zilch
Full Member
Posts: 238
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Post by zilch on Nov 3, 2021 21:54:34 GMT -5
Argent is a tincture of Silver (as in Silver Age, i guess). I wrote some fan fic featuring a continuation of the Argent crew pre-'63 gaining some other former heroes like Radar, the Gadgeteer, the teenaged daughter of Mlle. Marie, Gravedigger and one or two others. Their first mission would have been the rescue of two young boys, Willie Magnus and Niles Caulder from a pair of gorilla based villains, Ultra-Humanite and Monsieur Mallah... maybe i ought to get back to that story some day...
-z
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Post by codystarbuck on Nov 7, 2021 17:58:08 GMT -5
Suicide Squad #7Always liked this cover; but, there are a couple of problems. Hammer and Bronze Tiger are positioned incorrectly. Hammer is focused too far to the side of Tiger and Tiger is coming from the wrong angle to have his hand at Hammer's throat (especially since he is diving from above). Flag is looking the wrong direction to react to Sickle's attack. I get the feeling the layout was altered from a side attack to one coming from an acute angle. Nightshade and Bolshoi are fine. The all-white background does make the figures pop out, though that also emphasizes the bad eyelines and body positioning. Creative Team: John Ostrander-writer, Luke McDonnell-pencils, Bob Lewis-inks, Todd Klein-letters, Carl Gafford-colors, Robert Greenberger-editor I'm gonna admit up front that I am not a fan of The People's Heroes. The costumes are ugly (trying to hard to look like the Red Army uniforms) and the names are just bad cliches. Comics are pretty bad about naming foreign heroes as they tend towards national stereotypes. It just ends up being like Disney's It's a Small World ride. The other cliche is to call them Red (fill in the blank). Some are better than others. I liked Marvel's Soviet Super Soldiers, as they didn't resort to that and gave them code names that were comparable to other superhero teams: Vanguard, Darkstar, Gremlin, Ursa major (should have just gone with Ursus), Crimson Dynamo (that actually works, because of the Moscow Dynamo hockey team). The other DC Soviet team, Soyuz, had better names, based on Russian folklore and arts, as well as their space program and similar. Synopsis: The People's Heroes have been called into the search for the Suicide Squad, after they whooped the hinders of the Red Army. We only get names for 3 of them, over two pages (Pravda, Sickle and Hammer) and if we hadn't read Outsiders #8, would have no idea who they were, especially the cossack stereotype dude (Molotov). They are whining because they have fallen in standing with the Central Committee, because they lost to the Outsiders. The Rocket Reds and Prozhar get name dropped, to let us know about some of the other Soviet heroes. Pravda turns up and they immediately flip to the comics page. Og, wait, it isn't the newspaper, it's a member of the team. She is their psychic and she has traced Zoya (the Destroya) Trigorin psychic emanations, but they abruptly end (due to the dimensional transporting). They know they have taken a train to Moscow and head there in an American SH-46 Sea Knight (looks smaller than the CH-47 Chinook).... I guess Luke didn't have reference material for Soviet helicopters. Meanwhile, Task Force X is sitting in the US Embassy, trying to plan their way out of being turned over to the Soviets. Nightshade is exhausted, though Flag asks if she can transport them out of the embassy. She'll try. June Moon is blaming herself for their problems, because Enchantress went full on Joan Crawford, in Mommy Dearest! Nemesis tries to reassure her that the whole mission was a Charlie Foxtrot (CF....figure out what the letters stand for), since Trigorin didn't want to be liberated. Trigorin suggests walking across the frozen Black Sea, to Turkey. Nemesis poo-poos the thought, that they aren't in shape for that arduous a journey, with the Soviet forces pursuing them. Flag suggests they could, if they could contact Waller to have the support teams meet them part way, to extract the, (meaning Sheba and the SS-1). He tasks Bronze Tiger to make contact, since he hasn't been implicated in all of this. They just need identity documents to get to Balaklava and the escape route. Penguin has a plan. They roust a group of American tourist and steal their clothes and passports. Nightshade is spent, after getting them out of the embassy. They debate about what to do with the tourists, with penguin and Deadshot pushing to kill them, against Flag's objection. Deadshot starts to disobey orders; but, he is stopped by Nemesis. penguin says they still have the problem of the tourists sounding an alarm and Nemesis says he will remain behind to watch them, until they have a 48 hour head start and then will slip out, using his disguise skills. Flag objects and Nemesis tells him to stuff it and tenders his resignation. He has had enough of this program and its morality. Meanwhile, in New Orleans, Digger has picked up a Sheila and they go to his place to do a bit of horizontal Waltzin' (or so Digger hopes). He has the phone off the hook, so Waller can't contact him. He grabs a bottle and turns to find that his ladyfriend is actually Black Orchid, sent by Waller to retrieve him. On a train, they watch wolves stalking the train. Penguin gives a speech that would make Reagan proud (about the freedom to be a master criminal, under the American system of democracy), while Deadshot points out that Penguin would do well in the Soviet system. Back in Moscow, Nemesis has to face a tourist, who is calling his bluff, when the People's Heroes turn up and Molotov blows a hole in the wall (and finally gets named). Back near Balaklava, the group heads off on foot as Flag (and Ostrander) remind us of the history of Balaklava (the Crimean War). Flag has trepidations about the stability of the ice; but, they have no choice. They move out, though Nightshade is feverish. Their problems get worse, as the People's Heroes have turned up. They have an unconscious Nemesis and they have them cut off. Then, the cavalry arrives... Flag orders Penguin to get the women to the SS-1, while he and Deadshot join the fight, to cover their retreat. Pravda gets to June Moon, but causes her to release Enchantress and it all turns pear-shaped. Flag & Deadshot double-team Molotov and take him out and Bronze Tiger easily takes down Bolshoi. Black orchid whoops Hammer and demonstrates why she was such a wasted character at DC, who couldn't see the potential. Enchantress sets Pravda on fire, then buries her. Captain Boomerang destroys Sickle's...sickle. Enchantress then unloads on her. Deadshot calls for a weapon, but Boomerang puts her down. They move on to the SS-1, when the Red Army turns up, with a squadron of Hind gunships.... ...or as close as McDonnell can get to drawing one. Trigorin tries to help Nemesis, but it looks like they are FUBAR. Then, it turns Airwolf....... Zoya gets hit in the crossfire and goes down. Nemesis runs to her, but is too late and is surrounded by the Red Army and the People's Heroes. The rest get to the SS-1 and escape. In Moscow, Gorbachev isn't happy, as they failed rescue has made Trigorin a martyr, with her death. The US has disavowed the mission and they cannot identify Nemesis. Thoughts: Explosive finale to this three-parter, an excellent tale of a mission gone wrong. History is replete with clandestine missions that end up as fiascoes. 