ICONOCLAST versus FANTASTIC FOUR
Be It Ever So Humble... (Marvel comics)
Where: Fantastic Four #2 When: February 1998
Why: Scott Lobdell How: Alan Davis

The story so far...
After the battle with Onslaught, the world believed the Fantastic Four and Avengers had perished, but to the delight of the world, the heroes returned a year later to the world they had left behind.

Unfortunately for the Fantastic Four, life had moved on in their absence, and their base of operations had been liquidated and revamped as the headquarters for the new team of super heroes: The Thunderbolts.

In need of a home, Reed Richards moves his family to his storage facility on the highliy appropriate Pier 4, but even as he gives his loving wife a new tour of their base of operations - something sinister is lurking in the shadows. Peril waits not for the Fantastic Four, as the Invisible Woman finds herself targetted by a mysterious assassin from another world!

Previous Form:
Fantastic Four [#3]: Victories over Frightful Four, Secret Avengers & Sinister Twelve.
Invisible Woman (#32): Unsuccesful against Wolverine and Death's Head, away from the FF.
Iconoclast: Has not yet been featured on the site.

Tale of the tape...
Strength: Iconoclast 3 (Athlete)
Intelligence: Invisible Woman 4 (Tactician)
Speed: Iconcolast 3 (Athlete)
Stamina: Invisible Woman 4 (Athlete)
Agility: Iconoclast 3 (Acrobat)
Fighting Ability: Draw 4 (Trained Fighter)
Energy Powers: Iconoclast 3 (Explosives)


Iconoclast represents an incredibly interesting and rare phenomenon in modern comics. That's the introduction of a character who is relatively interesting with allusions to an established motivation and history, but lacks any real definition.
What makes this particularly unique is that the character, as far as I know, and as far as I could find out, has never been followed up on.

In fact, even browsing Marvel's own Wiki-formatted database, there are not even any apparent references to the character, to be found. So, how to we measure such a character? Well, with some license, I suppose you could say.

It's not the first time we've analysed a character that hasn't appeared again in the broader medium, and as is always the case, we draw what we can from the pages in which they have appeared.

Perhaps the most distinctive technique exhibited by Iconoclast is his ability to exist somehow on two planes of existence. While he remains invisible and intangible to those of us in the regular realm, a character such as the Invisible Woman represents someone able to see and interact with that plane of being.

In that respect both Invisible Woman and Iconoclast are on relatively equal terms. Working in the Invisible Woman's favour are a few factors:
The Invisible Woman has the back-up support of one of the most seasoned teams in the Marvel Universe, which includes the brilliant mind of Reed Richards, inventor and thinker extraordinaire.

Invisible Woman also carries with her an inherent range of abilities thanks to her versatile application of forcefields and tactile invisibility. While she cannot fade from Iconoclast's sight, she can certainly rough him up with forcefield backed punches!

The Iconoclast appears to come, if not naturally, equipped with energy based "bio-blasts" with explosive results. Also working for the Iconoclast is an impressive degree of agility, and fighting skills that clearly rival the moderately trained Invisible Woman's.

If Reed Richards can get the rest of the team into the fight, then this becomes decidedly one-sided, but without the assistance of her team, it becomes much more difficult to say for sure that Invisible Woman would win. I'd like to think she has the broad tools, but Iconoclast makes for a convincing threat!

The Math: Iconoclast (Champion Class)
The Pick: Invisible Woman (Champion Class)

What went down...
Sue and Reed Richards share a hug in their son's bedroom when the Iconoclast makes himself known to Sue. He declares his intentions to "null" her before she can null him and his people. His hand begins to glow as energy builds in it, released in a massive explosion!

The Invisible Woman is able to protect her and her family with an invisible forefield, and while Mr. Fantastic consoles his son, Sue Richards' motherly instincts tell her to kick the Iconcoclast's arse!

Invisible Woman propels herself at Iconoclast with an invisible shield, extending beyond her fist to knock him through the window!

Mr. Fantastic quickly follows, initiating the appropriate security measures to see the broken window sealed, and his son protected from any other would-be invaders of the Pier-4 facility.

Out in the snow, Invisible Woman is knocked about by the Iconoclast, who not only remains invisible to Mr. Fantastic, but who also appears to have no effect on their surroundings, either. As he trails his wife's footsteps, he notes that there are no such accompanying imprints.

Mr. Fantastic leaps into the air stretching himself out to blanket the area in the hopes of ensuring physical contact with the Iconoclast so he can restrain him. Unfortunately he remains intangible to all but the Invisible Woman, thus provoking a more developed theory from Richards.
While he ponders the situation, a concerned Franklin Richards triggers the Fantasti-flare, alerting the attentions of the rest of the team who are busy messing around in the city.

As Reed begins to postulate, Sue continues to fend off the flaming attacks of the Iconoclast. Richards scoops his wife up and makes a stretched leap to put some distance between them, enquiring about any potentially valuable information.
As Richards reaches an epiphany, the Iconoclast makes contact, stretching Mr. Fantastic's stretchy gut out and around, before flattening him with a blow to the face.

As his own jaw stretches away from his face, Mr. Fantastic makes an intellectual note, "Apparently even though I am unable to "see" him -- or to affect him -- he has no such limitations -- OWNLPHN! -- in regards to harming me!

If I didn't know better, I would've thought Mr. Fantastic had just recalled his trumph seen in last week's Fantastic Friday entry against Sub-Mariner. OWNLPHN! [Fantastic Four #412]

Tired of the assault, Invisible Woman slams the Iconoclast with an invisible battering ram! Iconoclast, on the back foot, concedes his conflicted state, but reveals the stakes of too many millions of his people's lives.
Susan tries to stem his concerns, assuring him that he wishes for noone to die, but the word of a would-be tyrant means little to one so afraid. He slices through her invisible construct, and then shatters a defensive field she forms.

