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Post by codystarbuck on Dec 4, 2021 16:42:03 GMT -5
Suicide Squad #11Nice cover, from Jerry Bingham. The only way Enchantress would look more "80s" would to have one shoulder of her top cut away, for that Flashdance look. Creative Team: John Ostrander-writer, Luke McDonnell-pencils, Bob Lewis-inks, Todd Klein-letters, Carl Gafford-colors, Robert Greenberger-editor Synopsis: Model Mari McCabe is doing a photoshoot on some tropical island beach, when one of the other models asks where she has been for the last "year or so," and we get the post-Crisis retcon that Vixen has only been around for a "year or so" and joined the JLA fairly early in her career. It all came to an end and Mari went to work as a volunteer in Ethiopia, but got burnt out trying to help save "everyone" and also ran out of money and is back modelling. She goes snorkelling while she ruminates, then emerges to find everyone dead, machine-gunned to death. In New Orleans, Mirror Master pulls a rather low level bank robbery, but it falls apart because of a pager.... Mirror Master beats a retreat with security chasing the sound of the beeper, as MM throws up illusions. He hits a phone booth (remember those?) and drops the illusion and we see it is Captain Boomerang. he calls into Belle Reve and asks Amanda Waller to turn off the beeper, which she does, preventing the security guys from tracing him. He has to go in for a new mission. He arrives and claims he was in the shower. Waller starts the briefing and introduces model Mari McCabe. Digger immediately starts to hit on her and make rude comments and she threatens to give him a colonoscopy, with her fist. It turns out that the photographer inadvertently caught a drug transfer happening, in the background, off shore. Mari had government contacts (of course she does) and got in touch with DEA agent Roy Harper, aka Speedy, who set up this mission. The target is Xavier Cujo, of the Medellin Cartel. He is practically untouchable, through official channels. Their job is to raze his fortress to the ground and kill him. Needless to say, this doesn't go down well in certain corners of the room. Flag is otherwise engaged and Nightshade is placed in charge; but, she is the one voicing moral objections to the mission. She mentions the mysterious reason she is with the Squad and says she will take the mission in exchange for her "setting the date." Didn't know she was getting married. Boomerang then objects to taking orders from a woman and Waller reminds him that she is more terrifying than Darkseid and she can manufacture reasons for him to return to prisoner status if she can't find a legitimate reason and advises him not to give her a reason to look too closely, hinting that she may not be unaware of his extra-curricular activities. Black Orchid, mari and Boomerang are tasked with hitting Cujo, the rest attack the fortress, once they receive the signal that he is dead. Boomerang attends a part thrown by Cujo, under cover as a dealer who wants to open routes to Australia. Mary and Orchid are his "escorts," and his present to Cujo, to entice him to do business. Cujo accepts the gift and has his girl, Marie take them away. She tells them to strip and searches them for weapons, microphones and anything else that shouldn't be there. She hints that working for Cujo is not pleasant. Meanwhile, in Washington, Senator Clay is embroiled in a scandal and looks like he will lose his re-election bid, when Derek Tolliver barges into his office and tells the senator he will be his new aide and save his seat and dismisses his real aide. he then asks the senator if he has ever heard of the Suicide Squad. In the jungles of Colombia, Speedy and Nightshade get to know one another and commiserate on government work.... McDonnell cannot draw combat boots! June Moon tries to hit on Briscoe, but he is in love with his helicopter.... Now that's kinky! They are just getting ready to roast marshmallows and sing "Kumbaya" when the Headhunters, Communist guerrillas turn up. They aren't friendly towards the team, but they like Briscoe's girlfriend. briscoe whispers a command into his watch and Sheba tells the Headhunters that she "isn't that kind of girl." Speedy grabs his bow and starts launching arrows, while nightshade uses the more direct approach to combat. They head for Sheba, which Briscoe is still directing remotely. One of the enemy is inside it, trying to control it, but the craft does not respond. It lands and Briscoe slips in and rams his knife into the poor sap's neck! Grim & Gritty! They board Sheba and decide they can't wait for the kill signal and head to attack the fortress. They come in for an attack run and suddenly there are fighter jets on scenes. Roy asks Briscoe is Sheba can handle jets... ARE YOU SERIOUS? Thoughts: Another timely story, as this latches onto the then-ongoing war with the Medellin Drug Cartel, which controlled cocaine production and trafficking for the world. The Reagan Administration (and subsequent administrations) poured millions into the "War on Drugs," with financial and technical aid to foreign governments to stop the flow at its source (which shows the failing of Supply Side Economics, as markets are demand-driven). Colombia had the biggest fight going on, the Pablo Escobar and his associates being a law unto themselves, with private armies and military grade weapons and equipment. The US was even secretly providing Special Forces advisors, from both Delta Force and DEVGRU (aka SEAL Team 6), during the hunt for Pablo Escobar, after he escaped . Finally, in 1993, the hunters caught up with their prey and Escobar was killed. However, rival cartels continued the flow of drugs. Speedy, at this point in time, had become the face of the Drug War, at DC Comics. Roy's past as a junkie informed the more modern take on the character, as he first appeared in the New Teen Titans, as a government agent, enlisting the Titans' help to go after drug runners. He then began to make guest appearances, usually in this role, particularly post-Crisis. That role makes him perfect for use, here, and this is a textbook kind of mission for a black ops team, operating outside normal rules. Nightshade also had a past as a government agent, starting in her stories at Charlton. However, those were more James Bond than Miami Vice, and occasionally involved Captain Atom. This is the dirtier side of things, which gives her more page time (screen time just sounds wrong). However, as the cover shows, her original costume design just didn't exactly suggest dangerous government agent. This is a woman who goes into combat in a pleated mini-skirt! By 1987, she looked like a Catholic Schoolgirl who fights crime or a really gung ho cheerleader. A redesign would come, down the road, which I never particularly liked. One thing is for certain, mixing battle dress utilities (BDUs, aka fatigues) with it just puts you on Mr Blackwell's list of Worst Dressed Superheroines. June Moon's presence would seem questionable, but, we must remember that Bronze Tiger was given a ring to control the necklace that June Moon now wears, to inhibit her as Enchantress, thanks to Madame Xanadu (Xaaaanaduuu.....Xaaaaaanaduuu.......). Anyone think that is going end well? We get more action with Sheba, which means Ostrander must have been watching a lot of Airwolf, though it didn't have voice command! I do like the fact that Briscoe seems more than a little squirrely, acting like Sheba is alive, rather than responding to computer commands, triggered by command words and voice recognition AI. Then again, if you watch most pilots around their aircraft, that's not much of an exaggeration. Vixen is an interesting choice. One of the few really good characters from the Detroit JLA, she kind of struggled for a place to breathe, for a bit. Th stink of hanging around with Vibe had to be removed before she could be a more featured player. Kind of the career progress for ECW's Shane Douglas, from having to shed the stink of the Dynamic Dudes, in WCW, to Dean Douglas in the WWF, to becoming "The Franchise," in ECW and tossing aside the NWA World title belt. When you have a good character who was in a bad story, you need to do a bit of rehabilitation and this was a major step for Vixen. Nice to have Black Orchid along, but she is purely background for this issue. Hope she gets to do something next issue, though Ostrander never really got to expand upon her. The Gaiman and McKean mini-series was about a year off, though maybe the decision had already been taken to let Gaiman handle that. Or maybe Ostrander just wanted her to fill out the ranks and handle infiltration, while Nemesis was off the books. Whatever the case, she is barely a presence in this. I joked about McDonnell and combat boots; but, costuming is definitely not his forte. He can draw costumes; but, he doesn't quite have that flair for clothing and fashion design that some artists had and stories like this kind of emphasize it. The party scene is a perfectly example.... This is a party thrown by a drug lord. Everyone should be in Armani and similar, lots of gold on display, minimal clothing for the "working girls" and flamboyant stuff for the wives/girlfriends/mistresses. This is a macho world and McDonnel makes it look like an office Christmas party. Howard Chaykin would have gone nuts with this page. In a bigger criticism, McDonnel doesn't exactly draw the most attractive women in the world. His faces have hard edges to them, which works well for the hardened criminal males, but tends to make the women look constantly angry and often rather butch. In a couple of panels, Orchid looks like a male cross-dresser. That's not likely to be the look that Ostrander intended. He excels at the action and with mood and atmosphere; but, some of his character work needed refining, in my opinion. Next, we will see what Rick Flag was up to, while the Squad was having a party in Colombia.
