"Success."

I'm totally dating myself here, since I don't think there's been a college band signed to a major label in about three hundred years...are there even labels anymore? Did they cut out the middleman by just having Spotify rob musicians? There's a video I probably watch too often--Cataonia, "Mulder and Scully" for the curious--that when it's over on YouTube, goes into a somewhat dated-looking Rhino promo: hey, we still own these, go nuts. See for yourself.  

Anyway, this is of course a bit of a riff on the dropped plotline that Wolverine was going to be an evolved wolverine, "courtesy of the High Evolutionary, but Stan Lee himself, according to Cockrum, nixed the idea." (From CBR's Comic Book Urban Legends Revealed #21!) Grain of salt and all, but if so, Stan was right on there: it would've really undermined Logan's humanity and flattened the character.

But...Nightcrawler is an odd duck, isn't he? He has powers neither of his parents have, but that seem to fit. Almost makes you think it wasn't just random chance...And I re-read Azazel and Kurt's return in Amazing X-Men, mostly to try and get a handle on Azazel: I call him a demon, although I think in "The Draco" (which I emphatically did not re-read for this!) Beast suggests he might be one of the first mutants. Or was that Apocalypse's deal? Enh, Azazel lives in a hell, or hell-adjacent dimension; and there's a line in the old OHOTMU to the effect that 'demons' may be anyone that says he, she, or it was one. (If you look up the page...which, shoot, I may actually have handy! At least one of those 'demons' wasn't, and was revealed as a Deviant in Quasar!)

Moreover, the big stinger ending of Kurt's return was that he sacrificed his soul to return from heaven, stop Azazel, and save the X-Men, heaven, everything. You might think that would be a big plot point for later: maybe he has to go on some big quest to get it back, or get a new one maybe? Or maybe without his soul, he'll start to go bad? Nah, I think he looks sad about it twice in that series, and that's about it. It maybe came up once in his solo book? Should re-read that, too.

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"Abnormal."

Where am I going with this? Soon. Which may lead to the return of a character I haven't used here in like maybe fourteen years, although they have a new figure now as well... Read more!

Two of these, and you know what I don't have? A Scarlet Spider #40!

Admittedly they've got different leads, different creative teams, and different directions; but god forbid numbering continue, ever. From 2013, Scarlet Spider #20, "Sibling Rivalry, part 2" Written by Christopher Yost and Erik Burnham, pencils by Pat Olliffe, Inhyuk Lee, Paco Medina; inks by Bit, Inhyuk Lee, and Juan Vlasco; and from 2018, Ben Reilly: Scarlet Spider #20, written by Peter David, art by André Lima Araújo. (Miscredited as Will Sliney!)

Our first SS#20 features Kaine, back in New York City, with Spider-Man against the Jackal! Except also against Spider-Man, since Kaine doesn't know it's the Superior Spider-Man, with the brain of Otto Octavius. They're both chained up in the Jackal's new, and very high-end, lab; and when a Gwen Stacy clone pays attention to Kaine, Otto is snottier than Peter Parker could be on the worst day of his life. (My headcanon remains: Superior Spidey sounded like Pete doing a Dexter's Laboratory accent.) Otto is also super-possessive of his new DNA, and doesn't want the Jackal to have any; so he's steaming that Jackal took samples while he was out. Kaine, on the other hand, is a disappointment--they can't all be Ben Reilly's, eh? But he manages to break his chains, then work one of Jackal's mutant-powered Spidey-clones to blast his 'friend' Peter loose.

While Kaine fights Carrion (and the monster in Kaine's head, figurative or literal, still defends him against Carrion's mental attack) Otto works the angles, to cause a massive hydrogen explosion. (Think the end of Quantum of Solace, with the world's most explodiest hotel...) Jackal goes back into the fire to try and save "my DNA! My babies!" while Kaine tries to save the Gwen, who doesn't want to be saved. Otto's feeling pretty pleased with himself, before Kaine shows up, angry that 'Peter' isn't acting like a hero. Later, back in Houston, Kaine is obviously drugged at the airport, but thinks it's one of "Houston's horse-sized mosquitoes." Still, later that night, he wakes up to find his scars have returned, and he may be degenerating again...!

