"Nondescript."

Is Moon Knight still throwing guys off of roofs? Maybe not. Is he still throwing 8-Ball off of roofs? Oh, yeah, probably. C'mon, it's 8-Ball. He was totally asking for it, dressed like that? Tease. Also, I keep thinking 8-Ball was like Oddball from the juggling villain group the Death-Throws and forgetting he was originally a Sleepwalker bad guy.  And he's some kind of rocket scientist or something; yet I think he lost so much money playing pool he had to become a supervillain to recoup his losses? Oh, man, I want so many more villains to have that origin now; except I have to figure out names close-but-legally-distinct from Fanduel or Crypto. 

Of course, 8-Ball and Scratch are Fortnite figures--I think Jazwares, and not Hasbro? I think we have two of the more recent Hasbro figures next week, except I'll tell you right now, the blocking for them wasn't ideal...

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The twist ending is, this one wasn't bad!

OK, so I finally just eBayed a reader copy of Twilight Zone #70 so maybe I won't have to mention it every time I blog an issue of the series; but we've seen more than a few from Gold Key and more recently from Now. Surprisingly, this might be one of the best of those we've blogged! From 1993, the Twilight Zone #3, "A Job for Fear" Written by Andrew Barlow, pencils by Nick Choles, inks by Tony deZuniga. 

Three men in a car, preparing for a robbery, are joined by an uninvited fourth; a handsome man in a nice suit. (Think Robert Redford from "Nothing in the Dark," mean ol' Death tricking that old lady! ACAB.) The men aren't able to harm their guest, who introduces himself as "perhaps your greatest enemy, perhaps your greatest friend, and certainly a lifelong companion." He has no intention of stopping the men, he's just going to show them the possible outcomes of their robbery. They live out a possible version, where the muscle, Leo, tells his trigger-happy cousin Eddie the clerk pushed a button, and Eddie shoots the clerk. Leo had accidentally killed his brother as a child, and lived in mortal fear of something happening to his only relative; but no longer wanted to hurt or kill anyone. He opts out of the robbery, but the guest shows them what might happen then. Patrick, the planner, realizes their guest is Fear. 

In the second version, Eddie and Patrick try the job themselves: after crashing their getaway car, Eddie gets into a shootout, while Patrick gets away. Eddie shoots a cop before getting hit himself, and is arrested; which he claims not be afraid of; but the guest says that's not the end of it: Eddie's lawyer does perhaps too good of a job, getting him off on an insanity plea and sent to a mental institution. Eddie heard voices in his head; and was afraid of being considered "crazy" and losing Leo and Patrick. His friends are surprisingly compassionate, suggesting he could get help. Fear offers him a choice: leave, and Leo and Patrick won't recall any of this; or stay. Eddie chooses to stay. 

The robbery had been Patrick's idea, to get seed money for a get-rich-quick scheme; which, in Fear's telling, works: Patrick not only gets away clean, he's a millionaire within five years, and goes on to live a happy and fulfilled life with a wonderful family. But in the afterlife, he comes before God, and realizes he had sinned. Fear won't say if that's what actually happens when you die, but notes it was a fear in the hearts of all men. (I wish...it would change a lot if it was, huh?) Fear advises that wasn't Patrick's greatest fear; he would still have to face that. Getting out of the car, Patrick goes into the liquor store not to rob it, but to apply for a job. 

Like most of Now Comics' output, the art is somewhat workmanlike: nothing spectacular, but gets the job done. Still, I could see this one turned into a half-hour episode; and that's more than I can say of a lot of TZ comics.

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Here's a Nightcrawler guest-spot that I've been waiting to blog for a bit: from 2017, Spider-Man/Deadpool #14, "Itsy Bitsy, part 4" Written by Joe Kelly, pencils by Ed McGuinness, inks by Mark Morales.

This is kind of like Kurt's appearance in Spider-Man/Black Cat: the Evil that Men Do: he's called in for a consult. Spidey and Deadpool have been on the losing end of multiple fights against a new foe, Itsy Bitsy. She's in their heads, too; since she looked way too much like the lovechild of Pool and Spidey: multiple arms, insane healing factor, all the spider-powers and then some. While her backstory is left a little vague, she thinks she's a hero like Deadpool, in the sense that anybody she murders was probably a bad guy; and thinks her "daddies" should get on board or get out of the way. (She also uses "daddies" in, ahem, multiple meanings; further confusing Pool!) Since every time they fail, more people die; the guilt is starting to really gnaw on Spidey; who is considering they might have to fight fire with fire, and kill Itsy to stop her.

