STEEL versus LEX LUTHOR
Man Ain't Nothing But a Man (DC comics)
Where: 52 #40 When: April 2007
Why: Geoff Johns, Grant Morrison, Greg Rucka & Mark Waid How: Keith Giffen & Chris Batista

The story so far...
Lex Luthor's everyman project appears to have discovered means of granting normal human beings fantastic powers through the use of an injectable meta-gene therapy.

The only side effects appear to be the development of superpowers, and in the case of John Henry Irons, the armored hero once called Steel, this means literally becoming a man of steel.

When his powers begin to dissipate, Irons realises Luthor's meta-gene not only has finite potential, but also a potential 'off-switch', which leads to the deaths of several experiment subjects. Thus, Irons shrugs off a bitter depression, and dons the Steel armor once more to confront the evil Lex Luthor.

Previous Form:
Steel (#18): Steel has victories over well known supervillains; Plasmus and Metallo.
Lex Luthor: Luthor had a cameo during Batman's battle with the OGRE droid.

Tale of the tape...
Strength: Steel 5 (Super Strength)
Intelligence: Lex Luthor 6 (Genius)
Speed: Steel 3 (Trained Athlete)
Stamina: Steel 5 (Marathon Runner)
Agility: Steel 2 (Average Human)
Fighting Ability: Steel 3 (Street Wise)
Energy Powers: Lex Luthor 4 (Arsenal)

The tape paints a pretty clear picture of how we rate Luthor on our scale.
As a guy who's arguably a top-tier DC villain, Luthor rates deceptively low, but regular visitors to the blog will be accustomed to how characters are capable of playing above their weight.

Luthor's speciality is in his intelligence, and that's how he's able to duke it out with the likes of Superman. The only problem with that is that in the bredth of his abilities, there isn't a lot more to pad out his potential in a fight.

Luthor's advantages are in his technology, like the powersuit, which was deemed too irregularly used to effect his strength rating. Likewise, his seemingly endless access to hired minions and other external aids are perhaps his greatest tools in a confrontation with any character, without even getting into something like his masterminding the gathering of The Society.

Steel's a character of great determination and intelligence, but against the likes of Luthor his greatest advantage may come down to brute strength.

Against the likes of Luthor, regardless of what arsenal has been called upon, Steel's potential to be a raging bull would probably be the key to victory, gaining the momentum-based victory.

The Math: Steel (Meta Class)
The Pick: Steel

What went down...
Having fought his way through Everyman and had his armor shattered whilst wearing it, Steel barges his way into Luthor's top story office with the use of his unique sledgehammer.

There, Luthor waits confidently with Natasha Irons, Steel's neice, beaten and well restrained. Her cries of warning are too late, as John Henry walks straight into a Superman style blast of heat vision.

Luthor, only coming to terms with his newly aquired powers, shifts to X-ray vision, gleefully enjoying his new abilities whilst examining his own skeleton.

Steel, unwavering, leaps back at Luthor literally steaming from the previous attack, with the fire sprinklers activating above.

He drives his hammer down atop the skull of the villainous former-President, but it is for moot.
The force of the blow piledrivers Luthor into the very floor, but as Luthor himself exclaims, he feels no pain from the potentially lethal blow.

Thigh-deep in the floor, Luthor wrenches the hammer from Steel's hands with but one of his own, and drives the handle shaft through Steel's exposed mid-section, impaling him on his own weapon.

As Dr. John Henry Irons pulls the hammer from his own gut, Luthor hovers out of his rut, striking his opponent with a fist packing super strength.

He swats Steel with an open backhand, taking delight in sending him through the wall, despite having only barely touched him.

Luthor professes his maniacal plans of world domination to the restrained Natasha Irons, noting the absence of the world's greatest heroes as opportunity to capitalise on the vaccuum of uncoordinated heroes.

To Luthor's surprise and chagrin, Steel again staggers back into the field-- a changed man. Luthor's self-obssession has full restored the man who built the armor, and John Henry Irons is again a man who recognises the value and reason for men who would be called super heroes. Men who fight for something more than themselves.

Luthor compells Steel to give up, "You have four broken ribs and a ruptured appendix. Your small intestine is leaking fecal matter into your bloodstream. Trust me... I have X-ray vision."

Despite his greivous injuries, Steel shows the determination of his namesake, holding his ground.

Luthor flies at the hero, who hurls his hammer seemingly in vain, as Luthor uses his explosive heat vision to blast a hole through the ceiling.
The hammer, as it turns out, actually strikes the mechanical chair which holds Steel's neice hostage. Set free, the female who once donned Steel armor of her own is able to recognise that Luthor's 'failsafe' for disrupting the exo-gene powers was an electrical pulse, and deduces that the atomic power source housed within Steel's hammer could permanently render the powers inert.

On the rooftop, Steel disengages his robotic hand, which explodes around the super-durable neck of Lex Luthor, who is coming to terms with the influx of sound and sights with his new heightened senses.

He doesn't hear Natasha fiddling with her uncle's hammer on the floor below, but he does feel it, as his body comes crashing down, bound once more by the laws enforced by gravity.

With the tables turned, Luthor spouts desperate threats as the fitter, more powerful of the two men declares his moral superiority.

Steel reveals that the everyman gene treatment was toxic, and would have killed Luthor in six months had his neice not nullified it's effect.

With the Teen Titans gathered below, the giant L atop the Lexcorp building comes crashing down to the evacuated ground floor.
Standing mightily atop the building, a triumphant pair of heroes, each barers of the Steel legacy, and victors over a would-be tyrant.

The hammer...
The winner by knockout, with the assist from his neice-- Steel!

Regular readers will know I've been on a kick of more recent comics lately, and I'm pleased to finally be a part of 52. I'm not sure I could have ever pledged my dollar to a year's worth of weekly comics, but I think I picked the right time to pop in for a visit. It sounds like things are wrapping up on a strong note, and certainly when I read the solicitation for what turned out to be nearly an all-Steel issues, I was chuffed!

If you track back to the one or two previous Steel appearances on the blog, you'll discover that he's one of my favourite DC characters, inspite of his relative obscurity. As one of the lead characters in the second-tier push of 52, I'm certainly very pleased with the concept, and the push to bring a guy like this back. I just wish we could be seeing him in active duty in the other One Year Later DC Universe titles.

I picked up four issues of 52, weeks thirty-nine through forty-two, and I've certainly been impressed with the quality of the books. The back-up origin features are a nice touch, particularly with what seems to be an effort to customize the artist to fit the character. #42's Green Arrow feature with Scott McDaniel art is a notable occasion, McDaniel being the current on-going artist on the character.

The art is probably what most sceptics would have been epecting to see suffer under the load of such a heavy schedule, but it looks to me like it's been handled brilliantly. The price of rotating artists seems to be well worth it, with Keith Giffen's direction seemingly giving the series an appropriate throughline. Although, I imagine a great deal of credit has to go to the inking and colouring teams, who although different, seem to be similar enough, perhaps by design, to maintain a consistency that prevents jarring from issue to issue.

It's difficult for me to really say how I feel about the broader scope of the 52 story, having only read the two issues, thus far. I'm certainly the type of reader who has no bones about jumping into the middle of a story, but I could see how it might benefit from a recap page of some sorts. Simple decduction and a willingness to go with the story should be enough to leap in, but is probably a rare trait among modern readers, and they may find themselves uncomfortable.

The anthology style in some of the issues is interesting, and I wonder if it may have made weekly reading a little tedious. Like some popular TV shows, it feels like it's only letting out insignificant movement in the story through dribs and drabs, but certainly it delivers in an issue like forty, which dedicates a great deal of time to wrapping up one of the plots.

