Wednesday Comics: DC, July 1985 (week 2)

I'm reading DC Comics' output from January 1980 (cover date) through Crisis! This week, I read the comics released the week of April 11, 1985. 

Red Tornado #1: Busiek and Infantino/McLaughlin give Red Tornado his first solo series. It feels like this was maybe greenlit before the new Justice League as the old League shows up in it (though the story specifically says they aren't the League but the "world's major heroes.) Anyway, everyone's done on poor Tornado: Lana Lang says in a news report he can't be trusted. Kathy worries her relationship with his alter ego John Smith won't work because he's passive and unambitious. Even the League shows up to demand he cease operating as a hero. Obviously, a super-villain is beyond it. The Construct is trying to drive a wedge between Red Tornado and humanity by manipulating human thought processes with a signal. I've never been a big fan of "poor misery on the hero" stories, but ultimately it depends on where its going.

Superman #409: The first story is more Silver Age throwback goofiness from Boldman and Swan/Williamson. Ferlin Nyxly, a villain who has apparently appeared before, is up to his old tricks of stealing alien technology and using it to oppose Superman. He does so here, and due to circumstances not worth discussing, Jimmy and then Lois have to "pilot" Superman in his fight with the bad guy.

The second story by Stradley and Schaffenberger/Hunt has Superman fretting his double life, feeling he doesn't give adequate time to either. Maybe he should just be Superman and not Clark Kent? A talk with a tech at GBS convinces him Clark Kent matters too.

Amethyst #7: While traveling, Prince Garnet reveals to Amethyst both where he's been and what it has to do with Fire Jade. We learn that she is the former Lady Emerald who in her youth had been sucked into limbo with Prince Garnet, though she escaped much sooner, she had been tied to the malign creature that ruled there, and when she died of poison, her soul went there and the creature offered her the chance to rule beside him as Fire Jade rather than pass on into the realm of death.

Arak Son of Thunder #46: This was an issue I bought off the spinner rack. The Thomases/Lofficiers and DeZuniga present a story that the series was perhaps begging for: Arak Son of Thunder meets Thor (or Thunor, here) God of Thunder! Arak tells his traveling companions a tale of his time with the Norsemen. Seriously injured in a battle over a beached whale, he's taken by a Valkyrie to Valhalla. Initially, his claim of being the son of a thunder god leads to a brief fight with Thunor, but once he proves able to wield the god's hammer, he as accepted as a brother. After all that, he's returned to Earth.

Batman #385: Moench and Hoberg/Patton bring the Calendar Man case to an end with Batman and Robin apprehending him at the Gotham Zoo, and Robin playing a pivotal role. Batman and Robin reach and agreement regarding their partnership in this issue, with Jason being the voice of reason here. This and him referring to Bruce as a father and him as a son makes it all the more unfortunate that this version of the character got wiped from the comics history in exchange for the more difficult Jason Todd who will get killed by a call-in gimmick and later be resurrected as an anti-hero.

Batman Annual #9: Barr and a group of artists do a series of shorter stories meant to show different aspects of Batman. The first with art by O'Neill/Ordway is the best, with Batman tracking down the killer of the parents of a boy in Jason's class, to keep the boy from being consuming by a desire for revenge as Bruce Wayne was when his parents were killed. The second has art by Nino and has a more bloodthirsty Batman manipulating a group of bankrobbers and a violent terrorist cell into wiping out each other through use of a well-timed cracker (or the Christmas cracker variety). Jurgens/Giordano illustrated Batman solving the murder of a former tennis pro, embittered after being paralyzed in an accident. It's one of those stories that pauses in the middle to give the reader a chance to solve it. The final story with art by Smith is Rashomon-like in that a young child, a teacher, an arsonist, and Batman himself, tell different versions of just how events went done when Batman saved the child from a burning building and took a bullet form the arsonist.

Flash #347: Both sides present their closing arguments in the Flash's trial. Meanwhile, the Reverse-Flash, or someone masquerading as him is taking out the Rogues one by one. Frye decides to return to vigilantism to track the Reverse-Flash down and rashly increases the power on his never-before-mentioned nuclear pacemaker installed by his scientist brother. He manages to get film of the Reverse-Flash, though.

In another strange development, jurist Nathan Newbury appears to have powers of mind control/suggestion. I'm sure he's not going to use those to get the Flash convicted!

Jemm, Son of Saturn #11: This penultimate issue has a some really nice, dynamic work for Colan in places. The White and the Red Saturnians go to war and Jemm and friends try to get back to Earth. On Earth, the gang trying to take out Tull storms his base. Tull has outplayed everyone, though. He stops the war with the power he absorbed by draining the life of the Koolar warrior, then starts draining more White Saturnians. Jemm uses his power to stop him, but it isn't enough until Bouncer, having discovered Tull's lab, his comatose body and the machinery, throws a big piece of it to crush Tull.

Final victory isn't one though, as a Koolar with a grudge against Jemm has kidnapped Luther and taken him to Earth, demanding Jemm face her.

Legion of Super-Heroes #12: In the opening, Levitz and Lightle/Machlan have the Legionnaries taking on group of space pirates using Bgtzll phasing, but most of the issue is about the Legion election and other big changes. Everyone from the new President of Earth to the Science Police is speculating on what the outcome might be. The three founders move to a rotating advisory status and become reservists, and Element Lad again becomes leader. Despite its low-stakes premise, this is a well-done issue that interestingly showcases the importance of the Legion to their world.

Omega Men #28: Klein and McManus continued the weird tale of Wombworld. The six Omega Men scale a furry (at least it looks like it) tower complex of Psions and seem likely to be killed, until Ryand'r seems to convince another alien in the Psion's employ to help them. However, it's revealed the alien almost intended to help them and is working with the entity that runs the station to confound the Psions.

In a "Tales of Vega" short by Steve Parkhouse, two bumbling hunters encounter a crashed starship on a jungle world. The spaceship is active enough that it repeals takes actions to repel the invaders, scaring them away but starting a fire for them to cook their food with.

Star Trek #16: Barr and Sutton/Villagran have Excelsior return to their own universe, but they are hardly greeted as heroes, as Styles in the Christopher Pike backed up by a group of other ships, takes them into custody. Kirk makes a sly play to get what he wants from Starfleet. He leaks his logs to an Andorian reporter assigned to Starfleet, Lyndra Dean. She writes a story revealing the most recent Mirror Universe incursion and Kirk's role in defeating it. Kirk is again a hero, and there are protests outside of Starfleet command in his favor. Starfleet tries to pressure Dean to reveal her source but she doesn't budge.

The Admiralty agrees to give Kirk a ship again--the Excelsior, but they assign Spock to captain a science vessel, Surak. Dean is surprised when flowers are beamed into her apartment with a thank you card from Kirk.

This was a fun issue. one of the best of the week.