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Post by codystarbuck on Dec 4, 2021 18:48:37 GMT -5
Doom Patrol & Suicide Squad SpecialFull cover, with Erik Larsen desperately trying to be John Byrne... Not a great layout and it doesn't really make sense. The attempt have it both be a wraparound and for the front part to sell the story puts the two ambitions at odds. Ridiculously over-rendered and cluttered. I could understand more detail in the foreground; but, we don't need to see every single brick, in the background. Larsen was still a relative rookie and it shows. Creative Team: John Ostrander-plot, Paul Kupperberg-script, Erik Larsen-pencils, Bob Lewis-inks, Steve Haynie-letters, Carl Gafford-colors, Mike Gold & Robert Greenberger-editors Greenberger's name sounds like a warning about when you should throw away left-over food. Synopsis: Way down in central America, over a place called Nicaragua, there is a plane flying near the border. That plane has been spotted on radar and is under attack. Onboard that plane is an American citizen who is going to cause a lot of embarrassment to the Great Communicator. No, not Eugene Hassenfuss.....Hawk! It seems the rather .......um, hawkish nutjob thought US Foreign Policy wasn't aggressive enough and decided to go fight Commies, alongside the Contras. Well, you can guess the rest. Ronnie isn't happy about it and orders Amanda Waller to deal with the situation, though, knowing that the first law of survival in Washington is "CYA!", Waller makes the president spell out exactly what he means. Meanwhile, a pair of spookish types, who are tired of Task Force X stealing the attention (and appropriations), set out to embarrass the Squad. One of them has contact with Valentina Vostok, aka Negative Woman, of the Doom Patrol. he plans to feed her a line that will cause the Suicide Squad to lose face. At Belle Reve, Amanda Waller gives orders to Col Rick Flag, USAF, who appears to have been transferred to the US Army and demoted to Captain.... Civilians! Meanwhile, in Moscow, some Commie with a massive jaw receives word from a pinhead soldier that the Rocket Red troops have arrived in Managua. Seriously, that dude's hat looks like it is trying to hatch his head! Big jaw is plotting something and there is mention of some kind of special KGB operative. Arriving in Managua is the Doom Patrol, trying to look inconspicuous, which is hard when you are an Indian woman, a black American, a robot body and a Russian woman wrapped in bandages. Tempest isn't buying the urgency of the mission, despite Val's assurances. Celsius is taken with the poverty and Tempest remarks that all the US aid is for guns, not food. The Patrol is spotted by a psychic, who is part of the Suicide Squad mission team, Psi. Also on the team are Mr 104, The Thinker, and Weasel. Why does the team need a lawyer in the field? Oh, an actual weasel. (Just kidding, Slam) Mr 104, who can transmute elements, immediately turns the wrist bombs into mist, but is surprised to find Thinker aiding Flag, and he is forced to go along with the program. A psi-scan reveals the location where Hawk is being held and they move out. While this goes on, Hawk, who has been left in costume (it appears by "magic," so maybe they can't remove it?), is taunted by guards. Since Ditko isn't plotting this, he isn't coming off well. OPutside, both the Doom Patrol and Suicide Squad converge on the prison citadel and, wouldn't you know it, run into each other..... Then, the Jets and the Sharks go at it, 'cause who needs stealth for a prison break? A lot of pointless destruction scenes follow, Weasel rips out Thinker's throat and Rick Flag takes the Thinker's helmet (He's dead, Jim!) and tries to use it to force everyone to stop, but gets hit in the jaw. However, the Rocket Reds are here and they have everyone surrounded. Meanwhile, in Moscow, Gorbachev tears a new one into a poor major in some uniform other than that of the Soviet Armed Forces (ugh....). It seems Zastrow has sent someone called Stalnoivolk to Nicaragua, without authorization. The major goes off to gather intel about the situation and learns that Zastrow went to Nicaragua, too. He wonders if he has enough vodka for his headache. Back in Nicaragua, everyone surrenders and comes alike quietly. SHYEAAAH!!!!!!!!!!!!! RIGHT! THIS IS THE 1980S! U-S-A.....U-S-A....U-S-A.... The DP and the SS work together, against a common enemy. They punch a hole through the Brigade and escape. All of this is observed by the president of the Joe Stalin Fan Club.... Flag catches up to Celsius and uses the helmet to mind control her and she remarks that the helmet is changing his own attitude into something more vicious. Weasel tries to attack Robotman, which makes no sense since he has no scent, so why would the little nut think he has flesh? Psi gets cut down and becomes the next casualty (well, she was already a fashion victim). Whoops, she's still alive. Tempest and Mr 104 fight Rockets. Inside the fortress, Joe Stalin smacks around guards and bounces bullets off his chest. Must be the Stalnoivolk dude. He snaps some necks and moves on. Psi goes down and finally dies, after a protracted death scene....while....talking....slowly. More fighting and Mr 104 gets blowed up good. He gets blowed up real good! Flag says he was always cannon fodder and Celsius is horrified. Come on....none of these people are regulars; who do you think is going to survive? All I see is a sea of red shirts....... Stalnoivolk breaks Hawk out of his cell and tosses him through the air like a ragdoll. He then walks away. Flag forces celsius along and runs into the rest of the survivors and sees Weasel and the helmet forces him to kill Weasel with a mindbolt, since that had been one of Thinker's thoughts. Flag gets the helmet off, but collapses. Celsius says "F him!" and they go to help Tempest. They whoop Reds (like everyone else who has come up against them) and collect Tempest. they run into Flag, who has Hawk and he apologizes to Celsius. robotman mentions Mento, who was driven nuts by his mind helmet (and ugly costumes) and grief. they depart and Stalnoivolk meets up with Zastrow, who makes ominous statements about meeting the Suicide Squad again. Flag reports to Waller and Zastrow kills the pinhead major, in Moscow, when he tries to shoot him under the desk. Thoughts: Meh! Ostrander decides to do an allegory of the Hassenfuss fiasco, which tripped off the Iran-Contra Scandal revelations and uses it as an excuse to up the D-List villain bodycount, since the regular series hasn't killed many people, yet. I've never been much of a fan of Paul Kupperberg's work and even working off Ostander's plot, I'm still not a fan. This ends up being mostly an excuse for a lot of mayhem and fighting, which bores me to death, unless there is a story point and there really isn't. It's just an excuse to have big death scenes and lots of destruction. The Rocket Red Brigade was always stupid and this changes nothing. In the first place, why would the Soviet Union use a name which conjures up a stanza of the Star Spangled Banner? In the second, the battle armor design is rather dull and they just end up being faceless cannon fodder, like the average Cobra trooper or HYDRA goon. It just reinforces the stereotype that the Soviets were all incompetent, especially when faced with Muricans, which ignores a lot of history and reality. Sadly, this was the mindset of the 80s, which led to a lot of dangerous thinking on the political and military front. Ostrander is a bit more nuanced than that; but, this isn't quite as effective as a regular issue of Suicide Squad in handling both an intriguing mission and a bit of social commentary. If the writing is disappointing, the art is beyond even that. I have never been a fan of Erik Larsen, on any front, writing or art; but, his artwork at least improved (can't speak to his writing, as past writing means I don't even look at books with his name on them). It's horrible here and was a direct reason for me dropping the Doom Patrol comic, after it started out with much better work from Steve Lightle. Larsen had serious problems with anatomy, beyond exaggeration. A lot of the Image guys and their ilk used Kirby's abstracts as justification for never learning proper anatomy. They forget that Kirby evolved into that, over time. Kirby had a firm grasp of the human body and was a master of depicting it in motion. Even as he became more impressionistic, the intent was there. He had all of th vital components to let your brain fill in the rest. Larsen isn't even remotely there. Funny enough, at the time, I though Liefeld was the more promising artist of the two, based on Hawk & Dove. Little did I realize how much heavy lifting Karl Kesel had done there. As I say, Larsen got better, over time. Savage Dragon was never my cup of tea; but, even a die-hard Image-hater (as in the early days and founding members' work) can see that he developed his craft and learned to tell a story, even if he still had problems with proportions and over-rendered his panels. John Byrne is an obvious influence on his visuals and Byrne often has the same problems of clutter, especially later, in the 90s. To me, this is a harbinger of things to come in the 90s, thought, at least it has Ostrander's plot.
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Post by spoon on Dec 4, 2021 23:38:05 GMT -5
Suicide Squad #11Nice cover, from Jerry Bingham. The only way Enchantress would look more "80s" would to have one shoulder of her top cut away, for that Flashdance look. The degree to which the Squad includes heroes is underplayed. Here's a cover with Nightshade, Speedy, Vixen, and Black Orchid, who are all heroes. And Enchantress was apparently a hero in her first appearance before becoming a villain. I wish there were comics writers who could write stuff outside their own culture well. What kind of Colombian name is Cujo? Maybe the thought was that as a villain, Captain Boomerang could play the part well, but it's anxiety-inducing to see him entrusted wtih this role. I think Ostrander is in love with his helicopter. I find a battle helicopter with a name about 5% as interesting as Ostrander finds it. Say what you will about the skirt, but it looks so much better than the camo pants and army boots. I come from the school of thought that comics aren't real, so looking cool is the primary concern. Practicality pales in comparsion. I wonder if McDonnell played a role in adding Vixen, having been the last penciler on JLA. In the post-Crisis reorganization (yes, I know JLA lasted until Legends), it seems like a lot of characters were up for grabs. The Suicide Squad creative team will just casually drop lots of characters in, even if it's just a cameo (Madame Xanadu) or a guest appearance (Speedy). Kind of a weirdo; her personality is a bit off. I don't much about Black Orchid. I'm not sure if I've read any stories with her outside of Suicide Squad. To use the Mission: Impossible analogy, it's like when Martin Landau leaves the cast. Then, the bring in Paris to do the stuff Rollin Hand used to do. Ostrander seems to revel in bringing in as many characters as possible, regardless of whether he has enough pages to give them the proper attention. I mean, he's got story beats for the ground crew.