One would imagine the combined might of Johns, Morrison, Rucka and Waid would be enough to place the necessary value on each of the stories.
Presumably the involvement of each writer overlaps, even if they tackled their own stories, or moments throughout the saga of 52.*

I'm struggling with what I could really say here that is something you don't already know. It's very much a what-you-see kind of book, and I can't elaborate a great deal. It doesn't excel, but it is strong enough that it's difficult to criticise.

I guess I leave you with the hope that DC isn't over extending itself with the announcement of Countdown, which will run every week for a year, this time rolling down from fifty-two down to one, in reverse order.

I hope post-52 we can see John Henry Irons back in active duty as Steel, and I hope the events of the new Countdown will not affect that.
Speculation has the regularly appearing 'multiverse' theory bobbing back up for Countdown, but I'd like to think DC and the writing team that is steering the cohesive ship are wise enough to recognise the negatives that far outweigh the potential cons.

I've poo-pooed the theory in the past, and I'll continue to do so, but I wonder what Countdown will entail. Certainly the promotional artwork has a lot of people talking, and I wonder if the featured heavy-hitters of the DC universe aren't indicative of a 52 style book that recaps the journies of the major heroes who were deliberately omitted from 52. As opposed to the theory that it represents the segregation of the heroes into their own universes.

Here's hoping!

The Fight: 4 The Issue: 5

* The presumption that the writers crafted an overall outline for the story as a group is the reasoning for each writer being credited for this entire issue, which features only one storyline.

MONTHLY PUNCH-UP #15 (March 2007)
SLAM BRADLEY versus BATMAN
Wild Ride: Meanwhile (DC)
Where: Catwoman #22 When: August 2003
Why: Ed Brubaker How: Nick Derington & Cameron Stewart

Quick Fix...
Another big month for the site, and here we are at another opportunity to reveal just how full of shite I really am.
Batman returns with a vengeance to the site with yet another appearance, a mere month or two after I said it might be lights out for the dark knight. I bow!

Wanted to get some DC action up here for the Quick Fix at the very least, and where better was there to go for a quick tussle than Ed Brubaker's revolutionary work on the revamped Catwoman title? Actually, it was a nice opportunity to visit this series for the first time at Secret Earths, perhaps largely due to the fact it was driven by more than fisticuffs.

Ed Brubaker's come up a few times recently, mostly through his Daredevil work, but his status as darling of Marvel comics was preceded by some very solid work as one-half of the writing team of the critically acclaimed Gotham Central, and of course, as writer here on Catwoman.

I have to admit, a lot of what made this such an attractive read is the visual style, which owes a lot to Darwyn Cooke's role in kicking off this new approach to the character, but is followed through well by a team comprised of Cameron Stewart, Guy Davis, Nick Derington, Matt Hollingsworth and apparently a slew of others, whose significance blurs amongst all the issues.

The minimalist style popularized by DC through their animation, and embraced likewise in the comic books, plays superbly here to a fun, sassy and exciting read, without ever getting silly. In fact, for all it's simple charms, Selina Kyle is as sexy as ever, and the action hits just as hard in what was probably one of the strongest titles being published pre-Infinite Crisis.

This storyarc, Wild Ride, features various guests (such as the JSA's Wildcat and Captain Cold), with the throughline of a fun, road trip story. Various hijinks occur, delivering strong characterizations in all the featured roles in unison with tight-knit, quirky story telling.

Our bash-up brings us to a B-story featuring Slam Bradley, who finds himself on the questioning end of Batman, his rival as romantic interest for Selina Kyle aka; Catwoman.

Tensions between the two build, and Batman makes reference to a tawdy night spent between Bradley and Kyle -- and it's on!

Bradley charges furiously at the Batman, making the assumption that he'd surprised him, simply because he actually lands his punch square in the Bat's mouth. Not that he doesn't quickly find himself on the tread end of Batman's reflexes, getting a boot for his troubles.

The Bat warns the grizzled detective off of any further attack, but the testosterone probably makes the decision for him. Bradley rolls his sleeves up, and moves in with his dukes ready to do the talking.

Batman's superior fighting skills see him slipping from the jab with ease, delivering his own blunt force with a closed fist.

Slam continues his jealous rage. Batman strikes a pressure point, taking one of Bradley's arms away, before following it with a swinging kick to the back of the head. It sends Bradley slamming into a pigeon avery on the rooftop.

"Are we about done now, Bradley...?," Batman asks.
Slam responds with a bloody grin, "... Why...? You gettin'... gettin' tired...?"

The Batman lets Bradley take more of his medicine, but as the match-up continues to be more and more one-sided, Bradley's continuing to get up probably makes it's point. Batman laughs.

Batman gives Bradley credit due for his sheer determination, and leaves him to enjoy a cigarette on amicable terms.

I happened upon a review of this issue that described it as writing Batman better than he was in his own books. Personally, this isn't what I consider Batman to be, but that said, I enjoy the luxury afforded by this type of title to give the character that spin. A spin that allows him to knock around with an old detective and indulge in a laugh at the end of it.

I don't know if it's the fun nature of the title, or the blinding glory of the graphic presentation, or perhaps the luxury of following in Darwyn Cooke's mighty footsteps, but Brubaker shines here in a way I haven't seen.
The writing has that familiar compacted quality to it, working a lot of economy into the scripted page, as I would hope an urban superhero book would. However, it somehow feels much less laboured than the likes of Captain America, Daredevil or even the joint effort on Gotham Central.

Here the story unfolds with a relaxed whimsy that allows it a sense of fluidity, and natural flow that makes it a breeze to open, and a disappointment to close.

The Fix: 6 The Issue: 7
Winner: Batman

The Top Five...
Two months into a brand new top five system for 2007 doesn't leave a lot of room for change, and you could perhaps begin doubting the logic of abandoning the cumulative rankings. If you can be patient enough to read on to The Hammer, we'll talk a little bit about implementing changes to that, and hey... The overall top five isn't doing much either!

#1 Spider-man (+1) (7) (Marvel)
Class: [Meta] Last Opponent: [Magneto]
Win Percentage: [77.78%] Features: [9]

A tie with Magneto doesn't do much for Spidey's win percentage, but it's enough in these early stages to lift him to the top of the monthly top five! Yaaay!

I've got to be honest -- I'm on a realy Spidey high right now. What's weird is maybe that it has very little to do with the Spider-man 3 movie, or even the Back in Black promotional event in the comics. I'm just really enthusiastic about the Spider-man villains, and how well they seem to be being represented in the comics right now! It's a reneissance for villains that may have slipped into the B-list.

I got a stack of new comics, there's a handful of Spidey stories in there I want to get up on the site, there's a handful already on my to-do list. Secret Earths is liking Spidey a whole lot right now! Put your money here, kids!*

#2 Moon Knight (-1) (2) (Marvel)
Class: [Champion] Last Opponent: [Taskmaster]
Win Percentage: [100%] Features: [1]

Moon Knight remains in the top five, and honestly, at number two I can feel a whole lot less guilty about the whole affair.
Moon Knight is a great character, and akin to those so-called B-list villains I mentioned just moments ago, but he isn't a number one. Not based on that one quick fix against Taskmaster, at least... Let's be honest.

I wouldn't expect to see this guy sticking around on the top for too much longer. The Moon Knight title, for all it's positives, just seems to be dragging it's heels so poorly that even if there is going to be a fight -- chances are it's going nowhere.

Lord knows I was thoroughly disappointed by the 'Casualties of [Civil] War' issue, which features maybe four pages of the web-slinger, including the cover.
I'd love to invest in the Captain America guest-issue, but honestly, I'm not expecting much more than a similar cameo there. As far as I know, Moon Knight has been content to remain neutral, and with some assemblence of a story simmering in the background, these gratuitous guest-spots are meaningless.