51 years ago, US Armsy Special Forces launched Operation Ivory Coast, a rescue mission to free US POWs from the Son Tay prison, located 23 km north of Hanoi. The raid itself was run with precision; but the intel was bad, as there were no prisoners there. They had been moved a week before. 41 years ago, Delta Force, in its inaugural mission, undertook Operation Eagle Claw, to extract US hostages from Tehran, Iran. The complex plan called for the raiding force to fly to a desert location, where they would rendezvous with the Navy helicopters who would transport them to Tehran. The plan was to refuel the helos, then head for a mountain location to wait for a day and then launch the assault on the US Embassy compound. They would then drive in trucks provided by CIA agents and assault the compound, gather the hostages and take them to a soccer field, where they would rendezvous with the helicopters for extraction. The US Army Rangers would secure a nearby airbase, land 2 C-141 Starlifters and load the hostages and rescue team and fly to a base in Egypt, with fighter escort from the USS Nimitz and USS Coral Sea. The initial landing at Desert One came off fine, until a bus full of civilian travelers crossed the area and were taken prisoner. The plan didn't account for this and they radioed for instructions and were told to release them (not even hold them until the raiders had departed). Then, the helicopters arrived, but had flow through a haboob, a desert windstorm the creates massive dustclouds. The pilots were badly shaken and they had lost two more helicopters to to equipment malfunctions (after losing one initially, to a rotor blade crack). They were down to 5 helicopters for the assault (from an initial 8). Helicopters were moved to refuel and one collided with an EC-130 Hercules, and exploded. 8 people were killed and the mission scrubbed and the remaining C-130s extracted all personnel. The charred bodies of the dead were paraded by the Iranian militants and the hostages were broken up and moved to different locations, preventing any hope of a future rescue. This mission was a mess from the start, because it was undertaken for propaganda reasons, on both sides. The USSR wanted rid of Trigorin to eliminate her status as a symbol to dissidents. They figured that her lack of real literary talent would soon be exposed, in the West, thereby reducing any political value for her, in the West. The US thought they were rescuing a top Soviet dissident, who they could use to champion Freedom and Democracy. However, the dissident didn't want to be rescued, because she knew she was more valuable to the cause by being a prisoner of the Soviet system. As long as they held her, she was important and an inspiration to others to fight the system. Outside of the USSR, she was just another defector to the decadent west, a minor writer with delusions of grandeur and an inflated ego. Task Force X was completely expendable and Waller should have been wary of this mission, even as her team questioned the necessity of it and the risk involved. They were not extracting a scientist with great knowledge of Soviet developments, or an intelligence agent with vital information about Soviet weapons placement or development. They were being sent to pull out a minor writer. It was as ridiculous as Task Force Baum, a Charlie Foxtrot of an operation, dispatched by Gen Patton behind German lines to rescue American POWs; mainly, his son-in-law, Lt Col John K Waters, who was taken prisoner in Tunisia and was being held at Oflag XIII-B, near Hammelburg. Patton sent a force of 300 men, 16 tanks, 28 half-tracks, and 13 trucks and jeeps 50 miles behind German lines. It was a fiasco. 32 were killed in action, 35 escaped back to Allied lines and the rest were taken prisoner. All of the vehicles were destroyed or captured. The camp was not liberated. Patton denied knowledge of his son-in-law being in the camp and claimed fear of the prisoners being executed as the justification for the raid. However, Patton aside an aide to accompany the mission to identify Walters and Third Army intel had word of Walters being at the camp, after being moved from Poland, as the Red Army advanced. Patton was reprimanded by Eisenhower, but he awarded Col Abrams, who led the mission, the Distinguished Service Cross. It was purported that he offered him a Medal of Honor if he successfully carried out the mission, but awarded the lesser medal to avoid the investigation that would follow to justify awarding the military's highest honor. Here, Penguin justifies his presence by orchestrating the plan to seize documents and clothing from the tourists, to help cover their escape. Here we see criminality put to work. He also advises about avoiding pursuit by the Authorities. The criminal backgrounds of the guest stars weren't always employed well (Chronos barely had involvement in taking down William Hell, aside from lending his technology) and Penguin should have been a more central figure; but, the finale did make better use of him than the previous 2 chapters. His and Deadshot's cutthroat nature add to conflict with Flag, who isn'y exactly squeamish about death, but he does have a sense of morality, when it comes to innocent bystanders. We have further instances of the uncontrollable nature of Enchantress, though Captain Boomerang takes her down rather easily. Not sure if it exactly elevates his stature as a skilled criminal or detracts from Enchantress' threat. Nice to see Black orchid used well, as she gets to show off her disguise ability and her superhuman powers (flight and super strength). Again, I always felt she was a character with a ton of potential, who was allowed to languish at DC, after an intriguing introduction (in Adventure Comics, with Joe Orlando doing art) and was abandoned so Neil Gaiman could do his imitation of Alan Moore (I'm not a fan of his Black Orchid mini-series, as it was too much an attempt to mimic Moore, while messing around with a character who was far more intriguing in stuff like this). Black Orchid was the kind of character that someone like James Robinson could have really made interesting. She gets used a little more in this series, before she is abandoned to Gaiman. Her disguise element was redundant, with nemesis; but, his resignation and capture should have provided more opportunity to use her. However, I think Ostrander liked Nemesis more, as he ends up sticking around until after Invasion and then he is gone. As I indicated, the People's Heroes are kind of a bust and it is hard to identify them, without Who's Who nearby. They debuted in Outsiders, which concocted quite a few stereotype characters as villains, as Mike Barr was often working satire into their adventures. It's one thing to use characters like that for a satirical tale; but, they don't work well in a more serious story. With names like Hammer & Sickle, Pravda, Bolshoi and Molotov, you expect the tick & Arthur to suddenly turn up (except Ben Edlund and his cohorts came up with better names). Even pro wrestling did better with their Russian heels. One of the great things about John Ostrander is that his stories have consequences and the conclusion of this issue sets up further ramifications around nemesis' imprisonment, in the USSR. It will serve to bring Task Force X into the radar of Batman and put him on a collision course with Amanda Waller. Next time, Ostrander takes some time off of missions to focus on the characters, as we explore their background and motivations, before everything gets interrupted by Millennium. Oh, and The Privateer will guest star, as well as Madame Xanadu (Xaaannnaaaduuuuu.....Xaaaannnnnaaaduuuuuuu....) and Mirror Master!
