There's a splendid example of Dire Wraith-dom on the cover of this one, but mostly I'm struck about how this Avengers roster feels powerful, yet also designed to cause problems in-story: I can almost hear Cap trying to work through it. "We've got four members that can fly, but only one of them can carry anything while flying...and it's the space pervert." (OK, Cap probably never really took to Starfox, but he probably didn't call him that. Probably.) From 1984, the Avengers #244, "And the Rocket's Red Glare!" Written by Roger Stern, pencils by Al Milgrom and Carmine Infantino, inks by Joe Sinnott.

The current Avengers roster was on a little boat trip, but despite the encouragement of Jan and Starfox it wasn't a pleasure cruise: the Dire Wraiths had been sabotaging recent launches at Kennedy Space Center. These were the Wraith "Rocketeers," possibly the last of the science-oriented Wraiths, as the sorcery-types had taken over and wiped out most of the others. The Rocketeers wreck another rocket, then manage to escape as a third-party deploys a mysterious gas that even delays the Vision, who is later furious--furious by synthezoid standards, anyway--at the failure right out of the gate in his chairmanship of the team. (Jan had recently given up the chair, so she seems to be flighty again without that responsibility; although I also figure she does that to Steve on a regular basis: "Good lord, what are you wearing? Take that off, right now. And the pants.")

The Rocketeer-Wraiths realize the Wraith Sisterhood had assisted them, but only in hopes of drawing them out. Still, they were going to stick with their plan, and had wristwatch sensor-jammers to keep them from being detected. That almost works, but the Vision has better eyes than that, and can see them. (From the art, it's unclear if Vision can see the Wraiths' true form, or just a distortion giving them away.) While the Avengers give them the what-for, with Wanda revealing their Wraith-forms; the head scientist/lead Wraith makes a break for it, in a rocket with a cobbled-together FTL drive. Which, one of the Wraiths notices, looked like it was about to explode, and the Wasp was on that rocket...

There was a fun bit in the opening, where Captain Marvel (Monica, still my Captain!) is pretty enthusiastic about being on a boat: she had been harbor patrol before getting powers. Although, in Amazing Spider-Man Annual #16, she also appeared in a very distracting bikini, which she seemed unwilling to do here around Starfox...(Actually, her super-suit might've been the only clothes she had that would change when she did, so...) And, subplots galore, as Hawkeye and Mockingbird arrive on the west coast; and Quicksilver arrives at Bova's cabin, finding it leveled. Read more!

We brought up the Dire Wraiths of ROM fame yesterday, but of course there has yet to be an action figure for those horrible creatures. Unless you use your imagination, in which any figure could be a shape-changed Wraith. (That one's a Skrull, put that back!) There was a pre-Legends, Toy Biz prototype for a Dire Wraith figure shown I believe in ToyFare long, long ago; that may have been intended for the same Silver Surfer wave that had the Meegan, which we've seen a few times. But, for the next few posts we'll check out some Wraith appearances, starting with one not in the GCD: from 1985, Marvel Age #23, cover by Bill Sienkiewicz!

Despite the great Wraith cover, this issue was hyping up "The New Direction" for the title, post ROM #65, which guest-starred about every hero in the Marvel Universe at the time. Actually, then I start looking, and can only think of who wasn't there: the Defenders roster had changed, so no Hulk or Dr. Strange, although Namor gets in there; no Thor but Beta Ray Bill instead; and no Spider-Man since Ditko wouldn't draw him! Anyway, after banishing the Wraiths from earth and all of Wraithworld to Limbo, Rom was free to return to space, and meander around before returning to Galador and the series finale #75.

Most of the art shown was Steve Ditko, although there's also an unused version of the ROM #61 cover by David Mazzucchelli and Terry Austin

There's also a reused photo of the old Rom promotional costume, which I would've guessed hadn't been used in like five years at that point.

Also, Marvel Age doesn't have the series' covers in the GCD, because despite being all about the comics coming out, in itself there wasn't enough comic content by volume to qualify for inclusion. Which is a shame, since some of the covers were pretty good; and there were usually comics from Fred Hembeck every issue!

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"Face."

We're extrapolating a bit, from something I remember from the Earth X/Universe X/Paradise X books: despite there being an infinity of alternate universes, there was maybe only one Hell, and Mephisto was maybe behind the proliferation of alternate universes, in the hopes of finding one where he escaped judgement. The idea of Rom's Limbo being the same across the multiverse was horrifying: imagine every Dire Wraith across the multiverse, dumped into the same hole. Is that a little much; do even the Wraiths deserve that? Forever, with no chance of escape or release? Having spent hundreds of years fighting them, Rom might say they have it coming. (I need to do that re-read, since Rom does make an appearance in those books; Cap gets the neutralizer from him!) 

