbird disguises herself as a bartender of the little L.A party Graviton has decided to throw to cement himself as the new L.A crimelord on the rise, and little does Graviton suspect (due to his ego), she is doping his drinks (along with the other attendants of this little shindig). However, the next step is a bit of theater, as Tigra disguises herself as Madam Masque (Head of the Magga crime family)(and along with Hawkeye, who is playing her bodyguard, come to Graviton under the guise of informing Graviton of the possible WCA. Graviton laughs it off, and shows the two Wonder Man, which forces the action part of the plan to kick in. After distracting Graviton, Iron Man suddenly attacks, causing Graviton to lose control of Wonder Man, who also starts attacking his would be captor. The team manages to put Graviton on the ropes, which is partially due to the drugged drinks, which start to take effect. The team attacks again, and finally wears the villain down. Graviton eventually passes out from the effects of both fronts. Pretty awesome, and it definitely showed that Hawkeye was going to be a different leader in many ways than, say, Captain America would have been in certain situations. By using trickery, Hawkeyes' team, with its nice mix of power, skill, and stealth, was able to take down a major league baddie (at least at the time) like Graviton, and with zero loss of life (as even The Blank would live to schlub himself through at least a few more appearances before vanishing....forever. However, for the West Coast Avengers, this is just the beginning. For us, though, it's almost the end, as we are nearing the end of this trade. There are a couple more WCA related stories before we move on. The next review will concern the last full issue of this trade, but it's a dozy, as the get the first full on team up between both branches of the Avengers, as they must unite to take on....an old MARVEL TWO IN ONE villain, but a really powerful one. Promise. GRADE: A-
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Post by BrodietheSlayer on Aug 23, 2018 3:07:08 GMT -5
(The Mighty) Avengers #250"World Power"Cover Date: December, 1984 Writer: Roger Stern Artist: Al Milgrom Featured Character(s): The Avengers (The Vision, Captain Marvel II (Monica Rambeau), Hercules, The Scarlet Witch, Starfox, & The Wasp) Villain/s: Maelstrom & Maelstrom's minions (Gronk, Phobius, & Helio) Guest Star/s: The West Coast Avengers (Hawkeye, Mockingbird, Iron Man II (James Rhodes), Tigra, & Wonder Man) & Professor Andre LeClare Official Plot:Maelstrom, having returned to life in the latest of a series of cloned bodies, likewise resuscitates his aides Helio, Phobius, and Gronk, and sets in motion his plan to gain absolute power by siphoning the energy of the Earth's rotation. His actions soon cause seismic disturbances, alerting astronomers, geophysicists, and the Avengers, who deduce his involvement. When Captain Marvel discovers the villain's Cape Horn base, Phobius inflicts her with paralyzing fear, but she nevertheless accompanies her teammates and the new West Coast Avengers team into battle. They defeat Maelstrom's minions, but are stymied by Maelstrom himself, now a fifty-foot giant, who imprisons Hercules, Starfox, and Wonder Man in a force field. Captain Marvel regains her courage in time to save Tigra's life, and she and the West Coast Avengers keep their foe occupied while the Scarlet Witch's hex increases the power of his device. As a result, Maelstrom continues to grow unchecked, his volume increasing while his mass remains unchanged, until his molecules are dispersed across the galaxy and his machine is destroyed. Brodie's View: For our final full issue of this run (as the next review, and the final story in the trade, will be a short story that appeared in a larger issue), we get the perfect capper for the origin of the West Coast Avengers, and that's a team up with the "East Coast" Avengers. This is shortly before Cap would return to the team, so, The Vision is still leading the team (but not for very much longer ). The threat big enough to unite both teams is one that we last saw in the pages of MARVEL TWO IN ONE, Malestrom (and his three minions, who he cloned, as they had died in MTIO, as had Malestrom), who, as we discovered in that MTIO storyline, is the product of an Inhuman and a Deviant, meaning....he's pretty f***ing powerful. Powerful enough to stop the Earth's rotation, which would quickly destroy all life on the planet. This unites the two teams (which, themselves, are both kind of new teams, or at least in the midst of transition in the case of the Main Avengers team), and they take on the minions, beating them again, however, one uses their fear power on the second Captain Marvel (now known as Photon), which kind of puts her out of the fight for a while. However, that doesn't last long, as they find Malestrom, who uses power he stole to grow to a giant size. He begins to fight both teams, and actually manages to hold his own. Using similar strategy that Hawkeye, Wonder Man, and Iron Man used in that IRON MAN Annual I reviewed early on in the run, they basically antagonize Malestrom, while overloading him with power. Eventually, he becomes to large that he kind of dissipates into the universe itself ( ). The battle being done, the two teams end up kicking it at Avengers' Mansion, with the main team coming to terms with a few of their newer members (namly Starfox). This kind of ends things, at least in the "present" with The West Coast Avengers. The next story we will be reviewing will be a story that takes place in the "future," but flashing back to around the time our main run is taking place in. Sound confusing? Don't be. It's one of our WCA's looking back on a memory of the past, as he's dealing with the death of the woman he loves. GRADE: B+