Nightcrawler is called in for a training/strategy session; but also for a somewhat confessional ear. And I love that Kurt is willing to just throw himself in there, against them both: he's pushing himself, along with them, advising if their old moves weren't doing it, they had other skills, and heart. But the latter sets Spidey off, and he escalates the fight: Kurt asks if he doesn't intend to capture Itsy, and Spidey takes a swipe at him with a sword, which prompts Deadpool to needle him, "killer." (Pool had a handsome face at the time, possibly the result of not killing and being a hero improving his self-image! I also cut it off in the scan, but he also implores Kurt "do not Dolph my Lundgren, bro!") As the (chattier-than-usual) Bamfs cheer the fight on, Spidey and Pool fight with words and swords: Pool argues, "Finding the right way is what you do!" But he also mentions "neck snap," which further triggers Spidey: he later mentions to Kurt, Pool didn't know about Gwen, but it didn't matter. (Spidey backpedals and calls Gwen "a confession for another time," he wouldn't talk about her even with Kurt.)

Spidey stabs Pool pretty good, but not a killshot. Kurt moves to step in, but Pool warns him off with a shot: he didn't think Spidey had the "maracas" to kill him. Spidey responds by lopping off his head! As the Bamfs re-attach it, Spidey and Kurt continue their conversation: Kurt tells Spider-Man that he is an inspiration, and doesn't want to picture the world without the hope he gave. Spidey says he's living that world now. Meanwhile, momentarily in hell, Deadpool has another in a series of not-great visits with his wife, Shiklah; before getting to see Patient Zero, who had a mad-on for Deadpool but came to him to stop Itsy, before she killed him. "Patient Zero" turns out to be Pool's old friend, Weasel! He felt Pool had somehow tricked the world into thinking he was a hero and deserved good things, when Weasel would argue he very much didn't. But Weasel had also been dead before, how did he get back alive? Someone who wanted to break Spider-Man sent him back: they don't say here, but you can probably guess!

Pool wakes back up, trying to remember what he learned in Hell; Kurt is there but Spidey is "lost." Metaphorically, although he left a note in webbing: "Do not follow." With swords and guns strapped to him, Spidey was gunning for Itsy; and Kurt warns if Pool can't stop him, Spidey's soul could be lost...

Aside from this issue, I had to get the trade for this one, since it wasn't continued until SM/DP #17! Which was also "part 4," the numbering would be off for the next two chapters. I kind of wish Nightcrawler had got to help out the rest of the fight against Itsy; but Spidey and Pool absolutely had to finish that one out.

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I picked up a McFarlane Super Powers Superman and Supermobile the other day, so apparently I was a little nostalgic for Superman stuff. Despite being from 2007, this one almost fits that bill: Action Comics Annual #10, written by Geoff Johns and Richard Donner, with art by Art Adams, Eric Wight, Joe Kubert, Rags Morales, Gary Frank, and more.

This felt a little like a recap, possibly intending to set up future stories: in "The Many Deaths of Superman" Lex Luthor cheerfully revisits the multiple ways the Man of Steel could die; after which he could get back to solving all the problems facing humanity. After. "Who Is Clark Kent's Big Brother?" really should have some credits for Robert Bernstein and George Papp's Superboy #89, as this is a pretty straight retelling of Mon-El's origin.

"Mystery Under the Blue Sun" is short, as a Thanagarian patrol tries to find why three of their patrol-ships have disappeared in this sector. Hint: it ain't the "thought-gluttons" from Rann! "The Criminals of Krypton" is maybe a bit of a retcon for Non, the silent brute of General Zod and Ursa's trio; but he wasn't always such. Non had been a brilliant scientist, who had worked with Jor-El and knew Krypton was doomed. Unfortunately, the ruling Science Council considered that heresy, and while eventually Zod and Ursa would come to believe him, someone on the Council had Non kidnapped and chunks of his brain removed. Zod tries to convince Jor-El to join them in open revolt, but he didn't think there was time for that, and Zod and company were a little too quick to murder for his tastes, anyway. The trio manages to kill some of the Council, before being captured: Jor-El argues they shouldn't die, and instead should be banished to the Phantom Zone. Zod, of course, swears vengeance, on Jor-El and his son.

Finally, in "The Deadliest Forms of Kryptonite," Lex runs down the assorted, relatively new, flavors of Kryptonite: most had been phased out post-Crisis, but were creeping back. Unsure which to use, Lex crams a bunch into the chest of an unwilling-looking Metallo, the first maybe not-willing member of Lex's new Revenge Squad...This felt a little like the pendulum swinging back, from Lex having some redeeming qualities, back to being a total dick. Read more!