 We've also hopefully established, Magneto does not seem to care for Rom; and we'll see why later: it's an in-continuity answer, or at least related to continuity?

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"We got three covers of Spidey's head already. Maybe we could do, I dunno, Mary Jane?" "Nah, just throw the Spider-Signal up there or something."

Although, let's double-check this with the GCD: this issue hit stands July 22, 1986. Marvel Tales #193 with a Ditko-esque Spidey was out July 11. Amazing #282 with the black suit was July 29, and (deep breath) the all-new, all daring Peter Parker, the Spectacular Spider-Man #120 with half-black costume, half-Peter, was out August 20. I looked all that up, because my vague recollection had been that Web was usually the first Spidey book of the month, but maybe not? Or at least not for Marvel's 25th Anniversary here. And as is sometimes the case, I'm nattering on about a minor point because man, I am not sure the rest of this one is going to have aged well...From 1986, Web of Spider-Man #20, "Little Wars!" No credits, oddly; but probably written by David Michelinie, art by Marc Silvestri. Border art, and probably cover, by John Romita.

A clever editor could probably have packaged a trade of these stories, like "Spidey's World Tour," where Peter Parker gets sent somewhere on assignment for the Bugle, things immediately go to hell, and Spidey has to swoop in while also trying to protect his secret identity. Today, he and Joy Mercado are in London, and there's a bombing before they get out of the airport. Irish terrorists are trying to kill someone named Bartlett, but their bomb went off early: Peter manages to sneak away, under Joy's suggestion to try and get pictures, and knocks out a gunman without being seen. Both Joy and Peter are then stricken at going from a scene of death and tragedy, to a fancy limo: J.Jonah Jameson was trying to establish Now magazine as a player, and was throwing some dough around. Which totally seems like a thing JJJ would do, then blow his stack when he gets the receipts later, and start charging employees to use the elevator or something.

Joy gives Peter the brief explanation of Ireland's ongoing attempts to reunify, which she attributes to "a fear of Spain invading England!" from hundreds of years ago. Yeah, maybe look that up: that seems like a fair short answer, but there's probably about 90 other factors. Later, Peter has dinner with Joy, who should be way out of his league, but he's made some pulls...not tonight, though, as she declines an offer to see the sights. Mainly, because she has a meeting with a snitch--I would've said 'source,' but he calls himself that, so--who gives her documents from Roxxon. And even though he says it isn't his responsibility to police the whole planet, Peter still suits up and breaks into prison, to shake some information out of the captured terrorist. (The black suit wasn't world-known at that point, I suppose; but it was good for intimidation.) He then sneaks into a secret meeting of the "Red Hand," as they plan an attack tomorrow; but the bobbies show up. Wait, probably not bobbies, this'd be the riot squad, since they're armed and launch tear gas. Unseen, Spidey helps out so the cops don't charge into a hail of bullets; but several Red Handers escape through tunnels.

Out late and tear-gassed, Peter looks like he partied hard in the morning, but Joy tells him to keep it together, as they go through security...for a speech by Margaret Thatcher? Ergh. Politely--massively euphemistically--she was a divisive figure, and this story is probably based on a real-life IRA assassination attempt October 12, 1984. Midway through her speech, Peter remembers hearing "foundations" and realizes the Red Hand were going to try to blow up the building from beneath. He ducks out, and stops them after a brief skirmish that's mostly keeping them from setting off explosives: after Spidey disarms their Wile E. Coyote-ACME style plunger detonator, one tries to set the explosives off with a grenade, which Spidey webs away, but the pin had been pulled. The terrorist tries to get to the grenade, but is badly injured, and would likely die.

Peter probably reeks of the sewers and gunpowder when he gets back, and Joy gives him a bit of hassle since he seemed to be having trouble hearing. She wants to pursue the story, but that would involve going to Dublin; and their expenses were only covered for Thatcher's speech. (Peter notices, she knew it was the Red Hand...) But, after the cop from the airport tells them a little girl died from the bombing there, Joy and Peter make plans to go on...

Ooh, let's say something good first: this was before his run on Uncanny X-Men, but Silvestri already had it going on. And while it was probably harder to see in the moment...maybe...this reminds me of Captain America #344, where Cap saves...ugh...Ronald Reagan. Thatcher and Reagan were contemporaries, and agreed on a lot of things: I don't know if everything terrible in Britain can be traced back to her, like just about everything awful here goes back to Reagan; but probably. It is in Spidey's nature to try and save everybody, though. Ireland is, to date, still not united. As an ugly American, I probably shouldn't even have an opinion on this, but my sympathies lie with them and Scottish independence.

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Maybe if I bump it up to three a year...