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Post by codystarbuck on Nov 12, 2021 0:04:26 GMT -5
Suicide Squad #8Flag's weapon looks all kinds of wonky. Either he has Andre the Giant hands or that thing is on the small side. No ide what his left hand is doing, 'cause if it is holding a foregrip or a magazine, he's holding it very delicately. Creative Team: John Ostrander-writer, Luke McDonnell-pencils, Bob Lewis-inks, Todd Klein-letters, Carl Gafford-colors, Robert Greenberger-editor The issue is all told from the POV of Simon LaGrieve, who handles the psychiatric side of Task Force X, where they blame their crimes on their mothers dressing them like the Brady Bunch. Oh, wait, that was the source of my issues! Synopsis: Simon bar Sinister....er, Simon La Grieve (oh, man, a crossover with Underdog would have been sweet!) is dictating observations related to Task Force X, for the files. He first recalls how he met Amanda Waller, in Chicago.... He taught her how to channel her anger in more productive ways, which led to her hitting people like a freight train. We then cut to his recollection of her confrontation with Dexter Tolliver, the liason with the National Security Council, about the intel about Trigorin and the situation at the Embassy. Tolliver gets smug and gets hit by The Wall. Turns out Tolliver didn't have clearance from above for the mission and Waller threatens to hang him out to dry if she can't extract her people, alive. Next, he recollects Flag's confrontation with her, when he got back from Russia, chastising her for leaving Nemesis behind. Karin Grace calls him out on leaving behind people on their last mission and it gets personal and nasty between the pair. Flag gets a bit physical in trying to stop Karin from walking away and tells off Waller, when she tries to intercede, leading to confrontation with a new member.... First question: why would you limit your vision when you don't need to wear an eyepatch? Not every pirate had an eyepatch! Two: If he's a Privateer, where are his Letters of Marque? Flag and Privateer go at it pretty hard and Shaw doesn't fight fair (only suckers do). Privateer puts him down on the ground and reminds us that he was trained by the Manhunters, and Bob Greenberger reminds us to read First Issue Special #5, but forgets about JLA #140-141, and 143, 149-150; but, that would spoil Millennium (which didn't need help in spoiling things, as it stunk like rotten eggs). Waller relieves Flag of command and has him checked into the infirmary and then puts Bronze Tiger in charge. Karin gushes over "Errol Flynn>' BT, meanwhile, is escorting June Moon to seek help in controlling Enchantress and they stop off at Madame Xanadu's (Xaaaaanadu.....Xaaaaanadu....) place, and duck to avoid the roller skaters and Gene Kelly.... I still think that movie would have been improved by having the Los Angeles thunderbirds skate in and start wailing on the roller disco twerps. Well, that and having ELO face off with the Tubes, in the Battle of the Bands scene! There, they meet Morticia....Madame Xanadu (Xaaanadu.....Xaaaaanadu...), who thinks they are vampires and invites them to enter freely, and of their own will. She explains that June F-ed up by not getting magic training and eroding the aura that deflects evil intent, in Enchantress; but, MX has a solution....ugly jewelry! June puts on the hunk of metal and calls forth Enchantress, who gets magically spanked by MX and the necklace (even rappers would think that thing is a bit gauche). It is controlled by a ring, which MX gives to BT, while warning him that the more Enchantress is used, the stronger and more cunning she will get and that they have a time bomb on their hands. Next, Simon comments on his assistant, Marnie Herrs, who has the hots for Floyd Lawton. We see Marnie asking Lawton about his sex life, and he responds with his contracting services with Ladies of Negotiable Affection (TM Terry Pratchett). Herrs questions whether he can have a normal relationship and he says he prefers the simplicity of a cash transaction and equates all women with prostitutes, including Marnie, which earns him a slap, which according to Hollywood means they will be in bed by the second act. See? He moves on to remarks about George "Digger" Harkness, aka Captain Boomerang. He says he is content with who he is...an unprincipled sociopath! We cut to New Orleans, where Mirror Master pulls off a heist and eludes the police, except it isn't the late Samuel Scudder, but none other than George "Digger" Harkness.... He's pulling jobs for the fun of it, while masquerading as Mirror Master, so Waller doesn't get wind of it, giving him the best of both worlds. Simon concludes and remarks about the high suicide rate among psychologists, as their job stress relates to the stresses of their patients (not to mention a lot of people become interested in psychology while dealing with their own issues) and goes off to have breakfast with his wife. We are then warned that Millennium with screw up the next issue, though it was one of the few bright spots in that whole debacle. Thoughts: Character development issue. we get some