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Post by codystarbuck on Dec 12, 2021 16:04:24 GMT -5
Suicide Squad #12CATFIGHT...............CATFIGHT.................CATFIGHT............... E-C-W.....................E-C-W.................E-C-W.............. Creative Team: John Ostrander-writer, Luke McDonnell-pencils, Bob Lewis-inks, Todd Klein-letters, Carl Gafford-covers, Robert Greenberger-editor Synopsis: We now rejoin Airwolf, already in progress...... String....er, Briscoe drops the team to destroy the warehouse of coke (and I don't mean The Real Thing), while he fights the jets. Speedy provides cover, while Nightshade and June Moon go down to set charges or whatever. Meanwhile, Boomerang is being his usual charming self and joking around about withholding the ladies' costumes, until Black Orchid tosses him into the air, by grabbing his throat and hurling, then catching him. He takes the point. Cujo barges in with his men and reveals that he has run Digger's prints and knows he is Captain Boomerang. Boomerang claims he has given up stealing and wants to move into higher profit stuff and tries to pass off Vixen as his girlfriend (Orchid is out of the room). Digger continues improvising and manipulating Vixen into kissing him, before they very probably get shot, when another goon busts in and tells Cujo that the fortress is under attack. Digger thinks he is in a court and claims coincidence and it proves nothing and Cujo reminds him that he is not an officer of the law. Before he can demonstrate, Orchid turns up and haves some fun and Boomerang unloads his favorite toys. Then, Vixen, in an animalistic rage, goes after Cujo... At the warehouse, Nightshade and June run into goons and Nightshade reveals her shadow power and kicks butt. Jade questions them and Bob G says to check out Secret Origins #28, now (then) on sale! She tells June to release Enchantress, which she does, and it goes pear-shaped, even with the control amulet. It zaps Enchantress, but she fights it. She tries to take the control ring off Nightshade's finger and it gets all ECW.... Nightshade has enough and channels Cynthia Rothrock and decks Enchantress..... She forces Enchantress to blast the coke and set it ablaze, then puts her in a full nelson and threatens to snap her neck unless she changes back to June... SHEESH! She never did that, at Charlton! She calls in Briscoe, but he takes a missile hit and goes ballistic (metaphorically). Boomerang and orchid deal with Cujo's goons, while Vixen goes after Cujo. It gets pretty brutal.... He jams a knife in her shoulder and she rips his throat out! GEEZ! That never happened in Justice League! The Goons have her at gunpoint, but Orchid turns up to intercept their fire and get Mari out. Boomerang finds a bale of coke and takes it for his retirement fund; but, Orchid swoops over and grabs him and he drops it. The charges are set and Sheba picks up the warehouse team, though the helo is crippled. Speedy ignores mission priority and uses an arrow to detonate the charges than a more reliable electric switch or timed fuse. They head out and meet the others and return home. The meet up with Flag, who returns from the lousy Doom Patrol crossover and is all mopey. The gang is told he was the only survivor, which they think is pretty tough, even for this book. Speedy cheers everyone up by telling them that the Cartel is moving in to fill Cujo's vacuum and that the War on Drugs is pretty pointless, so long as there is a demand for the product. Basic economics, folks. We cut to a party where some fat sleazebag offers some coke to a woman and we get the usual argument from users, in case we didn't get the point of all of this. Thoughts: Welcome to the "Grim & Gritty" Era! Guess they didn't have a baby to set on fire. All kidding aside (well, less kidding and more a comment on the sad nature of what passed for mature, in this time period and for the next several years), Suicide Squad was actually a pretty mature book, in the best sense of things. It got violent, but rarely graphic, and there were consequences for the violence (trauma, self-loathing, etc). This wasn't the Punisher building a bodycount or the Image guys having body parts flying all over or Faust dropping buckets of blood all over everything. There is storytelling going on, real motivations, real consequences and aftermath. Nothing is cut and dried and the "goog guys" don't necessarily win. One thing this did was dispel the previous notions of Nightshade. She wasn't really a big deal at Charlton, despite Jim Aparo art, and was often more of a sidekick to Captain Atom. Here, you get a sense for why she would be a government agent. She is fairly ruthless, despite previous misgivings about some of their missions. we also see that the amulet and ring given to the Squad to control Enchantress isn't that much of a safeguard and that Enchantress now has a grudge against Nightshade. That isn't likely to end in a girls' night out! Last time, I kind of crapped on McDonnell's rather masculine depiction of women, but one thing is for sure; he can draw combat scenes! In both the Enchantress/Nightshade fight and Cujo/Vixen battle, he handles the action well and is a pretty good fight choreographer, hitting the key moments and presenting a flow which allows the reader to add detail. Despite the constant fights in comics, that is a rare trait in artists. Still, someone get him a a few beauty magazines so he can improve his female characters' features a bit. He could also stand to work on facial expressions. Talk to Kevin Maguire. Everyone is either angry, sad, or looking slightly sly. Not much beyond that and happy or romantic seem to be nonexistent. This does drive home the fact that the so-called War of Drugs was a massive waste of money and resources that accomplished little, except drive up the value of the product, adding to those willing to risk jail to sell it. The profits were too large, for the dealers, the supply too plentiful to stem, without outright invasion and deforestation and neither affecting the demand side of the equation. Markets are demand-driven, according to economic theory (which is mostly smoke & mirrors, but this tends to hold true, up to a point) and as long as people want the product, they will seek it out and others will make money from it. The "Just say no" campaign was a complete joke because it didn't address the psychology behind the use of chemicals, legal or otherwise, to escape reality. Prohibition didn't end alcoholism and the same wasn't going to stem drug abuse. Ostrander was very timely in his stories; but, he also didn't tie things up in neat bows. he presents the reader with the situation and makes them think about it and try to find a better solution or to at least recognize that the "Something must be done; this is something" mentality rarely solves the problem. Vixen reveals why she had stepped away from the superhero world, due to the way her totem was affecting her, with prolonged use, making her more animalistic. We see that in her attack on Cujo and the result, and the psychological scars that the battle inflicts. Next time, we deal with the ramifications to Batman's little recon of Belle Reve, as the Squad faces the JLI. It will start in Justice League International, then cross back over here; so, next time, we will look at JLI #13. For the wrestling and Hong Kong action movie impaired: CATFIGHT -ECW (Extreme Championship Wrestling) was known for its rather juvenile need to titilate by having valet/managers, who dressed like strippers (and several were), roll around in the ring, pulling hair and slapping each other, while exposing their "underwear" (if you want to call it that, given what little there was) to a crowd of slobbering marks, yelling E-C-W....E-C-W. Not that WCW and the WWF didn't do T&A; they just tended stick more to PG-13 presentation (the WWF skirted the edge of R), rather than emulate porn. ECW had some great wrestling and many great angles; but, this stuff tended to be lowest common denominator junk, purely for shock value. It didn't help sell tickets, which was supposed to be the point of the tv show, in pro wrestling. Cynthia Rothrock-martial artist and "actress", who made a big name for herself in the world of Hong Kong Action cinema, in the late 80s and 90s. While Jackie Chan, Sammo Hung, Donnie Yen, Chw Yun Fat and others were shooting and kicking their way through adventures and gritty crime dramas, Cynthia Rothrock, Michelle Yeoh, and Maggie Chung were in there, kicking butt, taking names, and looking pretty. Rothrock had been a work champion in forms and weapons competitions, which were not combat-oriented; but, fit into the world of entertainment well (much as the Peking Opera school that trained Jackie Chan, Sammo Hung and Yuen Biao). She was signed to a film contract, by Raymond Chow's Golden Harvest studio, who also produced Jackie Chan and John Woo's films. Her first film, Yes, Madam, where she teamed with Michelle Yeoh, and proved a big hit. This led to a successful career in Hong Kong and a more modest video career in the US.
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Post by codystarbuck on Dec 25, 2021 17:27:37 GMT -5
Justice League International #13Is it just me or does "Justice League International" sound like the name of an airport? Creative Team: Keith Giffen-plot & pencils, JM DeMatteis-script, Al Gordon-inks, Bob Lappan-letters, Gene D'Angelo-colors, Andrew Helfer-editor So, Part 1 of this is in JLI #13 and Part 2 in Suicide Squad #13. Sadly, Kevin Maguire wasn't drawing, so we have Giffen doing his Jose Munoz rip-off. Synopsis: Somewhere, in the Soviet Union, Nemesis is dumped in his cell by some Rocky IV Russians... He will be executed, after a show trial, because, apparently, Stalin is still in power. Batman is watching the monitor at the JLI New York Embassy and brooding (he'd do the same if he was watching Miami Vice or Cheers). He mutters about Nemesis being a good man. Oberon thinks he needs a psychiatrist's couch. Meanwhile, Amanda Waller is yelling at Rick Flag about fool's errands.... ...only, John Ostrander isn't writing the dialogue. The Squad heads out to rescue one of their own. Batman questions Rocket Red, aka Dmitri Pushkin, about where Nemesis might be held; but, he doesn't know and doesn't take it on face value that Nemesis hadn't been there illegally. Joining the regular Squad is Javelin, who is likely cannon fodder. They sneak aboard their plane and leave, without authorization. No one tries to stop them. Waller is notified, as is The Gipper, in a series of sight gags. Amanda talks to Ronnie and trade jokes, then she suggests sicking the JLI on the Squad. More jokes and Ronnie approves it. Batman is assembling the League to infiltrate the USSR and rescue Nemesis, when the call comes through giving them official sanction to stop the Squad from doing the same thing. Hokey Smokes! Waller confers with Maxwell Lord, who is in the hospital, after the events of previous issues. Waller wants her team out alive and no publicity, which goes against Max's nature. The broker a deal. In Siberia, the rocket Red brigade are running maneuvers, when they get the call to action. The KGB calls in Red Star. Batman intimidates the Soviet warden into letting them see Nemesis. The Squad is moving in on the prison, leaving a trail of bodies. Batman gets into an argument with Dmitri and Jonn lays down the law and threatens to send Batman to his room, without supper. Batman backs down. They then run into the Squad... Thoughts: From a Suicide Squad fan POV, this is a bunch of jokey nonsense that slows down the clash between the teams, as they go to rescue Nemesis. From a JLI fan POV, this is more satire and jokes about Ronnie and the USSR, plus some Bullwinkle gags, as we wait for all hell to break loose. Guy Gardner is in his Pollyanna mode, after banging his head on a console. It went on for a while, until he was punched by Lobo and the old a-hole personality re-emerged. The basic plot is good, as the JLI stuff usually was, behind the pages of gags. People tend to forget they had some pretty exciting adventures, with the laughs, especially early on. It was way better than Conway's Detroit League, which was still a fresh memory. The problem is, the Squad is also treated jokey and they are, at best, a much darker humor. It's a bit like dropping Rambo into a Roger Moore Bond film. there is a style clash. Thankfully, John Ostrander takes over with part 2 and we get the more serious side. Still, Giffen and DeMatteis have the right edge to Batman's attempt to manipulate things to his liking and Flag doing the same, leading to the inevitable. The Rocket Reds and Red Star are thrown in more as a gag, than anything, but Ostrander will likely push the stakes to make their inclusion more acceptable. Reagan remarks about not having much fun, lately, as president. This was when Iran-Contra was before Congress and criminal trials were about to begin. I was just a short time away from being commissioned as a naval officer and was reading both books; but, I suspect that the crossover between JLI and Suicide Squad wasn't as big as JLI and, say, The Flash. The Soviet Union was 3 years away from breaking up and Chernobyl had thrown their economy into chaos, and the withdrawal from Afghanistan was soon to begin, after nearly 10 years of fighting there. Next, Part 2, in Suicide Squad #13.