As the Invisible Woman falls to another blow, the Human Torch and Thing arrive on the scene. For the first time during the battle a footprint emerges in the snow, allowing Mr. Fantastic to deduce the effects of heat on the Iconoclast.

He instructs the Human Torch to send his heat in the direction of the print, resulting in the emergance of a shimmering figure that is the Iconoclast!
Visible to everyone, the Thing charges at their mysterious foe, but his fists find nothing but air. The ghostly apparition flings Thing into the air, and turns to meet Johnny Storm, who flames his way through the air in retort.

The Iconoclast's ghostly hand plunges into the Human Torch, seemingly intangible, but still capable of inflicting great pain on the flaming hero.

The Invisible Woman comes to the desperate aid of her brother, again the only member of the team able to see the threat.

She uses her invisible powers to yank the Iconoclast from her brother!
The Iconoclast voices his conflict again, as the Invisible Woman questions the necessity of the death of herself, or others. Despite his reluctance, the Iconoclast remains vigilant in his goals.

Again he punches his way through an invisible barrier with a glowing fist. Invisible Woman backs up, noting that with every field Iconoclast breaks, the weaker her efforts seem to become. She continues to back up, reaching the edge of the pier as the Iconclast smashes wall after wall.

Finally, Sue Richards springs her final gambit. Having retreated far beyond the edge of the pier to over the water, she peels back her invisible platform, leaving the Iconoclast to drop into the icey waters below. The Iconoclast plunges into the water with a spectacular explosion of steam and energy!

On the pier, Mr. Fantastic reveals he theory he shared with his wife while Human Torch and Thing provided a distraction. A theory that Iconoclast himself was not manipulating his existence on our plane of reality, instead he employed a technology in-built into his suit, that could presumably be shortcircuited with water.

Though the Fantastic Four make efforts to find and retrieve the Iconoclast from the river, Reed Richards' most advanced scanning technology cannot find him. And as someone or something watches their heat signatures, Richards predicts that eventually their invisible menace will return.

The hammer...
Of course, Mr. Fantastic was thus-far wrong, as the Iconoclast never returned after his defeat at the hands of Invisible Woman! Full assist to the rest of the team, too.

I don't think we've loitered too much around this period of history, but I have to admit that I really enjoyed this era of Fantastic Four. It represents a large chunk of an otherwise modest collection, following the heights of the Heroes Reborn storyline into something more familiar.

Heroes Reborn was the Ultimate line before the Ultimate line, without the benefit of long term commitment. In that respect it was a condensed retelling of the character's origins, and their first encounters with many of their most recognisable villains, all put under a microscope of thirteen issues in four different series. In it's own way, it was actually very good, and Ultimate fans will note many simiarlities with one or two ideas developed in those books.

Things had become pretty garbled and distracted by the mid-nineties, so apart from streamlining the major Marvel properties, this was an opportunity to take a good look again at the classics, and put them all back in the spotlight.

When the heroes returned [as part of Heroes Return], it was a chance to move away from that magnifying glass and come out fresh. This is where we arrive at Lobdell and Davis on the new Fantastic Four; a delightful take that clearly takes inspiration from the classic intrepretations of Lee/Kirby and beyond, but brings it to readers with what was a contemporary sensibility.

Heroes Reborn was perpetrated by Image founders Jim Lee and Rob Liefeld (and others), so it had it's own version of the gaudy of the nineties, complete with trimmings and gimmicks. While FF post-Heroes Reborn appeared to be moving away from that, it was only a year later. Only so much could change.

It's almost hard to look at Iconoclast without a little bit of cynicism.
Granted, he provided some positive creative decisions. It cast a spotlight on Invisible Woman as an individual, something that happened with some of the team on and off during this run [like Mr. Fantastic in issue #3].

He also made for a convenient villain in a story that was very much establishing the team's new base on Pier-4, that could provide action, without taking the story away from the new HQ, and without demanding the destruction of it. It's probably not the kind of story you could have told with Annihilus.

Even so, there's something about Iconoclast that almost reads like an opportunity to explore with the technology becoming available. It's almost like someone sat down in editorial, and proposed the idea of experimenting with creating a Predator-style invisible character, who can be seen as an exciting computer-generated silhouette of distortion.

Granted, I say that with cynicism, but not outright negativity, because I think it's a great thing to do. This was an application of the computer technology becoming available that far outshined experiments with colouring, and special effects, ala some of the less attractive issues of Steel that spring to mind.

Ultimately the Iconoclast ball gets completely dropped, and certainly there's still potential for that concept to be picked up and run with. The basic ideas speak for themselves, but there's room for a lot of interpretation there.

What's clear is Invisible Woman's potential threat to the millions of people that exist in Iconoclast's world. I know a lot of popular interpretations take that to be something along the lines of Joss Whedon's Breakworld story in Astonishing X-Men, but I've always felt it might be a bit more indirect than that.
Rather than imagining some grim future where Invisible Woman gives in to malice, or anything like that, I thought it might have been something far more innocent.

I like to think Iconoclast hails from a sub-dimension along the lines of the Microverse, and that Invisible Woman's powers somehow impact on their way of being. Something that subtly ties her to them and explains her ability to see and interact with Iconoclast, beyond just invisible people seeing invisible people.
Something more along the lines of a human unwittingly stepping on a family of tiny bugs, or something.

Anyway, we're still over a week behind (today being the 18th), so I'll shut it down here. Next week we continue Fantastic Fridays with a special look at the Human Torch! Stay tuned, folks!

The Fight: 5 The Issue: 5

THE SOCIETY versus FREEDOM FIGHTERS
Infinite Crisis (DC comics)
Where: Infinite Crisis #1 When: December 2005
Why: Geoff Johns How: Phil Jiminez

The story so far...
The world is in crisis, and the heroes are divided to fall, while the villains are united in a way never before seen.
The Justice League is falling apart at the seams, struggling to recover from events such as Wonder Woman's brutal execution of the traitorous Maxwell Lord, where she very publicly snapped his neck; and the death of Firestorm.