Who wouldn't want their own killer robot sidekick?

I forgot I had blogged the last issue of this series, but this looks like the last story for G.I. Robot, who I thought had been the series lead, or co-lead, for longer. From 1983, Weird War Tales #122, featuring "Robots Don't Dream!" Created and written by Robert Kanigher, pencils by George Tuska, inks by Ernie Colón; "The Hand of Glory" Written by Jack C. Harris, pencils by Topper Helmers, inks by Gary Martin; and "Showing the Flag" Written by Dan Mishkin and Gary Cohn, pencils by Don Newton, inks by Sal Trapani.

Sgt. Coker probably wasn't raised with stories and toys about robots, so getting paired up with G.I. Robot J.A.K.E. II (Jungle Automatic Killer Experimental) maybe wasn't as attractive a prospect as it would be for some. Coker was having nightmares: he felt the robot was "one short--one malfunction" away from turning on him, but the brass isn't hearing it. After a mission goes south, the pair are trapped in a minefield, then faces with a sumo robot; the latest Japanese attempt to match J.A.K.E. (The samurai and geisha versions had come up short!) J.A.K.E. gets torn up, but Coker rallies him to fight like a marine, and he turns it around. Coker may still not be on the same page as his largely silent partner, though.

In "The Hand of Glory," a pilot in 1933 regrets missing the Great War, and the glory that his older brother racked up, that hung over him his whole life. He waits for "the hand of glory to catch (him) in its grasp," but as usual, be careful what you wish for. Still, who attacked New York City in 1933? An unlicensed crossover, that's who!

I thought there was another crossover in "Showing the Flag," as the submarine resembles the Nautilus, but the banner doesn't match Nemo's. An old sailor tells of a battle in 1911, the HMS Relentless versus a mysterious black sub, who may have intended to claim ports by showing the flag...and who may return. Also this issue: Robert Kanigher put together a checklist of "War That Time Forgot" stories, and the next issue was a leftover from the cancelled Mystery in Space, with a Joe Kubert cover. The cover makes it look good, anyway! Read more!

"Ballistic."

I hesitated on opening Vulcan, Darwin, and Maggott; yet somehow have gotten three strips out of them? As I type this, I still haven't opened Siryn or Sabretooth yet; and am still waiting for Havok to show up. I've seen a few in stores, but no Havok there either: I'm not positive anyone has gotten him? Ugh.  (EDIT: Although I pre-ordered him some time back from Target, I ended up having to get Havok from Amazon. But I used points, so whatever. I have seen one in-store since.)

Thena had another Deviant boyfriend in the most recent Eternals series, that of course comes to a bad end; although I think that series also implies all of the Deviants come to a bad end sooner or later. (Except maybe for our Deviant pals Karkas and Ransak the Reject! The movie had a lot going on, but really could've used them. They're more entertaining and likeable than the rest of the Eternals and Deviants put together.)  This also maybe got a bit of a rewrite on the fly, since while I'm pretty comfortable putting nonsense in the mouths of a lot of these figures, Angelina Jolie was intimidating somehow...

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See, they had to go "Crisis" with a 'K' or it's a whole thing...

...also, it's "krimson" Kryptonite, because red Kryptonite would be hokey, right? Title hijinks aside, this is still a pretty good one: from 1990, Superman #50, part four of "Krisis of the Krimson Kryptonite," "The Human Factor" Written by Jerry Ordway, art by Dan Jurgens, Brett Breeding, Kerry Gammill, Dennis Janke, Curt Swan, John Byrne, and Jerry Ordway.

After getting his ass thrown out of the Lexcorp building, a glum and powerless Clark Kent recaps the recent storyline: Lex Luthor had used a mysterious red rock, to take away his powers and give him a solid thrashing. Swiped with the help of the Will Payton Starman, the rock was now being studied by Professor Hamilton, who found it wasn't anything like Kryptonite; but that wasn't helping yet. Forced to ride the subway, Clark's there when a giant mutated rat attacks his car, and still tries to help a downed man, putting himself in harm's way: he's luckily saved by Guardian. Later, on the streets, he sees a mugging thwarted by Gangbuster: Metropolis's other heroes were trying to rally to cover for the MIA Superman.