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Post by codystarbuck on Dec 26, 2021 16:59:03 GMT -5
Suicide Squad #13Nice gimmick, with the differing perspectives on the same scene, in JLI and SS #13. Creative Team: John Ostrander-writer, Luke McDonnell-pencils, Bob Lewis-inks, Todd Klein-letters, Carl Gafford-colors, Robert Greenberger-editor Synopsis: The JLI and the Squad have just come face to face, as both are there to rescue Nemesis (well, Batman has manipulated things at the JLI end, while the government has called them in to stop Task Force X). We have a Mexican Standoff, for a moment, then Duchess flips out because she recognizes Mister Miracle, but can't remember why. It all kicks off, with Duchess getting madder and more violent. deadshot has Batman at point blank range and Batman taunts him again, about pulling his shots. Deadshot tells him where to go and walks away, to a neutral corner. Nightshade advises Flag that they need to move fast and get out and the more they delay the worse it will be, especially after Rocket Red mentions that he intercepted transmissions that his comrades in the Brigade, the People's Heroes and Red Star are en route. Flag tries to maneuver to speak to Batman. J'onn confronts Vixen, who speaks about the inferior feeling in the detroit League, compared to the classic and that she belongs in the Squad. Guy just wants everyone to calm down and talk and Boomerang says he is fighting Mr Rogers. Guy worries that Digger will hurt himself, as he tries to break through Guy's power ring bubble. He asks Digger if his Oz slang is French and Digger moves towards insanity. Captain Atom confronts Nightshade, who is supposed to be his girlfriend, in his cover story, with his false history (which incorporated his Charlton adventures, in a nice touch). They go off to work a fight, to keep an eye on things. Flag tries to reason with Batman, who is there for the same reason as Flag; but, Batman refuses to play along. In fact, he starts acting like he's the one named Richard, not Nightwing... Flag has had enough and attacks Batman, who suddenly loses 2/3 of his costume in the fight.... Bit of a screwup there, Carl. Duchess tries to squish Blue Beetle and Deadshot takes a potshot at Mister Miracle who boots him in the face. Black Canary is confused, as she circles Bronze Tiger. Batman's last log entry said he was a murderer, so she is ready for combat and they spar. She flat out asks him if there is more at play; but, he refuses to answer, so Canary starts pressing the fight. Dmitri actually does the mature thing and asks Nemesis about his bruises and he says the KGB is softening him up, before execution. He mentions the mission to rescue Trigorin and Dmitri admits to secretly reading her book and liking it. Booster faces Javelin and neither mention that their costumes are the reverse of the other. Max and Amanda continue to negotiate.... Back in the US...back in the USS...back in the USSR..... (been waiting to use that joke) The Soviet heroes are moving in, while the fight continues. Beetle succeeds in blinding Duchess with his strobe light and tries a karate chop and nearly breaks his hand on her neck. Captaion Atom looks like he is trying to get to Second Base than he is fighting Nightshade. Vixen tells J'onn about killing Cujo and losing control. She says she belongs with the Squad, as she is a killer. J'onn talks her down..... Dmitri brings in Nemesis and says he believes he will be killed if they don't get him out of there, which J'onn informs him means defying his own government. Dmitri is prepared for that, but for it to succeed, both teams need to work together. Captain Atom and Nightshade stop working their fight and J'onn goes to keep Duchess from killing Beetle. Guy has Boomerang wrapped up, to keep him from hurting himself. Bronze Tiger stops Deadshot from trying to shoot Mister Miracle in the face. they assemble the teams and tell them the plan. They first have to stop Flag and Batman from killing each other. It takes the combined might of each side to restrain their fighters. Flag collapses. Mister Miracle says they need to get Flag to a hospital, ASAP. J'onn tells the Squad to get going and Nightshade opens a portal and they get Flag out. The Soviet heroes turn up and are warmly met by Guy Gardner. Dmitri and Guy take Nemesis to their transport and then J'onn warns them off, citing the Soviet Union's agreement to the JLI charter giving them authority in the situation. Amanda and Max are being restrained when a news report comes on the tv, from Moscow, with J'onn making a statement about questioning Nemesis at their embassy. Waller knows the Squad is safe, without their being in custody and walks off to go kick their collective butts. Meanwhile, the JLI deal with a simmering Batman. Beetle goes to hand him his broken cowl ear, then thinks better of it when he looks in his eyes. J'onn calls him out on his knowledge of the situation and Batman calls the League a joke and quits, saving them the trouble of kicking him out. At Belle Reve, Flag is taken to the infirmary for treatment, while Boomerang crows to Deadshot about witnessing two people he hates try to kill each other. Thoughts: From a Suicide Squad fan perspective, this was a vast improvement over the previous chapter. I was a huge JLI fan; but, Giffen & DeMatteis were overdoing the jokes, given the mission. Ostrander shows them how to strike a better balance, as he still has fun with the brain-damaged Guy, who takes a passive resistance tact to the battle and is sweetness and light to the Red Rocket brigade, who he nearly annihilated, single-handedly. Beetle is the joking tumbler we all love and even Booster isn't taking the fight seriously. Captain Atom and Nightshade work a fight, which involves more tickling than worked punches. Bronze Tiger and Black Canary merely spar. Meanwhile, Ostrander lets Red Rocket 7, Dmitri Pushkin, be a real character and not just a comic sidekick. He uses J'onn to help reach the despairing Vixen, both proving she wasn't a joke, after the Detroit League and also address the idea of the Detroit team being losers, just because of bad writing. Again and again, John Ostrander was roving he was one of the best writers in comics, because he brought a fresher, wider and more mature perspective to it. Ostrander was an actor and playwrite, not just a comic fan-turned-pro. He brought a more diverse literary background than having read Roy Thomas and Stan Lee. Suicide Squad is about the characters and he gives them the attention they deserve, while still putting them interesting situations. Giffen & DeMatteis, even with the jokes, were also more interested in the League, as characters; but, theirs was a more juvenile approach, treating it more as a sitcom, with occasional action beats and more than a little absurdity. Both approaches worked; but, Ostrander's was more appropriate to this story. It was refreshing to see both teams turn around the old Marvel cliche of misunderstanding-based fights. There is a definite motivation to fight, in rescuing Nemesis, one via direct action, the other via Batman's manipulation. However, once the teams are together, a good portion of the antagonists act maturely and try to avoid conflict, then fake it as a cover to rescuing Nemesis. We get an intriguing clue about Duchess, when she reacts to the sight of Mister Miracle. Obviously, she has met him before, though neither remembers when or where. The mystery is one that many people got; but, just as many missed. I was among those that missed it, originally, as I hadn't been paying close attention to her story, at the beginning. I also hadn't read much of the actual 4th World books, at that point, particularly mister Miracle (I had the New Gods Baxter reprints and the Hunger Dogs GN, and had the Englehart/Rogers MM issues); so, it wasn't glaringly obvious to me. I won't spoil it, just in case anyone wants the surprise. Ostrander also throws in a rivalry between the Rocket Reds, the People's Heroes and Red Star. All could have used costume redesigns, though, especially Red Star (which he got later and which looked way better....) ...except that they later backpedalled and put him back in green. I would have more closely mimicked Soviet Olympic uniforms and have CCCP, in yellow and the Hammer & Sickle over his left breast. I'd move the red star to the right deltoid area, like a unit patch. The People's Heroes costume colors were meant to mimic Soviet military uniforms; but, these are symbols. Either go whole military in style, or go the red and gold route. The Rocket Reds I would try to invoke the image of Soviet ballistic missiles. The original design tries for that; but, could use some tweaking. Javelin survives, which I would have put money against. He doesn't do much, other than contrast Booster Gold. I was never much of a fan of Booster, beyond the costume, until JLI, when he and Beetle became a sort of "Lucy & Ethel." Their friendship helped give some depth to what I thought was a pretty hollow character. Your mileage may vary. Captain Atom was a favorite comic, for about the first year or so of its existence. I liked the idea of using the Charlton stories as a cover story for the hero, claiming he had worked in secret for some years, before he went public. It validated the past, while also adding a weakness in the character, as exposure of the truth would lead to all kinds of conflict, starting with the JLI. As it was, he was foist upon the League as a condition of the US government signing onto the League as an international body, as well as a Red Rocket (#5, originally, then Dmitri, after he was exposed as a Manhunter stooge), for Soviet cooperation. ps The coloring mistake is actually from a trade collection, where the scan came from. I looked at my own digital copy, taken from an actual comic, and Batman's costume is grey, when Flag tackles him.