Heroes such as the members of Uncle Sam's Freedom Fighters do their best to pick-up the slack, but with a united front of evil willing to cross any lines, it becomes more difficult than ever.

Having received information regarding a transmission between Silver Ghost and Mirror Master; Uncle Sam leads his Freedom Fighters to a seemingly abandoned refinery where they believe the supervillains are organizing weapons for terrorist activity. Unfortunately for them, Uncle Sam's suspicions prove valid.
Now the team need not only put a stop to evil, but also fight to survive.

Previous Form:
The Society [#15]: Unsuccessful against the team of Batman & Red Hood.
Freedom Fighters [#19]: Slaughtered by the World's Finest; Superman/Batman.
Black Adam (#13): Undefeated after battles with the Four Horsemen of Apololips.
Dr. Light (#109): Present for Deathstroke's battle with the Justice League.
Psycho-Pirate (#255): Ultimately killed by Black Adam after this alliance.
Uncle Sam (#163): Unsuccesful in team-up with Wonder Woman against Batman/Superman.

Tale of the tape...
Strength: Bizarro 6 (Invincible)
Intelligence: Dr. Light 5 (Professor)
Speed: Zoom 7 (Light Speed)
Stamina: Black Adam 6 (Generator)
Agility: Cheetah 5 (Cat-Like)
Fighting Ability: Deathstroke 7 (Born Fighter)
Energy Powers: Sinestro 7 (Solar Power)

I think you pretty quickly realise you're in trouble when you open the door and one of your guys gets shot through the chest. We'll get to that soon enough, but let's take a look at the daunting stats of the tape first up, which paint a pretty grim picture for the Freedom Fighters!

A team of nine villains is bad enough. A team of villains consisting of; Black Adam, Sinestro, Deathstroke, Dr. Light, Dr. Polaris, Zoom, Psycho-Pirate, Bizarro and Cheetah - even more bad news. A team of these particular villains as oganized by Lex Luthor, who is fronting a united new era for bad guys? Down right scary!

The tape indicate just how well rounded this particular team is. Nobody tips below a five, and even those come in the less common categories, and of the nine, seven of them register as the top characters in their respective category.
That isn't even taking into account things like the comparable strength levels of Black Adam and Bizarro, or the intangible forces controlled by Polaris, Light and Sinestro. Or even things as obscure, and difficult to measure, as Psycho-Pirate's emotive suggestions.

The Freedom Fighters are outnumbered, nine-to-six.
Among their rag-tag mob of heroes are most notably Uncle Sam himself, Human Bomb, Damage and The Ray. Their powers are strong enough to at least register where some of these villains are concerned; Sam bringing a degree of stamina and strength, while the Ray can control and manipulate light in a variety of imaginative ways.

The Human Bomb and Damage pose perhaps the greatest key to victory, but their potential also rests on the potential destruction of their fellows. If either of these atomic-scale heroes really unloads, to the point where they can defeat or waylay The Society, it will probably come at the final hour, with their fellows already fallen.

Black Condor really affects very little influence on this particular fight. Given the scope and brutal power of characters like Black Adam, Deathstroke and Sinestro, it's just simply not in the realm of possibility for a character like Condor to be of use. Likewise, Phantom Lady's illusions and Savate expertise are going to be of little use here.

The Math: The Society
The Pick: The Society

What went down...
Infiltrating the secret arms factory, the Ray uses his powers to manipulate the laser light grid that provides a net of security over the entrance, diverting the light to himself. With that, Human Bomb uses his powers to destroy the control panel for heavy blast doors, and as they open...

A blast of cynical yellow energy cracks it's way through the air, piercing the exposed chest of the unsuspecting Black Condor. Waiting on the other side of the door is the cream of The Society's villainous crop. An apparent ambush.

Bizarro ironically greets the Freedom Fighters with a misplaced Good-Bye, which is all too accurate, given the situation, as Sinestro sneers from beneath the glowing yellow energies of his fear-borne power.

Uncle Sam orders his troops to hold nothing back as they charge into battle with the murderous members of The Society.

The order is as good as worthless.
In a volley of violence and destruction the Society find themselves set upon by some of the deadliest villains known.

The Ray is the first to fall, victim of Dr. Light's similar, but apparently superior, powers.
He sucks the light from The Ray's body in a way that could only be imagined as incredibly painful.

Damage finds himself at the mercy of Zoom's fists, as he swirls around the hero in an unstable, translucent blur. Zoom promises to make them stronger heroes if they survive. His barrage triggers Damage's explosive powers, which send him hurtling out of the building.

Phantom Lady's illusion of invisibility proves to be of little value against the feline senses of Cheetah. She quickly sniffs the Freedom Fighter out, leaping atop her before ripping away at her flesh.

With the Phantom Lady pinpointed and bleeding, Deathstroke charges in with his sword to finish the job. He drives his blade deep into her chest as she rematerializes. Her final word is, "Why?"
For Deathstroke, it is simply a matter of professionalism.

The Human Bomb's explosion topples Sinestro, Dr. Light and Deathstroke, and he cries for them to get away from his fellows.
Shaken by Phantom Lady's death, the Human Bomb runs amongst the carnage before Dr. Polaris floats down to revel in the defeat.

"Oh, she's dead, Human Bomb. Didn't you hear that delicious shriek?"

Enraged, the Human Bomb tears at his protective suit.
If it is death and war that delights Polaris, then the Human Bomb shall deliver more than he can handle. The Human Bomb glows with energy and explodes, blowing Dr. Polaris clean out of the sky.

Bizarro, attracted by the "pretty lights", descends atop the Human Bomb.