Back at his apartment, Clark gets a call from his mom, who left a surprise for him in his suitcase: a wedding ring. Y'know, just in case he might need it or something. After some drama at the Planet, Clark makes a somewhat awkward proposal to Lois at lunch, but she has to think about it. No time now, since she's got a call (on the restaurant's cordless phone!) from Lex Luthor! He offers to help Lois's ailing mom, if she will become his official biographer. Lois says no way, but Clark grabs the phone, to demand a meeting. He tells Lois this wasn't news, but to help Superman. Clark meets Lex, who threatens charges against him and Starman for stealing the rock, but Clark just wants the story, off the record. Dying of Kryptonite poisoning, Lex was desperate to bring down Superman...but, by "rule" couldn't tell him how he did it. Still, if he told Clark, that wouldn't be telling Superman, right? And he had to rub both of their noses in it: the red rock was a gift from "the imp from the Fifth Dimension...Mister Mxyzptlk!" Cue one of the best page turn/cutaways ever in comics, as a purple-and-green Mxy is very obviously hassling the Fantastic Four! Circa FF #11, and I always forget the Impossible Man appeared that early.

Changing back to his DC look, Mxyzptlk storms back to give Lex an earful, as Clark starts to put it together, since his powers were returning. Lex and Mxy are arguing about it when Superman shows up: Mxy had irons on the fire in other dimensions, and thought he could bug Supes by "remote control" with the rock. Now mad at Lex, Mxy tells Superman he'll leave for the usual 90 days, if Supes will punch out Lex. Superman refuses, but since he wants to get back to "that other, fun, world" (careful!) Mxy "helps" him by cloning a giant blobby monster from Lex's skin cells, so when Supes punches it, he was free to go. Back on "fun world" Mxy changes his color scheme and is ready to play, but the FF has copped to the fact they can ignore him and he'll go away.

After a bit more subplot work, Clark catches up with Lois at the hospital, where her mom is improving, and she has her answer: yes! They share a romantic kiss, in hospital parking, which I've cut off there...Keep in mind, there was still a few issues before she would be let in on his secret identity; but I think Clark felt he had to win Lois over, not Superman. 

I would've been buying Superman comics casually at that point, post-Byrne (and I wasn't all-in with him, either) but I would've bought the crossover issue, Starman #28! Along with the "You will not believe the last page!" cover blurb, Swan and Byrne on the cover would also have been a draw; but this was pre-Twitter, pre-comics internet, so the FF cameos were a complete surprise! That was neat, although some readers have since twisted themselves in knots trying to get all that to fit into continuity: it's just a laugh, alright? The only thing I could think of that might have come close--it's not as good, but would've fit in 1990--would've been if Mxyzptlk had to hustle back to the 24th century...

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Somehow I managed to schedule posts for next week but not this one; but I guess that gives us the chance to check out a trade I didn't think had even been collected: Suicide Squad: Casualties of War, reprinting the 2002 series. Written by Keith Giffen, art by Paco Medina, John Severin, and others. 

We checked out #10 some time back, but this run was post-Our Worlds at War and featured Frank Rock and Bulldozer--somewhat improbably still pretty active for WWII vets--running the Squad, as Amanda Waller was working for President Luthor. The Injustice League/Justice League Antarctica guys are largely killed off in the first issue: Cluemaster 'dies' but returns pretty quickly since the Batman books used him, and Major Disaster becomes a mainstay of the team. (I strongly suspect Cluemaster returned with little, if any, explanation other than "I'm Cluemaster, bitch!") Oddly, Giffen also seems to take out another "bwah-ha-ha" era JL reference out, as the island Kooey Kooey Kooey is apparently wiped out in a tidal wave! 

Somewhat infamously, in the last issue "Rock" disappears, leaving behind a rubber mask. I had suspected him of being Nemesis, but the Unknown Soldier had also appeared in one of the Rock flashback issues, so who knows? The wheelchair-bound "Bulldozer" isn't allowed to see more, but does get up and walk away. And Havana, who appeared to be in-line to take over the Squad someday, is killed by the Jihad, while saving the mom that put her up for adoption--Amanda Waller! That was a bit of a surprise, and there isn't a lot of space given to her reaction or dwelling upon it. Instead, Amanda closes the series by saying "Frank Rock and Bulldozer died in 1945." If that was true, even the flashback issues were lies, so what did you just read? Your guess is as good as anyone's! Seems like maybe the cancellation crept up on Giffen, or editorial mandated some changes. Even pre-New 52, nothing in this run is referenced, ever, ever again. 

So it's an interesting, but frustrating read; since you're left wondering where they were originally going with this. I swear we had some discussion about this somewhere; but the text itself doesn't really offer any answers.  BTW, I bought this and got a Showcase Presents: Legion of Super Heroes volume 4 free, so frustration aside it was a good deal. 

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Peter doesn't look right in shades; that's somehow too cool for him.