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Post by BrodietheSlayer on Aug 24, 2018 2:43:33 GMT -5
Avengers West Coast #100 (Backup Story)"And Death Proud To Take Us"Cover Date: November, 1993 Writer: Roger Stern Artist: Don Hudson Featured Character(s): The West Coast Avengers (Hawkeye & Mockingbird) Villain/s: Crossfire Guest Star/s: Bill Foster & Moira Brandon Official Plot:None Brodie's View: In issue #100, one of the West Coast Avengers/Avengers West Coast did indeed die, and it was Hawkeye's on again/off again love interest, Mockingbird, who is trapped in Hell after the WCA fight Mephisto in its/his realm. That information is important, as it leads to this short story that came right after. In it, Hawkeye goes to Bobbi's grave, and thinks back to the little adventure that led to their getting the compound that would later serve as their HQ. This story takes place previous to #1 of the mini, of course, so, it is still just Clint and Bobbi, who is sent by Bill Foster to the home of Ex Silent Movie Star, Moira Brandon, who is interested in giving her home to a team of super heroes, as they achieved more than she ever felt she did, simply duo to their selfless heroics. She takes them down to her basement, which is kind of a shrine to her movie career. However, it's a setup, as the two Avengers are being led into a trap by an old Hawkeye baddie (yes, he did have a few ), Crossfire. However, Crossfire, being kind of a sucky rich guy turned villain, only succeeds in shooting Bobbi in the shoulder. This gives Moira the courage she lacked from the get go, and she helps Hawkeye and Mockingbird take Crossfire down, but the effort was too much for her, and she dies in their arms. The ending sees Hawkeye talking about the final cost of what they set in motion after that, and walking away from her grave (don't worry, she'd eventually be back ). The AVENGERS WEST COAST series would end a few issues after that, with Iron Man withdrawing the remains of the team off to form the short lived (and VERY 90's) FORCE WORKS. However, most of the team would eventually come back to the Avengers by 95, as other silliness would begin. ( ) However, we won't be covering that, but we'll next be talking about the first trade of a team that would spring up when some more silliness would happen to The Avengers (and the Fantastic Four and others) in 1996. GRADE: B
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Post by BrodietheSlayer on Aug 25, 2018 2:12:32 GMT -5
Thunderbolts #1 "Justice....Like Lightning"Cover Date: April, 1997 Writer: Kurt Busiek Artist: Mark Bagley Featured Character(s): The Thunderbolts (Citizen V, Atlas, Mach-1, Meteorite, Techno, & Songbird) Villain/s: The Rat Pack (Number One, Number Fourteen, and the rest of the group), The Wrecking Crew (Wrecker, Bulldozer, Piledriver, & Thunderball) Guest Star/s: Dallas Riordan, Hallie Takahama, WJBP-TV (Megan McLaren & Kenny), Barb, Sandy, Donna, Eduardo, The Black Widow, Spider-Man, & The New Warriors (Night Thrasher, Namorita, Nova, & Speedball) Official Plot:In a world without heroes, a squad of costumed crime fighters steps forward to challenge evil. But can a group of rookies with a shocking secret hope to take the place of the Fantastic Four and the Avengers? The Wrecking Crew intends to make that answer painfully obvious. Brodie's View: So, for the next short run of reviews, I'm going to review yet another trade paperback worth of issues. This one will focus on the first few issues (plus some extras) involving the new group of heroes that sprang up in the wake of the ONSLAUGHT event, The Thunderbolts. The name of that trade is the same as this issue, "Justice....Like Lightening," and it's like lightening the way this new group of heroes springs up after The Avengers, Fantastic Four, and other characters vanished at the end of ONSLAUGHT. Of course, as we find out later, none of this was coincidence at all, but I'll get back to that. The reason Marvel's main non mutant teams vanished was due to Marvel, in a moment of desperation after the big comic boom went bust in the mid 90's, wound up leasing the FF, Avengers, and other related characters to two artists that abandoned the company to help form IMAGE just a few years earlier, Jim Lee and Rob Liefeld. Of course, this marriage wouldn't last, as Marvel would part way with Liefeld several months into this thing, which was also around the time Jim Lee would, as Lee often does, get bored with drawing the FF, and would pretty much hand the project off to underlings for the rest of the year long run (although, we would get a pretty awesome Avengers/FF/Wildstorm crossover for the last issues of that run; the heroes would then all return in a much needed "Back to Basics" approach). All of that background isn't really necessary to know for this story, and yet it is, as the absence of many of Marvel's Heavy Hitter characters like Cap, Iron Man, and the FF would definitely leave a void that The Thunderbolts would rush in to fill. I remember getting this new, as this was during the peak time during the 90's that I was picking up the weekly stuff. This book had some hype behind it, but to the comic buying audience, this was simply the introduction of a brand new super hero team, and the first issue definitely plays to this, as we see the team, led by the seemingly heroic Citizen V, fighting a group of scavenger criminals (looting the dead bodies left over from the carnage of ONSLAUGHT) known as The Rat Pack. The team makes quick work of the Rat Pack, but they wind up splitting before they can be captured. The T-Bolts then head back to their base of operations (a run down apartment sitting over a pizza joint) to prepare