Declaring his affections he begins to pound the Bomb's bare flesh, incurring massive explosions with every thunderous punch. For every blow with the strength of a Superman, Bizarro encourages an equal amount of explosive force, until eventually the Human Bomb begins to disipate.

Eventually, with his blood and chest covered in blood, Bizarro is disappointed. The Human Bomb stirs no longer. He has exploded for the final time.

"No more pretty lights."

In spite of the many explosions, the fight rages on amongst the surviving heroes and villains. Uncle Sam finds himself with the uneasy task of battling Black Adam, perhaps the strongest man present.

Adam flies like a human torpedo, knocking Uncle Sam into the air.
Cheetah catches him on the ground, clawing at his face while Zoom buzzes around like a ghostly apparition.

The Ray, alive but weakened by Dr. Light's attack, finds himself at the mercy of the otherwise uninvolved Psycho-Pirate.

As The Ray spits threats at Psycho-Pirate, the medusa mask begins to shift from it's blank state to a calm, comforting smile.
"Don't be angry. Don't be afraid."

The Ray, relaxed, gives in to the exhaustion, allowing himself to be dragged away for the purposes of one, Alexander Luthor, for whom The Society does their bidding.

The last of the Fighters to fall is the first to rally them - Uncle Sam. Though he continues to fight valiantly against overwhelming odds, he is far outmatched, numerically and super naturally.

Sinestro uses his yellow energies to blast at the patriotic hero, sending him hurtling into the air. He eventually comes to land in a swamp somewhere nearby, and while his story is not through, the Freedom Fighters are through, and the Society free to carry out their evil machinations.

The hammer...
Conclusively the winners: The Society!

Meanwhile, Uncle Sam's resumé isn't looking terribly impressive right about now. The last time the character was featured, he and his team were completely wiped out by the tyrannical might of Superman and Batman. [Superman/Batman #15]
This time around things went a little better for the Freedom Fighters, but even still, to come out with a fifty-percent survival rate isn't really all that impressive by anyone's means. Maybe the X-Statix are about the only team impressed by those figures... Yeesh...

At the time this particular issue - the first of a major mini-series at the core of a company-wide event - caused quite a bit of controversy. Given the promotion of the event, a large part of the concern was rating standards, with this issue baring no kind of forewarning for the violence contained within.
Of particular interest at the time was Phantom Lady's brutally depicted murder, which sparked the obligatory discussion of misogynism in comics, and questions of violence against women.

I'm not so much interested in the censorship of violence against one sex over another. We've discussed before that, in fiction, I think it's nice for that equality to exist. I sometimes feel the violence needs to be more prevelent for both sexes, to continue to remind us exactly what kinds of threats these superheroes are dealing with. But I digress...

What struck me immediately having just completed the review was that I was declaring a team who just slaughtered the superheroes - victorious!
I think with the features we've looked at over the past year and a half I've come to build up an association with the declaration of a winner. Usually, even in the cases of the hero losing, there's a certain degree of honor and thrill to it.

Declaring The Society victorious here, however, after killing the heroes the way they did. There's something that just doesn't feel quite right about that.

Not that it really has to go beyond that.
I'm not sure this particular cast of characters was really what you'd call invaluable to the DC lot, and to the company's credit they have continued a tradition of reinvigorating properties in the newest incarnation of the Freedom Fighters. It's not all new, of course. Uncle Sam found his way out of the swamp after compelling one of the new leads to find him, and they have an all new, all-government approach, at least to start with.

I guess there's a triumph to come out of the deaths of these heroes, at least in some kind of creative off-shoot of a way. I admit, I'm usually not one to advocate wanton slaughter of worthwhile characters, but at least they've stayed dead for this long, and an attempt to revitalize the concepts has been made.

Though the book is mostly a vignette-packed primer for the DC Universe as it was becoming heading into Infinite Crisis, there's also a fantastic battle running parallel to this one on the moon, featuring the 'DC Trinity', so hopefully some time in the future we'll get a chance to revisit the story from that perspective.

For now, I've got to check out and head to bed, and hopefully get back to catching up again soon. We've got FF action next-up, cheers!

The Fight: 4.5 The Issue: 5.5

SPIDER-MAN versus SHOCKER
The Alien Costume Part 2: Paint It Black! (Marvel comics)
Where: Spider-man Adventures #9 When: August 1995
Why: Nel Yomtov, Brynne Stephens & John Semper How: Alex Saviuk

The story so far...
John Jameson, son of Daily Bugle publisher J. Jonah, was preparing to make a heroes return from an exploratory mission to space, when things went awry.
The discovery of a powerful dormant nuclear material called "Prometheum X" earned the mission much attention, but when the material appears to ooze an oily substance, the astronauts make a crash landing in New York City.

The evacuated area is ripe for the picking, as Rhino moves in to steal the valuable substance for the Kingpin, but with Eddie Brock on the scene to cover the case with his camera, he frames Spider-man for stealing Prometheum X.

Spidey, having saved the astronauts from the ship's fall from a bridge, becomes a wanted man as J. Jonah Jameson looks for someone to blame. With a price on his head things are looking bad, but when he wakes up with a new costume and enhanced powers, Spidey starts to think his luck might have finally turned around. But what sinister secrets does the alien symbiote hide?

Previous Form:
Spider-man (#1): Victories over Kraven, Mysterio, Scorpion, Carnage & Green Goblin.
Shocker (#260): Defeated by the Avengers as member of Sinister Twelve.

Tale of the tape...
Strength: Spider-man 5 (Super Strength)
Intelligence: Spider-man 5 (Professor)
Speed: Spider-man 4 (Olympian)
Stamina: Spider-man 5 (Marathon Man)
Agility: Spider-man 5 (Cat-like)
Fighting Ability: Spider-man 3 (Street Wise)
Energy Powers: Shocker 5 (Lasers)


Let the record show: The tape is not terribly flattering for one, Max Schulz aka; The Shocker. Even now his name inspires immature sniggers and snorts amongst the readership for his allusion to certain dubious sexual activities.