#3 Red Hood (-) (2) (DC)
Class: [Meta] Last Opponent: [Brick]
Win Percentage: [100%] Features: [2]

Among the purists visiting, I imagine this is the most embarassing feature in the top five. Of the two returning sidekicks-gone-bad, I imagine the split falls more in the favour of Winter Soldier/Bucky, rather than Red Hood/Robin, but you know what? I'm not too fussed.

Though I didn't pick up the follow up to the battle with Brick, I feel the character has at least earned the circumstances by which he finds himself on our top five.

While the character has suffered under the barrage of crossover fever, he has managed to avoid languishing, and I think that's great!
It's just a shame that to keep the character afloat, Winick had to drag him over into a pretty cheesy villain team-up in Green Arrow. I guess that's what you get for being the chief proponent for his return.

#4 The Punisher (-) (2) (Marvel)
Class: [Champion] Last Opponent: [Rhino]
Win Percentage: [100%] Features: [1]

The Punisher lingers as a character we're only just seeing return to the superhero fight scene. Good to have him on board, and while I don't have a large stock to draw upon for the character, you can probably make a safe bet that he'll be popping up on the site again soon.

A great character who has thrived in his own corner, you couldn't knock his position, but it seems a little unlikely, at least in this world, that he'll survive slipping off the bottom of the pile.

#5 Beast (-) (2) (Marvel)
Class: [Meta] Last Opponent: [The Lizard]
Win Percentage: [50%] Features: [4]

Once more we finish up our top five examination with the intelligent, gentlemanly, and ever powerful - Beast!

It occurs to me that other than Wolverine breaking into his own home to fight Sabretooth, I don't have a whole lot of an idea what's going on in the X-corner of the Marvel Universe.
Brubaker, for all the positives highlighted in Catwoman, is taking the X-Men on a retro journey that is the exact opposite of what I'm interested in. Astonishing X-Men remains, in my opinion, a disgustingly overrated piece of derivative tot. And everything else is a bit below my radar, I suppose.

It may be sad, but at the number five spot, we'll almost certainly be saying goodbye to the mighty Beast.

Super Stock...
1. Batman (-) (DC)
2. Spider-man (-) (M)
3. Wolverine (+1) (M)
4. Iron Man (-1) (M)
14. Robin (+10) (DC)
16. Red Hood (-1) (DC)
18. Steel (-1) (DC)
19. Deadpool (+26) (M)
20. Beast (-2) (M)
27. Wasp (-) (M)**
28. Nightwing (-2) (DC)**
54. Catwoman (-) (DC)
69. She-Hulk (-) (M)
100. Bucky (Heroes Reborn) (-) (M)
193. Space Phantom (+1) (M)
194. Rhino (+1) (M)
195. Lizard (+1) (M)
196. The Joker (new) (DC)
198. Blade (new) (M)
200. Metallo (-2) (DC)
203. Taskmaster (-1) (M)
204. Magneto (-3) (M)
205. Brick (-3) (DC)


#22 The Sub-Mariner
Class: [Meta] Last Opponent: [The X-Men]
Win Percentage: [40%] Features: [5]

I try to do a lot of things through this humble blog o mine.
One of those things is to try to include some sort of perspective of where the written aspect of the story might come from. Granted, that isn't the chief exercise here, but I figure if I'm going to tote myself as a writer, I could at least try to exhibit some understanding of the process, and exploit it to my advantage.

If you noticed the inclusion of the Brother Eye satellite in the banner, it's purely for the inclusion of this section. This spotlight is an opportunity to type up the stats of a character perhaps not in the top five, and talk a bit more about my fabled Sub-Mariner pitch, which has been pepper referenced for quite some time.

So as a spine to this section, I'll be featuring the characters that are wrapped up in this sordid little pitch. Of course, I hope to reserve at least some of my secrets, in the vein hope that one day they may actually find themselves canonized.

Moving on, the crux of the idea is a four issue mini-series that would lead in to an on-going series, or at the very least a title that would last a year.
Much of the concept rests on, as tired a phrase as it is, changing the status quo of the Namor character, and realigning him in the Marvel Universe as a newly relevent, but readjusted character.

I began writing and conceiving this idea QUITE some time ago now, so it predates many of the developments seen in Civil War and other Marvel titles, although, as with all good ideas, it's reasonably malleable to move with those circumstances.

Opening this four issue mini-series, Sub-Mariner: Underworld, is the premise that young Atlantean women have been disappearing. The numbers of missing girls have grown to such that the crimes are brought before the Prince himself - Namor.

What surrounds this initial development is an opportunity for Atlanteans to debate topics as base as teen sub-culture, and the parental gap. This has actually become rather topical where I live, where a girl died recently and clues have been sought on her MySpace page, which is decked out in a gothic motiff with a few 'racey' pictures of the young teen.

As most of us net-savvy folk would know, this is not at all unusual to MySpace sub-culture, but it's amusing to hear of it spoken in such misunderstood terms in news bulletins. So, in that respect, some of the 'impetuous youth' angle bares immediate relevence, at least here. It is, of course, a fairly universal theme.

The idea is that, like human youths, some of the Atlantean teens and young women have been a bit rebellious. One of the dangers for Atlanteans is the attraction of the surface world, which raises other debats among the concerned groups, particularly the Sub-Mariner's own lengthy association with the surface.
As a Prince, you would have to imagine his status as a role model would certainly come under fire, and that's something that would be raised here, even though traditionally Atlanteans cannot naturally sustain themselves on the surface.

Ultimately Namor is spurred to return to the surface, following the few clues he has to New York City's seed urban side. A side of Marvel that the character isn't necessarily associated with, but is none the less aware of, be it through casual visits, or even 'the lost years', when Namor wandered the streets as a transient hobo without a memory.

A lot of the ideas draw on established pieces of fiction in the character's history, including much of the 'corporate Namor' era built by John Byrne.
It's my interpretation that Namor still retains many corporate and industrial interests on the surface world, and he would immediately make use of a room in an apartment tower. One of many surface homes he could potentially own.

The Civil War, prior to his involvement, but even now, helps guide the original idea that he would be steering away from the 'super' side of the Marvel universe.
His sense of royal responsibility and logic is that this isn't really something that he would involve the Fantastic Four with, for instance.

At a later date his relationship with the FF was to arise again, as he becomes needing of scientific advice, and opts for an unlikely source, rather than Reed Richards. Who, of course, is conveniently now characterized as being someone Namor would be less than likely to turn to.

I see Namor as a chivalrous kind of hero, and the kinds of urban struggles that go on in Hell's Kitchen and similar seedy sides of the Marvel urban underworld would present him with distractions. This was also to bring him into conflict with Daredevil, a character he battled in DD's early sixties adventures.

As a mini-series it would be nice if it could stand on it's own feet and date itself prior to Matt Murdock's incarceration, particularly as I had mind to use Iron Fist later on, and actually think his role as substitute-Daredevil fits quite neatly.
Never the less, a theme that would be picked up again in the on-going series would be Namor's difficulty in coming to terms with the way in which the surface world works.

In Atlantis his justice is swift and absolute, but Daredevil quickly informs him that he can't simply plow a would-be rapist spine-first into a brick wall.
The Sub-Mariner in urban New York becomes quite literally an allagory for the fish out of water. The on-going series would feature more of how he tackles this in a unique way, and actually draws largely on Matt Murdock's incarceration.