more background on The Wall and also see that she didn't leave her people to twist in the wind. We see that Flag is exhausted and suffering a crisis of confidence, which reminds me more than a bit of the film Twelve O'Clock High, which deals with the burden of command. Great film; check it out sometime! They get a training collar for Enchantress (well, that necklace is big enough to be one), Marnie Herrs wants to be Floyd Lawton's "pro," and Digger is back to crime, while using Mirror Master's costume and gear to hide it from Waller. Mirror Master died during crisis, though we got a new Scottish one, who like to tell Flash to "Stich this, Jammie!" as he headbutted him and then gave him a good kicking. There is a new wrinkle to the team, in the form of Mark Shaw, aka Privateer, hero to Conservative politicians of the 1980s (you know....privatization). For those who missed it, Mark Shaw was a former public defender who was recruited into the Cult of the Manhunters, who gave him a battlestaff and trained him in combat, so he could take down dangerous criminals who slipped through the system. It turned out that the manhunters were actually sentient androids, created by The Guardians of the Universe, as their original peacekeepers. they were corrupted by power and turned heel and had to be dealt with by the Guardians, after they rebelled. This led to the Guardians using the Green Lantern Corps, though Sinestro proved that the same thing could happen there. The Manhunters were exposed by the JLA and Shaw learned he had been working for robots. He then adopted the personna of the Privateer, complete with unnecessary eyepatch. He aided the JLA in a couple of battles, including with a criminal known as the Star-Tsar, who was revealed to be Snapper Carr, except he was a dupe and the real Star-Tsar was Mark Shaw, as revealed by Red Tornado. He got tossed into the hoosegow, which is how he ended up here. We will learn that they are helping him break the Manhunter conditioning and he will aid them on a mission. This leads us into Millennium, where the Manhunters reveal their secret plot to bore the comic industry for two months in a weekly miniseries, where they have planted a bunch of sleeper agents, most of whom will turn out to be minor characters, instead of the big ones they teased in the marketing for the series. I liked this issue, as it reminded me of the episodes of MASH, where Hawkeye, Radar, or someone else would recount various events in the form of a letter home (or one to Sigmund Freud, in the case of a visiting Sidney Freedman). It allowed some character development, while planting some seeds for future plots. Sadly, Millennium will interrupt the subplot of Nemesis sitting in a cell at Lubyanka Prison, in Moscow. I'm not much of a fan of Madame Xanadu (Xaaanadu.......Xaaaaanadu.....). Apart from Mike Kaluta covers, she always seemed like a Morticia/Vampira/Elvira wannabe, in purple, who showed a lot of skin but not much personality and never carried her own series for long. The whole "Enter freely, and of your own will." schtick is a swipe from Dracula. Personally, I think Xanadu should be left to Samuel Taylor Coleridge and Orson Welles. Dexter Tolliver was a character from Firestorm Annual #5, where the Suicide Squad were guest stars (which is where Parasite came into things, after seeing him being held in issue #1 of this book). He's of the CYA variety of government official, which covers a lot of territory. He's a flyweight, compared to Waller. Next time, Millennium, which means a Manhunter sleeper agent will be revealed (guess which one?) before we get back to the regular plots.
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Post by spoon on Nov 12, 2021 18:34:04 GMT -5
Suicide Squad #4[snip] I really enjoyed this; a nice Mission Impossible feel. I had hopes that Black Orchid would be used more, as I had always enjoyed the character, from her Adventure Comics days. However, she only made sporadic appearances, until Neil Gaiman did his number on the character, which always looked nice, but I was never thrilled with the story. Mission: Impossible is exactly what I thought when reading this. Imitating Heller's alter ego right in front of him, then dismantling his plan in front of his followers is a classic M:I move. There are elements of Mission: Impossible running through the series generally. For instance, having core members that are on most missions, but supplementing them with one-off guest stars. Or warning that the team will be disavowed if caught. But the parallels are especially strong in this issue. I could imagine this being reworked into an episode. I'm in the midst of a Suicide Squad binge read. So far I've read Suicide Squad #1-18 and Deadshot #1-4. I was planning to post my thoughts in the Read Lately thread, but I may just post here. One surprising thing is that while the premise is a team of villains assembled by the government, in practice a lot of team members were actually heroes in the past (or at least have a mixed record of heroism and villainy): Rick Flag, Bronze Tiger, Nightshade, Nemesis, Black Orchid, Vixen, Speedy (for one mission), etc.
