CARNAGE versus NEW AVENGERS

Breakout! Part Two (Marvel)
Where: New Avengers #2 When: February 2005
Why: Brian Michael Bendis How: David Finch

The Story So Far...
A sequence of violence and tragedy leads The Avengers to officially disassemble, but their absence creates a gaping hole in the heroic fabric that demands it be filled!

When Electro is hired to stage a breakout at the high-tech SHIELD prison, The Raft, he plunges the city of Manhattan into darkness, and frees eighty-seven of its most dangerous super-criminals!

Fate conspires to bring together a team of New Avengers to thwart the breakout! Former Spider-Woman Jessica Drew is on the island as an Agent of SHIELD, while Luke Cage was accompanying Daredevil in his civilian identity of blind lawyer Matt Murdock. When the breakout begins - the trio must fight for their lives as the serial killing Carnage stalks the shadowy halls beneath the island, but the deadly symbiote isn't the only one lurking in the dark...

Tale of the Tape...
Strength: Luke Cage 5 (Super-Human)
Intelligence: Queen Veranke 4 (Tactician)
Speed: Daredevil 4 (Olympian)
Stamina: Luke Cage 5 (Marathoner)
Agility: Queen Veranke 4 (Gymnast)
Fighting: Daredevil 5 (Martial Artist)
Energy: Queen Veranke 3 (Explosives)
Total: Queen Veranke 26 (Metahuman)

Being trapped at close quarters with a fleet of escaping super-villains is bad enough. When one of those escapees happens to be the symbiote-wearing serial killer Carnage -- you know you're in real trouble!

The heroes are: Matt Murdock, Luke Cage, and Jessica Drew, with The Sentry.

This small group happens to be on hand when the breakout occurs. They aren't technically Avengers yet, but this experience will pull most of them into the orbit of a new team to be assembled by Captain America and Iron Man.

Blind lawyer Matt Murdock is better known as Daredevil, whose keen radar-senses, agility, and skilled martial arts mostly offer evasive tactics that might provide a useful distraction for an opponent like Carnage.

Luke Cage is the power player of the opening trio. Along with his super-human strength and durability, his unbreakable skin has proven resistant to symbiote attack, as was later seen in New Avengers #36. That means he should at least be able to tackle Carnage head-on and offer his teammates some defense.

SHIELD Agent Jessica Drew is better known as Spider-Woman, but little do the heroes realise she is in actual fact the shape-shifting Skrull Queen: Veranke! 

Like the woman she's imitating, Veranke has great strength, agility, and wall-crawling abilities comparable to Spider-Man, but has the added imitated talent of generating bio-electricity into stinging venom blasts.

We saw Iron Man use an electric charge to fend off Venom in Iron Man #302, but the symbiote was relatively undeterred. The aliens' real weakness is fire and high-powered sonics, but as we saw when Silver Surfer confronted Carnage, the intelligent symbiote also knows to fear more broad threats to its survival.

The ace in the hole - or rather, a Raft cell - is The Sentry, whose "power of a  million exploding suns" is still nebulously defined at this point, but will make light work of The Thing and Hulk a few years later.

Sentry, aka; Robert Reynolds, will need to be motivated to leave his cell and risk reviving the dark alter-ego of his powers, The Void, but once free we know he can stare down a symbiote without too much trouble. If you know anything about the character or this fight, there's a pretty good chance you know what's coming...

The Tape: New Avengers Ranking: Daredevil (#8)

What Went Down...

With a full scale riot raging across The Raft; Matthew Murdock leads his partner and protection detail deeper into the facility. He pleads with the silent occupant of a dark & lonely prison cell: "Mr. Reynolds, please, we could really use your help."

His words appear to fall on deaf ears and with danger lurking beyond them at every turn, he asks SHIELD Agent Jessica Drew to show them to the stairs.

A spark of her Spider-Woman "venom blast" helps light the darkened corridor, but not enough to alert Luke Cage or the other bewildered agents of the toothy grin lurking in the shadows behind Foggy Nelson.

Foggy's indignant concern for "insanity" catching up with them is an unfortunate irony as the serial killer Carnage steps into the light. His large extending hand and symbiote strands curl in the air around the hapless lawyer.

Murdock charges to his friend's aid while Jessica Drew fires a venom blast directly at the murderous symbiote!

Whipping tendrils miss all but the strongest of the group. Luke Cage takes a direct hit to the gut, but against his toughened skin all that tears is his shirt!

Cage does his best to grapple with darting pseudo-appendages while Carnage sets his sights on Spider-Woman and any "one" of her internal organs.

Matt Murdock rushes Foggy to the relative safety of a nearby empty cell and orders him not to open the door under any circumstances. The terrified lawyer complies, entrusting his fate to the man without fear like so many times before.

Many wild tendrils fill the dark and narrow corridor with spastic chaos, searching for any unfortunate target they might strike. Murdock is easily knocked off his feet as one of them slaps him violently.

Agent Drew warns her compatriots of the symbiote's ability to feed off the people it makes contact with. The warning appears to inspire Carnage to lunge toward the shooting guards and make "easy snacks" of them.

Carnage continues trying to pierce Luke Cage's unbreakable skin in vain, while Agent Drew blasts his back with venom blasts to no avail.

Recognizing the hopelessness of the situation, Murdock tells the Spider-Woman to grab the guards and make a run for it. He doesn't notice the hulking figure approaching behind him to make matters much worse: Mister Hyde!

Any pretense of the blind lawyer is dropped as Matt Murdock is dragged into a one-on-one battle with his old adversary, calling upon his radar-like senses and years of martial arts as Daredevil to deal with the threat.

Meanwhile, a slightly bewildered Luke Cage continues to wrestle with Carnage. 

Agent Drew, still blasting the symbiote with her bio-electric stings, informs him that the villain usually deals with Spider-Man -- a second course Carnage hopes to sample once he's finished devouring his present company. Drew moves in closer to feed the symbiote a direct venom blast down its gaping maw!

Still completely unaware of how the Raft breakout happened, or the rampage of its 87 inmates raging on the surface above; Agent Drew redirects her focus to finding an escape, and calling for much-needed reinforcements.