for the public attention they know is coming from their earlier confrontation. We get to see some character interaction between the team members, but something feels....slightly off here, as there seems to be something going on behind the scenes that we're not getting the full info on. The T-Bolts wind up having a press conference to properly introduce themselves to the world, and for the most part, they make a good show of it, with people in powerful positions taking notice of these new heroes that they can attach themselves to. However, it isn't long after that they they find themselves once again going after The Rat Pack, but it's a set up, as their true threat is the slightly more impressive Wrecking Crew (who we last saw in SECRET WARS...well, at least in these reviews). The two teams fight by the Statue of Liberty (which the Crew ends up damaging in the fight), and it ends up going back and forth, before the T-Bolts are able to use their abilities to take down the Crew. We then see reactions from various heroes; including: Spider-Man, The Black Widow, and the New Warriors, and then the Thunderbolts watching these reactions on television. Citizen V walks in to the room after this, and we see that his face is all scarred. He goes for a mask, but it isn't that of Citizen V, it is instead the mask of Baron Helmut Zemo ( )(!!!), and the rest of the Thunderbolts are revealed to be The Masters of Evil (Double /!!!). It's all a plot, as the T-Bolts are just a ploy for the Masters of Evil to slime their way into taking all the Avengers/FF had as their replacements....and then lowering the boom on the rest of the heroes/world. (Triple /!!!) Holy shit, right? Talk about a shocking ass ending, and one that would NEVER be able to happen now. This, however, is only the beginning, and our blockbuster writer/artist team of Kurt Busiek and Mark Bagley are just getting warmed up. The next issue, however, won't be their work, but we'll still be in good hands, as the T-Bolts will venture over to another book to take on an old enemy for a couple of them....The Hulk! (Off the scale /!!!) GRADE: A (BTW, this is the cover of the trade I'll be covering. I didn't want to post it first, as I didn't want to give away the surprise to those who have never read this book)
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Post by BrodietheSlayer on Aug 29, 2018 1:38:30 GMT -5
The Incredible Hulk #449 "Brakoow"Cover Date: January, 1997 Writer: Peter David Artist: Mike Deodato Jr. Featured Character(s): The Hulk Villain/s: The Thunderbolts (Citizen V, Atlas, Mach-1, Meteorite, Techno, & Songbird), Henry Gyrich, & Col. St. Lawrence (the last two not seen in the part of the issue we're reviewing, but in full issue) Guest Star/s: Janis Jones Official Plot:Somewhere in the western United States the Hulk and Janis Jones leap across the desert when they are struck by a missile. As they are sent flying toward a small town. Janis is saved from a fatal fall by an armored man calling himself Mach-1, who thinks that she is a prisoner of the Hulk. However, he is surprised when she turns around and blasts him with her staff. Meanwhile, the Hulk lands in the middle of a rodeo where he is confronted by Meteorite, Techno, Atlas, and Songbird, members of a new superhero team calling themselves the Thunderbolts. When they order the Hulk to surrender they are surprised when the Hulk raises his hands. Techno orders Songbird to use her powers to create a cage of pure sound around their target. Having had a past history with the Hulk, Meteorite approaches the imprisoned Hulk and asks him to lower his arms. When he doesn't, she calls their leader, Citizen V and tells him to come immediately. While not far away, Mach-1 departs his battle with Janis, who follows after him to see what he is up to. Meanwhile, in Virginia, Colonel St. Lawrence meets with Herny Gyrich to discuss the Hulk's latest ultimatum: leave him alone or he will retaliate by destroying a major city. While discussing their next move, they are interrupted by one of St. Lawrence's troops comes in to tell them about the Hulk's battle with the Thunderbolts and how he had seemingly surrendered to them. Back in Arizona, the Thunderbolts continue to contain the Hulk and wait for their leader Citizen V to arrive. When questioned by the leader of the Thunderbolts, the Hulk explains he wasn't surrendering, just waiting for the entire team to be in one place. He then claps his hands together, destroying the solid-sound cage and tries to leap away. He is struck by another one of Mach-1's missiles sending him into a crash landing on top of a nearby dam. As the Thunderbolts head after him, the Hulk wonders how that shot could have hurt him when he feels stronger than ever. It's then that the Hulk notices his chest is still bleeding. When the Thunderbolts catch up, Janis also arrives to lend the Hulk a hand. While she is busy with Mach-1 and Meteorite, the Hulk charges at Atlas and Techno. It's during this fight that the Hulk realizes that he has heard Meteorite's voice somewhere before. However, the Hulk has become fed up with the fight and since the Thunderbolts have sworn themselves to protect innocent people, the Hulk smashes open the dam, flooding the city below. With no other choice, the Thunderbolts have to go into the town and rescue people from drowning and plugging the dam. This allows the Hulk and Janis to make their escape. When Meteorite questions Citizen V about going after the Hulk, the leader of the Thunderbolts tells her that they need to prioritize. Not far away, Janis asks what the battle was all about, but before the Hulk can answer, his chest starts bleeding again and he collapses to the ground. Brodie's View: Some interesting things to note for this