In the mini-series it's driven more by the story at hand, and it takes a turn as other characters inflict themselves on the Sub-Mariner's path.
And with that, I'll hopefully pick up next month and tell you more about where I would like to go with this story, that attempts much, but in a tight space.

The hammer...
Speaking of attempting much, 5000 hits was passed a week and a half ago, which is huge! This has been the biggest month yet for Secret Wars on Infinite Earths, and I want to send out a huge thanks to everybody checking the place out! Hopefully you're enjoying it, and those of you I see coming back, will keep doing so!

I was thinking about celebrating with some extra updates, and then I went out and picked up Marvel: Ultimate Alliance, which kicked me in a whole different direction.

I've had some developments on the personal front with a sick relative, so it might be a bit much to chew, but I'm going to attempt three updates a week. That's right -- three! Just to sustain that interest!

So the schedule reads something like this, for March Madness:
- Marvel Ultimate Alliance Mondays
Featuring villains from the video game that utilizes the largest assembly of Marvel Comics characters all in the one game. With Civil War being all about the heroes, it seemed like a great opportunity to take a look at the villains.
Even though the villains are the spotlight, expect the heroes fighting them to be characters from the game, just for that extra authenticity!

- What if Wednesdays
This was my original consideration, and hey, after we tipped 5000, why not?
Wednesdays will be all about alternate realities, including not just stories from the Marvel Universe, as the name implies; but also multiverse madness from the DCU. Not that I've got a whole lot of that, mind you...

- Friday Fight Nights
All these bonus updates will, of course, not be at the sacrifice of our usual random fun every Friday. We'll continue to feature patternless battles between characters from the Marvel and DC Universes, and maybe some place else, too.

Anyway, that's the plan guys, but as I said. I've got some personal things going on, so there may be some delays. We'll see how it plays out.

Hope everyone's having a great time, and stay tuned next month because I imagine with a fifth week special in there, we're going to have plenty of movement on the top five rankings!

All the best guys!

February Hit Count: 5208 (+1261)

* Secret Wars on Infinite Earths does not, in anyway, encourage or condone underage gambling. We believe in mocking those who undertake in such activities, and such was our intention. Stay in school.

** Result of a statistical anomaly that was rectified.

BLADE versus WOLVERINE
Vendetta's Echo (Marvel comics)
Where: Blade #5 When: March 2007
Why: Marc Guggenheim How: Howard Chaykin

The story so far...
When the so-called Civil War began amongst the heroes, Wolverine made a point of withdrawing, making a rare declaration of neutrality. Unfortunately, his bloodlust for the villain called Nitro sees him coming into conflict with not only the villain, but also diplomatic denizens of Atlantis.

Thus, Wolverine is dragged into the Civil War, as is Blade, albeit completely inadvertently.

While on the trail of Morbius, Blade is beset upon by SHIELD, revealing Morbius' status as a registered hero. Having been passed over by SHIELD, Blade is finally approached for registration in an effort to recapture a previously detained Wolverine.
SHIELD believe Blade to be their best shot at capturing the mutant Avenger, and in exchange for his services will grant him vampire-hunting amnesty. Thus, Blade hunts a new prey this night...

Previous Form:
Wolverine (#4): Wolverine has solo victories over Lobo, Lady Deathstrike and Silver Samurai.
Blade: Blade has not yet been featured on the site.

Tale of the tape...
Strength: Blade 3 (Trained Athlete)
Intelligence: Wolverine 4 (Tactician)
Speed: Wolverine 3 (Trained Athlete)
Stamina: Wolverine 6 (Generator)
Agility: Wolverine 3 (Acrobat)
Fighting Ability: Wolverine 6 (Warrior)
Energy Powers: Blade 3 (Explosives)

Straight off the bat the stats make this look like it's all Wolverine, but that really is not the case at all. In fact, while Wolverine may be deemed to have the edge in some of the above measured feats, statistically each fighter rates on the same level.

Characterization tends to paint Blade in a different light depending on where, when, and under who's watch he's appearing. I tend to like to think of him somewhere in between the various comic book incarnations, but skewed more toward the successful Wesley Snipes film vehicles. This means I've more than embraced the Daywalker moniker, regardless of whether or not it was nature or the nurture of Morbius that granted it to him.

This means Blade should be fully recognised as one damned tough customer!
As the saying goes, 'all of their strengths, none of their weaknesses.'
We're talking enhanced strength, speed, agility and some degree of heightened senses, particularly where detecting the supernatural is concerned.

These abilities are all comparable to Wolverine, and in fact, the Daywalker even possesses a greater capacity for healing. Of course, he probably couldn't survive a stake through the heart (or any other fatal point), let alone three of them.

They say Wolverine's the best there is at what he does.
Despite generally dismissing conventional technical attack, Wolverine is an instinctual and savage fighting presence. Blade's fighting process is far more refined, and he could certainly disarm and detain Wolverine, but whether or not that would be enough to cage the beast is hard to say.

Ultimately skills like a healing factor, reinforced adamantium skeleton, and six protruding claws included with said skeleton, make Wolverine a tough customer for any normal man. And though Blade may not be normal, he isn't extra ordinary either.

The Math: Wolverine
The Pick: Wolverine

What went down...
SHIELD are nice enough to point Blade in the direction of their prey, a tiny, poorly guarded hideout in Brooklyn. Blade notes, the security might not be much, but when you're Wolverine, what kinda security in the burbs do you really need?

Wolverine stumbles in to find Blade in his living room, and having just gone toe-to-toe with Omega Red, he's none too happy about the prospect of anything that doesn't involve a beer and a stretched out spot in his crib.

The two heroes compare cutting implements before Blade lunges into battle with his single sword, promising it will be all it takes to take the X-Man down.
Wolvie disagrees, taking a swipe out of Blade's jacket, but otherwise puts up little defense for Blade to impale him straight-up with his sword.

Reminiscent of many-a-scene [including recently featured Cable & Deadpool #36 - Memorisation Mike], Wolverine slides down the sword, making a point of the advantages of a healing factor.

The tips of his blades slice the face of the Blade, and Wolverine puts distance between the SHIELD mercenary with a cracking left hook.

With the pressure off for a couple of minutes, Wolverine yanks the blade from his gut, with a money-back guarantee that he'll stick it where the sun doesn't shine. Now, I know what some readers are thinking -- Wolverine is Canadian. Well, all the more reason to believe that guarantee is iron-clad.

A paragraph of weak comic relief later, Blade is firing off a round from his pistol into the healing torso of the healing mutant.
This proves to set him off, leading Wolverine to abandon his warrior's ironies, and abandon the sword in favour of a more frontal, berzerker attack.

With the mutant up in his grille, as they say on the streets, Blade doesn't back down, throwing out another cracking left.

It does little to phase Wolverine, who maintains a mount position and raises his extended claws above his head. With the half-vampire looking to become all dead, he makes one last ditch effort.

Tearing the mask from Wolverine's face, Blade produces a vial of vampire blood at puts it to Wolverine's neck. The enzymes in the blood promise to turn Wolverine into a vampire far more susceptible to being impaled.

Wolverine, ever the hard ass, scrunches his face up and smiles, offering not fear, but a challenge for Blade to do his worst.

Surprisingly enough Blade relents, and at this time you might think Blade is something of a pansy, but you'd be wrong. With the Wolverine unmasked he finally gets a good look and recognises the mutant for who he is - not an enemy - but an old friend, from long ago.

With that Blade relents, and tells SHIELD that if they've got a problem with Wolverine, they can go through him.

The hammer...
This is probably the kind of scenario that could garner a draw, but with a fairly one-sided battle I'd have to give this one to Wolverine even if only on points.