I'm going to be upfront about -- I'm a big supporter of the Shocker!
No, not that, I'm talking about the quilted super-villain who has gotten more than his fair share of flack over the past decade. Sure, he's a bit of a one-note thug, and maybe his costume is on the silly end of functionality, but it's not like Norman Osborn ever had a real reason for wearing a big green nose and purple night cap. Is it?!

It looks like Schulz is on the end of another ass whooping in the pages of The Initiative, but at least it's a step-up from his Ultimate counter, where the Shocker is little more than a running gag.

Generally speaking his blasts are going to cause anybody a bit of trouble, but Shocker is quickly dispensed through perseverence, keen agility, and superior strength. Traits all common to one spectacular Spider-man.

Of course, we should acknowledge that the black symbiote is involved in this particular encounter, which I like to think puts an interesting spin on the whole affair. Of course, this once again represents an area, as far as I know, completely overlooked in both the comics, and even in the cartoons upon which the subject of review is based upon:

I'm talking about Shocker's powers being derived from intense vibrations.
Which, in a round about way, amounts to a cousin of sonics, which are one of the key weaknesses of the Venom symbiote. Thus making Spider-man's possession of the symbiote a potential weakness, despite the fact it greatly enhances his powers.

As I mentioned, certainly in the cartoon/adaptation this is never a concept acknowledged, and to the best of my knowledge, if Shocker and a symbiote have ever had the misfortune of crossing paths, it hasn't been an issue raised.

So, where do we finish after all this?
Well, hoepfully I've at least skimmed the surface of a potential strength in the Shocker's arsenal. I probably won't finish this entry in one sitting, but there's a good chance I might again appeal to the quality of the character later in The Hammer, but in the mean time...

The Math: Spider-man (Meta Class)
The Pick: Spider-man

What went down...
Out looking for evidence that will clear his name in the theft of Prometheum X, Spider-man is on the scene when one of the Kingpin's hired thugs comes to ensure the evidence doesn't leave Eddie Brock's hands.

A man in a trenchcoat roughs Brock up on the steps of his apartment, before firing off a warning shot of intense vibrational force above his head, whilst shouting his name: The Shocker!

Shocker quickly tosses Brock aside as the black Spider-man clings to the wall of the apartment building. Shocker tells Spider-man to back off, firing off a blast that reduces the wall of the building to rubble, and collapses on top of Spidey.

Shocker retreats to Kingpin's secret base, but the super-powered Spider-man has followed him with the aid of his increased spider-senses. He smashes down the hi-tech security doors and bursts in on Shocker and Alistair Smythe.

Shocker leaves the stolen Prometheum X with Smythe, and begins firing off vibrational blasts at the black Spider-man. Spidey's trademark speed and agility leaves him freely avoiding each and every hit, before coming in for the kill with an uncharateristic aggression.

"Face it, Bozo... Messing with me these days -- is like signing your own death certificate!"

Spidey's fist collides with the Shocker's quilted face -- the padding designed to absorb vibration, little help against the increased super strenght of the Spider-man.

Spidey webs up Smythe and relieves him of the Prometheum X, before heading out to theorize who could be manipulating the pawns of crime against him.

Meanwhile, Smythe and Shocker crawl back to a displeased Kingpin with claims of a Spider-man more powerful and deadly than ever before. To stem the Kingpin's wrath, they assure him they have a plan to retreive the valuable space material, and very soon after J. Jonah Jameson receives a visit from the Shocker.

J. Jonah Jameson appears on television to make an appeal to Spider-man. The Shocker has kidnapped John from the hospital, with the intent of setting up an exchange for Prometheum X. Despite his reluctance, Spider-man is compelled to aid the man who paints him a villain in the mass media.

Meeting late night at a gothic art museum, the black Spider-man and J. Jonah convene as Smythe makes himself apparent, a restrained John Jameson in a wheelchair behind him. Spidey hands over the space material, unaware that looking on is a spiteful Eddie Brock, who has followed him there.

With the exchange made, another figure emerges from the shadows - The Shocker! He fires off a blast without warning, but Spidey is able to use his superior agility to push John Jameson clear, and dodge the blast himself.

Smythe instructs Shocker to "clean up", while he heads off to the lab.
The Shocker continues firing off deadly focused vibrations, while Spider-man continues to use his agility to steer clear of the assault.
Shocker makes a run for the belltower staircase, keeping Spider-man on the backfoot while he moves up the narrow shaft.

Waiting at the top of the tower, the Shocker points his gauntlets at the only entrance door, but he under estimates the intencity of the new Spider-man.

Spidey pounds his way through the concrete of the structure, making himself a new door to the shock of the Shocker!

Eddie Brock makes his way up to the tower only to find the Spider-man swatting the Shocker like a ragdoll from one side of the belltower to the other.
Spidey, noticing his photography rival, leaves him dangling from the tower by a line of web to await his revenge.

Atop the tower, Spider-man continues to man-handle the Shocker, pressing him up against one of the openings at the very top. Begging for his life, the Shocker finds himself not nearly as surprised as Spider-man himself, as tendrils from the black symbiote push the villain over the edge!

Contrary to the suit's whims, Spider-man manages to shoot off a web-line that snags Shocker before he plummets to his doom. Even so, Spider-man can hardly believe the subversive hold the costume has on his personality.

Having sought the advice of Dr. Curt Conners previously, Spider-man realises now the importance of freeing himself of the living costume before it permanently bonds with him.
It is a hollow victory, but with John Jameson and even the Shocker safe, it is a victory Spider-man will take.

The hammer...
You actually have a very distinct gap between the two major portions of the story, so as unorthodox as it is, I'm actually going to register this one as two victories to Spider-man and the black costume.