one. For one, as one could probably notice by the cover date, this issue came out before THUNDERBOLTS #1, so, this is actually the first appearance of the team. Of course, without reading THUNDERBOLTS #1 first, the little hints of members of the T-Bolts (specifically Meteorite AKA Moonstone) having faced the Hulk before (with the Hulk even recognizing Meterorite's voice, but being unable to make the connection) just seem like interesting little mysteries that would perhaps be solved in the T-Bolt's actual book (Boy! Would it). However, since we now know The T-Bolts are actually the Masters of Evil in disguise, it does add an extra little layer to the battle between this new "superhero book" and Marvel's Green Goliath. Another thing to note is that we don't actually get the full issue in the T-Bolt's trade, but rather 2/3rds of it (or basically the part where the T-Bolts fight The Hulk and the aftermath of that fight). Missing is subplots involving Henry Gyrich and the U.S Army once again chasing The Hulk, who is being aided by Rick Jones' daughter from the future (or rather, FUTURE IMPERFECT), Janis, who would pal around with Ole' Greenskin for a short time during Peter David's run. One of the main reasons for this is the change that had taken place in The Hulk himself in the aftermath of ONSLAUGHT. See, Jim Lee and Rob Liefeld wanted The Hulk to be one of the characters they could play with during their yearlong HEROES REBORN project, but Marvel didn't want to take the Hulk away from the main Marvel Universe, so, Bruce Banner ended up going to the pocket universe, leaving a somewhat Banner-less Hulk in the regular universe (Got all that? ). However, this comes at a cost, as The Hulk kind of starts to slowly break down, physically, due to the lack of Banner (however, he is able to somehow keep a good portion of his intelligence, which is a departure from what happened the last time the two parts were separated during John Byrne's run). We see the evidence here, as The Hulk is wounded during his battle with the T-Bolts, and while he does somewhat manage to get the better of the team (he escapes by busting a dam, forcing the team to abandon their attack on The Hulk to save people threatened by the rushing water), we see that his wound didn't heal, and he ends the issue dropping over from it. ( ) Of course, the Hulk would eventually recover, as well as being reunited with Banner once the Heroes Return(ed) from that pocket dimension, but none of that would concern The Thunderbolts, who go on to continue their charade of being heroes. In the next review, we will get another small story of The T-Bolts playing at being heroes, and the reaction of that from people who desperately need heroes. GRADE: B+ (For what we get to see out of this issue)
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Post by BrodietheSlayer on Sept 4, 2018 0:39:10 GMT -5
Tales Of The Marvel Universe #1 "The Dawn of a New Age of Heroes"Cover Date: Feburary, 1997 Writer: Kurt Busiek Artist: Mark Bagley Featured Character(s): The Thunderbolts (Citizen V, Atlas, Mach-1, Meteorite, Techno, & Songbird) Villain/s: None, but the T-Bolts are dealing with the aftereffects from Onslaught, so, Onslaught Guest Star/s: Invisible Woman (In Flashback), The Hulk (On Television), Jim, The Cabbie, other bar patrons, & Meg Stone Official Plot:None Given Brodie's View: This is an 8 page story that took place in a kind of anthology book showing the Post Onslaught status quo in the form of several short stories showcasing characters that were, for the most part, in books about to debut/had recently debuted. The story we're discussing, of course, concerns The Thunderbolts, and that will be the only story I'm focusing on in this book. In a way, this story is kind of a nice dry run for what Kurt Busiek was planning to do with ASTRO CITY (and to be fair, had done previously with his MARVELS mini series), as it's very much a "regular Joes witness super heroes in action, and discussing past interactions with super heroes" type of story, as it mostly focuses around a group of bar buddies discussing the recent loss of The Avengers and Fantastic Four (among others), and how it has/will affect New York City. One of the buddies, a cabbie, tells about the time he unknowingly gave The Invisible Girl/Woman a life years back. The group then see The Thunderbolts recusing people from a burning building, and everyone but the cabbie roots for them. However, their apparent heroism in the face of danger even ends up winning over the cabbie, and the story ends with his driving off, proclaiming that the T-Bolts could ride in his cab any time(!). Of course, the joke is that the team are only pretending to be heroes, turning this somewhat touching story into a simple (and kind of chilling in its own way) example of how effective Baron Zemo/Citizen V's plan really is/has been so far. The next review, which will actually return us to the main THUNDERBOLTS book, will further that idea, as the T-Bolts start to get everything they want from this whole hero charade, but it will come at a cost. The reason for this is that some of the team starts to actually kind of enjoy this hero gig. No Pic....Sorry GRADE: B+
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Post by BrodietheSlayer on Sept 12, 2018 2:33:32 GMT -5