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Post by codystarbuck on Nov 19, 2021 0:01:23 GMT -5
Let's get this over with..... Suicide Squad #9This cover was part of a larger image, linking together that week's books and the Millennium crossover, as all of those concerned converged in the swamp... Creative Team: John Ostrander-writer, Luke McDonnell-pencils, Bob Lewis-inks, Todd Klein & John Costanza-letters, Carl Gafford-colors, though the lettrrs col in issue 13 says Juliana Ferriter did them, Robert Greenberger-editor, Steve Englehart-responsible for interrupting perfectly good storylines with this mess Just to set the scene.... A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away, It is a period of civil war.....whoops.....the Guardians of the Universe created android peacekeepers, known as the Manhunters. However, they became corrupted by power and rebelled against the Guardians and were put down. They moved into shadows and operated against the Guardians and their new peacekeepers, the Lensmen...Green Lantern Corps. They established sleeper agents on other worlds, at various points in history. On Earth, they were responsible for creating two agents, in the 1940s: Dan Richards, aka Manhunter and Paul Kirk, also aka Manhunter. Richards was a police officer-turned costumed vigilante. He started out to clear his brother's name and continued through the war years, until he gave up the costumed life and continued as a cop, until his retirement. Paul Kirk operated behind German lines, in WW2 and retired after the war, returning to Africa to hunt, and then commit suicide by letting a charging elephant trample him. However, he was saved by a secret group of scientists, known as The Council and healed, to become an enforcement agent in their quest to subvert authority in the world. He rebelled and, with the aid of Batman (and his friends Christine St Clair, Asano Nitobe, and Kolu Mbeya), destroyed the Council and died of radiation poisoning. Later, public defender Mark Shaw was recruited by the Cult of the Manhunters to become a member and seek justice against criminals who were untouchable by the law. he did so and took down some dangerous criminals, before joining the group in arresting Green Lantern for the destruction of an alien world. The charge was false, set up by the Manhunters, who were unmasked as androids and Mark Shaw threw away his costume. He returned as a costumed swashbuckler, The Privateer, though red Tornado eventually uncovered that he was also, secretly, the masked criminal Star-Tsar, having been corrupted by the power of the Manhunters and their conditioning. The Guardians and the Zamarons are about to depart the Universe, to make sweet love down by the fire and are leaving things in the hands of what is left of the Green Lantern Corps. they have identified a new group to take over their role as the guardians of the Universe and have tasked the GLC and associated buddies to find and protect these people from the Manhunters, who are back in action. the Manhunters have secreted sleeper agents all over and they are poised to strike at any moment, after first having a big rally at manhunters Local 602 Union Hall (Millennium #1) and then a bunch of minor support characters were revealed to be Manhunter agents, undermining the surprise of the whole thing and the hook of the event, while the new Guardians turn out to be Harbinger and a bunch of stereotypes, including a Latin guy who looks like Dr Strange, as imagined by Liberace, but in a more insulting fashion, if possible. 4 issues of this mini-series have bored us before the start of this installment, as we prepare to begin one of the few decent tales in this whole 8 week fiasco. Not that I'm editorializing...... Synopsis: The Squad has been tasked to deliver a bomb to the manhunter Temple, somewhere in the Louisiana swamps, near Belle Reve. In a page out of Hasbro, they even got a swamp buggy to accomplish this. Joining them is the extremely minor supervillain Slipknot (not the extremely loud band), as well as mark Shaw, the supposedly reformed ex-agent of the Manhunters (who dresses like Errol Flynn and wears an eyepatch, even though the eye is functional) and Karin Grace, for no good reason other than to F with Rick Flag, who got his butt whooped by Shaw last issue. This last part sounds rather "high school;" but, WTF? Captain Atom turns up, because his comic was out the same week and it's all tied together and he decides to work with Task Force X, rather than in competition with them, as Gen Eiling ordered. Firestorm turns up and sets the swamp on fire, because, why not? Captain Atom goes to exchange fissionable material with him, while the Squad moves on. Back at Belle Reve, Amanda Waller gets a sit-rep (situation report), and hears that Batman was there, but Mark Shaw bamboozled him. Shyeah....right! Back in the swamp, Boomerang blows a hole in the temple and they head into the breach and run into some Manhunters, which are different than Maneaters..... For one thing, the Manhunters wear lower heels! My kitten, Aja, is a Manbiter! Anyhoo.... The team attacks the Manhunters, but you can't strangle androids...... ...even with Electric Cables, and they laugh at Boomerangs (who doesn't?) Slipknot decides that discretion may be the better part of valor; but, cowardice beats getting your butt fried and runs away. Deadshot finds that armor piercing rounds work, until the shrapnel created attacks him. Mark Shaw seems to have a rather easy time of it and Bronze Tiger gets a broken leg for his trouble. Flag decides to use the bomb as a weapon. They drive the buggy (which is the bomb) in and evac Bronze Tiger, while Karin is nabbed by a (wo)Manhunter. Elsewhere, an unseen observer catches Slipknot beating feet, when his wrist bomb goes off, taking his hand with it! The explosion is heard by the others and Boomerang has confirmation that the bombs really do work, so don't press your luck. Flag wants to go after Karin, alone, but is convinced by Shaw to lead the assault. However, he knows they can't escape the radius of the bomb blast, so they are all F-ed. He removes Boomerang's wrist bomb (and Deadshot's) and they then move out. Elsewhere, we learn who was watching Slipknot get blowed up....real good! It's the president of the Louisiana Chapter of the John Rambo Fan Club! Something familiar about her. Deadshot and Boomerang end up surrounded by Manhunters, while Flag and Shaw drive inside to blow up the temple. They spot Karin dangling from the battlements and Flag goes to save her, though Shaw smells a trap. Flag belts him one and runs after her like the moron he is and she is revealed as the Manhunter sleeper agent.... because it sure as hell wasn't going to be Waller or even Mark Shaw. Shaw cries Bull@#$% when Karin says Mark recruited her to the cult and they fell in love and says he was rotting in prison. Turns out, a Manhunter faked it all, masquerading as Shaw, though he claims to be the real one and Privateer is the fake. Fake Shaw stuns Rick and privateer and then gives Karin the baton to blast Rick and she then remembers that she used to love him and the manhunter screams at her to kill him, until he blows a gasket.... Then, they all start bursting at the seams as Spectre executes some deus ex machina in his own title and the Manhunters make like Patsy Cline.... Karin tells Mark to get Flag out and drives the buggy into the Manhunters, flips it, traps herself and goes up with the temple, because we can't have a love triangle when 1/3 is getting their own title. Thoughts: Meh. This is one of the better stories in Millennium; but, it is marred by having to tie into the rest of the crap and needing to read 8000 other comics to understand what is happening in this issue, which is why DC can kiss my mylar-clad backside with this event. not a classic, then; and, it hasn't aged any better. Ostrander does the best he can with the constraints put on him; but, it is a waste of Karin and the previous issues, just so we can have a sleeper agent (which turned out to be a big con, as no major character was revealed to be a willing agent of the Manhunters and not just dupes or very minor background players). Mark Shaw as a traitor was too obvious and this book is about redemption for nasty or broken people. Why bring him in, unless he was trying to reform? Thankfully, he is ditching the pirate duds so DC can keep the Manhunter trademark going, for two years, before his book gets canceled and they have to create an even worse book, which needed Shaw to try to rescue it, later on. When he turned up in the Arrowverse, I though they were going to introduce him as Manhunter, but no dice. However, the first 4 issues of the Ostrander & Doug Rice Manhunter series were awesome, then John got bogged down with the supporting cast and Doug got bored and left the series and it never recovered. they also killed their cool new villain way too early, then tried to bring them back, in a lesser (and poorly designed) form. Our lady with the big.....bandana will be further explored next issue. I didn't catch on to her, right away, I don't mind admitting. Next issue, Batman infiltrates Belle Reve. Wait, didn't Robert Redford already do that?