Her prayers are answered as Robert Reynolds steps confidently through the corridor. Imprisoned in his tattered yellow uniform, the forgotten Sentry is none the less a vision of a hero as he stands before Carnage and catches a symbiote tendril with the palm of his unflinching hand.

It is the calm before the storm as reality is bombarded with the impossible power of a million exploding suns! A barrage of explosions blast through the lower levels of The Raft and into the night sky where The Sentry soon flies!

Clouds part as The Sentry carries Carnage toward Earth's outer atmosphere and silently ends the killer's rampage!

No scream is heard as Cletus Kasady is ripped in two at the waist, and the red symbiote flitters helplessly against a backdrop of stars and a blue planet. The cold reality of defeat like Carnage has never felt before!

The Hammer...

I'm guessing the majority of people reading this were already aware of The Sentry flying to space to rip Carnage in two, but I'm not so sure everybody knows there was an entire struggle before that.

The Sentry's attack was one of the most talked about moments of 2005. It was an immediate sensation! A "meme-able" lightning rod for the otherwise visually muddy prison riot intended to deliver us to a fresh perspective on a Marvel mainstay: The New Avengers.

All these years later it's almost hard to remember it was a controversial time for what is now one of Marvel's biggest mainstream brands.

Writer Brian Bendis took a wrecking ball to the classical lineup, abruptly launching a series of deadly attacks from within and without as Avengers Disassembled.

The violent affront riled up longtime fans who were dismayed to see Avengers (Vol.1) come to an abrupt end after a forty-two year run with only one year-long interruption. The revamp was an even bigger departure than The Ultimates, which had retooled the slightly stuffy Avengers concept with edgy modern politics, and uniform seams, for the en vogue Ultimate Marvel imprint in 2002.

This was hardly the first time The Avengers had dealt with upheaval in their lineups, but unwritten rules were clearly being violated.

The knock on the New Avengers strategy was that it was "JLA-ing" the group. The addition of iconic Avengers holdouts like Spider-Man and Wolverine -- and the Superman-analogous Sentry -- contributed to the comparison. These were independently popular characters associated with other offices.

In practise the "New" relaunch wasn't quite as all-star focused as Grant Morrison's '97 Justice League, nor was it a refinement of a classic model. It was a major departure from what was broadly understood as "Avengers™".

Spider-Man had flirted with membership many times in the past, but always swung away from most groupings with Reserve status at most. He was the star of Marvel Team-Up and the centre of the Marvel Universe, but a perennial solo act at the end of the day. His change of heart comes after being mobbed by Raft escapees in the opening New Avengers issues -- a fight for another day.

Daredevil did a more convincing job staying solo by flat-out turning down Captain America's recruitment offer after Raft riot clean-up. It turns out this was an accidental bit of consistency as DD's incumbent secret identity as mystery man "Ronin" was widely guessed by fans, publicly spoiled by a news outlet, and clashed with ideas for ending Bendis' acclaimed DD run with Murdock in prison.

Slow starts were a writer trademark, but it turned out a lot of parts would be sold separately during the chaotic assembly of the New Avengers.

Extensive pre-promotion had featured art of the entire group -- including an affectionately referred to "bubble boy" that was replaced with what became the Ronin design. That made it surprising when Wolverine and Ronin didn't appear for five or more issues. Spider-Woman, it would turn out, was actually a Skrull in disguise all along, and Sentry didn't come back down to Earth until the second story arc, which focused on his formal introduction to the Marvel Universe canon.

Prior to this The Sentry had effectively existed unto himself. His secret history was told with isolated one-shots and mini-series in 2000. It was writer Paul Jenkins' millennium hoax, which supposed that the character was a forgotten creation from Marvel's classic pantheon. A sort of 'Superman with headaches', as Marvel likes to describe of its heroes, with an elaborate backstory.

Without the burden of consequence, Sentry's secret history had been able to rewrite the status quo for several heroes. He was Mister Fantastic's best friend, mentored Angel, made Hulk a beloved public figure, and got Peter Parker a Pulitzer prize for photography. All undone when knowledge of his existence was erased to avoid unleashing his dark nemesis and alter-ego: The Void.

Officially bringing the character into the on-going Marvel Universe seemed like a risky proposition to many, but also an interesting challenge. The bombastic defeat of Carnage gave him a major scalp upon entry, but the glib dismissal of a nineties hangover wasn't enough to convince everyone the idea could work.

After Civil War Sentry passed through the ranks of the registered "Mighty" Avengers, before a direction leaning into fans' disdain placed him among the villainous Dark Avengers. An epic battle in World War Hulk proved to be a rare highlight during the short run, but after just five years, his death in Siege was a widely expected foregone conclusion. A fail state brought about by a long awaited return of Thor, and short-lived shift towards a somewhat traditional Avengers.

If you'd like to experience The Sentry's re-entry into the Marvel canon, and the dawn of the New Avengers, you can check out today's featured fight in its entirety collected in New Avengers: Breakout or New Avengers by Brian Michael Bendis: The Complete Collection Volume 1.

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Secret Wars on Infinite Earths has featured well over 600 battles and ranked more than 1000 characters! You can discover them all by following links throughout this post, or by diving into the Secret Archive for a complete index of featured fights in order of publisher, series, and issue number!

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Winner: The Sentry (w/ Luke Cage, Jessica Drew & Matt Murdock)
#71 (+51) The Sentry
#8 (--) Daredevil [+1 assist]
#9 (--) Luke Cage [+1 assist]
#194 (+101) Queen Veranke [+1 assist]
#133 (-12) Carnage (Symbiote)
#145 (-10) Carnage (Cletus Kasady)

TOMBSTONE versus LUKE CAGE & IRON FIST

The Boys Are Back (Marvel)
Where: Power Man and Iron Fist #1 When: April 2016
Why: David Walker How: Sanford Greene

The Story So Far...
It's been many years since Luke Cage and Danny Rand operated as the famous Heroes for Hire. For a while they were underground heroes, and even charter members of The Avengers! Now they're just two guys reuniting with an old friend being released from prison.

