I've been running behind a bit, and not writing enough, so I wanted to get back on track this week; with our annual "The End" Week, where we go through a big ol' pile of last issues. Usually, when I start reading a book, it's the kiss of death, but I believe I only lost one title this year: Demon Knights #23, the last of the New 52 books I was reading. But we're going to start with a book I had never read, until finding it last month! From 1987, Cloak and Dagger #11, featuring "Oh Little Town of Bethlehem" and "the Golden Triangle." Written by Bill Mantlo, with art by June Brigman and Terry Austin and Larry Stroman and Randy Emberlin.
Although their original origin involved a pair of runaways dosed with an experimental drug, later revelations would posit the pair were actually mutants. Or maybe not. It depends when you ask. I'm also rarely certain if they're just friends, or a couple; but usually if one of them (usually Dagger) is involved with someone, they turn out to be a total jerk with ulterior motives. And that's the case with Bill Clayton, who's keeping them one step behind his smuggling operation, but sacrifices himself to save Dagger. Later, Cloak and Dagger try to make a dent in the drug trade by hitting the supply side in the Golden Triangle, where they find an opium cult headed up by an American who has gone all "Heart of Darkness" and a local warlord trying to take over.
It's not Mantlo's best, but the art and the layouts are nice; and Cloak and Dagger would return in Strange Tales with Dr. Strange, and other places after that.
I guess the first time I saw Cloak and Dagger was in an issue of Marvel Tales, reprinting an old Marvel Team Up annual. #7 I think, alongside the New Mutants. Interesting concept and power-set, but other than Mantlo, no one really did anything else with them did they?
ReplyDeleteA lotta times, Cloak's called up when the heroes (or the writer...) need a teleporter guy. They were gonna get a new series, but that announcement was a couple years back!
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