Before I move on, I'll insert one point I have with this conclusion.
In this world of the scientific viral vampire, what is it about vampire enzymes that supercedes the super-immuno qualities of Wolverine's fictional healing factor? This logic, which has been applied previously, [Marvel Zombies, What if... Wolverine: Lord of the Vampires - Marvelous Mike], seems thoroughly flawed, all other things considered...

And with that, it's good to finally have that summary over and done with. Couldn't tell you why, but that just wasn't a compelling read.
Maybe it was the overdone clichés, the warn out Wolverine-in-the-past flashbacks, or Chaykin's pencils that just took it out of me, dragged it around the back, beat the crap out of it, and then dumped it in the back of a cab.

It remains baffling after three feature films and a moderately well received television series, how Blade can remain such a dud in the comic books.
Previous attempts to capitalize on the character's new-found popularity have failed, and I'd have to say this latest effort from Guggenheim and Chaykin fails miserably. Maybe even worse than some of the previous shots.

I'd have to say, as conceptually great as Chaykin is, the pencils laid out in most of his recent work, if not all, is ugly. FUGLY, even.
Consistency in characters is distinctly lacking, particularly where the bizarrely conceived jaws are concerned. I mean no disrespect to the man, but Robert Z'Dar comes to mind, despite some angles depicting the characters in the more familiar, streamlined manner.

Also baffling is Chaykin's ability to make characters appear to gain weight between panels. Morbius, depicted hideously in his seventies garb (complete with frustratingly large red triangles for eyes), appears to not only be overweight, but chewing a mouthload of food whilst talking. Erstwhile, Blade appears to go from having a massive double chin, to not. And finally, Wolverine unmasked reveals not James "Logan" Howlett -- but rather a hairy John Belushi!

On the positive, the action is managed well, but it's amusing to recall early interviews with Chaykin concerning the comic upcoming, where he refers to lengths taken to keep his characters contemporary. There's a distinct dating to these issues that feels like something from the eighties. Certainly Blade lacks the contemporary cool of his big screen counterpart, well portrayed by Wesley Snipes, who should ideally be the model on which the character is based, within legal reason.

Who would have believed five years previous during the height of comics sales, that Blade would be the first hero to truly revolutionize Hollywood attitudes to comic book adaptations? The success of the character and first film was staggering, and owed much to a vision of the character that featured many of his modern comic traits, but took it to a refined, sleek and sexy place.

Why then, when the comics come knocking, is this what we find ourselves with?
Completing lacking is the solitary respect for urban-hero success stories, instead replaced by sales grabbing Civil War tie-ins, obtuse character cameos, and battles with Dr. Doom... Everything the movies were not.

I'm not saying the character should not operate within the Marvel Universe. I would quickly contradict myself, because some of his greatest appearances, if not all, have been moving in and around the urban characters that populate the Marvel Universe. Even characters as outlandish as Ghost Rider, Morbius and Dr. Strange.
But why oh why would this feature film success be apparently completely ignored? Even previous efforts, though similar to the films, have been likewise lacking.

Where's the artistic vision of someone like Alex Maleev? Where's the tight characterization and urban drama of a writer like Ed Brubaker? Where is the consideration to what made the character work so well on celluloid?

I guess this entry leaves more questions than answers, true believers.
One can't help but think to Mark Millar's Enemy of the State story, which was originally conceived as a Blade pitch. It may not surpass the high concept of this issue, but you have to imagine it would have had stoic, Wesley Snipes-style characterization going for it.

The Fight: 3 The Issue: 3.5

MAGNETO versus SPIDER-MAN
Cunning Attractions! (Marvel comics)
Where: Amazing Spider-man #327 When: Mid December 1989
Why: David Michelinie How: Erik Larsen

The story so far...
Tired of suffering defeats at the hands of their foes, the sinister arrangement of The Wizard, Magneto, Kingpin and Dr. Doom gather in an effort to orchestrate their combined efforts to guarantee their acts of vengeance.

Exchanging information and responsibility to combat their foes, it is ultimately Magneto here who steps up to the plate after the failure of Trapster and Titania to do the job on their behalf.

Meanwhile, Spider-man is coming to terms with the mysterious powers that have not only augmented his abilities, but given him brand new cosmic strengths that have him defeating opponents with never before seen ease!
Is this a positive new beginning for Spider-man, or will cosmic powers attract deadlier foes? With greater power must come greater responsibility!

Previous Form:
Magneto (#203): Magneto has been somewhat unsuccessful thus far.
Spider-man (#2): Spider-man previously used his cosmic power to defeat the Tri-Sentinel.

Tale of the tape...
Strength: Spider-man 5 (Super Strength)
Intelligence: Magneto 5 (Professor)
Speed: Spider-man 4 (Olympic Sprinter)
Stamina: Magneto 6 (Generator)
Agility: Spider-man 5 (Cat-like)
Fighting Ability: Spider-man 3 (Street Wise)
Energy Powers: Magneto 6 (Mass Destruction)

No sooner than we have the X-Men fighting Lizard [X-Men: First Class #2] than we arrive at this massive miss matching of foes: Spider-man vs Magneto!

For the sake of consistency our statistics do not change based on the circumstances of the fight featured, so there are some misleading facts described in the above 'tape.' This fight features a very different Spider-man.

These days Spidey has organic webshooters, so the amount of metal he's carrying around at any given time is pretty minimal. There's no immediate inherent threat there unique to Spider-man, but anywhere in the civilized world Magneto finds an arsenal at his disposal.
That's completely neglecting the master of magnetism's own mutant virtues. Abilities that occasionally fluctuate but include things like controlling the iron traces in human blood in various dastardly ways, and/or firing off magnetic pulses of concussive energy.

As far as I see, neither character really has any definitive edge over the other.
Spider-man's preternatural senses allow him pretty swift movement around situations Magneto could create, while his own attacks are fairly base, and would conversely have limited effect on Magneto.

Even so, I'd generally have to lean toward saying Magneto has Spidey licked.
Spider-man's one of the best heroes you can find in the Marvel universe, but Magneto is Magneto, and as we've seen in various recent features, he's not a mutant to be messed with.

Of course, as I mentioned, this isn't your typical Spidey-fight.
On the record, this one's Magneto's. Off the record, you have to completely reevaluate the situation when you take into consideration the omin-power that has embued the noble Peter Parker with fantastic cosmic powers as he becomes - Captain Universe!

We've seen this Spidey once previously on Secret Earths [Amazing Spider-man #329] where he averted another typically X-threat of a mystically charged Sentinel. You can reference that to get an idea of the kind of power we're talking about.

With the power of Captain Universe, Cosmic Spidey (as he's affectionately known) is capable of all kind of incredible feats!
He can fly, has enhanced human senses as well as having his own precognative spider-senses amped up in sensitivity. He can produce concussive cosmic blasts, and even in the days of the mechanical cartridge-loaded web-shooters, he could cosmically conjure a comparable compound out of apparent nothingness. Unlimited webbing, to the video gaming folks out there!

So, yeah... Magneto's in trouble, however:

The Math: Draw (Meta Class)
The Pick: Magneto

What went down...
It begins down at the docks, where Spidey is testing out his new cosmic powers, which include super strength enough to allow him to life a fully loaded barge at a scrapyard with ease above his head! The scrapped shells of cars prove a worthy measure as Spidey obliterates the steel with his cosmic hand-blasts, but unfortunately the attention warrants a call to the press from a scrapyard worker.

Contemplating Spider-man's role in the war between human and mutant, Magneto makes note that Spider-man may play an unwitting key role in the survival of either species. Which is nice, because so often he gets overlooked.
A TV in the park tips him off to the whereabouts of the web-slinger.