Jennie Royce was the Heroes for Hire office manager until the apparent death of Danny Rand. In the years following she worked for Crime-Buster, but was convicted for a manslaughter committed under possession.

After five years of legal funding from Danny Rand,;Jennie is finally exonerated of her crimes and free to return to what remains of her life. Still feeling guilty about her fate, Danny offers to do anything to help her make the transition, and there's only one thing she can think of: her grandmother's necklace.

Now Luke Cage is reluctantly along for the ride with Iron Fist, and heading into Tombstone's den to find the lost trinket. Jennie says it was taken from Crime-Buster's locker by debt collectors while she was possessed (and killing him), but as the former Heroes for Hire are about to learn, there may be magic afoot!

Tale of the Tape...
Strength: Luke Cage 5 (Super-Human)
Intelligence: Iron Fist 4 (Tactician)
Speed: Iron Fist 4 (Olympian)
Stamina: Luke Cage 5 (Marathoner)
Agility: Iron Fist 4 (Gymnast)
Fighting: Iron Fist 6 (Warrior)
Energy: Iron Fist 3 (Explosives)
Total: Iron Fist 28 (Metahuman)

He's baaack! It's the return of a Secret Wars on Infinite Earths favourite in his most contemporary incarnation!

In 2016 we find Tombstone firmly entrenched behind the desk of an urban crime boss. He commands a small army of street thugs and goons who seem to be doing most of his bidding. He's no Kingpin, but he's clearly carved out his niche in the busy world of New York organized crime.

Of course, there are many phases to Lonnie Lincoln - the man known as Tombstone. The chalk-faced albino started out relying on intimidation to cultivate his criminal persona. He emerged with plans to blackmail Daily Bugle editor Robbie Robertson early in his career. Wearing a crisp suit and jockeying for power, he became a target for Spider-man in Spectacular Spider-man #142.

An accident exposed Tombstone to experimental chemicals that gave him bona fide super-human strength and durability. These powers turned Tombstone into a more common super-thug for a time, finding an equal match in the solo Luke Cage seen in Cage #3! He went full super-villain as a member of the Sinister Twelve in Marvel Knights: Spider-man #11, reverting to a more classic mob enforcer when he clashed with Daredevil overseas, in Daredevil #90 and #91!

Only the former of Tombstone's two European vacations with Daredevil resulted in a victory. A losing record made all the worse given he was beaten as part of The Untouchables team when he faced one-half of today's opponents!

Luke Cage & Iron Fist aren't getting back together in 2016. They aren't doing the super-hero thing, they aren't Heroes for Hire, Cage isn't even Power Man. Just a couple of guys helping out a friend... Except they are back!

These two have been together through a whole heckuva lot. We've seen them tag team in the eighties against Constrictor & Sabretooth [Power Man & Iron Fist #66] and Man Mountain Marko & Eel [Power Man & Iron Fist #92], spend time apart in the 90s before restarting Heroes for Hire, then reconvene in the mid-2000s to fight Iron Man's pro-registration Avengers [Civil War #3], Skrull Queen Veranke and The Hand [New Avengers #27], alien symbiotes [New Avengers #36] and even each other [New Avengers #2]!

What does all of this mean? Nothing good for Tombstone! He might be able to go toe to toe with either one of Luke Cage and Iron Fist, but against both he's in real trouble. Numbers are the only advantage he has, but our heroes are well versed in smacking fools down.

History: Luke Cage (1-0-0)
The Tape: Luke Cage & Iron Fist Ranking: Luke Cage (#8)

What Went Down...
When inquiries sound like accusations - Tombstone gets mighty mad. There's one thing worse than being called a thief in his own house, though. That's a man bringing a living weapon with him to do it! Iron Fist may be sitting quiet, but he doesn't have the history Luke Cage and Tombstone do. Bad news.

Iron Fist warns masked goons shifting around him not to go down this path. Once they do -- the living weapon springs into action! An advancing arm bends the wrong way! Iron Fist's equally sturdy elbow collides with jaw! Blood sprays!

Cage has no choice but to join the fray. A trio of heavies come at him and he puts his one-time eponymous power to good use! They wrestle as the scene devolves into an all-out melee, Iron Fist still kung-fu fighting in the background!

Under cover of chaos, Iron Fist makes for the necklace that started it all, while Cage finishes off Tombstone's goons. With no more foot soldiers to rely on, the boss steps up to get in his old foe's face!

Tombstone warns the heroes they're being set up -- but it falls on deaf ears.

A shot from Cage sends double-tough Tombstone flying through the brickwork of his own establishment! He lands crumbled in the street amongst the rubble, still unheard as he tries to warn the heroes of the magic peril they're in for.

The Hammer...
It's safe to say they're well on their way to being "back" -- and kicking butt like it never went out of style! Luke Cage & Iron Fist are our undisputed victors in a short, but very sweet brawl!

Cage had the honor of delivering the winning blow to old foe Tombstone, but Iron Fist was there beating up the gang, too. So it's a double-win. If you're interested to see what that means for the stats, make sure you check out the bottom of this entry.

As good as it is to be back talking about the one-time Heroes for Hire: the  real breakout combination here is David Walker and Sanford Greene!

They're the writer/artist collaboration responsible for this newest volume of Power Man & Iron Fist -- and it's one damn fine comic!

Issue #1 is deserving of particular praise! I would have to call it the single best first issue I've read in almost a decade! That isn't a very large sample size when compared with previous decades, but that's praise in and of itself. It's been an ugly seven years for Marvel and DC relaunches. This one clearly got it right!

The first issue wastes no time introducing the characters, their basic world, their basic connection, and the thrust of where they're going next. There's fun, feelings, a classic villain, plenty of action, and reasons to want to keep reading!

The first bite is with the eye, and this series makes sure it grabs your attention with a striking aesthetic style! I'm inclined to think back to the praise I heaped on All-New Ghost Rider, which didn't have the gravitas of Power Man & Iron Fist (or the immediate first issue thrust), but led with a strong visual style.