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Post by codystarbuck on Jan 1, 2022 18:20:33 GMT -5
Suicide Squad #14Nightshade Odyssey sounds like an explanation of many Marvel comics from the 70s. Kudos for Jerry Bingham for making the female characters actually look more like women, in their facial features. I like McDonnell, but some of his panels with female characters look very masculine. Of course, Enchantress looks like she better have a stockpile of double-sided tape! Duchess looks pretty healthy, too! Creative Team: John Ostrander-writer, Luke McDonnell-pencils, Bob Lewis-inks, Todd Klein-letters, Carl Gafford-colors, Robert Greenberger-editor Synopsis: case in point (re: McDonnell's women)... Looks like Rosey Grier, in drag! The Wall has been summoned to The Gipper's office-without-right-angles, to help get Senator Cray re-elected. Ostrander gives Ronnie an out from looking like Nixon, by revealing that Tolliver is behind the blackmail, threatening public disclosure of the Squad's activities, if they don't play ball. Wall fights it, but is told it is this or her resignation and Tolliver assumes command of Task Force X. waller says she has to think about it and Cray tells her to shut up and follow orders and Ronnie tells him to button his yap. Waller caves, though don't count her out, yet. Meanwhile, in Moscow, the KGB turns up at the JLI Embassy, demanding that the Ambassador turn Nemesis over. he tells them that Nemesis is gone and invites them to search, which they do. They find nothing and elave, while preparing a list of what they will need in Siberia. The ambassador goes into a hidden room, where a man is tied up and gagged. His identity was used to get Nemesis out of the country and the ambassador tells him he keeps quiet about it and the KGB doesn't get word about his black marketeering. At Belle Reve, Bronze Tiger and Nightshade wait for Waller to arrive and perform a glut-ectomy. She arrives but doesn't even take a nibble and tells Nightshade that she is greenlighting the mission they owe her and to pick her team from the available members. She goes to her office and says to hold her calls. Ben tells Eve to get to work, while he goes and talks to Waller. He tries, but she deflects with argument about wanting him to be the team leader originally and him explaining that the gaps in memory and League of Assassin conditioning to trust him in the role. She mentions Washington bureaucrats and ends the conversation. Ben leaves and checks in with Eve, who has everyone involved, except Deadshot and Boomerang. ben says he will get Boomerang onboard. Deadshot talks about his marriage, with his therapist, who unethically continues their sessions, despite having the hots for Floyd... Deadshot joins the mission and Ben meets Digger at a restaurant to recruit him. Digger laughs him off and orders two more drinks, doubles. Ben eggs him on and recruits Digger, once he passes out, drunk. The team links up and Nightshade transports them to the Shadow Dimension and they see the horror of her past... They are there to find her brother and it won't be easy. They are pulled inside some kind of fortress or temple and find Dhazmor, the being that gave June her powers, as Enchantress.... He unleashes traps, which secure the team. Then, Nightshade's brother turns up... Thoughts: Well, there is a problem here; you had to read Secret Origins #28, before this. The issue relates the (revised) origin of Nightshade (as drawn by Rob Liefeld & Bob Lewis). One night, her mother came to Eve and her brother, Larry and told them she was from another dimension and they were royalty. Well, of course they are. They travel over to fairy tale land and find out that the Incubus has taken over. His minions attack and Mom bites the dust and Larry disappears. Eve gets back home and it is just her and her politician father. he got elected to the Senate and she practices her powers and takes trips to the dimension and runs into something nasty (in the woodshed). She runs back to her home dimension and drops out of school and then offers her services, in costume, to King Faraday and the CBI. She works with Faraday to round up criminals, like Punch & Jewelee, with Faraday substituting for Captain Atom, as in the Charlton stories. She tries to go back to the fantasy dimension, but freezes up. eventually, she meets Amanda Waller and cuts a deal to join Task Force X, in exchange for help in finding her brother, in the fantasy dimension. That issue also features Roy Thomas and Gil Kane getting to do their own Spirit story, via his Quality Comics copy, Midnight. As for this, the set-up is pure Watergate and Karl Rove dirty tricks territory, then we go off on a nightmare trip to Oz, to rescue Dorothy's, or Eve Eden, brother. Except, swerve, the brother is the villain! Personally, I'm more interested in the political plot. However, we will have to wait, as it will be a running subplot, for the year, before it is resolved. Luke McDonnell continues making the women look overly butch, except in certain close-ups. I wouldn't mind that, on a specific character; but, he seems incapable of producing definitely feminine facial features, in his average panel. Ostrander turns a little spotlight onto the relationship between Waller and Ben Turner, aka Bronze Tiger. She wanted him to lead the team and Washington wanted Flag, to keep an eye on Waller. She states that he wasn't made the leader because he is black and he shoots her down and reminds her of the real concern. Bronze Tiger was brainwashed by the League of Assassin and programmed to murder Kathy Kane, aka Batwoman. He still has gaps and there is a question if he is free of the League's conditioning. That adds another potential conflict, for the future. Some good character stuff, some subplot building, and some weirdness.
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Post by codystarbuck on Jan 12, 2022 16:12:37 GMT -5
Suicide Squad #15Liking Jerry Bingham on the covers; nice and dynamic. Creative Team: John Ostrander-writer, Luke McDonnell-pencils, Bob Lewis-inks, Todd Klein-letters, Carl Gafford-colors, Robert Greenberger-editor Synopsis: The gang has been spending time in a stone BDSM dungeon, where Boomerang is waking up.... He rants at Bronze Tiger, tries to bargain with the Incubus, and then gets mystical dogs sicked on him. Inky Fs with Digger, then taunts his sister. He relates to his sister what happened, after she left the dimension, when they were kids. He met Aunt Beah, who just got back from Mt Pilot, with Clara Edwards, and they got acquainted.... Sooooo.....THAT'S how it is, in that family..... Well, the Incubus passed from Aunt Beah into Larry Eden. Now, he wants to build upon that. he says the father of the Incubus is the demon Azhmodeus, who led a rebellion and got banished and plotted..... EEEEEEEEEWWWWWWWWWWWWWWwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww................. June Moon has had enough and releases the Enchantress and it all goes pear-shaped. Inky calls her sister and Vixen asks how many siblings Nightshade has! They magic fight, until Inky grabs her by the throat and pulls the Succubus out of her form, returning her to June Moon! We learn that the Incubus and Succubus are the children of Azhmodeus and sent to his realm to grow. The Dhazmor was put in power over this dimension and had two daughters, Beah and Rhea and Beah got possessed by the Incubus, at puberty; but, Rhea escaped to the outside world, before the Succubus could take her. Incubus killed everyone off and Rhea came back to fight and brought the kids, because she didn't have a babysitter and got smooshed, Larry got possessed and Eve got away. Dzhamor took control of Succubus and placed her in June Moon. And now, the Succubus will be implanted in Eve.... Duchess snaps her bonds and grabs her gun, but it can't stop the evil puppies; so, she shoots the bonds away from the rest and they go to town. Digger is whining in a fetal position and Deadshot tries to get him uyp by shooting next to his head. That still doesn't motivate him and Deadshot tells him to stay out of the way. Eve tries a flying kick at her brother's shell; but, gets swatted away and bound spread-eagle on the ground and it's about to turn into the third act of Billy Jack. Inky controls animals, so Vixen falls under his spell and attacks Bronze Tiger. Duchess shoves the barrel of her weapon down the throat of the evil puppy and opens fire on full auto with a magazine of armor piercing rounds and puppy go boom! Inky stops everything and says they are too late and Nightshade is all shadowy. however, she isn't in his control and backshoots him with shadow energy. They fights and reality goes all wonky; so, Deadshot fires a head shot into Inky and it goes all Ditko... Thoughts: It's no secret that I am no fan of mystical mumbo jumbo, especially other-dimensional mystical mumbo jumbo. There's a lot of that here; but, Ostrander works his magic. It's fine for driving the plot; but, personally, I'm ready for this to conclude. It's not bad, just not my cup of tea and especially not for this kind of team concept. Get them back to super villain Mission Impossible ASAP. McDonnell is really good with expressions in this. Not Kevin Maguire level; but, better than most. His women look a bit better in close up, too. Next, Shade the Changing Man, which means more Ditko.
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Post by codystarbuck on Jan 22, 2022 19:33:41 GMT -5
Suicide Squad #16Notice Duchess fires her weapon with her pinky out? That is a symbol of pure class! Creative Team: John Ostrander-writer, Luke McDonnell-pencils, Malcolm Jones III-inks, Todd Klein-letters, Carl Gafford-colors, Robert Greenberger-editor I didn't see Malcolm Jones III; so, I have no idea if it was as good as Malcolm Jones I and II. Synopsis: The team is hurled through a dimensional vortex and Captain Boomerang is doing some extra hurling..... Not a good idea to ralph, while spinning around; you might meet back up with it! Bronze Tiger yells for Nightshade to create a shadow tunnel and get them out. She isn't sure where it will come out; but, the rest don't care. They end up somewhere where they aren't spinning, but it is very Ditko. They are soon beset by interdimensional beasties and do a lot of shooting and kung fu-ing. Someone with a cowlick watches from the shadows, then dives in to help. He opens up a can of whoop-ass on the ebasties and the Squad is impressed... Their benefactor drops in and asks if they are from Meta or Earth-Zone. They answer Earth and then there are more questions about how they got here. They point at the unconscious Nightshade. The dude gets all touchy-feely with Nightshade and says he has the frequency (Kenneth) and tells them to grab onto his vest. They then disappear. At Belle Reve, Amanda Waller is stewing about being over a barrel, with Tolliver, when she hears a commotion outside. She goes to check and finds the Squad draped over the furniture, looking like 10 lbs of poo-doo in a 5-lb bag. She asks about Red Vest and is told he doesn't have time and she can't stop him. She then replies she can make hi so miserable he chews his discs off and they compromise with a briefing, in a half hour. In the Mission Room, Waller recounts the score, then asks Red Vest his name and raison d'etre. He says he is Rac Shade and some used to know him as The Changing Man. Captain Cold is in on the mission and he and Boomerang are a bit mouthy, until Shade tells them what happens to criminals in Meta. He then explains how his abilities work, with his M-Vest and Waller calls him out as a crook... He claims he was framed and Boomerang and Cold heckle him that they all are. He explains that Meta has observations posts; the Occult research center, run vy Wizor, who looks suspiciously like Dr Strange and the center looks very Sanctum-y..... We then get a recap of Shade's activities, including during Crisis and back to the present. He has to stop a criminal from destroying Earth and stay away from Wizor. Deadshot likes the mission. Flag returns and reports for duty, whether Waller likes it or not. The villain has neutralized Wizor and the Meta agents and turns up at an Erik Larson's Far Side of Science art show and nobody gets the jokes (cause it ain't Gary Larson, just the guy who did the ugly Doom Patrol art). The baddie shows up, Shade turns Ditko and Flag starts shooting. Everyone else grabs weapons to fight the baddie's students. BANG! BANG! CHOP! SOCKEY! Flag shoots the villain dead, then holds his weapon on Wizor, to keep him from arresting Shade. The rendezvous with the rest, who have neutralized the students. Shade can't believe it; but Flag says they are nastier than any inter-dimensional goons. Shade then tells Wizor to go whine to the authorities and see if they will believe him. Thoughts: Wellllll..................................................... It's................................ fine........................................ It ends up being a lot of exposition to remind people of the Shade comic and subsequent appearances; but I found I really didn't care and I was never compelled to seek out the Ditko series. This is kind of re-establishing the character and he would get his own series, again, in a bit. McDonnell adds Ditko touches but I just feel the story comes across as kind of generic and an odd coda to the Nightshade Odyssey. Luckily, the Jihad returns, next issue!
