MARVEL TEAM-UP #66

Stan Lee presents: SPIDEY and CAPTAIN BRITAIN -- together

”MURDER WORLD”
Author: Chris Claremont | Artist: John Byrne | Inker/Colorist: Dave Hunt
Letterer: Tom Orzechowski | Editor: Archie Goodwin

The Plot: Spider-Man and Captain Britain awaken in Arcade’s Murderworld, where they are soon separated to face their own deathtraps. Cap battles evil funhouse mirror versions of himself, then finds his love interest, Courtney Ross, a prisoner. While Cap tries to rescue her, Spider-Man escapes a holographic battlefield by sneaking into Murderworld’s maintenance tunnels. The web-slinger messes with the complex’s systems, then heads back out to find Captain Britain.

Spider-Man and Cap meet up and rescue Courtney, then, thanks to Spidey’s earlier mischief, Murderworld blows a fuse and explodes. The heroes and Courtney emerge from the underground complex in Manhattan, where Captain Jean DeWolff picks them up. Elsewhere, Arcade vows to rebuild Murderworld and have his revenge on Spider-Man.

POWER MAN #49

”SEAGATE IS A LONELY PLACE TO DIE!”
Author: Chris Claremont | Artist: John Byrne | Inker: Dan Green
Letterer: Annette Kawecki | Colorists: Francoise Mouly & Ken Klaczak
Editor: Archie Goodwin

The Plot: In the aftermath of their skirmish, Luke Cage explains to Iron Fist, Misty Knight, and Colleen Wing how he came in search of Misty: He was blackmailed by John Bushmaster to capture her and deliver her to him in exchange for a tape that would clear his name with the authorities. Thanks to her undercover work, Misty knows where Bushmaster’s secret headquarters is, and she, Iron Fist, and Power Man head out after him.

The base is revealed as Seagate Prison, the place where Luke Cage gained his super strength and steel-hard skin. Iron Fist and Misty infiltrate the prison first to find and rescue Cage’s kidnapped friends, Doctors Claire Temple and Noah Burstein. They find Claire, but learn Burstein is in another wing of the prison. Colleen takes Temple to safety while Iron Fist goes after Burstein.

Cage invades the prison via full frontal assault and learns from Misty where Burstein is. He heads that way as well, to find Iron Fist ambushed by a newly super-enhanced Bushmaster. Cage tells Iron Fist to get Burstein to safety, then fights Bushmaster. Their duel ends with an explosion that demolishes half the prison. Iron Fist finds Cage in the wreckage and Misty emerges a moment later, having gone back in to find the tape that will clear Cage’s name.

Cage, Misty, Iron Fist, Burstein, Temple, and Bushmaster’s henchman, Gadget-Man, board a speedboat and head for shore.

X-MEN/AVENGERS: ONSLAUGHT OMNIBUS

Hardcover, 2015. Collects 1996's CABLE #32-36; UNCANNY X-MEN #333-337; X-FORCE #55 & 57-58; X-MAN #15-19; X-MEN #53-57, X-MEN ANNUAL '96; X-MEN UNLIMITED #11; ONSLAUGHT: X-MEN; ONSLAUGHT: MARVEL UNIVERSE; ONSLAUGHT: EPILOGUE; AVENGERS #401-402; FANTASTIC FOUR #415; INCREDIBLE HULK #444-445; WOLVERINE #104-105; X-FACTOR #125-126; AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #415; GREEN GOBLIN #12; SPIDER-MAN #72; IRON MAN #332; PUNISHER #11; THOR #502; X-MEN: ROAD TO ONSLAUGHT; and material from UNCANNY X-MEN #287, EXCALIBUR #100 & more.

I've been waiting years for this thing. For many fans, that statement is enough to raise questions about my sanity. But I can't help it; I have really, really strong feelings attached to the "Onslaught" crossover.

Earlier this year I wrote a bit about how much I love the year or so of X-Men comics that came between "Age of Apocalypse" and "Onslaught" -- and while, as an adult, I recognize the "Onslaught" event is not as impressive as I found it in my teens, there's still a lot to like about this book.

Some years back, Marvel published a SECRET WARS II OMNIBUS. I didn't pick it up as I really dislike that storyline, but the cool thing about the book was that it included all the various crossover issues -- and SECRET WARS II crossed over with pretty much every book in the Marvel line back then. So if one were to read the SWII collection, they'd essentially be looking at a time capsule of Marvel's continuity circa 1985-86. The ONSLAUGHT OMNIBUS provides a similar experience for the Marvel of a decade later. This book gives us a wonderful snapshot of Marvel's 1996 line, for better or worse: Noseless Wolverine. Shirtless Thor. "Joseph". Ben Reilly as Spider-Man. Teenage Iron Man. The Punisher with a ponytail. G.W. Bridge in command of S.H.I.E.L.D. -- and more. It may not all be to everyone's taste -- much of it isn't even to mine -- but the fact remains that this is, in a way, "my" Marvel. And because of that, I have very fond memories of all of it, even the stuff I don't (and didn't) like.