Sanford Greene has pencil lines that evoke a certain European flavor, something kinda like Kano, with hints of the funky physicality of a Paul Pope. There's an emotive range from the minimal to hyper-expressive that makes me think of the animation influences that creep in with more recent artists. The urban vibe and occasional deforming fish-eye close-up makes me think of Takeshi Koike. What ever Green is doing -- it's unique, suitable, and very cool!

Lee Loughridge as colorist is a major influence on the overall aesthetic vibe. Warm, golden colours play to a nostalgic hue that doesn't really reflect the Power Man & Iron Fist comics that existed in the 70s and early 80s -- but evoke the glow of their memory. This may be a 2016 relaunch with #1 printed on the cover -- but its of a continuum that started with Volume 1. At times, you'll forget the paper is slick and pricey.

Some of the way the series straddles the past and present must be down to David Walker. These days Marvel writers don't always seem to know the world they're entering, but I can believe Walker has walked these streets before. His use of Tombstone really hits my sweet spot. The gag about his trademark whisper -- sometimes overlooked, especially in other media -- got me giddy!

It isn't laid on too thick. You don't need to be a Marvel scholar to get a kick out of the series. If you know your stuff, you might just get a little extra out of it. Read between the lines and you can sense the history between characters. Tombstone isn't his old fist-fighting self, but it still feels like the guy who threw down with Power Man back in Cage #3. In the second issue, there's even a flashback right outta Power Man & Iron Fist #66! Superb!

Of course, just as the colours aren't really what Power Man & Iron Fist comics used to be, these versions of the characters aren't identical, either.

Cage has matured as a father and a hero, getting more serious (and well dressed). Oh, yeah. He says "fiddle faddle" now, too. Danny Rand has gone the other way, becoming enthusiastic to a point of goofiness. He's a little more sports-street casual in his style, too. You've gotta love the Bruce Lee jumpsuit by way of Adidas. I love the classic, but this is a very stylish design!

There are modern influences on the series that should please more recent fans. Cage's relationship with Jessica Jones delivers a couple of choice cameos and yucks about the impending reunion with Iron Fist.

With Netflix making live-action shows based on all these characters, they're at a premium. Right now, there are competing solo series starring Cage, Iron Fist, and Jones, as well as The Defenders team book that combines all three with Daredevil! Power Man & Iron Fist really does well to carve out a niche that I hope will sustain it at least throughout the boom of popularity, if not beyond.

With Marvel in the throes of a weird sort of identity crisis that's rumored to be shifting back to classic characters -- this book feels ahead of the trend! With or without "Generations", it definitely feels like the kind of pick-up-and-enjoy series Marvel Comics should be publishing! It's a fun time that hasn't got too tangled up in other events or series.

If you're looking to get a taste of Power Man & Iron Fist yourself, be sure to use the Amazon purchase link provided [right]! Doing so supports the site at no extra cost, and helps keep the wars infinite!

If you've got an appetite for more from these characters be sure to follow links littered throughout this post, or this week's Iron Fist Hero of the Week! You can also dive in to the Secret Issue Index to cross-reference hundreds of featured fights by publisher, series and issue!

Follow, like & share on Facebook and Twitter to get daily links to classic fights inspired by the topics of the day! March is a month of martial arts mayhem inspired by the official release of Iron Fist on Netflix today! We're done with Marvel's kung-fu hero for now, but he'll be back in August! Stay tuned!

Winners: Luke Cage & Iron Fist
#8 (--) Luke Cage
#16 (+2) Iron Fist
#373 (-2) Tombstone

MAN MOUNTAIN MARKO & EEL versus HEROES FOR HIRE

Riding Shotgun! (Marvel)
Where: Power Man & Iron Fist #92 When: April 1983 Why: Kurt Busiek How: Denys Cowan

The Story So Far...
A recent near-miss with the Human Torch has led Maggia heavyweight Hammerhead back to police custody! His organized crime connections are itching to help the super-mobster fly the coup, forcing authorities to relocate him to a prison facility upstate, away from crooked ties.

Moving a villain with the super-strong ramming capabilities of Hammerhead takes a specially design maximum security containment vehicle -- and a special escort to make sure nothing shady happens on the way. Enter: The Heroes For Hire!

Iron Fist Danny Rand has accepted the gig for a reasonable fee. All he and Power Man have to do is make sure the truck reaches its destination without incident. Piece of cake, right? Nahhh! The Maggia are planning to spring their boy en route. Watch your backs, Heroes for Hire! Trouble's coming your way!

Tale of the Tape...
Strength: Luke Cage 5 (Super-Human)
Intelligence: Iron Fist 4 (Tactician)
Speed: Iron Fist 4 (Olympian)
Stamina: Luke Cage 5 (Marathoner)
Agility: Iron Fist 4 (Gymnast)
Fighting: Iron Fist 6 (Warrior)
Energy: Eel 4 (Arsenal)

Total: Iron Fist 28 (Metahuman)

How do you feel about a little tag team action? We've got a couple of unranked ringers ready to take down the Heroes for Hire! They were hired to stage a jailbreak for their boss Hammerhead -- but there's a bit of history here, too!

Man Mountain Marko is exactly what it says on the label -- a mountain of a man! Michael Marko used to be an ordinary street thug until The Maggia organized crime mob fulfilled his wish for super-powers! Now his towering frame possesses greatly enhanced strength and durability, making him the perfect muscle for Maggia bosses like Silvermane and Hammerhead!

He's new to the Fight Club rankings, but has a history of harassing the likes of Spider-man, The Lizard, and even Jessica Jones in more recent years!

He's a no frills heavy, but that doesn't mean he should ever be taken lightly. He's had the better of Power Man in the past, and was thwarted by Iron Fist! He's got old beef with the Heroes for Hire -- and a new partner to help settle the score!

Edward Lavell is the second man to don the electrically powered suit of The Eel! He inherited the technology after Leopold Stryke was murdered by Melvin Potter, aka; the deadly Gladiator!

As it so happens, this is Lavell's first time out in the suit. It marks the beginning of a criminal career that will see him battle the likes of Spider-man, Daredevil, Captain America, and Black Cat!

How can the Eel stand toe-to-toe with such illustrious enemies? The suit allows him to direct electrical bolts offensively, shock anyone who makes contact, direct a current through any conductive material, and emit an electrical field. The suit keeps him insulated from electric shock -- and secretes a greasy substance that makes him as slippery as his namesake!