Immediately after saving the Shocker from his fall from the tower, the bell begins to toll, triggering the symbiote's weakness to loud sounds and sonics. Spidey seizes the opportunity, thus providing the link between the cartoon version, and the canonical comic book account of how Spidey frees himself on the alien costume, and passes it to Eddie Brock.

In this case, the kid-friendly version of having Brock pursuing his grudge replaces the grimmer comic book version of Eddie Brock being on the scene contemplating suicide after a string of spider-influence bad luck. Either way the result is much the same, producing the original version of the homocidal arch-villain, Venom!

It would be very easy to shift back into talking about the ever-topical Venom, but this is really the first opportunity we've had to mention the Shocker, who is among the many classic Spidey villains that has been overlooked during the first year and a half of Secret Wars on Infinite Earths. He's one of those characters that I think is crucial to the success of the Spider-man formula, but just doesn't get the credit that goes with that.

If you're a regular reader you'll by now be familiar with some of the basics of my infamous Sub-Mariner pitch, but I haven't had the pleasure of introducing you to a little something I call Scavenging for Scraps: The Life and Times of The Vulture -- the low key a-day-in-the-life series starring The Vulture, along with various other supporting characters, such as Vulture-best-buddy, Max Schulz!

Essentially this is concept that characterizes the Vulture's compulsions to villainy as the result less of criminal aspiration, and more of a curmudgeonous reaction to the events around him. Essentially he becomes a grumpy old man in a green leotard, or for the Hollywood pitch -- it's Larry David's Curb Your Enthusiasm starring The Vulture, who bares an appropriate resemblance to the Seinfeld co-creator.

Currently existing is an outline for such a series, with a few pages of completed script that has the Vulture - aka Adrian Toomes - encountering Max Schulz on a city street. There they establish various plot points including Shocker's super-villain birthday party and the Vulture becoming victim of a cellphone theft.

Likewise they make commentaries about developments from recent comics, like Civil War, where Spider-man went from pro-registration cook, to anti-registration fugitive -- and also puts the Vulture's own slant on the story where Spidey offered to fullfil the Vulture's wish to die, where Vulture chose life.

There are also throwbacks to things like Webs, the book of Spider-man photography Peter Parker sold in the eighties, which becomes the subject of a lawsuit amongst the villains contained within after Peter Parker has revealed his identity. Likewise, Vulture elaborates on needing to give-up his activities, having suffered a stroke, even though he inevitably finds himself in the wing harness again.

I've gone on a self-indulgent tangent again, but what I'm alluding to is some of the greater character qualities of some of these classic Spider-man villains. I think even a character as goofy as Vulture has been shown to have action-based merit recently by the likes of Mark Millar in Marvel Knights: Spider-man, but even if in this modern age that were an uncomfortable fit, there is so much more that can be done with them.

I could sit here and tote the Shocker all night, but I've still got plenty of catch-up to do, and lots of other things. Working on some new projects, and hopefully will have news of KMI #1 sales information soon. So stay tuned, true believers!
Oh, and Mr. Quesada, if you're reading. Contact details are below the profile photo. Seriously, we'll talk...

EDIT: I shouldn't let my own writing aspirations get in the way of also acknowledging the fine efforts here. I've mentioned previously that Adventures comics generally aren't my thing, be they young readers comics, or cartoon adaptations that entail much the same thing.

I actually considered reviewing the episode upon which this issue was based, but opted in favour of the comic version, which does possess some streamlined differences, in favour of saving a cartoon review for a later date.
The guys involved here, including the original teleplay writer, do a superb job of reinventing the black costume origin under conditions that demand the concept be contained within and-of itself. It arguably outdoes the Secret Wars version for it's simplicity, and while it probably inspired the Spider-man 3 version, it does it in a way that is considered, and better attended to.

Full credit to the guys! I might even like this one, for using peripheral characters like John Jameson, even better than Brian Michael Bendis' Ultimate interpretation, which like much of USM, failed to live up to the hype.

With that said -- if I can be selfish again -- those of you interested in my Vulture script can find it right here. I'd love to hear your thoughts!

The Fights: 3.5 The Issue: 4

MR. FANTASTIC versus SUB-MARINER
Settling the Score With the Sub-Mariner! (Marvel comics)
Where: Fantastic Four #412 When: May 1996
Why: Tom DeFalco How: Paul Ryan

The story so far...
Reed Richards has returned from the dead, but his sudden resurrection has not healed the wounds exposed in his absence. When his wife Susan, the Invisible Woman, sustains injury after exerting herself in battle against a hallucinating Black Bolt, the turmoil begins.

The Sub-Mariner, having spent time with the Fantastic Four in Richards' absence, is quick to impose himself on Richards' presence. Untrusting of the medical analysis of surface world doctors, Namor is intent on taking the injured Susan Richards to his own facilities at Atlantis. He calls for her to denounce the weak and indecisive man they rescued.

Such claims are enough to incite the wrath of world's foremost genius, but he is met only with further arrogance from the undersea monarch. Playing to decades of tension between the two, Richards sees to put an end to their romantic feud.

Previous Form:
Mr. Fantastic (#12): Single handedly defeated Red Ghost & The Super Apes.
Sub-Mariner (#19): Victories over Tiger Shark, Magneto, X-Men & Attuma.

Tale of the tape...
Strength: Sub-Mariner 6 (Invincible)
Intelligence: Mr. Fantastic 6 (Genius)
Speed: Sub-Mariner 3 (Athlete)
Stamina: Sub-Mariner 5 (Marathon Man)
Agility: Mr. Fantastic 6 (Rubber)
Fighting Ability: Sub-Mariner 6 (Warrior)
Energy Powers: Draw 1 (None)


Brute strength and royal arrogance, versus inventive genius and stretchy invulnerability! Though they have very little in common, these guys are anything but opposites. Together they find common ground here on Secret Earths!

