Revolutionary War - Omega 1, Miracleman 4

Revolutionary War - Omega 1
Lanning and Cowsill (w) and Elson (a) and Rosenberg (c)

Killpower has emerged from Hell as Mephisto's servant and he's intent on bring Hell to Earth and making his former friends pay for leaving him behind and forgetting about him. Some of the plot, including how the demons were able to get through to Earth and some of the specifics of the plan, comes to light but that's for yesterday and today is for taking down Killpower and his demons. The heroes who were captured and linked up to the portal to power it are freed and immediately dive back into the fight, as do all the heroes we've seen so far. Even Liger manages to keep moving, trying to call the wounded heroes to action. Demons are attacking all over the world and it's up to the UK heroes to stop it. When all hope seems lost, Motormouth appears and stuns Killpower enough that he comes to his senses a bit. Not a boy any longer, he recognizes that he's done bad things and that he can't escape them and that Mephisto used the rage deep down inside to control him. He begs that they kill him before he loses control to it again and, while Captain Britain and Motormouth refuse, plenty of the mercenary characters hear his plea and accommodate him. With Killpower dead, Dark Angel is able to use his mind and the demonic power of all the demons around to force Hell back down and close the portal for good. There's some wrap-up as the heroes go their separate ways; Dark Angel continues to be bound to Mephisto, Liger and Keller (now free of his demon) enter the portal to try to save Kether Troop, Captain Britain and Pete Wisdom return to their roles, etc. Captain Britain sends us off, saying that there's a history of secrets, murder, and magic beneath London but that the streets and heroes belong to the future.

It's a fine send-off as everything wraps up rather nicely. Not everyone could be saved but it's a nice introduction to a lot of these characters who are primed to go off on their own adventures should anyone feel the urge to write them or to follow them. One of the downfalls of this series, simply through its design, is that it's really hard to get a sense of a lot of the characters. Many appeared only in one book prior to this finale, where everyone appeared but no one character had much screentime, and those books were all team books of a sort, barring perhaps Dark Angel and Motormouth. As a result, a couple of the characters (like Dark Angel and Motormouth) are characterized fairly well, at least as well as a single issue can cover, while others hardly feel explored at all. Hopefully a series like this does lead to more sorts of events or interactions with the Marvel Universe et al (Dark Angel has already made her way over to IRON MAN and characters like Captain Britain, Pete Wisdom, and Union Jack are no strangers to many of the more-known heroes) because there's clearly plenty to see here, even if this event wasn't a great place to see it all. At the end of the day though, isn't that the best outcome for which this series could have hoped? That people out there would read it all the way through and say "I'm not sure that was my cup of tea (British), but I'd be interested in seeing more of these characters?" Mission accomplished, I'd say.

Miracleman 4
A. Moore (w) and A. Davis and Leach (a) and Oliff (c)

HEY EVERYONE, before I start this review it's worth noting that I missed the last issue because I had other things going on and this was the easiest book to cut from my schedule. Now that it's back on there, I'll recap very briefly: Miracleman and Kid Miracleman, now not a kid and totally evil and super-duper powerful, fought some more and just when it looked like KM would win, he accidentally said "Miracleman" and changed back to little 13 year-old Johnny Bates. He was taken into care as he seemed like he wasn't responsible for the actions of the villain but we know that that villain is still in him, just biding his time. Meanwhile, the government sent out an old project they'd abandoned when they thought supers were gone, a failsafe plan, and they sent him, a man named Evelyn Cream, to kill Miracleman. Miracleman learns some more about his powers with his wife Liz and Liz reveals that she's pregnant and it's Miracleman's kid, if there's any difference between Michael and Miracle. Michael goes two months later to see if there's work for him at the newspaper and, on his way home, Cream shoots him in the gut, using a baby as a hostage so he can't transform into MM. Now on to this issue!