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Post by codystarbuck on Feb 5, 2022 21:02:27 GMT -5
Suicide Squad #17Yo, dude; WTF? That was mint condition! And, yes, that is an interior page, which means Rustam cut through to page 20. Creative Team: John Ostrander-writer, Luke McDonnell-pencils, Bob Lewis-inks, Todd Klein-letters, Carl Gafford-colors, Robert Greenberger-editor Synopsis: In Manhattan, at Grand Central Station, a young girl smiles as people seem to suddenly over-react, rather violently, to the slightest provocation.... The girl is Badb, from Northern Ireland, and she is 10 and filled with hate, which makes her a bit advanced because it's usually around 15 when kids hate everything. We can tell she is Irish because she has red hair and is a terrorist, after her parents were killed in the Troubles, because why not indulge in a stereotype in 1987? Probably sounds like an extra from the Quiet Man, too. Can you tell that I have Irish ancestors? Anyway, she is some kind of empathic projector, like Psycho Pirate, only more masculine looking, with McDonnell's pencils. Then, there is Agni, who throws fire. I saw Jerry Lawler do that, a time or two.... Our old friend Ravan turns up and garottes a few people, then speaks to someone named Koschei, who seems to inhabit the dead bodies. A woman named Jaculi hurls exploding javelins and those with good memories will recall that there was a male Jaculi with the original Jihad. Connection? Is a bear in the woods Catholic? No, wait, that's not right.....does the Pope s....... Ahem. The answer is yes, there is a connection. Rustam is also back and he is in the World Trade Center. This is 1988, so, it's not what you think! Rustam calls up Djin, from the magnetic bottle and he is now a she and looks rather familiar.... Mindboggler? She says her name is Ifrit. Her orders are to infiltrate data banks and create economic chaos by disrupting trade transactions. Inside the Lincoln tunnel, Manticore rips his way out of a crate, inside a delivery truck and proceeds to wreak havoc, inside the congested tunnel. At La Guardia, a plane sits at a military terminal. Onboard are rick Flag, Shade, and Bronze Tiger. Tiger alerts them to the fact that Rustam has just killed the anchor of the nightly news and is making an on air statement.... They want the Squad (unnamed, but we know) and they will wreak havoc until they get them. Ravan kills the station employees and buries them under rubble. Waller contacts Flag and orders him to return to Belle Reve, but his hearing is acting oddly.... He hears orders to engage the Jihad and Bronze Tiger confirms. Walller gives up and signs off. Captain Boomerang yells about his deal and wants his wrist bomb removed and Flag tells him to stick it in his snowcone machine. Boomerang notes he has lost any semblance of a sense of humor and decides to steer a wide berth around Flag. Waller calls up Harry Stein, head of Checkmate and tells him to dig up dirt on Tolliver. Nightshade turns up and says she is heading to join the others in New York, whether Waller likes it or not. She satys go nuts and then takes Tolliver's call, telling him she will give in to his demands to use the Squad and dirty tricks to get Senator Cray re-elected. Thoughts: Deja vu, all over again! A new Jihad, a new attack; but, this one is real, not a test simulation in Qurac. They are tearing through Manhattan In 1988, this would have driven the populace into complete panic and government response would have likely been uncoordinated and probably a complete Charlie Foxtrot. The US counterterrorism response was scattershot and the services had communication issues in Grenada, just as they had during the failed Iran Rescue operation. Special Warfare was still not a top priority and the Joint Special Operations Command was going through a teething stage. The FBI was tasked with domestic counter-terrorism missions, with their Hostage Rescue Team; but, it was untried. Basically, if you have seen the movie Siege, that is a pretty good idea of what would have likely occurred, had an attack of this magnitude been carried out in New York City. There had been terror attack scares early on, in the Reagan Administration, from Libya (the alleged Libyan Hit Teams, which fueled the Libyan terrorists in Back to the Future) and Libya was implicated in a bombing of a Berlin disco, in 1986. This led to a reprisal bombing of Gaddafi's home compound, as well as military and government installations. Libya was further involved in the Hijacking of a Pan Am flight in Pakistan and the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103, which detonated over Lockerbee, Scotland. In 1993, a group funded by Khalid Sheik Mohammed carried out a truck bombing at the World Trade Center, which did extensive damage to the South Tower but not to the extent expected by the group. 6 people were killed and 4 of the terrorists were arrested and stood trial. Terrorism on US soil was not inconceivable, in 1988, which makes the 9/11 attacks all the more tragic, because the jurisdictional battles that filled the period between these events exacerbated the tragedies. Now, this is the DCU, which begs the question, where the hell are the JLI or Titans? Conveniently busy elsewhere. We are introduced to the new Jihad, with Rustam and Ravan back for more fun and a new Jaculi, who is likely a sister of the original. Badb adds a twist of horror, while we puzzle the mystery of Ifrit, who apepars to be Mindboggler, who was killed in the attack on Jotunheim. Ifrit is an Arabic demon, often a spirit of the dead, who inhabits desolate places. Is this the spirit of the dead Mindboggler? With that Mohawk? Harry Stein is a New York cop, who debuted in Vigilante. He was tapped to head up Checkmate, a covert counter-terror and crime squad, along with Harvey Bullock, by Amanda Waller. Checkmate is a subdivision of Task Force X and Waller is their boss. She is using them to dig up dirt on Tolliver to try to counter his blackmail. However, she has agreed to aid him, for now, which will be a running subplot, through this year's issues. This kind of gets things back on track, after some diversions and brings us back to where we started. My one gripe is that McDonnell still draws a large number of his female charcters with very masculine features. badb is supposed to be a 10 year old girl; but, she looks like a 12-13 year old skinny boy, in a dress. Nightshade got a new look..... It's okay; but, kind of generic looking. Her old costume was dated, but unique. This just looks like she is going to an aerobics class. Flag is definitely grieving the death of Karin and is becoming more of a hardcase and it may cause problems, down the road. Definitely makes you want to pick up the next issue, to see what happens. We get a pretty good run of issues, before this all gets sidelined with the Janus Directive, a crossover event between Suicide Squad, Checkmate, Manhunter and Firestorm. I'll gripe about that when we get there. Also coming up, after another Personnel Files issue, will be the first Suicide Squad Annual, which guest stars Manhunter and reveals what happened to Argent, the covert action side of the original Task Force X, when the fell off the radar.
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Post by badwolf on Feb 7, 2022 12:57:05 GMT -5
Suicide Squad #17Ifrit is an Arabic demon, often a spirit of the dead, who inhabits desolate places. Is this the spirit of the dead Mindboggler? With that Mohawk? Didn't they copy her brain patterns or something like that?
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Post by codystarbuck on Feb 7, 2022 22:41:39 GMT -5
Suicide Squad #17Ifrit is an Arabic demon, often a spirit of the dead, who inhabits desolate places. Is this the spirit of the dead Mindboggler? With that Mohawk? Didn't they copy her brain patterns or something like that? I was saving that for when we get there; but, yeah.
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Post by codystarbuck on Feb 27, 2022 15:37:14 GMT -5
Suicide Squad #18Great looking fight cover! Creative Team: John Ostrander-writer, Luke McDonnell-pencils, Bob Lewis-inks, Todd Klein-letters, Carl Gafford-colors, Robert Greenberger Synopsis: The Jihad has launched a series of attacks in New York and aired a message over tv. The Squad is violating orders to confront them. Aboard a rather spacious helicopter (according to how McDonnell has people positioned inside), Flag gives the briefing and assignments.... Nightshade gets a lift on an F-15 and makes a shortcut through the shadow dimension to arrive in New York to provide help. Boomerang is dropped off at the top of one of the Twin Towers, so he has no choice but to fight Ifrit, for survival. He runs into the digital genie and sees it is Mindbender, who remembers that he left her to die. Brown trousers time! Flag spots Rustam at the George Washington Bridge, gutting the support cables. He goes down to attack. Rustam is still able to cause damage. Vixen goes into Grand Central Station and sees the carnage, then runs into Badb. Shade runs into Korschei's zombie army and Duchess goes toe-to-toe with Manticore, in the Lincoln Tunnel. She tries bullets, then high explosive grenades and ends up opening up the tunnel to the water above. Bronze Tiger attacks Ravan, as he is about to strangle Ed Koch. Tiger uses stragedy and disables Ravan's exo-skeleton (which he deduced was how he was walking), crippling Ravan again. Deadshot faces Jaculi and proves she isn't faster than a speeding bullet (after first kneecapping her, then delivering a coup de grace). Captain Cold runs into Agni, in the subway system and tries to cut a deal and gets his hood set on fire. That tears it and it's fire vs ice. Shade defeats the zombies and goes looking for their controller. Duchess rips the tail off of manticore and beats him senseless with it... Vixen is in trouble, as Badb has her in terror, then Nightshade appears and shows Badb what real terror is. Ifrit is about to skewer Boomerang, when Flag deactivates her magnetic bottle (or maybe he activates it, since it is a bottle and it swallows her inside) and radios in. Agni and Badb are secured, Ravan is helpless and Manticore is confirmed dead. Rustam escaped, but Flag has plans to reprogram Ifrit to help capture him. Korshchei is still at large. Thoughts: Exciting, action-packed issue, as the Squad deals with the Jihad and comes out on top, with no casualties, of their own. At the end, Bronze Tiger mentions a possible new recruit, which I assume means Ravan, which is an interesting twist to things. Nightshade is right scary and Badb was pretty nasty before, which makes Nightshade even scarier. Grim and Gritty, folks; we can't just be good government agents. We have to be well scary! Cold got to be a bit more badass, though, although he had to be provoked. Cold's presence was a result of what was supposed to occur with the new Manhunter series and the Suicide Squad, both written by John Ostrander. Mark Shaw was now working as a super villain bounty hunter; and, in his first issue, captures Penguin and Captain Cold (while heading to a Cubs game....he would be a Cubs fan!). Penguin had already worked with the Squad; but, the good Captain soon finds himself on the Squad, right after going to jail. Unfortunately, that's now how the series ended up working out and Ostrander kind of got distracted from the action-adventure elements of Manhunter, in favor of family dynamics. It's part of why Doug Rice left the series, as he got bored drawing lots of talking heads and fewer rooftop and train top fights. Next issue has more personal files, where Duchess' identity is confirmed and Rick Flag confronts Tolliver....with a .45! Then, Manhunter goes in search of the missing Argent agents, in the Suicide Squad Annual.