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Post by spoon on Nov 20, 2021 10:49:21 GMT -5
I feel like the plot of #9 cheats. We learn that the bomb's explosion will be so big that it's impossible that the Suicide Squad can get far enough out of range to survive it. Yet instead of some twist that allows the avoids the detonation or allows the team to flee with unanticipated speed, the bomb just goes off and it turns out the team is far enough away.
When a new villain joins the Squad without a big buildup, it signals he/she may be the equivalent of a Star Trek red shirt. Too bad Slipknot didn't get the memo, although apparently he had been in the Squad for a mission in the pages of Firestorm which I haven't read.
That Rambo girl showing up is pretty random, but my comments are probably better saved for a subsequent issue when she gets a name.
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Post by badwolf on Nov 20, 2021 17:55:42 GMT -5
The series went on for so long without revealing who she really was that by then I had forgotten how she even got on the team.
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Post by spoon on Nov 20, 2021 18:57:07 GMT -5
The series went on for so long without revealing who she really was that by then I had forgotten how she even got on the team. It is an odd way to show up. In the issues that I've read, there's an "it's probably this person" moment, and no alternate theories are raised. But I've been spoiled on the confirmed reveal.
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Post by Chris on Nov 20, 2021 19:17:10 GMT -5
I feel like the plot of #9 cheats. We learn that the bomb's explosion will be so big that it's impossible that the Suicide Squad can get far enough out of range to survive it. Yet instead of some twist that allows the avoids the detonation or allows the team to flee with unanticipated speed, the bomb just goes off and it turns out the team is far enough away. Kind of cheat, yes, but that's not what happened. Although it looks like that's what happened, because the issue didn't explain it. In Captain Atom's comic, Captain Atom and Firestorm were there. Atom absorbed much of the energy of the explosion, and Firestorm transmuted the excess into snow, hence the snow out of nowhere on the last page of the Suicide Squad issue. If you read all four issues of the crossover, it made sense (more of less), but just reading Suicide Squad doesn't explain anything. So yeah, kind of a cheat if you didn't spend the extra money. When a new villain joins the Squad without a big buildup, it signals he/she may be the equivalent of a Star Trek red shirt. Too bad Slipknot didn't get the memo, although apparently he had been in the Squad for a mission in the pages of Firestorm which I haven't read. Fury of Firestorm #64 and Firestorm Annual #5, which were published a few months earlier. They were also written by John Ostrander. That's also why so many Firestorm villains appeared and even got killed in Suicide Squad. Ostrander was writing both books, so no one could tell him not to use such-and-such Firestorm villain. Suicide Squad used a lot of Flash villains, too, because the Barry Allen version of the character had been killed off, and the team in charge of the Wally West version of Flash had no interest in most of Barry's enemies. So, more fodder for the squad. People even sent letters commenting on how many Flash and Firestorm villains appeared (and got killed) in the pages of Suicide Squad.
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Post by spoon on Nov 20, 2021 20:46:29 GMT -5
I feel like the plot of #9 cheats. We learn that the bomb's explosion will be so big that it's impossible that the Suicide Squad can get far enough out of range to survive it. Yet instead of some twist that allows the avoids the detonation or allows the team to flee with unanticipated speed, the bomb just goes off and it turns out the team is far enough away. Kind of cheat, yes, but that's not what happened. Although it looks like that's what happened, because the issue didn't explain it. In Captain Atom's comic, Captain Atom and Firestorm were there. Atom absorbed much of the energy of the explosion, and Firestorm transmuted the excess into snow, hence the snow out of nowhere on the last page of the Suicide Squad issue. If you read all four issues of the crossover, it made sense (more of less), but just reading Suicide Squad doesn't explain anything. So yeah, kind of a cheat if you didn't spend the extra money. That's sounds vaguely familiar. I may have actually read the issue of Captain Atom, but I would last read it back when it first published, so 30+ years ago. (I feel old.) When a new villain joins the Squad without a big buildup, it signals he/she may be the equivalent of a Star Trek red shirt. Too bad Slipknot didn't get the memo, although apparently he had been in the Squad for a mission in the pages of Firestorm which I haven't read. Fury of Firestorm #64 and Firestorm Annual #5, which were published a few months earlier. They were also written by John Ostrander. That's also why so many Firestorm villains appeared and even got killed in Suicide Squad. Ostrander was writing both books, so no one could tell him not to use such-and-such Firestorm villain. Suicide Squad used a lot of Flash villains, too, because the Barry Allen version of the character had been killed off, and the team in charge of the Wally West version of Flash had no interest in most of Barry's enemies. So, more fodder for the squad. People even sent letters commenting on how many Flash and Firestorm villains appeared (and got killed) in the pages of Suicide Squad. [/quote] I recently finished a binge read of Suicide Squad #1-25 (plus Annual #1 and the Deadshot mini). I noticed other Firestorm connections (like Plastique and Mindboggler). And I believe Ostrander also wrote the Manhunter series that spun out of Millennium.