Power Man & Iron Fist have of course dealt with similar opponents as a pairing, and individually. In Power Man & Iron Fist #66 we saw them beat the pairing of Constrictor & Sabretooth, a follow-up to Iron Fist's solo win against Sabretooth in Iron Fist #14. Unus the Untouchable put them on the back foot in Power Man & Iron Fist #90, but they worked it out in the end.

Marko and Cage are pretty evenly matched. Eel could be tricky, using the advantage of ranged bolts of electricity to keep the Iron Fist out of reach. Fist's fast feet and flying kicks should be good for closing distance. There's another way to come at the fight, but we'll leave that for the real deal. Let's get into it!

The Tape: Heroes for Hire Ranking: Power Man (#9)

What Went Down...

Lost in the wind and road noise roaring past their ears -- Power Man & Iron Fist fail to notice a uniquely quiet helicopter hovering mere feet behind them! Its cargo: two shadowy figures ready to drop onto the speeding containment truck and move in to announce themselves: Man Mountain Marko and Eel!

Power Man is first to his feet, eager to settle an old score with Marko. The Man Mountain greets him with a wild haymaker that narrowly misses its target -- not because of Power Man's swiftness, but rather the lurching of the truck!

Iron Fist confronts the man wearing the powersuit of The Eel. The new villain introduces himself with an old attack -- arcing two electrical bursts from his fingertips to the martial artist! Iron Fist just barely escapes their charge, firing back with a high straight kick!

Cops spot the action on the truck, but can't get a straight shot at the speeding vehicle -- even if they knew who to shoot! Fortunately, Luke Cage has the fight in hand, knocking the Man Mountain down to size with an uppercut!

He towers over his old nemesis noting his silence, only to have Marko turn the tables once more with a sudden kick that sends Cage tumbling over the side!

Iron Fist fears for his partner's peril, but Eel is on him before he can do anything to help! The electric fiend's fists swat the martial artist's face. He falls at first, but a quick kip-up has him back on his feet and in the fight. Eel slips around his extended arm to get into close quarters -- slippery like his namesake!

Meanwhile, Power Man finds himself having avoided road rash by clinging to the side of the container. Marko spots Cage and comes to stomp him off, but a sudden lurch of the truck plants him on his mountain-sized keister!

Iron Fist starts to see the elements of a stalemate as he easily avoids Eel's wild haymaker. He counter-fires with a high martial arts kick that fails to hit its mark. He and The Eel may be better at staying on their feet than their heavyweight comrades -- but there's too much movement for precision strikes.

Eel reckons on the same, but comes up with an all together deadlier tie breaker.

The metal trailer is a perfect conductor for Eel's electric shocks, but the charge finds his partner when fleet-footed Iron Fist leaps above the carriage!

Cage isn't afraid of Eel's sting, either. He gets back to the top of the container to bring the tag team tussle to a conclusion. Much to Power Man's dismay, Iron Fist thinks it's time to switch partners. He trash talks Man Mountain a little more, distracting him so much he doesn't see the martial artist flying his way!

Eel confidently slips around his new opponent and drives his fist into his back -- but it hurts him more than Power Man! He nurses his knuckles for a moment and then swings around for his trump card -- but Cage is unfazed!

Eel's charge can't rival Cage's other foes. He stalks toward the newest wearer of the Eel suit with purpose. The villain gives up. Fat lot of good that'll do him. Advantage: Heroes for Hire!

The Man Mountain is still standing and he knows all he has to do is lay one good shot on Iron Fist to even the score. The speedy martial artist makes certain to remain evasive as he moves in.

Iron Fist uses Man Mountain's height to duck under his reach and springs up at breathing distance to slam both his arms against the sides of Marko's skull!

The shaking of the truck doesn't give the attack the sting it usually would've had. Marko's still on his feet and swinging mad when Iron Fist does something drastic: he jumps off the truck! Or so it seems...

Fist feigned the suicide fall to give himself the leverage and advantage to vault back up for a devastating kick! His body pendulums up -- colliding foot first into the back of Man Mountain Marko's skull! A kayo!

The Hammer...

Was there ever any doubt? Switching partners gave the Power Man & Iron Fist the edge they needed to beat the bad guys!

Cage's strength and resilience neutralized the new Eel's electric arsenal. Iron Fist's technical skill and balance on uneven ground was more than a match for muscleman Marko!

Mixing things up is an old superhero tactic, but some fans may know it as "castling" thanks to the popular parlance of Superman/Batman #4. A sneaky chess reference from wile writer Jeph Loeb that fits the bill very well!

March on Secret Wars on Infinite Earths was destined to be a month of martial arts mayhem inspired by the release of Iron Fist on Netflix!

The live-action series is as good a reason as any to celebrate choice cuts featuring the immortal weapon. With early impressions of show coming up dour, the world will need the comics if they're to understand the joy of this classic Marvel mainstay.

If you've been around the site before, you know all about my love of second and third-string villains. Maggia meatheads fit that bill nicely, and by deploying the Heroes for Hire on a security mission, Kurt Busiek and Denys Cowan give us a nice twist on the duo's usual urban capers!

Iron Fist was the one who accepted the job, of course. Power Man's past of wrongful imprisonment doesn't exactly make him enthusiastic about a prison escort mission. The odd couple dynamic of Danny Rand's enthusiasm and stiff reluctance from Cage have been cranked up to 11 in the most recent series.

We'll take a closer look at the Power Man & Iron Fist of today in our next feature fight. For now, I was inspired to dig up today's particular fight because of the publicized announcement of a new rogues gallery in the Iron Fist series.

"The Eel of Blessed Waters" of The Seven Masters got me thinking about past foes. I gather he (or she) doesn't have anything to do with the Eel featured in today's '83 flashback, but the notion tickled my fancy any way.

Usually when I see Eel get a mention these days, it's part of a meatball collective getting their butts handed to them. I might be overlooking something with a bit more heft, but this kind of fly-by-night villain that used to be a Marvel mainstay feels more scarce. The thought of dusting Eel off to be a recurring nemesis to Iron Fist wouldn't be such a bad idea. I guess that's been the charm of the new Power Man & Iron Fist, even though it's a little more slapstick.