Evelyn Cream shot Mike Moran with tranquilizers and brought him back to a safehouse. In that safehouse, he explains that he's betrayed his employers but he's done it because he believes Miracleman can help him and that he can help Miracleman. He informs him that Miracleman was created by a branch of the government called the Spookshow for a project called Project Zarathustra and that the Spookshow is responsible for the A-bomb that nearly killed him and killed his friend Young Miracleman. He also tells Miracleman that there's a bunker for Project Zarathustra still out there, a bunker that the Spookshow's chief Sir Dennis Archer doesn't want found. He also warns MM that the trip could be dangerous and full of traps but MM has no problem with that and the two take off. He has no problem as soldiers come to kill him and land mines go off around him and even as a bomb erupts beneath his feet. The final defense, a failed and now crazed superhero borne from Project Zarathustra named Big Ben, also fails to even slow MM and soon he and Cream are in the bunker, examining video reports where MM learns that he and the other two young men were experimented on after being pulled from the system as simply the orphaned children of war veterans. What's more, they had done extensive testing on the would-be heroes in a sort of virtual reality environment that had kept them under for eight years and had instilled false memories in them. The tipping point for MM is finding out that the brains behind Project Zarathustra is none other than his one time perceived biggest villain Emil Gargunza. He trashes the bunker, causing thousands of pounds of damage, and the two depart, leaving Big Ben, who heard about his failed origin, nearly comatose behind them.

It continues to be a really interesting story (it's hard to keep saying that because it's a story that's thirty years old and it's impossible to be anything but absurdly late to this party) and one that pretty masterfully updates the old comics for this new world and new universe. I've given a lot of credit in recent days to books like IRON MAN, which took the original origin of a character and shifted it just enough so that there's a wealth of new stories and a huge twist for the character but still respected everything that came before. Likewise, Ed Brubaker did a fantastic job in CAPTAIN AMERICA of rewriting the Invaders and aging Bucky a bit to make it more believable while simultaneously showing him as doing more of the black ops kind of stuff the Invaders needed to have done, an origin for Bucky that makes far more sense but still carefully treads around the old comics. In the reverse, I talked just earlier THIS DAY about a terrible change to an origin when Marvel decided to ruin Falcon's first appearance by retconning it to all be a ploy to get at Captain America while also setting back his character a solid few decades. This one certainly lands in the category of the former examples as Moore wonderfully respected the early stories, leaving them intact, but made the story entirely his own and updated it to work in a world that was far more cynical and wanted something darker, like Moore and Frank Miller were able to provide. It's impressive stuff and good storytelling. The books tend to be a little wordy as the narration tends to really kick it up a notch in a way that modern comics rarely do but you hardly notice it while you're reading because it's usually worthwhile stuff. This one's a classic for a reason, keep checking in on it.

Marvel Knights Hulk 4, Revolutionary War - Warheads 1

Marvel Knights Hulk 4
Keatinge (w) and Kowalski (a) and Filardi (c)

Nikoleta Harrow has brought Banner to the site of the first gamma bomb, the site where Hulk was born. She brings him underground and he realizes that she's allowed AIM to trace them and to follow them there before she reveals that she's also gotten her hands on another gamma bomb and left it on the surface. It goes off and wrecks through AIM's forces. As Banner hulks out, she injects herself with the serum they've created and attacks Hulk as a Hulk herself. she momentarily stops him but he ultimately brings her down and she dies, as she knew she would when she brought him there. SHIELD agent Molly Fitzgerald shows up to bring Banner back in and to answer his questions about the damage he's done. He returns to Paris briefly to apologize to the woman who found him and took care of him before his life returns to what it had been.

I will admit, I was somewhat distracted reading this issue wondering why I hadn't figured out Nikoleta Harrow before this issue. MORBIUS THE LIVING VAMPIRE wasn't that long ago and I clearly knew that Keatinge had written both. I should have recognized Harrow from her brief role in Morbius' adventures. Maybe I would have cared a little more about this series if I had some minor background for its villain. It's hard to say, though, because it takes a special HULK book to make me care too much about people trying to replicate the Hulk conditions and become Hulks. I just can't bring myself to care (I also have trouble with the "I want to recreate the super soldier serum!" storylines and anything all along those lines. Not as much trouble, mind you, and there certainly can be good stories centered around those but by and large they're mostly kind of tired storylines). Keatinge wrote a wrap-up letter at the end that talks about he and artist Piotr Kowalski's desire to get into Banner as a character, to get into what separates him and the weirdness inside of both him and Hulk. I don't think they really hit it. I wonder if a longer series would have given them the chance but this one just felt too rushed and too bogged down in its own story to really care about character until the very end.