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Post by codystarbuck on Nov 21, 2021 11:59:59 GMT -5
Kind of cheat, yes, but that's not what happened. Although it looks like that's what happened, because the issue didn't explain it. In Captain Atom's comic, Captain Atom and Firestorm were there. Atom absorbed much of the energy of the explosion, and Firestorm transmuted the excess into snow, hence the snow out of nowhere on the last page of the Suicide Squad issue. If you read all four issues of the crossover, it made sense (more of less), but just reading Suicide Squad doesn't explain anything. So yeah, kind of a cheat if you didn't spend the extra money. That's sounds vaguely familiar. I may have actually read the issue of Captain Atom, but I would last read it back when it first published, so 30+ years ago. (I feel old.) When a new villain joins the Squad without a big buildup, it signals he/she may be the equivalent of a Star Trek red shirt. Too bad Slipknot didn't get the memo, although apparently he had been in the Squad for a mission in the pages of Firestorm which I haven't read. Fury of Firestorm #64 and Firestorm Annual #5, which were published a few months earlier. They were also written by John Ostrander. That's also why so many Firestorm villains appeared and even got killed in Suicide Squad. Ostrander was writing both books, so no one could tell him not to use such-and-such Firestorm villain. Suicide Squad used a lot of Flash villains, too, because the Barry Allen version of the character had been killed off, and the team in charge of the Wally West version of Flash had no interest in most of Barry's enemies. So, more fodder for the squad. People even sent letters commenting on how many Flash and Firestorm villains appeared (and got killed) in the pages of Suicide Squad. I recently finished a binge read of Suicide Squad #1-25 (plus Annual #1 and the Deadshot mini). I noticed other Firestorm connections (like Plastique and Mindboggler). And I believe Ostrander also wrote the Manhunter series that spun out of Millennium.[/quote] As I pointed out, Ostrander, would write Manhunter, along with wife Kim Yale. Originally, the plan was that Manhunter would tie into Suicide Squad, as the villains he apprehends would be filtered onto the Squad; but, it didn't really work out that way.
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Post by codystarbuck on Nov 27, 2021 21:57:12 GMT -5
Suicide Squad #10Batman vs The Wall! Creative Team: John Ostrander-writer, Luke McDonnell-pencils, Bob Lewis-inks, Todd Klein-letters, Julian Ferriter-colors, Robert Greenberger-editor Synopsis: The mess that was Millennium is over and Belle Reve is back to business as usual, as J Daniel "Murph" Murphy, head of the prison guards, shows Father Richard Craemer (of Fort Lee, New Jersey?) his new chapel, which is basically a storeroom, because the real "chapel" is the operation center for Task Force X. To Murph's amazement, the good padre says he intends to live at the prison, top be close to his flock. Murph thinks he's a few songs shy of a hymnal. They move on and Murph gets a call about "Duchess" being in the armory again. The padre says he hasn't seen a file for this "Duchess." Murph explains: she is the 6ft 2in woman we saw last issue, with clothes by Rambo's, of Plei Ku. He explains she brought Slipknot back to the prsion, kicked in the front doors and dumped him off, then decided to stick around. They let her stay because she seemed to know way to much about the prison and "...keep your enemies even closer." They call her Duchess because she is so high-handed and because she is exactly like John Wayne, if he were reincarnated as a woman. They arrive at the armory and find Duchess, holding an Uzi, with an inferiority complex. Something about that pose seems familiar.... Amanda Waller watches all of this on a monitor, then decides to let Murph deal with it, as she has other problems and she reminds us of what they are (chief doctor was a Manhunter sleeper agent, Nemesis is in a Soviet jail cell, Bronze Tiger is injured, Enchantress is unstable, Flag was demoted, Captain Boomerang is laughable, Deadshot is potentially suicidal, the commissary is out of chocolate pudding...). She considers Flag too unstable to lead and likens him to her late husband and says he was never her choice to lead the team. Mark Shaw is suggested and Waller confirms she offered te job to him; but he is taking his pardon and going freelance (setting up his own series). She is off to Washington to confer, so they are on their own. Mark Shaw says goodbye to Flag and sets up both his own book and the SS Annual, with the history of Argent.... Shaw is taking back the name Manhunter and going off to be a super-villain bounty hunter and invites Flag to join the fun. Flag just wants to simmer in misery. Maybe that's why he wears the yellow shirt. It would make me miserable! Later, at Midnight, we see a figure mess with a security camera, from inside a cell.... One "Matches" Malone, a crook from Gotham who is being transported back, along with a sealed evidence container. The other monitor guard gets a clearer picture, showing Malone sleeping, though the picture is a bit fuzzy, around the edges. He thinks it is fine. Of course, those of us who have been around a while know that "Matches" Malone is an identity used by a certain someone, to infiltrate the underworld. Sure enough, "Matches" exits his cell, goes to a storeroom and opens the evidence case, which has the costume of..... (The Master, Link Wray!) ...Batman! Bats breaks into the warden's office and rifles the files. While he is doing that, Waller heads out of the prison, when Murph asks her if she is running a program, because her computer is still on. Waller tells him to sound the alarm and heads back in. She bursts into her office, armed, and finds it empty, but the organizational chart had been pulled up and The Wall says their cover has been blown. They check everything and find Batman on a monitor and Waller says they are in trouble, now. She calls for everyone available. She calls for a report of who isn't in their cell and is told all or there. She tells them to check again, with infra-red. We see Batman cornered. Kirby have mercy of those who are cornering him! He kicks their collective butts and runs on, until he runs into Duchess, who knocks him aside like a bop-a-clown. The real prisoners provide a cheering section. Duchess says she doesn't see what the big deal is. Batman shows her, with a finger jab to the throat. It doesn't stop her, but it makes her happy, because she has a real opponent. Batman says, "Ha, ha..sucks to be you!" and then slips a cartridge off his utility belt and shoves it into her cake-hole and Duchess goes down like a Dirt-water Fox!... Then Deadshot turns up and has Batman at point blank range! Batman not only laughs in his face, he punches it, too! Bats heads for the main gate and gets tackled by Flag and they tussle. They trade punches that reveal that Luke McDonnell has never boxed, not does it appear that he is a wrestling fan, as they are some pretty awkward exchanges. Batman decks him, then Waller shows up, with reinforcements. They have a Corto Maltesean Standoff. He dares them to kill him, to keep their secret. Deadshot tries to call that bluff, until bats tells him he is pulling his shots around Batman and Lawton shuts up. Waller plays her cards and says that he left prints in his