We shouldn't let this battle go without a mention of Man Mountain Marko. A simple bruiser with a lot of charm. I prefer the greaser look with black leathers to the disco-era tough guy in white, but it's all pretty good. Sometimes it just takes a big, strong guy! Eel isn't the most natural tag team partner, but I like that these guys at least got another run at Power Man & Iron Fist. Kinda like the more high-profile pairing of Sabretooth & Constrictor.

Man Mountain is a co-creation of the John Romita Sr era of Amazing Spider-man, which gets me wondering what the heck "Marko" did to Stan Lee!

Marvel delivered a triple threat of jerks in relative rapid fire: Flint Marko ('63), Cain Marko ('65), and Michael Marko ('69)! Did a young Stan Lee suffer a clan of miscreants like the O'Doyle brothers of Billy Madison fame? I guess Sandman and even Juggernaut showed signs of redemption, so maybe catharsis wasn't quite the order. Still, you've got to wonder!

If you noticed Hammerhead's pride of place on the cover [top], you know we'll be coming back to this issue some time in the future. Classic mobsters are one of the many categories sorely lacking in the Comic Book Fight Club Archive!

If villains are your thing, or if you're just looking for classic battles and more superhero smackdown, be sure to follow links scattered throughout the post! You can also get links to fights inspired by the day's hot topics by follow on Facebook and Twitter! Being a hero for hire don't come cheap, and a like and share can make a whole lotta difference!

Winners: Power Man & Iron Fist
#8 (+1) Power Man (Luke Cage)
#18 (+3) Iron Fist
#824 (new) Man Mountain Marko
#825 (new) Eel (Edward Lavell)

HERO OF THE WEEK: LUKE CAGE (Marvel)
Real Name: Luke Cage (formerly Carl Lucas)
First Appearance: Luke Cage, Hero for Hire #1 (June, 1972)
Fight Club Ranking: #9

Featured Fights:
- vs EGGHEAD: Defenders #43 (Jan 1977)
- vs CONSTRICTOR & SABRETOOTH: Power Man & Iron Fist #66 (Dec 1980)
- vs UNUS THE UNTOUCHABLE: Power Man & Iron Fist #90 (Feb 1983)
- vs UNUS THE UNTOUCHABLE: Power Man & Iron Fist #90 (Feb 1983)
- vs THE UNTOUCHABLES: Cage #3 (Jun 1992)
- vs PURPLE MAN: New Avengers #3 (Mar 2005)
- vs OWL: The Pulse #14 (May 2006)
- vs AVENGERS: Civil War #3 (Sep 2006)
- vs THE HAND: New Avengers #27 (Apr 2007)
- vs MIGHTY AVENGERS: New Avengers #36 (Jan 2008)
- vs THE HOOD & DORMAMMU: New Avengers #54 (Aug 2009)
- vs AVENGERS: New Avengers #2 (Sep 2010)
- vs JUGGERNAUT: Thunderbolts #150 (Jan 2011)

As the star of the newest Marvel live-action series (September 30th): Luke Cage could've been Hero of the Week any number of times throughout 2016! He was one of the stand-out characters of July's San Diego Comic Con [see; Hero of the Week 7/25/2016], and continued to excite every time a new trailer revealed the yellow-tinted world of Netflix's bulletproof Defender! Sweet Christmas!

Star Mike Colter seems to bring a kinder, warmer edge to his version of Cage, but trailers show encouraging signs that when the time calls for it, his Power Man can get mad and bad. There are even whispers he'll find his way to a yellow shirt somewhere in the series, and trailers have already dropped an all mighty "Sweet Christmas". Pretty much everything this Luke Cage fan could ask for!

Like all the Marvel Netflix series, there are issues at first glance. An inherent cheapness in the hi-def look of all the shows challenges the notion of a "Golden Age" of TV. Low contrast, flat depth of field, straight-forward composition, with nothing too extraordinary happening in the frame - always something I'm a little saddened to see. The absence of aesthetic signature has been one of the great failings of Marvel's domination of movies and television -- low-budget without the charm of film stock, or film culture. That's certainly where Quentin Tarantino could've excelled with his long rumored, long aborted movie version -- raised again recently by Comic Book Resources.

It's not all doom and gloom, however. Luke Cage appears to be continuing the steps forward made by Jessica Jones, which particularly impressed when wielding a strong purple hue. Cage follows, imbuing the world with a golden glow that matches his signature color from the (classic) comics. Even when the hero chooses from a catalogue of low key hoodies when his gear gets shot up, there's an excitement in seeing yellow lining beneath the dark blue ensemble, and the slamming soundtrack.

Yellow is the color I'm personally most interested in when talking about the series, but there will be an inevitable wave of social commentaries coming out of the show, and I'm becoming aware of it.

I hadn't given much thought to the poignancy of a bulletproof African-American walking troubled streets, but whether we live in America or not, we all read the same headlines, wondering about social tensions with the same human concern.

If you were setting out to create a brand-new American superhero for today's adult contemporary audiences -- this is exactly the territory you'd start with! Over the past few years, America has made social anxiety and race politics one of their major cultural exports. Superheroes have always been good for offering an outlet for exploring social issues such as these. The plight of violent police corruption and bigotry - combatted by a good man who cannot be shot -  presents a bold and appealing mirror image of the reality some parts of the world face.

Yet, in Luke Cage, I don't get the sense these issues will take central focus, and I think it's better for it. In the eighties and nineties, I grew up taking the pairing of Power Man & Iron Fist for granted. Just two friends and heroes trying to make a positive difference in the fictional world. One was super-strong and tough, the other a kung-fu whiz. To paraphrase the educators of Sesame Street, they were just 'heroes in the neighbourhood.' Part of the landscape the heroes all share. Which is the value Luke Cage and all these heroes will have into the future.

Of course, not all superheroes are created equal - and if you've been following Secret Wars on Infinite Earths in the month of September, you know our spotlight on Luke Cage has pushed him into the Top 10 rankings! If you wanna know how that happened, be sure to scroll back to the top of this entry to check out all the featured fights!