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Post by codystarbuck on Mar 9, 2022 0:46:03 GMT -5
Suicide Squad #19Creative Team: John Ostrander-writer, Luke McDonnell-pencils, Bob Lewis-inks, Todd Klein-letters, Carl Gafford-colors, Robert Greenberger-editor Synopsis: Nemesis has returned to Belle Reeve and Waller has Shade and her tech people working on trying to reprogram Ifrit/Mindboggler to work for them. Shade accidentally activates the magnetic bottle and has to use his M-Vest to fight Ifrit... He isn't doing well, but Waller is able to shut off the bottle, which was activated by the M-Vest. Waller chews out Rac, who thought it would be easy to figure out, sinze Metan technology is more advanced; but, he doesn't know doo-doo from shinola. Waller threatens to kick his sorry backside back to Meta. She gets a call that she and Dr LaGrieve are needed over at the airfield and also gets word that Black Orchid has been into the computer system again. Waller heads out and gives orders that Duchess meet her later, in the briefing room. At the airfield, Briscoe is in a weapons fight with Mitch Sekofsky, the head of maintenance. Waller stops them and asked for the lowdown. Briscoe has been sleeping inside Sheba (that's the helicopter, so don't get any ideas) and Mitch told him to knock it off. Briscoe, baits Mitch with homophobic slurs and Waller threatens to use a hammer on both of them. She tells Briscoe to let Mitch do his job and Mitch to get over it and let Briscoe sleep where he wants. Waller leaves and then asks Dr LaGrieve for his analysis of the pair.... Mitch has only recently come out and worries about how his son will react to him and Briscoe is showing more and more signs of imbalance. We learn that Sheba was named after his dead daughter. Marnie Herrs is somewhere else, investigating Deadshot's past (see Deadshot 1, which I will get to, after the annual). Nightshade consults with Father Craemer and tells him she has a devil inside her (the Succubus) and fears she is damned. He makes her see that it is hubris to believe that her sins are too great for God to forgive and speaks of Judas and his suicide. Nightshade has lost her purpose in being there, with her brother gone and is at a crossroads, but the padre tells her to think about it and be sure before she acts. Waller and Duchess meet in the briefing room, as Waller reviews security tapes of the battle with the Female Furies. She tells Duchess about Lashina and Bernadeth fighting and one being thrown into the swamp, but no signs of a body. She then calls Duchess Lashina... Duchess claims amnesia and leaves, though she makes reference to her "granny." Waller knows she is Lashina and wonders why she is faking amnesia. meanwhile, they get word that Mirror Master has struck a New Orleans bank. Dr Light has an interview with Waller and she rejects his request to join the team, as a way out of prison. He threatens to expose them and Waller threatens for his insides to be exposed on the prison recreation grounds.... Waller contemplates her problem with Tolliver and senator Cray, blackmailing them with exposure or help Cray get re-elected. We see in past how Tolliver pushed his way into her office and they had a face off. Flag turns up and throws Tolliver against the wall and points his sidearm at his head, ready to end the problem. Waller stops him with her own weapon. Tolliver starts ranting at Waller and she turns her pistol on him and he decides that retreat is in order. Later, Waller gets a call from Harry Stein, of Checkmate and smiles as he gives her the info he found. Thoughts: Another character issue, using the same framework as the previous Personal Files issue, giving us updates on the various people as we move to the next storyline. Duchess is revealed as Lashina, though she denies it, for reasons unknown. Nightshade is at a crossroads. Dr Light may be used for a mission. Nemesis is back. Briscoe's obsession with Sheba is given context. Flag overhears what Tolliver is doing and is ready to commit murder for Waller and the team. We are also teased, at the end, with Mirror Master joining the team. If you recall, Captain Boomerang has been masquerading as MM, to bull off bank jobs and still enjoy freedom from the prison and the exploding wristbands. Is this going to be the real MM (well, the updated one, as Scudder was dead) or is Boomerang in real trouble? These character pieces were always good and Ostrander excels at this kind of thing. He writes well rounded, realistic people, even if they dress funny and have stupid names. One element that bothered me was when they refer to Mitch's "choice of sexuality." I am straight, but have had several gay friends and colleagues. To a person, they didn't "choose" their sexuality; they were born with it and have had to grapple with society's perceptions and prejudices, while trying to live openly and honestly. I served in the military when homosexuality was banned completely and saw several good people forced out of the service, not because they committed any offense other than being who they were. We had a bigger issue with heterosexuals harassing other heterosexuals, but the military put more effort into rooting out and ejecting top professionals because they were gay and never bothered anyone. Just before I left, Congress was having hearings about what would become the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" Policy, which allowed gays to serve in the military, as long as they didn't overtly display or reveal their sexuality. Thankfully, that bit of nonsense gave way to outright upholding the rights for gay servicemembers to be who they are, without fear of disciplinary action. Ostrander is usually more enlightened than this, especially given his background in theater. I like to think it was just a poor choice of words; and, given the timeframe, I'm willing to give him the benefit of the doubt. At this point, DC put out a Deadshot mini-series, which expanded upon Floyd Lawton's past, beyond having been a wealthy playboy-turned-hero-turned-hitman. It also delves into his family, including his young son. I will cover that after looking at the Annual, with the revelation of the hidden history of Argent. That's coming up next. From here, we move onto the storyline where we deal with Senator Cray and Tolliver's blackmail, which will have major repercussions for the team. After that comes the Janus Directive crossover, which I will breeze through, as I didn't care much for it.
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Post by codystarbuck on Mar 20, 2022 13:37:36 GMT -5
Suicide Squad Annual #1Manhunter in the hizzouse! Duchess has an actual firearm! This almost looks like Gatchaman, with a bunch of green masked guys getting their butts kicked by a group in colorful costumes, except the costumes aren't design coordinated. Creative Team: John Ostrander-writer, Graham Nolan-pencils, Timothy Dzon-inks, Todd Klein-letters, Carl Gafford-colors, Robert Greenberger-editor Timothy Dzon? I love his Star Wars books; who knew he was an artist! Oh, right......that was Timothy Zahn........................ Synopsis: Our story begins back in the post-WW2 era, where the Justice Society of America tells Sen. Joseph McCarthy where he can stick his order that they unmask. We then switch to the White House, as President Harry S Truman creates a new agency to fill the void left by the loss of the "mystery men" of the JSA: Task Force X. We are reminded that it comprised a military division, headed by a rather ridiculously rapidly promoted J E B Stuart (lieutenant to general is a pretty big bump, even for fantasy); and, a civilian branch, called Argent, headed by the former head of the OSS (William Dononvan?), aka Control (Wait, I thought he ran The Circus?)....... He handpicked his agents (including one Mademoiselle Marie), who apparently kicked the equipment bag of the Sportsmaster. We then cut to 1963, when President John F Kennedy was assassinated, while passing through Dealey Plaza, in Dallas, TX. Control appears in the office of one William H Martin, a CIA official, with evidence that the assassination was ordered by a foreign power, of close proximity, with a a fondness for Desi Arnaz records (that's a....ah say, that's a hint....clue , that is!). They ordered it in response to someone else's attempts to off their leader (by, say, an agency that acted with impunity, until reined in by Kennedy, after a failed invasion and some other shenanigans). He reveals, however, that the hit attempts on said foreign leader were not ordered by the head of the alphabet soup group; but, by a rogue agent....William H Martin! Martin pulls out the gun he has hidden on the underside of his desk and is ready to silence Control, when one of the Argent agents slips from behind the curtain and garottes him. Argent then goes underground, erasing all records of their existence, and declaring themselves an independent arbiter of who is naughty and who is nice...... Now, Santa wants them taken down! Or, maybe, Amanda Waller! She briefs the Squad. Control has determined that The Suicide Squad is a threat to world stability, after their battles in the USSR and Nicaragua. They know this because Manhunter (the dude with the Kamen Rider outfit) has brought Control's granddaughter to them, with the info..... ...because she doesn't want to marry some creep that grandpa picked out for her, like some covert Don Corleone. Waller reveals that Anne-Marie has given them info about where Argent resides: the former Peterson State College. It is a disused college that was taken over by some religious cult, the Church of Set, who get no Federal subsidies, no charitable donations and has no known source of income or recruitment of members. That is where the Squad is headed. Nightshade is left out of the mission, because Waller has another task for her and Nemesis. She pulls Flag aside and asks if he believes Anne-Marie's story and he says negative, that she is likely a plant and this is an ambush. Waller agrees but says go anyway, attack at night and extricate themselves. The team goes in civies and reconnoiters the campus, under the cover of a government survey team, researching a possible pipeline path. A second group has a meeting with the president, under the guise of a Dept of Education group, trying to enforce affirmative action is student recruiting. They are interrupted by the security team escorting in the surveyors, then a missing Captain Boomerang, who was out trying to recruit young co-eds (who apparently attend classes in high heels and short-shots, based on the artwork) for a nude magazine shoot. The office is total chaos, allowing the team to plant listening devices, which Flag check, later. Shade detects a large underground power source, far in excess of the requirements of a school. Duchess (looking quite smart in her women's business suit and heels, though green hair is a bit of a giveaway) notice hidden lights positioned on the Quad, in a pattern that suggests a covert landing field. Flag says they will go ahead with the mission, then punches Boomerang in the gut as a warning against straying from mission parameters. Meanwhile, at Belle Reve, Waller gets a status report, but has to head to Washington. She suggests Anne-Marie remain there, until the mission is concluded, which delights the lady, from the tips of her toes to the top of her blond perm. This gal certainly likes fuchsia! And really short mini-skirts. Or Graham Nolan does....one of the