Thunderbolts #2 "Deceiving Appearances"Cover Date: May, 1997 Writer: Kurt Busiek Artist: Mark Bagley Featured Character(s): The Thunderbolts (Citizen V, Atlas, Mach-1, Meteorite, Techno, & Songbird) Villain/s: The Mad Thinker & The Ringmaster/The Circus of Crime (The Great Gambonnos, Human Cannonball, & Princess Python) Guest Star/s: Dallas Riordan, Hallie Takahama, Alicia Masters, & Franklin Richards Official Plot:The Mad Thinker crashes a ceremony to honor the heroes fallen in the Onslaught war and kidnaps Franklin Richards, the son of Mr. Fantastic and the Invisible Woman. The Thinker thinks he can use him to unlock the secret of the missing FF, but he didn't count on the intervention of the Thunderbolts. Plus: the team gets their first taste of fame and they like it. Brodie's View: The Thunderbolts start to get exactly what they want in the second issue of their actual series, but it comes with a cost. Of course, as we revealed in the first issue, The Thunderbolts are actually Baron Zemo and his Masters of Evil in disguise, and their plan is to take advantage of the loss of The Avengers and Fantastic Four (with other characters) to the main Marvel Universe, by positioning themselves as the new super hero team on the block. They see a major opportunity when The Mad Thinker and his Awesome Androids attack during a ceremony (attended by the son of Reed and Susan Richards, Franklin, and The Thing's on again/off again girlfriend, Alicia Masters) to celebrate the lost heroes (a cool statue is created to memorialize them). The Thinker's androids captures Franklin, and heads to the now abandoned Baxter Building, where the Thinker hopes to use Franklin's memories to unlock the various secrets of Reed Richards, including what actually happened to the team. However, the T-Bolts spring into action, managing to finally defeat the Androids (after suffering a defeat at the hands of the machines earlier in the issue) and the Thinker himself, who is revealed to also have been an android. However, the main conflict is only the means to gain one part of what The Thunderbolts were after all along, The Baxter Building, which is basically given to the team as reward for rescuing Franklin (who gives the team his blessing). This, as earlier stated, goes perfectly along with Zemo's plan, but there is a hidden cost to this victory, one that not even Zemo would be able to fully plan for. Some of the team is beginning to enjoy being seen as heroes, and as we'll start to see during even this brief glimpse at this team, they start to live their roles. A big part of this will involve the teenage girl we've seen a few times so far, Hallie Takahama, but we'll get to that a few issues down the road. In the next review, however, we'll see The Thunderbolts, or at least a couple of them, teaming up with an old enemy, but one that makes at least one of them start to doubt their role in Zemo's scheme. GRADE: B+
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Post by BrodietheSlayer on Sept 13, 2018 23:35:08 GMT -5
Spider-Man Team Up #7 "Old Scores"Cover Date: June, 1997 Writer: Kurt Busiek Artist: Sal Buscema Featured Character(s): The Thunderbolts (Citizen V, Atlas, Mach-1, Meteorite, Techno, & Songbird) & Spider-Man Villain/s: The Enclave (Wladyslav Shinski, Maris Morlak, & Carlo Zota) Guest Star/s: Mary Jane Watson-Parker, & the staff of the Daily Bugle (J. Jonah Jameson & Joe "Robbie" Robertson/others) Official Plot:Spidey, Citizen V, Atlas, Techno, Songbird, Meteorite and Mach-1 find themselves entangled in the evil designs of the Enclave! Brodie's View: This is another side story, but important in the sense that it continues what we've been seeing slowly starting to happen with certain members of the T-Bolts, specifically Mach 1, who was previously known as The Beetle, a former foe of the hero the T-Bolts are teamed up with in this story, Spider-Man. To make a long story short, a group of melodramatic scientists know as The Enclave create an android to steal certain items for them. This android somewhat resembles Spidey (well, in the dark), which causes the media and the authorities to once again start baying for our favorite Web Slinger's blood. This is where The Thunderbolts come in, as they are enlisted to bring down Spider-Man, which Mach 1, as one could expect, is especially psyched for, even though knowing Spidey as well as he does, knows he's innocent of the charges being brought against him. Half the team end up fighting Spidey, while the other half end up encountering the Enclave's android, which ends up leading to Spidey teaming up with the T-Bolts. Eventually, the Web Slinger and the T-Bolts invade the Enclave's secret hideout, but the scientists are somewhat ready for our heroes, as they put everybody but Spidey and Mach 1 under their control, and the two former enemies must team up against them. This causes Mach 1 to reappraise his opinion of his former foe, and the two are eventually able to break the Enclave's control, leading to the hero/"heroes" breaking the Enclave and ending their schemes. The end of the issue has Mach 1 admitting to Meteorite/Moonstone that he was wrong about Spider-Man, and is coming to realize that this hero gig might not be such a bad thing. Obviously, this is going to continue on as we go through the last few issues of this trade (and beyond). In the next review, we will definitely see The T-Bolts being confronted with their villainous past, as the team must face....The Masters of Evil(!!!). Oh yeah, and we get another spider related Guest Star. GRADE: B
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Post by BrodietheSlayer on Sept 16, 2018 2:30:35 GMT -5