Kaine does have some scars five years later, but they may be the least of his problems today: while Ben infiltrates an Air Force base in search of a scientist that had been working on a cure for Abigail Mercury (to save his soul, it was a whole thing) Kaine sees a Mindless One in Vegas, accidentally brought there in an earlier issue. He saves a young child from it, only to catch a kick to the crotch, then the Mindless One takes the kid again, having apparently bonded with him! And a ton of cops have now shown up to make things worse. Meanwhile, Ben finds the scientist he had been messaging, only to find out he had really been talking to his assistant, Karl. Karl? Oh, you may know him better as Sauron!

If it had any kind of Legacy numbering, Scarlet Spider would've been in the fifties; but of course comics aren't numbered like that anymore. And I think both Scarlets have shown up here and there since, even as recently as, well, now. A couple questions: had Ben fought Sauron before? I think both he and Kaine were often called 'Spider-Man' by bad guys, bystanders, whoever; and rarely bothered to correct anybody. Which sounds like a problem for Peter: "I swore I'd get even for what you did to me in Houston, Spider-Man! And Vegas, you bastard! How could you?" "...what?" And does Otto have a specific beef with clones? Did one sleep with his wife or something, he seems a little touchy about them.   Read more!

"Super-busy."

I think I had to look it up, since I mistakenly thought the High Evolutionary trained Mr. Sinister, but that's the other way around, despite the Evolutionary debuting two decades earlier. I should've remembered when they appeared together in the X-Men books. The wiki also mentions H.E. getting some information from an Inhuman geneticist as well, which I should've remembered from the Evolutionary War. I suspect Miles Warren appears in that as well, in his pre-Jackal days: he had been his lab assistant, but got the boot after creating a man-jackal that escaped; which is a far tamer offense than I would've guessed. (Also, he had a family pre-Jackal? Color me surprised.) 

 Anyway, I figure the High Evolutionary has a very British accent, I think like Commander McBragg from old Rocky & Bullwinkle shows. (Looking it up, maybe those shorts were just shuffled in wherever, and weren't from the Bullwinkle crew?) H.E. wouldn't have the military background, but the utter Britishness and a tendency to natter on. Oh, like I oughta throw any stones...

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Nine feet tall? Maybe if you count the ears.

Also, the reprint cover obscures things, so at first glance I always think Peter is shooting up around nine o'clock there. From 1980, Marvel Tales #117, reprinting 1975's Amazing Spider-Man #140, "...And One Must Fall!" Written by Gerry Conway, pencils by Ross Andru, inks by Frank Giacoia and Dave Hunt.

Peter Parker has been captured by the mysterious Jackal and his new muscle, the Grizzly, who are working on the assumption that he would be able to get in touch with Spider-Man. They knock him out, then prepare for "--the operation!" With which, they will be able to control him forever! Sounds pretty dramatic, but it's just a brace-manacle clamped onto Peter's arm, that transmits a message: if he tries to remove it, or doesn't find out who Spider-Man is, it will shake his arm apart! Wait, was Peter not wearing his web-shooters? Or his costume? Did the Jackal just not notice? Whatever. Peter's able to get that thing off him with an acetyline torch like three pages later.

This issue is probably more remembered for the introduction of Peter's new apartment, and new neighbor, Gloria Grant. Still, Spidey visits J.Jonah Jameson, to wheedle out of the newsman why the Grizzly had tried to kill him: he had been a particularly brutal pro wrestler, and JJJ had ruined his career. That gives Spidey two answers: he's able to find the Grizzly by checking out gyms until he finds the one he's tearing up for a grudge. Secondly, is the Grizzly that tough? No, he's wearing a rather tearable, terrible costume, and an exo-skeleton to juice him up: without it, he's "just a flabby has-been," which is one of the meanest Spidey zings I can remember. Spidey still plans on settling up with the Jackal, but next month he had Mysterio to deal with. Huh, glancing at that cover, I almost thought I'd blogged that one, but didn't find it? (Spooky voice) It's an illusion! 

Also: is it funnier that Jonah is mad he threw an expensive shoe at Spidey, or a cheap one? Was $50 high-end for a shoe in 1975? Discuss.

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"Defiled."

The Jackal figure wasn't even a blip on the radar when I started this plotline, so I can't pretend I had that all planned. Also unplanned: I still haven't found Misty Knight's gun! I would actually have to consider, if I saw another one on the cheap, since the right knee on my figure is wobbly.
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