two. The team gathers at 22:55 hours (that's 10:55 pm, for you civilians) and Flag doles out the assignments. Bronze Tiger, Vixen (who looks like she is posing for Boomerang's magazine shoot) and Shade will be the advance team. Duchess , Manhunter and Captain Boomerang will follow and perform a search and destroy, as a diversion. Vixen will flush out Control and Tiger will eliminate him, with extreme prejudice. Flag will act as back-up. The team sneaks in through a storm grate (I assume) and runs through access tunnels. meanwhile, another observer sees Amanda Waller leave Belle Reve and orders in his team. At the same time, the Squad scouts find that SPECTRE has a new base...... Boomerang questions the absence of henchmen/cannon fodder and Tiger and Vixen split off to snoop out Control. In Belle Reve, a bunch of guys in clothes from the SAS line of couture bust in on the lady with the poodle hair (Anne-Marie), while Amanda Waller's car finds its path blocked by a fallen tree. Tiger and Vixen spot some sentries and jump them, discovering that they are dressed in Kobra grunt costumes. They realize they have been set up. Waller steps out of her car to survey the tree (probably to intimidate it out of the road) when she is bathed in crossing headlights. The heavy mob hit the Kobra Complex (Yo, JOE!.....er....wait, that's COBRA, not Kobra......I'm confused....) They run into all kinds of people in snake costumes and it turns into Whacking Day! Meanwhile, "Waller" crawls to her car, trailing blood, to answer a radio call, from Amanda Waller! it turns out that "Waller" is actually a cross-dressed Nemesis, in kevlar and armored padding, who was a decoy for Argent. Inside Belle Reve, Nightshade literally shadows Anne-Marie and the Argent team, as they withdraw and head to make their flight to New York. Meanwhile, the Squad withdraws and Flag lands the SS1 on the football field and then uses Jet Assist Take-Off rockets to launch them into the sky.... Flag fills them in and they wing it for New York, with an in-flight refuel, along the way. We cut to the real Argent safe house, where Anne- Marie goes to report to her grandfather, and we take a page out of Hitchcock, as we learn that Control has been dead for the past 5 years, with his corpse resting in his desk chair, while Anne-Marie carried on, with the Norman Bates routine. Argent is only the handful of people who carried out the attack at Belle Reve. There follows a short back up story, with art by Keith Giffen (in full Munoz mode) and Bob Oksner, as Amanda Waller heads to her apartment and finds her daughter there, despite security, with marital problems. She also encounters her son-in-law, a massive ex-linebacker, and puts of fear of Waller in him.... She then resolves to kick Tolliver's butt up and down Pennsylvania Avenue. Thoughts: The back-up story was part of that summer's Annual gimmick, "Private Lives," where the main story would be followed by a short piece, detailing a part of the private life of a character. In this case, they chose Amanda Waller's family. It's pretty in keeping with the series and adds a dose of humor, as Waller chews out the security guard who let her daughter in, allowing her to surprise Amanda, then her son-in-law. Giffen times the gags well, though they come from Ostrander, who would occasionally throw out a well crafted joe (such as Boomerang and his phony magazine shoot). The main piece is a nice bit of intrigue, as the Squad is set up to go after Kobra (unknowingly) to occupy them (and put a hit out on Kobra, which was a terror cult), while Argent pulls a hit on Waller. The thing is, Ostrander knows that it sounds fishy when detailed and uses that to show that Flag and Waller aren't morons, like characters in some othe books I could mention, where poor writers make experienced detectives and agents act like idiots to advance the plot, rather than write a decent diversion. Ostrander is way better than that. So, he lets us know that Waller and Flag don't buy it and sets up the fake out, well in advance. He also cagily distracts us with the intrigue and action at the phony college, so we forget that Waller knows something is up and hit us with the surprise of the ambush on Waller. It is also staged that we might buy into the Argent goons coming to kill Anne-Marie, if we weren't paying close attention, as we see them kick in her door and see her react to it. Ostrander signals by her (Anne-Marie) odd body language that she is up to something, when Waller suggest she remain there. It works well either way. If you are skimming and not reading the dialogue and paying attention to the subtle details, you think a hit on Anne-Marie (or a kidnapping) is going down, while a hit is carried out on Waller. If you are paying attention, you have a suspicion about Nemesis and Nightshade's mission and as soon as you see Waller's body on the ground, you realize that nemesis was doubling her and then expect to next see Nightshade, which we do. I really like the idea of Nightshade using her shadow powers to literally "shadow" Anne-Marie, while she leads her to the Argent safehouse. That is some fine plotting! I like the set-up for Argent; but, am let down a bit about the reveal. It makes perfect sense; but, it kind of feels like the build up of the Shadows and the Vorlons, in Babylon 5, only (SPOILER) to have Sinclair and Delenn tell them they are done fighting their proxy war and to "Get the hell out of our galaxy!" You had expectations of this epic battle and it turns out that a character actual uses reason. I hate it when a good writer subverts expectations! I like subtle plotting; but, dammit, sometimes you wanna see stuff blow up, good....blow up real good! Oh, well.....I guess we have to accept our grown-up endings if we want our grown-up stories. Really, this is just a terrific story, though Manhunter is kind of wasted. He mostly seems to just be there to bring in Anne-Marie and then mostly fades into the crowd. Ostrander never really did follow through on the concept that he was working parallel to the Squad, to catch criminals to be fed to the team. However, in this instance, we are missing Manhunter's field work that led into the issue. In Manhunter #6, a man named Falcone offers Mark Shaw a contract to locate a woman, named Anne-Marie Vere. Shaw blows them off and spots the set up, with a phony office. However, the appearance of a rival bounty hunter, named Pikara, throws him into hero mode, wanting to protect the target from what appears to be a mafia family. He tracks down Anne-Marie through a university and some sweet talk, then protects her when Pikara comes to take her to Falcone. Pikara gets taken down by a tranquilizer dart fired by a man dressed in black ops gear, who is revealed to be Falcone. He reveals that they knew that Shaw is a hero, deep inside, and needed a motivation to protect Anne-Marie, so that she could be placed with him. They will follow them to the leader of the new Task Force X, so they can be eliminated, as a threat to world peace. This annual then picks up the story. Ostrander crafts the annual so that you don't have to read Manhunter; but, you will get more detail if you do. Manhunter readers will follow the story over to find out what happens next; but, Suicide Squad readers don't have to go buy a book they aren't already reading, if they don't want to. Compare that to some of the company crossover messes that happened during this period. I was reading both, though Manhunter was already disappointing me, as Ostrander didn't seem to follow the fast-paced action of the debut storyline (with Dumas, the mask-obsessed assassin) with subsequent issues. Issue 6 was handled by Pablo Marcos, who did a fine job; but, I really liked what Doug Rice had done in the opening issues and we were already getting fill-ins. Rice ended up quitting the book because the action component became more and more subservient to soap opera, with Mike Shaw's extended family (per a conversation I had with him, at a convention). The Invasion crossover also interrupted Manhunter and the subsequent Janus Directive, which is coming up, didn't help matters. Manhunter never really had an artist that followed Rice that captured that same feel or handled the design of the costume as well. Grant Miehm did the best of the subsequent artists; but, he was never a great stylist and Ostrander kind of ran out of plots and went back to Dumas, with less spectacular results. I think part of that was his workload (he was still doing Grimjack, on top of Manhunter and suicide Squad, plus whatever other books he was doing at DC). Graham Nolan does a fine job on the art, though he does seem to like his women in high heels and mini-skirts or short shorts (though one of the co-eds is wearing capri pants, with her obligatory heels). That was the style in the 80s, but usually at nightclubs and rock concerts, not while attending college classes (unless they were going to an interview that day, as with some of my business school classmates, when we were seniors; and they usually wore the regulation sneakers, until they got to the interview location). It was a bit comical to see Duchess/Lashina in a typical 80s power suit, though Nolan kind of reduced her Amazonian proportions, while in disguise. The green hair might seem average, today; but, you did not dress like that in the professional world, in the 80s. I had one classmate who long on one side, buzzed on the other 80s hairstyle, until we were seniors and then she let the buzzed side grow out, until she could get it cut uniformly, in preparation for job interviews. he then appeared in class in a power suit and sneakers, ready for an interview, later. If Nolan had dressed the co-eds in shoulder-cut tops and denim mini-skirts, with suede boots or cotton sweat suits, with Greek letters on their derrieres, I might have bought it. Or Izod shirts, with the collars flipped up. Good issue, with some nice intrigue and misdirection; part Le Carre, part Fleming/Broccoli/Gilbert (Lewis Gilbert directed You Only Live Twice {as well as The Guns of Navarone}). ps. William Donovan was the founder and commander of the Office of Strategic Services, during WW2. It was a forerunner of the Central Intelligence Agency, though not directly. It was akin to the Special Operations Executive than MI-6. Ironically, one of the people who came over from British Intelligence to help sketch out the organizational structure of the proposed CIA was Ian Fleming, who was given a pistol, engraved with the message "For Special Services." Control was the code name of the head of The Circus, the intelligence unit in John Le Carre's George Smiley books, especially Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy (as well as the other parts of the Karla Trilogy: The Honorable Schoolboy and Smiley's People). Smiley worked for Control, before his death and the subsequent rise of Percy Allerline, and his cohorts, Toby Esterhase, Roy Bland and Bill Haydon. I recommend reading Tinker, Tailor, if nothing else (all of the Smiley books are great, though the early ones are more mystery than espionage); but, if you want a visual medium, stick with the Alec Guinness mini-series, rather than the later film remake, with Gary Oldman. It's a fine movie; but, the mini-series has way more depth, as the novel is pretty complex, and doesn't resort to visual cue that pass by 2/3 of the audience. Also, Ian Bannen was a way better actor than Mark Strong.
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