Thunderbolts #3 "Too Many Masters"Cover Date: June, 1997 Writer: Kurt Busiek Artist: Mark Bagley Featured Character(s): The Thunderbolts (Citizen V, Atlas, Mach-1, Meteorite, Techno, & Songbird) Villain/s: The Masters of Evil (Crimson Cowl, Cyclone, Flying Tiger, Man-Killer, Tiger Shark, Klaw) & Arms Dealers Guest Star/s: Dallas Riordan, Hallie Takahama, the NYPD, & The Black Widow Official Plot:Black Widow is fighting the new Masters of Evil when the Thunderbolts come along to help. Brodie's View: Back to the regular Thunderbolts series, and some important things happen in this issue. The most obvious one is the introduction of a new Masters of Evil team, led by the mysterious Crimson Cowl. Needless to say, when the T-Bolts encounter this new Masters of Evil, they are thrown off quite a bit, as they are, or had been, the Masters of Evil. The T-Bolts at first get their asses handed to them by these new MoE, but the original (well, in this book) MoE eventually turn the tide, and the new MoE vanish to fight another day (and they will, but not in this little run). In the midst of this is somewhat of a team up with The Black Widow, who is busy taking down former enemies of The Avengers during their absence. At the end of the T-Bolts/MoE battle, where Citizen V/Zemo makes some very suspicious statements, Natasha shows up, and the question is posed at exactly what point of the fight she showed up at, and what she may or may not have heard. Of course, I'll be the spoiler and say that it isn't the Black Widow that ends up spoiling the T-Bolt's ruse, but it does add some suspense to the book, as readers at the time (with me being one) were waiting for the moment that the heroes (and the world) would find out the Thunderbolts' true identities. We also get to see some interpersonal relationships starting to develop within the team, which starts to flesh them out as characters we will (hopefully) start to care about; in this case, Mach 1 and Songbird (the former Beetle and Screaming Mimi). This relationship, of course, will blossom as the book goes on. Another important development in this issue is the intersection of a plot thread that began in the first issue, as a teenage girl named Hallie Takahama meets the T-Bolts as they return from their battle with the new MoE. Of course, she is looking for the Fantastic Four, as up until ONSLAUGHT, the T-Bolt's new Headquarters had been the FF's. In the next issue, this super powered teenager will take on the Thunderbolts, which will lead to a brand new path for that team, one none of the members of that team could have ever expected. GRADE: B+
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Post by BrodietheSlayer on Sept 19, 2018 23:10:51 GMT -5
Thunderbolts #4"A Shock to the System"Cover Date: July, 1997 Writer: Kurt Busiek Artist: Mark Bagley Featured Character(s): The Thunderbolts (Citizen V, Atlas, Mach-1, Meteorite, Techno, Songbird, & Jolt) (the last joins the team) Villain/s: Armin Zola & The Rat Pack (the last in flashback) Guest Star/s: Dallas Riordan, Jane, Greg, Ryan Official Plot:Jolt joins the Thunderbolts. Brodie's View: Well, I was slightly wrong in the last review's little "next time" blurb. We never see Hallie Takahama (who will christened "Jolt" by the end of the issue, where she officially joins the team) fighting the T-Bolts before joining them. In fact, the issue jumps at least a few hours later, as Jolt and The T-Bolts are rocketing towards where Hallie was being held prisoners (and being experimented on...hence the energy powers), which is the (unknown by the team) recently abandoned (as he was also lost in the effort to defeat Onslaught) castle of Dr. Doom(!!!) ( ), but as just stated, it isn't Doom they find, rather a bunch of mutated monsters, who the T-Bolts fight. Eventually, the battle breaks through a wall, and into another part of the castle, where it is revealed that the person/being behind the creation of not only the monsters, but Hallie's gaining of her powers as well, Hitler's former geneticist, Armin Zola. See, Zola was basically stealing the children left in the destructive wake of ONSLAUGHT, and experimenting on them, hoping to create more super powered beings like Hallie/Jolt. Needless to say, a lot of the children he abducted ended up not having the (mutant?) latent abilities Hallie had, and they instead were just altered into being the monsters the team was fighting. This realization is a major turning point in the issue, even though Meteorite, who is the narrator of the events of this issue, kind of hints that this might be the case earlier in the battle, and one that gives Jolt instant depth as a character. Being the hero she is, Jolt refuses the kill Zola for what he has done (as the mutated children wind up basically committing suicide rather than hurting the girl that had helped them). This has all been broadcasted around the world, thanks to Techno's hidden camera (as Citizen V wants to use the whole situation as a chance to get good publicity ), and by the end of things, Citizen V/Zemo is kind of forced to make Jolt a new member of the team, as his need for publicity kind of backfires on him. However, this situation is also manipulated somewhat by Meteorite, who being a former psychologist, kind of sees what is happening to the team (that some of the members are starting to REALLY get into their roles as heroes, as they're starting to believe it themselves), and decides to use it to her advantage against Zemo. The reasoning behind her wanting Jolt in the group? Having someone part of the team that's not in on Zemo's plan (in fact doesn't even know it's a scheme) forces the team to keep up their facade pretty much 24/7, which, as we will see past this run of reviews (as I hope I've maybe convinced some of you to look this series up), starts to cause a divide in the team....one that will come to a head sooner rather than later. In fact, right around the time the Heroes Return(ed) from the Jim Lee/Rob Liefeld pocket universe they were chilling in during this period. However, in the next issue, and the Last issue of this particular run (as it's the last one in the trade), we'll be looking back, as we see how Zemo assembled this particular version of the Masters of Evil, which would become The Thunderbolts. GRADE: A-