Before the arachnoid hero even knows what's going on, the barge is swept out of his hands, ushering the arrival of the master of magnetism - Magneto!

Magneto descends upon the hero, flinging a barrage of shrapnel and scrap metal at the hero. His spider-senses aid him in the dodging of the onslaught, but his cosmic powers prove to be the real advanage, allowing him to blast it out of the air piece by piece.

Spider-man flings himself at his mutant attacker, but Magneto's forcefield of magnetic aura protect him from the attack. Never the less, the might of the cosmic Spider-man proves enough to rattle even he.

Using their surroundings, Magneto flings a magnetic loading crane like a wrecking ball at the airborne wall-crawler. Spider-man swings around the obstacle with the aid of his familiar webbing, but Magneto amplifies the potency of the crane to the point where the iron in Spider-man's body is attracted.

Stuck between a crane and a hard place, Spider-man struggles as Magneto brings him down at speed toward the ground. Only by his instinctive use of his mysterious cosmic powers is he saved, changing the molecular composition of the crane from hard metals -- to fragile glass!

Magneto then hurls car bodies at the hero, whose preemptive senses again allow him the advantage of avoiding contact. Free from danger, Spidey uses his cosmic supply of webbing to form a giant baseball bat, swatting the airborne cars out of the park!

Feeling somewhat over the unprovoked attacks of supervillains generally not in his jurisdiction, Spidey then sets his offensive on the Magster himself.

Tangoing with one of the most powerful mutants on the planet seems do-able for a moment, but as Magneto attempts to repell the hero's attacks with his magnetic ability, Spider-man's heightened cosmic senses pick something up.

From his airborne vantage point he spies a cruise ship that fell hapless victim to one of Spidey's own homerun knock-outs with his webbing ball bat.

Deciding to abandon the fight to quash the disaster of his worst nightmares, he discovers the ability of flight, as he heads away from the docks toward the ship in peril.

The diversity of Spider-man's new powers tips Magneto off to his status as human, rather than mutant, and decides to abandon his interests.
Although, he does so, not without promise of a future encounter with the web-slinger, and new manipulations at the hands of the master of magnetism...

The hammer...
As Uatu so dramatically proclaims to the left there, it's a draw.
I can't even give it to anyone on points, the conclusion is clear.

Had this one on my pile for quite some time now. It's one of those many fights that, for whatever reason, got overlooked in 2006. Maybe because there was no conclusion, or maybe just because there have been so many other things going on. Nice to finally get it out there!

I've probably mentioned before how great my affection for this period in Spider-man history is. As much as I love Conway and Buscema, I have to willingly submit Michelinie and Larsen as one of my all-time favourite teams on the character. They just seemed to have story after story full of exciting action, great visuals, and a lot of fun that combined the characters and ideals of the original concept, with a fresh perspective.

Even some of the more casual readers visiting us are probably familiar with some of Todd McFarlane's work on Spider-man, which arguably established a whole new way of approaching the anatomy and style of the character, but pound-for-pound I think Erik Larsen took it, and did it even better.
For me, I think it's just Larsen's linework, which is far less crowded than McFarlane's Spider-man work. Here Larsen appears to lack some of what makes his work today so recognisable, and what hinders my enjoyment of McFarlane's stuff, is the overuse of lines, particular on the faces.

McFarlane isn't bad at drawing faces, but there's a quality to them all that makes them instantly recognisable, and slightly... Well, deformed is a misleading description, but perhaps just a little less than real. Which is ironic, I suppose, because what I'm really talking about is the cartooning simplification of what represents reality in comics.

It's not just the visuals that define this fantastic period of Spider-history, though. David Michelinie - where are you now? I think I heard something about Michelinie doing stuff at Marvel again, but the guy seemed to disappear from the radar after a lot of great work for the company, particularly Spider-man.

I couldn't tell you what it is about the formula, because it isn't particularly identifiable, and it won't hit you over the head with how clever it thinks it is like some of the more contemporary takes on 'good writing.' It just seems to accept itself and move very fluidly between fun cameos, fights and character moments.

Key point that come to mind aren't particularly important in the scheme of things, but appearances by Punisher and Graviton and the Tri-Sentinel just stick in my memory as great moments in Spidey's history. Moments we seem to have lost in this decade amidst the all-devouring gelatenous blob that is Civil War, and the inexplicably popular work of Ultimate Spider-man, built on a house of stuttering and disposable issues.

Actually, I was overjoyed recently to pick up an issue of Sensational Spider-man, which didn't even feature the web-slinger, instead handing the spotlight to Black Cat and Puma, two characters familiar in the era we're referring to here.

If any positive can be taken out of contemporary directions for Spider-man, it's that we seem to have well and truly left the over indulgent, poorly considered work of the mid-to-late nineties behind us.
We've gotten past the creative stablizing of the industry in the earliest part of this decade, too. [Alternatively referred to as the Jemas-period. - Matriculant Mike] And now we're heading, it seems, toward a balance between the two, indulging willingly in the efforts of the second and third tier characters again, but perhaps with some wisdom gained by the mistakes of the past.

Hopefully even though we didn't deliver a conclusive battle, you enjoyed this flashback never the less. I know I enjoyed flicking through the pages again.
Actually, y'know, my comic guy of fifteen-or-so years has closed up, but is selling off back issues. I wonder if he has any of these for sale...

The Fight: 3.5 The Issue: 4

BATMAN versus O.G.R.E
Rules of Engagement: Part Two (DC comics)
Where: Batman Confidential #2 When: March 2007
Why: Andy Diggle How: Whilce Portacio

The story so far...
The dichotomy of vision between Lex Luthor and Bruce Wayne is extrapolated when the businesses vie for a contract to develop technology to benefit Gotham City.

WayneTech's designs are ones of peace, utilizing state of the art technology to create search and rescue robots with the use of neural-link transmission pilotting.
Conversely, LexCorp concerns itself with the potential threat of an ever changing world full of the fantastic and bizarre. Luthor's proposal is built on advanced weaponry and proactive peace creating agents, as opposed to Wayne's more passive tools.

With a verdict to be decided, things take a nasty turn for WayneTech when their rescue OGRE droid attacks Lex Luthor outside the very building the proposal was made in. Will the Batman be able to solve the mystery of the rogue robot?

Previous Form:
Batman (#1): Batman defeated another giant killer robot, in the form of Amazo.
WayneTech OGRE: The OGRE robot has not yet been featured.

Tale of the tape...
Strength: WayneTech OGRE 5 (Super Strength)
Intelligence: Batman 5 (Professor)
Speed: Batman 3 (Trained Athlete)
Stamina: WayneTech OGRE 6 (Generator)
Agility: Batman 4 (Gymnast)
Fighting Ability: Batman 5 (Martial Artist)
Energy Powers: WayneTech OGRE 5 (Lasers)

Situations like these are always pretty awkward because there really isn't any previous data to draw upon for the OGRE droid, and it's not likely there will be any more after this. Thems the breaks, I suppose.

Batman is Batman. He finished 2006 as the top rated fighting superhero in comics here on Secret Earths, and he did it with only one defeat to his name. [Batman and the Mad Monk #1]

OGRE is a robot built to be able to sustain the most uninhabitable conditions, which inadvertently means he's highly durable and incredibly powerful, with much of the technology being geared toward rescue and retrieval in disasterous situations. This gives it a huge advantage of strength against the human Batman.

The equaliser, as we well known by now, is in Batman's endless arsenal of technology, which under other circumstances could logically include this very piece of hardware. This array of technology is especially efficient when combatting other technologies, with the Batman able to access minds capable of strategising even where he can't.

Although not necessarily a disadvantage, OGRE is pilotted by a human, which also scales down the fantastical extent to which he can analytically combat Batman. This is man versus man controlling machine, and Batman's had much worse.