It's probably past time I should've set up some kind of tag for Marvel's 1998 team-up annuals: we've blogged X-Men/Dr. Doom, Hulk/Sub-Mariner, X-Man/Hulk, and recently Generation X/Dracula. I hadn't had today's before, so had to hop on that: from 1998, Spider-Man '98, or from the cover, the Amazing Spider-Man with Devil Dinosaur and Moon Boy, "Duel with Devil Dinosaur" Written by Tom DeFalco, pencils by Tom Lyle, inks by Robert Jones.

I'm not sure from when exactly, but Devil Dinosaur and his simian companion Moon Boy have been trapped in the present for some time, long enough for Moon Boy to have learned (terrible) vernacular English from watching TV. Working with a science reporter, Peter Parker visits the research laboratory they've been staying, just in time for them to get a visit from Maynard Tiboldt and Zelda Dubois--better known as the Ringmaster and Princess Python! Somehow, they've gotten the legal paperwork declaring Moon Boy and Devil Dinosaur have been illegally detained by the lab, and should be allowed to go wherever they like, like say, the circus?

Peter of course recognizes the Ringmaster, and knows he's up to something, but confronting him the Ringmaster claims he just wants them for his show, even going so far as to suggest they only became the Circus of Crime because they couldn't compete with other, larger circuses. Peter gets a pass to the first show, noticing the Thing and Matt Murdock in the crowd, and makes sure he's wearing shades to protect himself from hypnosis. Um, citation needed, I'm not sure about that one! Also, Matt is probably there to keep tabs on the Ringmaster; but did Ben? Is he just there for the show, or the off-chance he'll get to punch out a dinosaur...? But the Ringmster doesn't hypnotise anyone, and it's a pretty decent show! Later at the Bugle, Ben Urich asks Peter if he could score more tickets, as he was working on a "busy night on the crime beat," with a number of unusual burglaries. Almost like an acrobat would've had to get in there...

Spidey pieces it together: the Ringmaster must have used hypnosis to get permission to put on his show, but the cops were maintaining a large presence around it, assuming Devil Dinosaur would go rogue at some point. So, less cops in the rest of the city, leaving openings for various Circus of Crime members to committ break-ins between their numbers. Spidey catches a couple in the act, then goes back to the show and fights the Circus and Devil Dinosaur for a bit; before Moon Boy recognizes Peter by his scent, and knows he's cool. After the Circus is wrapped up, Peter suggests a new home for Devil and Moon Boy: the Savage Land! Eh, I guess? Feel like it's blown up a lot.

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80-Page Thursdays: DC's Crimes of Passion #1!

I almost blogged Beach Blanket Bad Guys again, when I needed to get to this issue; which has another fun cover that may or may not line up with the interiors at all. From 2020, DC's Crimes of Passion #1, featuring stories by Steve Orlando, Stephanie Phillips, James Tynion IV and Sam Johns, and others; and art by Greg Smallwood, Andie Tong, Kieran McKeown, Abel, John Paul Leon, and more.

"10 Tales of Lovers and Lawbreakers!" promises the cover, so let's see! In "More Than Maybe" Batman, early in his career, dates a crusading young socialite who doesn't approve of his methods, which kind of puts the kibosh on that one. "Pulling Punches" features Ted Grant in a title fight, that he's losing until the younger fighter throws the bout because his girlfriend had been kidnapped by the mob, and Wildcat has to help get her back.

"Secret Admirer" is a more rare Pied Piper solo, as a rich superhero collector has something to show him: his first pipe, which he used in a bank robbery back in the day, which may have taught this guy to be a douche going forward. "The Crimson Bomber" interrupts Green Arrow and Black Canary's date night, but he's just a confused and jilted teenager trying to blow up his school. As one does.

"The Prettiest Thing!" is a Plastic Man story in the mold of the Gail Simone series; as an ex of Eel's come to him for help getting away from her mob boyfriend. Pretty good! "Out of the Past" has Batwoman and Maggie Sawyer reluctantly work together to bring down Nocturna, who had caused trouble in their relationship before.

Batman unwillingly gives Slam Bradley "One Last Dance," rather, another chance to bring in the thief Nightjar; basically his Catwoman. Slam does about as well as Batman there! Batgirl and Nightwing wonder about their relationship, in "Knightfalls in Bludhaven," and Catwoman steals a necklace and does some freelance marriage counselling for Valentine's Day in "Can't Buy Me Love."

The closer is probably the high point, though: Ram V and John Paul Leon's "Reflections of the Heart." The Question follows what could be a young vigilante, and wonders if the city is trying to make him jealous; but he's not looking deep enough. Ah, I wish there was more of that! Read more!