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Post by BrodietheSlayer on Sept 21, 2018 1:04:46 GMT -5
Thunderbolts Annual #1"The Origin of The Thunderbolts"Cover Date: August, 1997 Writer: Kurt Busiek Artist: Mark Bagley, Bob McLeod, Tom Grummett, Ron Randall, Gene Colan, Darick Robertson, George Perez, & Chris Marrinan Featured Character(s): The Thunderbolts (Citizen V/Baron Zemo, Atlas/Goliath, Mach-1/The Beetle, Meteorite/Moonstone, Techno/The Fixer, Songbird/Screaming Mimi, & Jolt) (the last joins the team) Villain/s: The U Foes (Vector, Ironclad, Vapor, & X-Ray), Mandrill, Radioactive Man, Armadillo, Orka, Kaine, Speed Demon, Madcap, The Wizard, & Hydro Man Guest Star/s: Angar The Screamer, Daredevil Carlos, Kosmos, The Fantastic Four (Mr. Fantastic, Human Torch & The Thing), The Avengers (Captain America, The Vision, & Stingray), The Hulk, Namor, Onslaught, Guardsman, & Warden Jzemlico Official Plot:Citizen V tells Jolt the history of The Thunderbolts. Brodie's View: ^ Pretty much, but there are some things in motion that make this Annual long story, and the last issue we'll be covering in this run before moving on ( ), that make this more than just a simple "flashback issue." After we get to see Jolt training in the T-Bolt's Fixer created "Danger Room," Jolt asks Citizen V about how The Thunderbolts came together, which V suggests Jolt come by his (and probably Reed's former) study later, which allows Citizen V/Baron Zemo a chance to "Collect his Thoughts." The story V gives Jolt, which technically true, is a very BSed version of what we actually see, which is Baron Zemo plotting and planning a plot against Captain America and The Avengers, only to see them (and the FF, among others) seemingly sacrifice themselves to stop Professor X/Magneto's dark side run amok, ONSLAUGHT. Flabbergasted by that, Zemo decides to start collecting villains together to form a new Masters of Evil. The first of which, Atlas, he discovers trapped by the entity that was kind of responsible for Atlas gaining his power, Kosmos. This leads to the second member, as Zemo seeks out The Fixer to help him not only free Atlas, but assemble the new MoE. Along the way, we see Zemo gain Screaming Mimi (who has been kind of emotionally balanced by the death of her boyfriend, and fellow supervillain, Angar The Screamer) and The Beetle (after getting his ass kicked by Daredevil), and then finally, painfully (and we'll see Kosmos come back for him later), Atlas. It's Atlas that actually gives Zemo the idea for the Thunderbolts, jokingly suggesting to The Beetle that with The Avengers and the FF gone, someone should step up in their place, as the world would be desperate for heroes. Zemo then forms his plan, and we see the forming team "come across" a jail break of various super villains (a jail break set up by the T-Bolts themselves, as Zemo wanting the one prisoner not majorly involved in the jail break, Moonstone), who the T-Bolts make quick work of. This pretty much brings us to what we've seen, and Jolt runs off, happy at what she heard, but Citizen V/Zemo is confronted by Meteorite, who warns him that Jolt could eventually be a problem. But Zemo brushes her off, which would kind of come back to bite him in the ass when he goes to make his BIG MOVE down the line. Of course, we won't be covering that, as we have reached the end of this run. I will say before moving on that another cool aspect of this Annual is the number of Guest Artists we see depicting Zemo's flashbacks; George Perez and Darick Robertson being my two favorites. It makes for a nice end to this run. Anyways, in the next review, we'll finally be moving on to our next decent sized run, and back to the 1970's. GRADE: A-
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Post by BrodietheSlayer on Oct 1, 2018 1:23:03 GMT -5
Marvel Spotlight #5"Ghost Rider"Cover Date: August, 1972 Writer: Roy Thomas (Plot)/Gary Friedrich (Script) Artist: Mike Ploog Featured Character(s): The Ghost Rider Villain/s: Satan & some Thugs (Clyde & Dingbat) Guest Star/s: Crash Simpson, Barton Blaze, Mona Simpson (First Appearance, All Die), & Roxanne Simpson (1st Appearance) Official Plot:Johnny Blaze, the Ghost Rider, rides through the streets of New York City and accidentally witnesses two men killing another. Wanting no part of what's happened, he rides on, but is then chased by the killers. Upon trapping him in an alley, the men are shocked to see Blaze's flaming skull. The Ghost Rider points his finger, causing flame to erupt on the ground. The men make a run for it, and Blaze rides back to Madison Square Garden, where he transforms back into his human form. He thinks back to try and remember what happened, hoping to find some answers in the past. Johnny's father, Barton Blaze, died in a motorcycle accident when his son was very young. Johnny was then adopted by Crash Simpson, another stunt rider that ran his own cycle show with his wife Mona and daughter Roxanne. Johnny grew into adolescence, and had followed his step-father's footsteps by taking up cycle riding. When he was fifteen, his motorcycle caught fire during a practice session. Though he attempted to save his family, Mona Simpson is killed in the bike's explosion. Before she dies, she makes Johnny promise her that he'll never ride in the show due to the danger, which he agrees to. Five years later, Johnny is discovered riding in secret by Roxanne, who tells him that she is in love with him. Later on, Crash tells the two that he has cancer,and that the show's performance at Madison Square Garden will be his last, if he lives to even see that. Determined to keep his step-father from dying, Johnny researches some occult books, finally using them to summon "Satan" (actually the demon lord Mephisto, in one of his