Next year Luke Cage's buddy Iron Fist joins the Netflix heroes, before they converge as one in The Defenders! If you can't wait for that, be sure to check out our Luke Cage & The Defenders spotlight for more fun with the Marvel Knights! Stay tuned in October as well as the fights get spooky!

<< Hero of the Week 10/10: Vixen       [Home]       Hero of the Week 09/26: General Zod >>

AVENGERS versus LUKE CAGE

(Marvel)
Where: New Avengers #2 When: September 2010
Why: Brian Michael Bendis How: Stuart Immonen

The Story So Far...
For years the Avengers were torn apart by philosophical differences that erupted in Civil War. A secret invasion by Skrulls exposed holes in the new regime, allowing Norman Osborn to replace SHIELD as the corrupt Director of HAMMER! His tyranny went unnoticed until finally a siege on Asgard exposed the true evil!

With Osborn ousted in disgrace, Captain America is a natural choice to assume responsibility for SHIELD and a holistic approach to the superhero community. Thus, a new heroic age begins for The Avengers!

Having bought The Avengers mansion for $1 at the behest of Tony Stark, all seems well for Luke Cage and his new, fully authorized Avengers team! At least, until Dr. Strange and Daimon Hellstrom crash the housewarming in search of The Eye of Agamotto that's spontaneously appeared in Cage's hands!

Magic is afoot as strange forces manipulate The Avengers in a grand design they have no way of knowing about. Now they'll have to fight each other if they're to keep the universe safe long enough for Sorcerer Supreme Doctor Voodoo to do something about it!

Tale of the Tape...
Strength: Thing 6 (Invincible)
Intelligence: Dr. Strange 5 (Professor)
Speed: Iron Fist 4 (Olympian)
Stamina: Wolverine 6 (Generator)
Agility: Spider-man 5 (Cat-Like)
Fighting: Iron Fist 6 (Warrior)
Energy: Agamotto 7 (Cosmic)


The Avengers are: Thing, Ms. Marvel, Iron Fist, Jessica Jones, Wolverine, Mockingbird, Spider-man & Hawkeye.

Under ordinary circumstances, this incarnation of The Avengers would look to Luke Cage as their fearless leader. Alas, circumstances have it that he's been possessed by an agent of the mystic entity Agamatto!

Agamotto is a founding entity of the paths of magic, spawned from the elder goddess Oshtur. He is perhaps best known for his creation of powerful mystic artefacts: The Eye of Agamatto and The Orb of Agamotto. Both are frequently called upon in the arsenal of Earth's Sorcerer Supreme - Dr. Stephen Strange!

At the time of this episode, Dr. Strange has relinquished his post as Sorcerer Supreme, surrendering the mantle to Brother Voodoo. Voodoo was in command of The Eye of Agamotto, but saw fit to transport it to Luke Cage and The Avengers when he was attacked by two possessed agents of Agamotto: Daimon Hellstrom and Dr. Strange himself!

Along with their possessed teammate, The Avengers will have to contend with Hellstrom & Strange! Cage has grown to approximately thirty-feet tall and is showing signs of his already impressive strength being augmented. We saw Cage get the better of his teammates when they were infected with alien symbiotes [New Avengers #36]. Bad news all around!

Fortunately, the group have just added two high-level powerhouses to their ranks: Thing and Ms. Marvel! Both have the durability to pick up the defensive slack for the rest of the team. They also have the power to fight back!

The rest of the team aren't especially well suited to facing off against the magic of Dr. Strange and Son of Satan, but they have been in situations like this before. The group fought off The Hood (augmented by Dormammu) in New Avengers #54, albeit with the help of Strange and Hellstrom.

It's the numbers of The Avengers against the chaos and uncertainty of Agamotto's magic! That's spells a recipe for uncertainty if there ever was one! Let's dispense with the incantations and find out how it all went down!

The Math: Spider-man Ranking: Spider-man (#2)

What Went Down...
Chaos erupts in Avengers Mansion as the heroes are confronted with the sudden appearance of The Eye of Agamotto and hostile Dr. Strange & Son of Satan! The team scrambles to reorient themselves, unsure of the exact nature or intent of the magical threat that has also transformed their leader into an angry giant!

Wolverine tells The Thing to grab The Eye of Agamotto and make a run for it, choosing the team's newest recruit for his phenomenal strength and rocky hide! He makes a grab for it, but is sent hurtling out of Avengers mansion with a blow from his gigantic magically charged friend!

Jessica Jones unloads care of her and Cage's daughter to the arms of Spider-man, who makes a run for the stairs to get the baby out of danger!

Meanwhile; Iron Fist launches a fly kick in Daimon Hellstrom's direction, Ms. Marvel hovers over a toppled Luke Cage, and Wolverine pounds on Dr. Strange's chest with a fist full of adamantium! All of their efforts are temporary measures in an effort to keep the possessed heroes from the mystic talisman!

Hellstrom clobbers Iron Fist, Luke Cage tugs at Ms. Marvel's hair, and Strange wrestles with Wolverine -- each in a mad dash for The Eye!

Retired heroine Jessica Jones reaches into her untapped super-human reservoir to launch herself at her possessed husband! The super-human uppercut knocks him backward and launches The Eye of Agamotto into the air!

Wolverine catches the magic artefact and hurls it out the window as far as he can! Ensuring the possessed mystics cannot take chase, he rushes them with a calculated thrust of his claws! The unbreakable metal slices into their chests!

Outside the mansion, The Eye lands in the middle of a picnic in a nearby park! The giant-size Cage, Thing and Ms. Marvel take chase - prompting a terrified citizen to throw it into the air!

Ms. Marvel's aerial abilities allow her to snatch the amulet just as Cage and Thing are making a grab for it. The development gives Thing a chance to even the score with a haymaker that sends Cage flying!

Jessica Jones arrives on the scene to leap on her husband once he's landed. She desperately tries to reach the man she loves, but his words don't match his actions - an uppercut that sends the former Jewel flying through the air!