cell and she will expose his identity if he reveals theirs, unless he vows not to. Duchess questions the logic in that and Deadshot says he is The Batman. Bats placates The Wall, for now. They open the gate and he walks out. Lawton makes a crack about Batman backing down and Flag goes off on him and says he has made an enemy of Batman to protect creeps like Lawton and says they will shape up, now, and walks off. Waller tells the warden to put Flag back in command of the team. Thoughts: The ultimate confrontation, which cemented a legendary rivalry, that spilled into other media... Ostrander kicked things up a notch, here, handling Batman beautifully, while also demonstrating that Waller is a serious contender. We also see that Deadshot isn't quite as murderous as his rep. he actually respects Batman, maybe even idolizes him and is more out to challenge him than kill him. Remember, Deadshot first appeared as a hero, who turned out to be pulling crimes, before Batman exposed him. He came back at him in a high tech suit and weapons, but didn't kill him when he had an opportunity, especially since he is an expert with long range weapons, as well as close quarters. He was more interested in battling Batman up close, which says he was never serious about killing him. Duchess gets some page time and shows herself to be a mix of Rambo and Ripley. She is Amazonian in size and nature; but, is she an Amazon? If so, then we should see Wonder Woman in these pages, down the road. If not, where else would we find Amazonian warriors? The weapon design and pose was an obvious attempt to invoke Ripley, in Aliens, which came out the year before this issue. Hmm, first Airwolf, then Aliens....can Crockett and Tubbs be far behind? Well, considering it was on the downhill slide.......yeah, probably not. Maybe Murphy Brown. Matches Malone is the old Batman identity for infiltrating mobs. There was a real mobster, who was killed, while batman tried to recruit him to take down Ra's al Ghul. Batman assumed his identity and used it again, later. The identity was created by Denny O'Neil, during the classic Ra's al Ghul cycle, back when Neall Adams was still, occasionally, involved. For those who are too young to get my Father Craemer joke, the name Richard Craemer reminded me of "Mr Richard Feder of Fort Lee, New Jersey...", the regular correspondent with Roseanne Rosannadanna (Gilda Radner) on Weekend Update, on the original Saturday Night Live... Just for fun... Anyhoo, Batman knows about the Squad, but he will keep shtum, for now. You know this isn't over! Great recovery from last issues Millennium falderal.
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Post by brutalis on Nov 28, 2021 3:26:01 GMT -5
Oooohh symbolic cover! Bats has his back up against the "Wall"er.
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Post by spoon on Nov 28, 2021 10:57:42 GMT -5
Suicide Squad #10Batman vs The Wall! Creative Team: John Ostrander-writer, Luke McDonnell-pencils, Bob Lewis-inks, Todd Klein-letters, Julian Ferriter-colors, Robert Greenberger-editor [snip] To Murph's amazement, the good padre says he intends to live at the prison, top be close to his flock. Murph thinks he's a few songs shy of a hymnal. They move on and Murph gets a call about "Duchess" being in the armory again. The padre says he hasn't seen a file for this "Duchess." Murph explains: she is the 6ft 2in woman we saw last issue, with clothes by Rambo's, of Plei Ku. He explains she brought Slipknot back to the prsion, kicked in the front doors and dumped him off, then decided to stick around. They let her stay because she seemed to know way to much about the prison and "...keep your enemies even closer." They call her Duchess because she is so high-handed and because she is exactly like John Wayne, if he were reincarnated as a woman. They arrive at the armory and find Duchess, holding an Uzi, with an inferiority complex. This reaction to the Duchess is glaring example of plot-induced stupidity. This random person comes out of the swamp to this super-secret facility at Belle Reve, and she's allowed on the team, no questions asked. I get that they don't want her to leave when she has this knowledge, but they don't seem to work to find out exactly what she knows and how she knows it. At the same time, they give her more information then she may already have. It's actually increasing her potential leverage. It's like a movie where two characters who have information that might fit together to answer crucial questions meet up. But instead of having the obvious conversations that you'd expect them to have between scenes, the only conversations they have on their basic on-camera ones. There isn't so much as small talk to ask about Duchess's background. Given how much emphasis there is in several stories (including this issue) on keeping things about the Suicide Squad secret, it's all the more bizarre that attitudes are so lax about Duchess.
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Post by codystarbuck on Nov 28, 2021 11:15:53 GMT -5
Suicide Squad #10Batman vs The Wall! Creative Team: John Ostrander-writer, Luke McDonnell-pencils, Bob Lewis-inks, Todd Klein-letters, Julian Ferriter-colors, Robert Greenberger-editor [snip] To Murph's amazement, the good padre says he intends to live at the prison, top be close to his flock. Murph thinks he's a few songs shy of a hymnal. They move on and Murph gets a call about "Duchess" being in the armory again. The padre says he hasn't seen a file for this "Duchess." Murph explains: she is the 6ft 2in woman we saw last issue, with clothes by Rambo's, of Plei Ku. He explains she brought Slipknot back to the prsion, kicked in the front doors and dumped him off, then decided to stick around. They let her stay because she seemed to know way to much about the prison and "...keep your enemies even closer." They call her Duchess because she is so high-handed and because she is exactly like John Wayne, if he were reincarnated as a woman. They arrive at the armory and find Duchess, holding an Uzi, with an inferiority complex. This reaction to the Duchess is glaring example of plot-induced stupidity. This random person comes out of the swamp to this super-secret facility at Belle Reve, and she's allowed on the team, no questions asked. I get that they don't want her to leave when she has this knowledge, but they don't seem to work to find out exactly what she knows and how she knows it. At the same time, they give her more information then she may already have. It's actually increasing her potential leverage. It's like a movie where two characters who have information that might fit together to answer crucial questions meet up. But instead of having the obvious conversations that you'd expect them to have between scenes, the only conversations they have on their basic on-camera ones. There isn't so much as small talk to ask about Duchess's background. Given how much emphasis there is in several stories (including this issue) on keeping things about the Suicide Squad secret, it's all the more bizarre that attitudes are so lax about Duchess. I'd be willing to bet that Ostrander had intended to expand upon this, in the previous issue; but, having to tie into Millennium forced him to alter his plot and truncate things. I suspect he had the series plotted out, in length, before Millennium got foisted upon him and everyone else.
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