Revolutionary War - Warheads 1
Lanning and Cowsill (w) and Erskine (a) and Zamor (c)

Colonel Tigon Liger has been hearing voices calling to him from Hell, the voices of Kether Troop, the team he had to leave behind the last time they stopped Mys-Tech. He goes to one of the Master Keys, a wizard who can open a portal provided he has some information on it first, to try to get him to open a portal to Hell to pull his team out after all this time. Agent Keller meets them at the SHIELD building in England only to find that someone's been building a portal on a missing thirteenth floor. It turns out, unfortunately for Liger, that the builder was none other than Keller himself, possessed by a Psycho-Wraith and prepared to use the captured British heroes (including Captain Britain and Dark Angel, plus others) as surrogates for the Mys-Tech board to open the gate to Hell and unleash a revolution on Britain and the world. Liger is unable to stop Keller now that he has a Master Key there and the portal is reared up and ready to go. It's not Mys-Tech coming out, though, it's Hell's new "liege lord" and Mephisto's chosen champion Killpower.

I've been a bit hard on REVOLUTIONARY WAR as a whole but I stand behind just about everything I've said so far. I think that the tone, by and large, hasn't corresponded with the intended drama of the book and I think that the exposition of who everyone is and the history of these characters has interfered with the storytelling of this book. That aside for this review, I think WARHEADS was just about the most coherent and best standalone issue of this event (aside from maybe DARK ANGEL, which read extremely well even without a lot of context). It really felt dedicated to telling the story and to keeping a consistent tone, which was a huge difference maker. I still think there was a bundle of exposition, maybe bordering on too much, but I've always understood why that was going to happen in this series, even if I wasn't in favor of it. This one, once it starts to get away from the history of the Kether Troop, does a solid job presenting a threat and making us understand why it's a threat. It's still a little confusing but I'm willing to take the blame on being confused. Solid work. Hopefully it's paved the way enough to make the upcoming conclusion, REVOLUTIONARY WAR - OMEGA, powerful and meaningful.

Miracleman 1, Revolutionary War - Dark Angel 1

Miracleman 1
Anglo (w and a) and D. Lawrence (a) and Moore (w) and Leach (a) and Oliff (c)

It's a re-release for Marvelman/Miracleman as MIRACLEMAN 1 kicks off with a triple size issue. In the issue are stories from original Miracleman creator Mick Anglo, including one where the Miracleman Family, comprising of Miracleman, Young Miracleman, and Kid Miracleman, is roped into a tale of time travel and science fiction when invaders from 25 years in the future, the year 1981, come back to good, old 1956 to wreak havoc, solved when Miracleman and Young Miracleman travel to 1981 and stop their time-travel ships before they can get off the ground, creating something of a paradox but it was 1956 so WHO WOULD POSSIBLY CARE? (Doc Brown would, as a note) The issue moves from the Mick Anglo story to Alan Moore's reboot, WARRIOR, in 1982 (Moore's name is carefully removed from all parts of this book, per his own wishes). In the present (1982, keep up), Michael Moran has been living with his wife Liz for a decade and a half and has no memories of his history as Miracleman, save for some migraines and dreams of flying. Michael's freelance journalist job brings him, though, to what quickly turns into hostage situation. Unfortunately, he is one of those taken hostage but FORTUNATELY he sees the word "atomic" backwards which makes him remember his life as Miracleman. Shouting "Kimota!" he becomes Miracleman again for the first time in twenty years and ends the terrorist threat, returning home that night to talk to Liz about his powers and what he can remember. After a full synopsis of his history, he reveals that the last thing he remembers as Miracleman is a mission that pit him and Young and Kid up against arch-nemesis Gargunza, a mission that would result in Miracleman discovering that the Miracleman Family is not invulnerable to the A-bomb. The last thing he saw was Young Miracleman, who, with Kid, had dove straight into the action, pretty much exploding in front of him. Miracleman came crashing down to Earth in bad shape and didn't wake up for two months, forgetting everything he had been before that. As he explains everything to Liz, someone else who remembers Miracleman sees the news footage from the day and curses Miracleman. The issue ends with an interview between Joe Quesada and Mick Anglo, some concept drawings, and a couple more Anglo stories.