There were 133 issues of the original Warlord series (and 6 annuals!) and while I've joked about blogging an issue or two a year, we're still maybe not quite a quarter through the series! (Do I even have all of them? Um, well...) I don't plan on covering every single issue, but today we'll do a quick one with a checklist of the others we've seen so far! From 1982, Warlord #52, "The Sorceress' Apprentice" Written by Mike Grell (with uncredited scripting by Sharon Grell), pencils by Mark Texiera, inks by Mike DeCarlo. This was the first issue with the main feature not penciled by Grell!

Travis had ended up in the frozen steppes of Soviet Russia and was working his way back to Skartaris; in bloody fashion. Admittedly, it's not like the Russian troops would listen to him or believe him even if he spoke Russian, but he's just tearing into them. Jacking a helicopter, Travis begins a long trip; while back at Castle Deimos, his daughter Jennifer was still mostly catatonic, severely traumatized by Deimos. The witch Ashiya sees something in her, though: Jennifer understood machines (at least, better than Ashiya did) so the witch wanted her help with the ancient Atlantean machines in the castle. In return, she would teach Jennifer magic.

Ashiya takes the form of Jennifer's mother, Travis's first wife; to gain her trust. The two begin teaching each other, even if Jennifer's protector Faaldren doesn't approve. He's never a major character, but I forget Faaldren's deal: from Ashiya's threat, I think he was a lizard or maybe a snake, turned into a man. Very Bibbidi-bobbidi-boo, but she just needed some muscle, someone to open jars and clean the gutters and so on.  Meanwhile, Travis nearly gets back to Skartaris when he runs out of fuel and crashes the helicopter, but is greeted by a pleasant surprise: Tara and Shakira! Who normally wouldn't travel together, but it was too cold for Shakira to change out of her "fur coat!"

Also this issue: back-up feature "Dragonsword," written by Paul Levitz, art by Tom Yeates. It...it's not one of my favorites.

Annual #5

#133

#128

#121

#111

#104

#100

#95

#93

#87

#84

#79-80 (The Barren Earth features.)

 
#77

#66

#63 (The Barren Earth feature, anyway.)

#60

#54

#50

#48

#46

#42

#41

#40

#39

#38

#37 (The OMAC back-up.)

#35

#31
 
#27

#26

#23

#22

#17

#4

#3

#2

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Getting through all the "Dead Earth" annuals feels like a race against time at this point.

And, as Claremont would often say, the last lap's the hardest; but we'll talk about that later. First, one that was in my garage--actually in a box of Superman comics! By which I mean a longbox with various eras of Superman, Superboy, Supergirl, World's Finest, G.I. Joe #50, a random old Lone Ranger...look, the point is that I found it, that's what you should takeaway here. From 1996, Adventures of Superman Annual #8, "Superman Forever" Written by Tom Peyer, pencils by Derec Aucoin and Mike Collins; inks by Jason Martin, Karl Story, and Barbara Kaalberg.

All together now: "Earth is dead. Those who might have called it home are long scattered to the endless stars. But in that scattering, on a thousand different worlds, by a thousand different ways...earth's greatest legends live on." I feel like most of these annuals had that page, and some (like the Flash one) had another, separate title/credits page; but this one gets right into it. Namely, a flashback, I think to the Man of Steel #6: the hologram Jor-El (thinner than Brando, seems kind of snooty?) is putting Kryptonian knowledge in Kal-El's head, whether he likes it or not, until Pa Kent saves his boy with a well-placed shovel. The hologram disappears, leaving only a patch of scorched earth...which, in the far, far future, is now a veritable collector's item; a relic of the dead earth, on Colu. That's a name Legion fans know well, as well as that of Dox, the Coluan talking up how great the wad of dirt was. Maybe he should've kept it to himself, as both it and Dox are taken, by Sarkon pirates, led by Captain Grumbb. Grumbb makes a pretense of not being a pirate, but a fierce advocate for everyone's rights...except maybe the Curatti, but they hardly count. Grumbb berates tiny slave Willigig, as having slavery coming to it: the Curatti tried to conquer the Sarkon, and failed, so nyah. Dox intervenes, and Grumbb throws Willigig aside, and his pick impacts the earth...

...treating him to Jor-El's knowledge implant, already in progress! Dox realizes he's seeing something amazing, which is immediately stepped on by Grumbb, in an amusing panel of slapstick brutality. (I could'a sworn I had blogged that panel before, and I did, back in 2006! If I'd labelled it Legends of the Dead Earth I would've counted it!)