many forms). In exchange for Johnny's soul, the devil will spare Crash Simpson from the cancer that's killing him. Three weeks later, Crash tells Johnny that he plans to try and break the world's cycle jump record at the Garden. Johnny knows he'll be fine, due to the deal he made with Satan. When Crash attempts to jump it, he doesn't make it, and dies in the resulting accident. Furious at what happened, Blaze suits up, mounts a bike, and does the same stunt... and makes it, breaking the world record. That night, Satan returns to claim Johnny's soul, claiming that he only said he'd spare Crash from the disease and nothing else. As Mephisto prepares to take Johnny to Hell, Roxanne enters and banishes the demon with the pure essence of her soul. She tells Johnny that she read his books behind his back, and learned how to send the devil away. The next night, however, Johnny begins to burn with fever, until his head suddenly transforms into a flaming skull. Every night since, he has undergone the transformation into... the Ghost Rider! Brodie's View: So, let's leave the super cynical 90's, and head back to a more simple (and goofy) age; the 1970's. Actually, let's head back even further, and talk briefly about the controversy that sprang up in the mid 1950's over the amount of violence, blood/gore, and sexuality in comic books, specifically the EC Horror comics, which were the main target of this controversy. The potential involvement of the U.S. Government in the affairs of the comic book business, much like it did the film industry two decades before and two decades after the 50's, caused the comic book companies to agree to take care of the problem head on, and this led to the creation of the Comic Book code, which greatly limited the amount of violence, sexuality, and other "unpleasant things" that might appear in the books. The major result of this was the death of horror comics, which had been on a huge roll, sales wise, in the 50's, as horror monsters and creatures were pretty much forbidden by the Code. This was until the early 1970's, as like with film, the easing of the public's moral standards caused the Code to weaken its hold on the comic book industry, which led to the return of horror comics. Companies both major and minor started pumping out books with horror connected lead characters, with Marvel creating ongoing series involving horror icons/variations on horror icons like Dracula, Frankenstein, The Werewolf (By Night), The Mummy, and many more. However, even beyond the classic characters, Marvel began creating new supernatural themed characters that they hoped would be able to eventually function side by side with their established characters like Spider-Man, The Hulk, The Fantastic Four, and others. This leads us to the character we'll be focused on in this run, Johnny Blaze, the Original (at least as a straight up supernatural character; there had been a character from Marvel's Western line that called himself The Ghost Rider (who was eventually linked to Blaze as far as his curse goes), but would eventually be known as The Phantom Rider) Ghost Rider. And what perfect timing in a kind of horrible way, as GHOST RIDER had been one of the two runs I was looking at doing after my burst of trade runs (the other was WEREWOLF BY NIGHT), but after learning of the passing of one of the major creators of GR, Gary Friedrich (who also created the previously mentioned Phantom Rider), last month, it definitely made my decision easier. So, we all know the basic origin story of the Johnny Blaze Ghost Rider, if because of nothing else by the Meh Nicolas Cage movie (which, at least for the first half of things, was actually pretty loyal to GR's origin story), so, I won't bother recapping it. I will say that the "Devil Character" that Johnny sold his soul to has changed quite a bit over the years, as which "devil character" is responsible for all of this has been retconned a few times since 1973. However, for the sake of thing, we'll just consider our main Baddie (and the one working at least behind the scenes for a good chunk of this book) just straight up Satan, as that's who he's referred to as being. I will also say that a thing established in this issue, that will soon change, is the idea that Blaze only becomes the Ghost Rider at night (which, I guess kind of fits with the whole "Horror Character" idea, as most of these characters created would mostly function at night; this also was The Hulk's original transformation trigger), but this would eventually change as Ghost Rider became more of a traditional Super hero (at least in some respects). However, I must sadly deflate things a bit by saying that while the story is pretty solid, the dialogue is pretty cringe worthy at times; over dramatic to the point of parody like a lot of comics from this period (at least the ones not written by really good writers....sorry, Gary). It's a minor gripe, though, for the most part this is a solid beginning, and the dialogue would smooth out as we move along. Speaking of which, in the next reveal, which will be another MARVEL SPOTLIGHT (as new characters were kind of introduced in books like this during this time, but GR will get his own book soon), Johnny/GR falls in with a biker gang that are not what they appear to be, and faces from Johnny's (recent) past come back to affect his present, especially where it concerns his girlfriend, Roxanne. GRADE: B
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Ultimo Gallos
Grimlock
Dreams SUCK!Nightmares live FOREVER!
Posts: 14,559
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Post by Ultimo Gallos on Oct 1, 2018 2:41:51 GMT -5
I love Mike Ploog's art. Wish he did more comic work.
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