Solid execution here as Marvel brings a 1980s series based on a 1950s character into the 2010s. It's the Back to the Future trifecta (I almost wish I hadn't referenced Doc Brown above but I did and I never wanna stop so it's okay). Of course, this is only issue one so I don't want to heap too much praise on it (lest it turn a Back to the Future II on me) but presumably the art restoration will, if nothing else does, keep up the way it's going and the book looks great. The colors are well done (Moore's original book was black and white) and the art looks crisp as ever. I'll admit that I don't have a background with MIRACLEMAN so I'm one of those people who is just glad that it's getting reprinted since it's so hard to find anywhere. I don't know how much of these reviews will be about story (as these are stories that have already been published, up until they get to the new material from Gaiman) but that's okay with me, if my reviews end up a little shorter on these books on the whole (obviously not this issue, okay). I'll probably just talk about Back to the Future more, which is ALSO totally great with me.

Revolutionary War - Dark Angel 1
Gillen (w) and D. Smith (a) and R. Redmond (c)

Another peek into Marvel UK as current comic superstar Kieron Gillen gives us a one-shot for the hero Dark Angel (Shevaun Hadley) which grants her a somewhat self-contained story that plays into the scale of this event and goes a little deeper into the story while also giving us a pretty full rundown on the character. Dark Angel's father was a member of Mys-Tech who was, of course, killed by Mephisto after trying to break their deal in the modern day. Shevaun was granted powers as part of the deal, as Gillen puts it, and fought against Mys-Tech. Still, the debt her father and his cronies accrued needs to be paid off so Shevaun has to help Mephisto with things here and there, leaving very little time and power for her own exploits (kind of cool about Shevaun's power: there is a daily limit to them). The terms of the deal are particularly hard on her as Mys-Tech begins to rise again and she's forced to fight some of their hidden tech before she's chased by one of the biggest techs her father ever created, Psycho-Wraith Prime. With no will left to fight, she summons Mephisto and asks for a new deal, one that will take her powers away in the hopes that it will keep them from Mys-Tech. Mephisto has her sign a new contract but, you know, he's Mephisto so it all goes rather belly-up as she's sucked into the contract and Psycho-Wraith Prime gets his hands on her anyway, finding, as Mephisto says, one sixth of the power he needs. Life ends, your debts live on.

As this event is still pretty young, I'm very interested in how it's going to play out going forward. There's clearly a big story here but it's only got a set amount of time to explain itself as every book seems to be something of a one-shot that happens to tie in to the main plot. Because every book is focused on a different character or team or set of characters (not necessarily in team form) and most of these characters aren't well-known by US audiences, part of the issue has to be dedicated to explaining who a character is, what he or she is (roughly) about, and what his or her powers are. That means that issues like this one read a little bit slower and it puts the writer in a tricky spot of knowingly slowing their pace down to make sure the audience is mostly on the same page. Despite that, Gillen does a good job to get the gist of the character across and to give her a real chip on her shoulder, helping to fully realize Shevaun. At the end of it all, it's very much a story about the sins of the father (pretty explicitly) and the idea that, as Shevaun puts it, "we paid for their Heaven and now we live in their Hell." It's a good story, she's a good character, we get a little bit of the Mys-Tech story, and Dietrich Smith's art is perfect for the issue. Next up: the Knights of Pendragon, featuring UNION JACK! You guys, I love Union Jack.