These are two characters that have been talked about previously and recognised for the versatility of their abilities. Mr. Fantastic's maleability makes him a formless and incredibly diverse offensive fighter, and when he's inclined to put his brilliant mind to devisive action, he's really potentially one of the most powerful characters in the Marvel Universe.

Likewise, Namor's strengths seem to know no bounds! He has the versatility of being able to take the fight to the air, travel at high speeds, withstand physical and mental attacks to incredible degree -- and if you're near water, you may as well just kiss your keister goodbye, assuming you have that much time!

Perhaps most interesting about this scenario is the fact that the Sub-Mariner's Hulk-challenging strength is of minimal advantage here. Due to the nature of Mr. Fantastic's rubbery disposition, it's awfully difficult to gain much from punching him. Which provides us with a convenient segue to Reed Richards' greatest key to victory: Time!

Though it tends to flucture, it's undisputable that given enough time away from the ocean, Sub-Mariner will begin to fatigue and dehydrate and proportionately become weaker and weaker. Generally we like to lean toward the more extreme end of the Namor tape, so it's unlikely that many fights are going to go long enough for this to be a viable option, but it's always something to consider.

On the flipside, the Fantastic Four operate out of Manhattan, which is conveniently girt by sea, being the manmade island and all. So, as far as taking the advantage, the Sub-Mariner has plenty of opportunity to fly rubber-chops to the coast and take it from there.

The Math: Sub-Mariner (Meta Class)
The Pick: Sub-Mariner

What went down...
Enraged by Namor's arrogant interference, Mr. Fantastic spins into a bearded jealous rage! With a super-sized stretchy fist he punches the Atlantean moncarch clean out of Four Freedom's Plaza! Though Sue Storm attempts to defend the surly Atlantean, informing Richards that he recently lost his kingdom, Mr. Fantastic is having none of it! He leaps out the window, stretching himself into a human-glader, as the Sub-Mariner recovers in the streets below.

"Beware, Richards! You have neither the heart nor the courage..."
The Sub-Mariner rips up the already cracked street below him, tossing it into the air! The floating Mr. Fantastic is caught in a volley of debris and rubble, doing his best to maneuver his stretching between the gaps.

As innocent bystanders flee from the all too familiar image of a rampaging Sub-Mariner, Mr. Fantastic braces himself for an incoming automobile!

Stretching himself into a coil, Mr. Fantastic absorbs the impact of the vehicle like a giant spring, and sends it hurtling back from whence it came.
The speedy Sub-Mariner is more than capable, ducking the car to leave it to collide with other stationary vehicles.

"A man who thinks he looks fashionable in swim trunks and a pony-tail... Has no business criticizing others!"

While I whole heartedly disagree with Mr. Fantastic's remarks, he does well to punctuate them, snagging two street lamps to propel himself like a giant slingshot, feet-first into the Atlantean-Human hybrid.

Realising the need for strategy, Mr. Fanatstic puts his brilliant mind to analyzing the facts. Fully aware that the chances of exhausting Namor are slim to none, he makes the decision to use his attack to try to keep his opponent on the backfoot.

Hoping to keep the balance in his favour, Richards moves in at close quarters, wrapping his elastic body around the Sub-Mariner's. Even Namor has no choice but to acknowledge the tremendous pressure a contracting Mr. Fantastic produces, but for one who regularly traverses the greatest depths of the sea, it has little lasting effect.

The battle continues with little or no regard for the passing bystanders, as Namor pursues the shifting tides of battle through the window of a nearby department store!

More inclined to put his own motivations aside, Reed Richards finally pays mind to the safety of those surrounding.

On his back, Mr. Fantastic stretches his fist into a giant club and knocks the charging Sub-Mariner into a rack of jackets, using the opportunity to try to lead the battle to a safer scene.

Believing Mr. Fantactic's tactics to be an act of cowardice, the Sub-Mariner gladly follows the bouncing ball out of the department store, and down into the Manhattan subway system.

Looking to escape the urban sprawl, Mr. Fantastic stretches his way onto a passing train. The Sub-Mariner's fantastic powers of flight make little work of making up the time lost, catching up to Richards as they exit into an elevated area of track.

In spite of his brutish indulgence in this macho display of fisticuffs, Richards denies the Sub-Mariner's call for the victor to take Susan. Whether or not it's out of realization of Sub-Mariner's inevitable superiority in battle, or just chivalry, IS OPEN TO DEBATE!

Richards again flees, stretching his arms out to become a human balloon style structure, catching the air beneath him as he floats gingerly down to a nearby construction site. There, he agrees to engage Namor in final battle, willing to cause willful property damage, but not civilan casualty.

Stretching his arm out, Richards swings it around at speed, generating a gust of wind that pushes Namor from the air to ground. Even still, it is no match for Namor's strength, which retaliates by hurling a massive coil of cable from the site.

As the woman over whom they battle, Sue Richards, arrives on the scene with Lyja entow, Mr. Fantastic is still using his cosmic gifts to stretch around projectiles hurled by Namor. This time, giant steel girders are the weapon of choice.

As the first lady of the FF runs onto the battlefield, both men stop in their tracks, Namor content to lower the girder from above his head.
The moment of distraction quickly passes, but Susan calls for the Sub-Mariner to end the madness. Just in case he isn't inclined to listen, the shape-shifting Skrull, Lyja, shifts herself into a Barsoomian Snow Ape, and wraps Namor up in a bearhug.

While Sue berates Richards for his macho foolishness, she at least recognises how sweet it is to see him fighting for her again - much to the entangled Namor's dismay.

With the power of the pounding surf, the Sub-Mariner breaks free of Lyja's grip and throws himself like a torpedo at Mr and Mrs Fantastic with the declaration, "If Susan be not mine... Then none my claim her!"