The Math: Batman (Meta Class)
The Pick: Batman

What went down...
So, the OGRE generally menaces around as it stalks Luthor, ripping effortlessly through the high-grade armor plating of Luthor's limo. Luthor attempts to bargain with the machine, but the implications of his fortune are lost on the bot.

Batman shows on the scene, tossing a clunky Batarang into the field, but OGRE is able to catch the projectile before it strikes -- unwittingly catching a flash-grenade variety batarang! It stuns the robot's sensors momentarily, giving Batman opportunity to place a frequency jamming device on it's back.

The device proves unsuccessful in stopping the machine, allowing it to continue freely on it's rampage. OGRE wrenches the street lamp Batman perches atop from the ground, whipping the hero into the air.
Thermite acid proves to barely be a distraction as he analyses his options.

Luthor's entourage fire on the machine, while Luthor exercises his greatest muscle [His brain... sickos... - Miscreant Mike], recognising the sewers as a viable escape route that would prevent the bulky machine from following.

While Luthor makes his escape crawling through waste on his hands and knees, the OGRE droid pounds at the ground attempting to gain wider access than the narrow manhole.

Batman attempts to contain the distracted machine, but knows full well that his multi-walled nanofilament grappling cable will have little effect on the man-made beast. It snaps it like it were little more than ribbon, and just like that, gives up the fight. With it's in-built rocket thrusters, the OGRE makes a clean getaway.

Meanwhile, back at WayneTech the machine's pilot is found dead in the saline filled deprivation tank form which the machine is controlled. Thus posing the question -- was the controller killed before or after the attack?

One illegal autopsy later, Batman discovers a synthetic medical implant that was no doubt responsible for the pilot's death, but undetectable to conventional investigation methods. The technology fits directly with the boasts of Lexcorp, proposing a connection between the victim and the OGRE attack.

Batman's deductions prove valid when he finds the OGRE at a Lexcorp compound seeking out radioactive materials to power the machine reactor.
Batman connects the events, realising the pilot was presumably working for Luthor from within WayneTech, but was killed while in the tank, leaving his mind to somehow embue the machine with a pseudo-sentience.

Batman tries to talk the "ghost in the machine" out of it's quest for revenge, but is met with a violent response.

Unfortunately for OGRE this time Batman came prepared. Rather than engage the machine once more, he uses his technology to shut the machine down and eject it's memory cortex.

The violence is stopped and Lex Luthor's life, and the lives of untold Lexcorp workers are no doubt saved, but the Batman can't help but feel he has blood on his hands, as this adventure comes to a close.

The hammer...
Well, before anyone else says it, I'm just going to cop to it and acknowledge how full of crud I am. Batman emerges victorious in this second month of 2007.

I was honest in my predictions of a quieter year for the Dark Knight, but I guess when push came to shove, I just couldn't resist getting him on the site again to represent for the D, the C, and the worthy top fivers. 'Cause as much as I love Moon Knight, c'mon...

I digress, I definitely selected this issue for the story more than the fight.
This new title, Batman: Confidential, replaces the cancelled Legends of the Dark Knight, which essentially served a very similar purpose, serving up stories that more comfortably slot into previous decades or eras of the character.
In that respect, the launch of this new title feels underwhelming. As interesting as Diggle and Portacio are under their own individual merits, you can see where it may have previously been less obvious, how this book differs from the All-Star line.

I actually like Whilce Portacio's work, and as the sometimes forgotten Image Comics found, I do tend to wonder where he is, and why he isn't compelled to pick up a pencil and do something high profile. We know the work's out there, having reviewed his work previously. [Iron Man #2]

Portacio's pencils are understandably poorly received by some. His layouts and scenes feature many characteristics of the nineties, with over the top action in most panels, and overlapping page layouts that appear unruly and hyperactive compared to the pseudo-realistic subdued approach of most contemporary reads.

Portacio's stylized approach could be described as moody Jim Lee.
His peculiar trademark of thick black shadow around eyes, even when lit otherwise, is actually something I kinda enjoy. It's not what I'd want to see in every book, but as something unique to Portacio, it's interestingly effective.
Likewise in Iron Man, Portacio's darkness reflects surprisingly well on duplicitous corporately driven characters, with Lex Luthor and even Bruce Wayne appearing appropriately sinister at times. Something we saw on the Civil War/Ultimates-esque Tony Stark during Heroes Reborn.

As for the story itself, it's very similar to an episode of the anime TV seres, Bubblegum Crisis: Tokyo 2040, in which a deep sea miner is crushed by his collapsing facility, and the droid he operates becomes corrupted with the pseudo-sentience of his controller.

As a stand alone episode Bubblegum Crisis was able to tell the more rivetting of the two stories, with an emotional line of a neglected wife (ultimately widowed) being the driving component of the story -- rather than this book, which presumably uses this revenge plot to point to corporate espionage, which will no doubt further the book beyond this issue.

It isn't bad, but it would be very easy to tear the book apart, perhaps unfairly-so. Actually, I think it's interesting to note that it deserves at least a second read. Twenty-twenty hindsight adds depth to the action earlier in the piece, explaining with new meaning events such as the failed signal jammer (assuming the controller has already died), and why Luthor offers the machine the prospect of a deal.

For this, Diggle has to get full credit, but as the launch of a brand new feature Batman title, the delivery is somewhat underwhelming.
Editorially, the story itself is actually quite baffling. It reads like a very good Legends story, but to launch a book like this it's surprising more high profile guest characters weren't used. Not that I condone that sort of thing, it just would've made more sense.
Mind you, I guess I'm discounting the value of Lex Luthor as a villain in a Batman book. Likewise, maybe I'm not recognising how deliciously subtle this hero/villain story has come to be set up.

I can't guarantee my sustained interest, but I have to admit, the more I look at the book, the more I can at least pick out the positives. Overall it's a pretty average read, but if you somehow arrived at this paragraph before the previous, you might enjoy the secondary layer one attains from the conclusion.

This isn't typically the kind of book I'd review here, but hey, I'm being contemporary while I can. It's not like I piss money, and buy comics every week. Yes, I'm looking at all of you other over indulged comics bloggers and laughing. Bitterly.

The Fight: 3 The Issue: 5

DEADPOOL versus TASKMASTER
Unfinished Business: Part One (Marvel comics)
Where: Cable & Deadpool #36 When: March 2007
Why: Fabian Nicieza How: Reilly Brown

The story so far...
Deadpool's career has been in something of a slump, and hanging out with Cable most of the time probably hasn't really helped that reputation of his. So what's a merc with a mouth to do? Score points off some more popular schmuck, of course!

Deadpool tracks down his old sparring buddy, Taskmaster, who still has a mess of cred in the world of warriors-for-hire. In return for freeing him from imprisonment, Taskmaster agrees to entertain Deadpool's insane request.

With the help of his ol' pal, Weasel, Deadpool organizes a showcase in front of an assemblage of those-that-would-need-mercenaries. To up the anti, Deadpool shackles himself as he steps into the field against the Taskmaster.
Insane, or truly, truly brilliant?... Probably insane, yeah...

Previous Form:
Deadpool (#45): Deadpool successfully tangled with the Incredible Hulk!
Taskmaster (#193): Taskmaster was humiliated by Moon Knight.

Tale of the tape...
Strength: Draw 3 (Trained Athlete)
Intelligence: Taskmaster 4 (Tactician)
Speed: Deadpool 3 (Trained Athlete)
Stamina: Deadpool 5 (Marathon Runner)
Agility: Deadpool 4 (Gymnast)
Fighting Ability: Taskmaster 7 (Born Fighter)
Energy Powers: Deadpool 4 (Arsenal)

Taskmaster has the honor being the first repeat customer of 2007!
Let's all give it up for the Task-man! Yeah! Whooo!