When the possessing entity fails to convince Thing and Iron Fist that it is the voice of their friend Luke Cage, the creature issues an ultimatum: Give him The Eye of Agamotto and he will return Cage. Ms. Marvel counters with an ultimatum of her own: leave Cage or she'll smash The Eye into a million pieces!

The spirit lunges at Ms. Marvel with Cage's gigantic arms outstretched, incidentally launching Thing and Hawkeye into the air. Marvel effortlessly avoids the attack and returns fire with a super-charged hit of her own!

Even though the possessed Cage eats a hard shot, he's still able to wrap a giant hand around Ms. Marvel! She loses her grip on The Eye, but Iron Fist makes the running play with Thing taking chase in the distance!

Sick of the demonic possession - Iron Fist turns and thrusts his mystically charged weapon-hand into Cage's gigantic chest!

Cage goes down hard and Thing jumps on top of him to make sure he stays down with a massive right cross! Jessica Jones and Ms. Marvel hover in support.

The recovered and healed Dr. Strange & Daimon Hellstrom follow Wolverine urgently to the battlefield! They arrive as Doctor Voodoo teleports onto the scene and the possessing demon leaves Luke Cage's body, transferring to the victorious Iron Fist! A revoltin' development as the fight comes to an end!

The Hammer...
Delivering a knock-out blow to a giant possessed Luke Cage probably made Iron Fist an attractive host for Agamotto! He disappears into the other realm of the Vishanti with the hero's body, just as Doctor Voodoo enters the scene -- the story to be continued!

It's an added detail that doesn't impact our result: The Avengers victorious against their possessed comrades!

The victory is shared with Wolverine, Thing, Ms. Marvel and Jessica Jones, who all contributed to the win in a pro-active manner. Mockingbird stopped to film the possession on somebody's phone, which I'm sure has tactical value. Hawkeye was there, but doing his best Where's Wally throughout. I genuinely wonder if Stuart Immonen forgot all about him while drawing the issue. It's almost comical when he appears floating in mid-air in the latter third of the issue. Spidey was on baby duty and generally loafed about, as well.

The line-up reflects a blended group mostly made from the street-level Secret Avengers who formed after Civil War. Ms. Marvel is the biggest trade from the more traditional "Mighty" Avengers. Thing was the most surprising addition, despite a similarly brief stint in the late 80s launch of West Coast Avengers.

We talked about the idea of "JLA-ing" the Avengers in our last entry, concluding that the original 2005 New Avengers line-up didn't really go there.

By the time this second volume was launched in 2010, there was much more credence to the idea of a non-traditional, all-star line-up of disparate pre-established acts. Spider-man, Thing, Wolverine, Iron Fist, Luke Cage and Dr. Strange (who eventually made his stay permanent) are a very JLA arrangement.

Much like the JLA; the successful Avengers began to expand beyond their core team formulas. The "Heroic Age" relaunch maintained a brand-traditional Mighty Avengers, while also installing a third "Secret Avengers" title in the oddball hodgepodge mould of The Defenders.

In the years that followed The Heroic Age, the lines between Avengers groups would blur further. Famous hold-outs like Daredevil would join the team. Even the X-Men, who had a few unique ties through heroes like Beast and Quicksilver, would finally be more aggressively blended through the Uncanny Avengers!

The net result is what opponents of Avengers Disassembled and the original New Avengers were afraid of all along: The demise of identity and a tradition.

Thanks to the success of Marvel's blockbuster film franchises, "Avengers" has become synonymous with the company. Almost interchangeable with Marvel itself. Yet, ironically enough, it's the movies that have to date best represented the traditional flavour of The Avengers: Iron Man, Captain America, Thor, Black Widow, Hawkeye, Vision, Hulk and so on.

In comics: It's now a lot easier to name characters who haven't been part of the monstrous Avengers uber brand. It's a muddying of the waters that's affecting many of Marvel's mainstay brands, extending to the dilution of individual characters who now share their identity with multiple alternate characters [see; Hero of the Week: Dr. Doom].

The traffic hasn't been exclusively one-way, though. Earlier this year, Marvel relaunched Power Man & Iron Fist for a new age, restoring the Heroes For Hire to their iconic buddy team roots away from The Avengers! The result is one of the more exciting, upbeat offerings reinvigorating the classics while also revamping them!

Luke Cage is also part of a reinvention of the Marvel identity on screen! September 30th marks the official launch of a thirteen episode live-action Netflix series! Mike Colter stars as the man with bulletproof skin, who we've been celebrating all throughout September on Secret Wars on Infinite Earths!

This celebration helped Luke Cage break into the Comic Book Fight Club Top 10 [see; Cage #3] at the expense of perennial favourite The Thing! The ever lovin' blue-eyed Thing fell to #11 as a result of Cage reaching #9 -- an unplanned result that made today's pre-scheduled feature fight all the more interesting!

Fans of the rankings will be excited to know Thing's shared victory returns him to the Top 10 just two weeks after he fell out! The defeat isn't enough to disrupt Luke Cage's spot at #9, though. Instead, it's Daredevil who will be shunted down from #10 to #11! Keep scrolling to the bottom of this update to see where all the characters finished in the ranks!

If you'd like to get the full experience of today's feature fight, use the Amazon link provided to purchase the collected edition! Doing so helps keep the wars infinite!

You can find more spotlights on Luke Cage, The Avengers and the individual characters by following character links, or diving into the Secret Issue Index! There you can browse battles by series, issue and publisher!

Stay tuned to Hero of the Week for a final spotlight on Luke Cage! Then be here in October as things start to get a little spooky for Halloween!

Winners: Iron Fist, Wolverine, Thing, Ms. Marvel & Jessica Jones
#4 (+2) Wolverine
#10 (+1) Thing
#30 (+10) Iron Fist
#76 (+53) Ms. Marvel (Carol Danvers)
#92 (+197) Jessica Jones
#2 (--) Spider-man [+1 Assist]
#120 (-2) Hawkeye [+1 Assist]
#407 (+79) Mockingbird [+1 Assist]
#9 (--) Luke Cage
#65 (-2) Dr. Strange
#101 (-12) Son of Satan (Daimon Hellstrom)
#807 (new) Agamotto