Still, Willigig realizes the truth: he wasn't a scummy horrible Curatti, he was a noble Kryptonian! Back at his slum home, he tells his parents he now knows the truth: that he was adopted, but he still loves them, at least as much as it's possible to love a Curatti. His parents are skeptical of his story, and his new, brightly colored costume. Meanwhile, Dox has figured out Grumbb's scheme: use earth's heroic legends, but slot the Sarkon in as the heroes instead, the better to conquer and oppress races like the Cur--Dox catches a punch in the mouth before finishing there. Willigig, now dressed as Superman, has to step in and save Dox, with heat-vision goggles and a rather powerful jetpack. Grumbb wants him found and killed immediately, but is stopped by his--gasp!--district manager, who wants Willigig broken before he's killed, to keep the Curatti from getting any ideas.

Willigig explains to Dox his loathing of the Curatti: they were the greediest, most evil race ever, until a millennium ago when the Sarkon resisted and beat them. Dox asks who told him that, then tells him a little about Superman. They are then surprised and captured by Grumbb, who helps himself to Willigig's gear, and has worked out the hologram message, even if he doesn't seem to get the knowledge dump. Dox knows, the Sarkon intend to twist the legend, just like they did with the Curattis' history: the Sarkons were always the invaders, and had lied to make the Curatti hate themselves for centuries! Even though he was no match for Sarkon, Willigig still throws down with him, yelling "if that's what it takes to protect our adopted people--Supermen welcome death!" (That is a baller line!) Triggering the jetback, Willigig outmaneuvers and defeats Grumbb, but refuses to kill him, as that wasn't what Supermen did. He frees Dox, then skywrites in flaming letters, "We're the natives! Sarkons lied" exclamation point and all! "This is a job for--everyone!"

Disgruntled at having to do some work, the district manager guns down the injured Grumbb, then takes out Willigig with a shot to his jetpack. Mortally wounded, Willigig dies in Dox's arms, but dies a Curatti; as his people begin a long-overdue uprising. Dox finishes telling the story, to a crowd of Coluans, how the Sarkons' injustice was so great, both Krypton and Earth had to take part in setting it right...by sending a Superman. 

The Jor-El on the cover is the Byrne reboot redesign, who always feels colder and less helpful than the classic headband superdad version; and I always think this issue is going to be about the hologram taking over some alien schmuck. And I didn't think this was my favorite of these, but on re-reading it...yeah, it's moved up the rankings a lot! Anyway, after I got this out of the garage, I went to the comic shop and bought three of the Legends of the Dead Earth annuals we haven't seen here yet. I still think there's two out in that garage, but that last one...it's been retconned anyway, do I have to? We'll see.

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I thought this was a one-shot, but more confusion would follow.

The GCD mentions this was collecting stories that were originally published digitally; but the cover doesn't mention that, or that this was a seven-issue mini! From 2021, Justice League: Last Ride #1, "If People Are In Danger" Written by Chip Zdarsky, art by Miguel Mendonça.

I'm behind on my DC continuity, but I'm not sure this one is in-continuity: the Justice League's Watchtower was largely abandoned, as the League was mostly disbanded. I say 'mostly,' as there's the sense the members would still come together for a big emergency, but only grudgingly; as they do here. Green Lanterns John Stewart, Kilowog, and Jessica Cruz had captured the murderer of the New Gods--Lobo? I really doubt Lobo had the juice for that, but the GL's want to bring him in for trial. Hal shows up, in a big shoulder-padded number: it's fancier than the usual uniforms, especially since the other GL's are plainclothes, with Kilowog in a hoodie! Still, Hal's look kind of reminds me of Parallax, which you'd think he would try to avoid. Hal gets called out by Batman: if the GL's couldn't contain Lobo, why was that the Justice League's job and not the United Planets' military? Hal was hoping to use partnership with earth, as a bargaining chip in his efforts to rebuild the Green Lantern Corps (every time the GLC needs rebuilding, drink!) with the moon as the new Oa, center of the Corps! Superman appears to be considering it, as Hal describes the League as no longer being needed if the GLC was there; but Bats blows it off as "cosmic politics" while he had Gotham to take care of.

After Mr. Freeze claims to have planted ice bombs all over the city, he is shut down cold--ha, ha--by Superman, who had wanted to talk things through with Batman. While Batman isn't "sure earth needs space cops," something had to take the place of the fragmented League. Frustrated, Superman finally goes off on Bats, accusing him of getting J'onn killed, and slugging his colossal penny. He admits to being tired; of the never-ending battle, fighting everyone, including his friends. Batman seemingly relents, although he would never say so; but he has the perfect place to hide Lobo: on Apokolips. 

The League broken up, the GLC in a rebuilding year, J'onn dead, the New Gods dead...all of those feel like things that occur relatively frequently in DC continuity, although maybe not all at the same time? Also, I seem to recall multiple stories where assorted alien races are a little cheesed that earth had so many Green Lanterns, and those were back when they only had like three or four! And why were the other GL's plainclothes? Either they were using all of their willpower to hold Lobo and couldn't spare any to suit up, or maybe Kilowog and Jessica had other things they needed to do that day. 

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