Tricky thing about Taskmaster is, he's one of those guys who by the very nature of the character should be incredibly successful, but because of that, have become regular targets for defeat. Basically, he makes people look good.

It's said that he can master and duplicate nearly any fighting technique he witnesses, and has a photographic memory for such details. Thus, he is still often seen to carry around approxomations of Avengers weapons, like Captain America's shield, for example, and the Swordman's sword.

Because Taskmaster supposedly breaks down and understands the fighting techniques of others, his intellectual basis suggests he could know your own moves better than you do.
Daredevil remarked in a recent feature that he fights with a rage other fighters don't understand, and this alludes to the instinctive and personal nature of fighting stances and styles. Thus, Taskmaster could presumably pick and choose his way through an arsenal of moves, refining it to be pure and intelligent.

Of course, a wise villain once asked, "Think you can outsmart a bullet?"

For all his skills, Taskmaster is still a man, and there's nothing about his talent that says he couldn't overlook an opponent, or be on the unlucky end of a rocket blast, or something. Also, he could like, be totally in love and not even see the bus coming. See where I'm going with this?

While Deadpool does not carry a bus in his arsenal (as far as I know...), he is in many ways the anti-thesis to the Taskmaster. He has comparable ability to execute skill, but lacks consistent or coherrent thought process. Likewise, he is often completely unconcerned with the fighting prowess or strategy of others.
Deadpool also has a buff nerd for a friend, and kidnapped an old lady and held her hostage for nurturing.

Above all this, Deadpool is a master of obnoxious wit, and given enough time he would almost certainly realise that if you swap a couple of letters you get Masktaster! If Hulk had more letters in his name, even he would be felled by such a hilarious and clever insult.

Jokes aside, these two are actually incredibly evenly match, for many of the reasons listed. Deadpool's healing factor gives him a slight edge, but as a level headed and well executed fighter, it's hard to overlook Taskmaster.

Gosh. Decisions, decisions...
I guess in the purity of this section, this time I'm going to go with the following, but really, this choice could change at any given moment. Much like Rose McGowan's hair colour.

Oohhhh, come on! You totally got that!
Don't make like you don't watch Charmed and wonder about interior decor... Dirty pervert...

The Math: Draw (Meta Class)
The Pick: Taskmaster (Just cuz...)

What went down...
Having freed Taskmaster, bartered for his cooperation, and then sucker punched him out... Deadpool manacles up and enters the test ground of a special forces military training base, apparently outside Provo, Utah.

Armed to the teeth, Deadpool fires off a bazooka blast that narrowly misses Taskmaster and his stupid cloak hood/cape combo.

Spying his target through nightvision goggles, the bound Deadpool hops his way into the coures to make a more front-on attack.
Lurking in the shadows, Taskmaster makes eye contact, and deciding to move in for a more personal attack, he clutches his sword and charges in with the lamest battle cry you've ever heard -- gyaaaaaaaaah!

Pool spins around fast enough to block the hit with a bo-staff and rolls through, tossing the Taskmaster, who lands masterfully on his feet.
Perturbed by his immature, innuendo laden humor, Taskmaster charges at Deadpool with his sword, impaling the merc with a mouth!

Heartbreaking! Unless you've got a grade-A functioning healing factor!

Deadpool slides his way down the sword to come face-to-skull-face with his ol' bud, and twists his body to throw him off balance. The staff does the rest of the work, with a nice tap to the noggin.

Blood gushes from his wounds as Deadpool continues the staff borne thrashing, until Taskmaster is able to slice through the wood with his mighty sword. ... *snort*

DP hits the wall and ricochets back with a drop kick, following it up with a shackled Polish uppercut with the two-fist.
Then emusic.com offer you 25 free songs when you sign up via emusic.com/marvel, with the guarantee their MP3s work on any player including iPod! Neat!

Taskmaster nurses his jaw, refreshing his memory with just how hard Deadpool hits [and how low Emusic.com's prices are] when DP brings down a brick "George Perez city rubble" wall down where Tasky's kneeling.

Narrowly avoiding being crushed, Taskmaster takes pirsuit after the hopping mercenary, leaving behind the urban compound for forest territory.

Further showing off his combat abilities, Deadpool utilizes his surroundings in the whooping of Taskmaster. TM navigates a cascade of boulders, ducks swinging tree branches, and braves an inexplicable desert storm in his chase of Deadpool, until the Pool-man emerges from beneath the sands and tags him with a poison dart!

With that, Deadpool schlups Taskmaster's unconscious body back to the military base where he parades his victory before the [unwillingly] assembled panel of judges and would-be employers.

Unfortunately, they are none-too impressed by his MTV commercial tactics. Instead of stirring business, he has in fact only further reminded everyone how much of a liability he can be. BUT -- he still won. Nyah-nyah.

The hammer...
Two months in and Taskmaster's already heading to the bottom of the table, as Deadpool picks up his second Secret Earths victory.

I have to admit, as impartial as I try to be when it comes to selection, it felt like we'd been sorely missing Deadpool entries.
Find me a man who does not enjoy Deadpool comics, and I will show you a moron!

This is actually the first time I've picked up the Cable & Deadpool book, having been tied up with other priorities [and limited funds], and some reticence about the Cable side of things. This probably isn't an accurate way to sample it's flavours, but at the very least I can say this was a pretty satisfying purchase.
Nicieza may just be incredibly obnoxious, but with Deadpool sometimes it's hard to differentiate between obnoxious/bad comedy writing, and his character.

The continued relationship between Deadpool and Taskmaster is a joy to behold though, and I only wish the UDON designed costume [used in TM's mugshot] had stuck. It would've been nice for Deadpool's legacy of positives to extend beyond him. Alas, Taskmaster is back in the buccaneer boots and cloak. What a rube.

I wish I had some profound revelation to bestow upon you all, because I certainly enjoyed this comic. It's just... It's pretty much a what-you-see-is-what-you-get kinda deal. This is a straight up fight comic, with a brief prologue that whole heartedly breaks the fourth wall (in a more blunt vein than "The Masked Marvel" or "She-Hulk"), and resolves a cliffhanger hook that promises more wacky fun next issue with the escape of the Rhino.
[Rhino, for those who don't know, infamously wound up a keychain at the hands of Deadpool. How humiliatin'. - Monolithic Mike]

I missed out on much of Gail Simone's work, but if I had to compare Nicieza's Deadpool to the defining work of Joe Kelly, I'd have to say there might be something lacking in the humor of the dialogue. As I mentioned, it's hard to break apart the character of Deadpool and really refine the good from the bad, but it did feel something was perhaps just a tad askew as far as the written gags versus the visual stuff.

That said, Reilly Brown, whom I don't know by name, has a pretty decent pencil line, well complemented by Jeremy Freeman's inks and Gotham colours.
It just perhaps feels a little less committed to story or comedy, teetering somewhere in between. It's good, but Nicieza seems to remain at the cusp of the big time as a jack of all trades, but master of none.

It is of course February 9 as I type this, which means I've fulfilled my Friday update commitment, even though I'm still a week behind. Hey, who knows? Maybe I'll catch up in the hour and a quarter left before midnight! [Not likely!]

Had a recent influx of hits, so it seems like we're finally getting the address into the right hands. Thanks to everyone who's joining us, and hopefully you're getting what you need. If you aren't, meet me in the alley behind the Sweedish deli and we'll see if we can't come to an arrangement.

The Fight: 4.5 The Issue: 4.5