TRANSFORMERS: WAR AND PEACE #1

"NEW WORLD ORDER"
Writer: Brad Mick* | Pencils: Pat Lee | Inks: Rob Armstrong
Backgrounds: Edwin Garcia | Layout Assists: Ferd Poblate
Colors: Espen Grundetjern, Alan Wang, & Paul Villafuerte | Letters: Paul Villafuerte

The Plot: In Alaska, the Autobots and Decepticons fight over an Autobot pod. The pod's occupant is revealed as Decepticon Scourge, but the fight is soon interrupted by a group of Transformers from Cybertron, led by Megatron's former military strategist, Shockwave. These forces subdue Megatron and capture the Decepticons, but the Autobots retreat, leaving a small force behind, led by Prowl, to monitor Shockwave's group. But Shockwave soon leaves Earth with the Decepticons, and dispatches another force to capture the Autobots.

At Autobot headquarters the next day, the Autobots debate whether to surrender to Shockwave, having been told by him that the war on Cybertron is over. Meanwhile, Prowl's team is ambushed by Shockwave's secondary force. In space, the ever-traitorous Starscream jettisons the unconscious Megatron from Shockwave's starship.

Continuity Notes: This story begins en media res a year after "Prime Directive" ended. Wheeljack, who was apparently killed at the conclusion of "Prime Directive", is seen among the Autobots. Also, Blitzwing, who was shown as an Earthbound Decepticon in an Ark II flashback in the previous story, is now among Shockwave's troops instead.

Grimlock, who, in "Prime Directive", betrayed the Autobots to join Megatron and then deserted the Deceptions as well, arrives in Alaska to aid the Autobots against Shockwave's team, then returns to Autobot headquarters. He's still wearing a Decepticon sigil on his chest, however.

MARVEL TEAM-UP #65

Readers may recall that I already wrote about this issue and the next a couple years back as part of my very first review series here, on the subject of Captain Britain. But that post was written primarily with attention to Cap’s side of the story and wasn't done “in-depth”, so here's the revised and expanded version (and forgive me if, between this issue and the next, I regurgitate a bit of that old post).

Stan Lee presents: SPIDEY and CAPTAIN BRITAIN!

”INTRODUCING, CAPTAIN BRITAIN”
Author: Chris Claremont | Artist: John Byrne | Inker/Colorist: Dave Hunt
Letterer: Bruce Patterson | Editor: Archie Goodwin

The Plot: Spider-Man swings across Manhattan to Empire State University, where he changes to Peter Parker for a meeting with the Dean of Students. The dean informs Peter that the school wants an exchange student from England to board with him for foreseeable future. Peter is introduced to Brian Braddock, and the pair leaves the dean’s office.

In England, a mysterious American assassin named Arcade is hired to kill Brian. Back in the U.S., later that night, Peter changes to Spider-Man for a night out, but passing police sirens outside awaken Brian, who spots the web-slinger swinging away from Peter’s bedroom. Assuming Spider-Man has harmed or kidnapped Peter, Brian changes to his alter ego of Captain Britain and gives chase.

The costumed heroes have a brief skirmish but in the end make peace. Captain Britain recaps his origin for Spider-Man, then the duo is captured by Arcade.

POWER MAN #48

Luke Cage: Wrongly convicted and sentenced to prison—reborn in a freak experiment there that gave him steel-hard skin and strength beyond belief—a man who hides his identity as an escaped convict in the role of a HERO FOR HIRE!

”FIST OF IRON -- HEART OF STONE!”
Writer: Chris Claremont | Penciler: John Byrne | Inker: Dan Green
Letterer: Annette Kawecki | Colorist: Francoise Mouly | Editor: Archie Goodwin

The Plot: Luke Cage smashes into Danny Rand’s townhouse, where Colleen Wing is staying while her apartment undergoes a remodel. Cage pursues Colleen through the building, finally knocking her out in Danny’s study. But Colleen manages to place a phone call to Misty Knight first. Remorseful, Cage patches Colleen up.

Misty and Danny, dining at Misty’s apartment, head for the townhouse and Misty goes in first to investigate. She encounters Cage, who takes her out as well. Danny, in costume as Iron Fist, shows up next and knocks Cage out of the building. But he returns and Power Man duels Iron Fist until the Living Weapon gives in, hoping that in his heart, Cage is not a killer.

Cage proves Iron Fist correct and backs off before he can kill his foe. But his failure to take out Misty, his original target, leads him to reveal that he has doomed his two closest friends to death.

THE UNBOXING - SEPTEMBER 2015

I've got quite a variety pack this month! First, from Marvel, is something I've been awaiting for a long time. Call me insane if you must, but I have wanted an X-MEN/AVENGERS ONSLAUGHT OMNIBUS since around the time Marvel started collecting all the various nineties X-Men events in oversized hardcover format. For a while it seemed like this wasn't going to happen, as the X-Men OHC program skipped past "Onslaught" to "Zero Tolerance", then slowed down a bit. Furthermore, the full "Onslaught" event has already been collected in a line of trade paperbacks a few years earlier. But now, at long last, it's here. Watch this space for a full-length review of the book next week.

Next from Image, is RED ONE: WELCOME TO AMERICA, a graphic novel I picked up solely on the strength of Terry Dodson's artwork. I've been a fan of Dodson since his days on Marvel's GENERATION X, and while I haven't read everything he ever drew, I've picked up certain items here and there. I plan to cover RED ONE in a post next Spring.

And lastly, Dark Horse brings their collaboration with Dynamite on CONAN/RED SONJA. I don't talk much about "sword and sorcery" type stuff around here, but I'm a fan of the genre in some respects. I intend to write about this book as well next Spring, hopefully once Dynamite's companion RED SONJA/CONAN book is also released in a collected edition.