Richards uses his elastine body to turn Namor's berzerker momentum against him, hurling him into a pile of wooden blanks. As the Sub-Mariner emerges from the rubble he continues to spew deranged threats at the "puny human", Mr. Fantastic.

Calling for a need for uninterrupted closure, Mr. Fantastic hurls another stretched out fist, clobbering Namor to a standard that would impress even Ben Grimm!
He then continues to open a can of fantasti-whoop ass the likes of which have never been seen, all the while delivering an empassioned speech about his realised failings as a man and husband!

A thunderous echo reverberates through the sunken build-site as Mr. Fantastic lands a final blow, before recoiling from the fallen Namor in shock. He apologises to the unconscious monarch, begging him for forgiveness for his prolonged violent outburst.

With the fight over, Susan calls for Richards' attentions, needing him to return to Four Freedom's Plaza to aid the mortally wounded Inhuman, Black Bolt. Content to leave Lyja to tend to the kingdomless Sub-Mariner, they leave.

Having done so, the Sub-Mariner rises on Lyja's cue.
An experienced warrior, Lyja saw through Namor's ploy to feign insane rage. She commends him on his act of nobility, but ever the prick, Namor takes the compliment and casts the doubt of his own motivations on it, before flying away to find peace away from the Fantastic Four.

"Even the SUb-Mariner can know patience when it is his only recourse! For I am destined to return... When the Fantastic Four least expect it!"

The hammer...
Due to Namor's noble sacrifice, the winner of this bout - Mr. Fantastic! Hey, I know what you're thinking. He threw the fight!
Ah, what can we say? None's fair in love and war!

Y'know, well written or not, I always find it interesting when I come across something that provides any kind of support for the turn of character and events in Civil War. Sifting through the blogosphere's entries in the negative, it's actually surprising how many examples of precedent you come across. [Like Iron Man #312]

By no means am I about to say this sums up neatly why Reed Richards would turn on his friends and family, but it at least exposes precedent for his inner bastard. Peculiarly enough, I actually enjoyed feral Mr. Fantastic after his return from apparent death. It's been done before, and since, but with the benefit of time, it's really quite a fun little era of turmoil for Marvel's first family.

One of the most interesting things about this particular issue - which quite literally serves as little more than one giant fist fight between one of the longest standing romantic rivalries at Marvel - is the total disregard for human safety that endures even in the latter part of the fight, even after Richards has at least taken it to an off-duty construction site.

It's not very often that you see Mr. Fantastic act in such an unrefined matter, let alone when human life would be at stake. And while it devolves into madness all too familiar - [to the point where it was only when Lyja called attention to the act that I realised Namor's "puny human" line was out-of-character] - it's nice to see Namor's obscure sense of nobility in the spotlight.

As we've discussed before [X-Men #6], there is a lengthy history of writing Sub-Mariner one of a few different shades of 2D. In fact, this issue is arguably one of the more recent cases of that, but I still have to at least acknowledge that it paints two of those very flat strokes of the character -- arrogance and nobility.

I never thought I'd say it, but today's Marvel could just about use a dose of that over the top temper and arrogance right about now. With the death of Captain America, Sub-Mariner is now arguably the premiere elder statesman of the Marvel Universe, and as always he has been connected to the very heart of events occurring ranging from his cousin Namorita's death in Civil War, to his disapproval of the ejection of Hulk in Illuminati, and now even the death of Captain America, who is arguably one of the Sub-Mariner's few friends and agreed equals.

Through the majority of these events, Namor has had very little direct involvement. He strongly opposed Hulk's ejection in flashbacks, but has currently been seen swaring relative indifference to Hulk's return, taking more of a 'I toldja so' approach -- while in Civil War he joined Wolverine in the pursuit of Nitro, the man responsible for Namorita's death, despite the fact Wolverine not too long ago murdered his closest advisor, Sulumor. [New Invaders #6]

Likewise, thus far Namor has had little reaction to the death of Captain America. Granted, while Marvel combats the issues of running a cohesive universe - something the distinguised competition has been doing to widespread success - they have arguably fumbled the ball on a whole, on reaction to Cap's death.

While many of these events still have a margin of results remaining to be seen, it continues to be said that DC have arguably been doing Namor better than Namor with the arc carried by Namor-lookalike, Black Adam.

Noone wants to see the Sub-Mariner declaring random incursions of the surface world, but truly it would be nice to see some reactive, if not impulsive, reaction from the legendary hot-head. It seems once again he has become the victim of singular broad strokes, liberated of his two-dimension rages at the cost of any signs of concereted action.

Just recently I read about concepts pitched by JM Dematteis to have Captain America abandon America in times of Reagan's Cold War provocations, and lead a charge with Namor and Dr. Doom to purge the planet of war. This war on war concept might be a little radical, but it's the kind of decisive action I'd love to be seeing from the character. At the very least he could punch Black Panther.

The Fight: 4.5 The Issue: 3.5

MONTHLY PUNCH-UP #18 (June 2007)
SUPERMAN versus THOR
A Journey into Mystery (DC/Marvel)
Where: JLA/Avengers #1 When: September 2003
Why: Kurt Busiek How: George Perez

Quick Fix...
I run a website dedicated to superhero fisticuffs, so I make no bones about loving a good old fashioned superhero universe crossover. Even with inter-company politics and bad writing, it's just very hard to spoil something as inherently fun as seeing two characters who should never meet - meet, and fight!

One of the most requested and sought after battles on Secret Earths has been just such a battle, and I feel it's about damn time I address this. But before we get to the punching, I like to warm up with a little bit of invested discussion.

This was the mini-series that was twenty-years in the making, and right at this moment it couldn't be any more unlikely. In fact, coming out in 2003, it's probably a small miracle it made it that far given the tensions between powers at Marvel and DC respectively. Certainly the removal of Bill Jemas from the Marvel side of the equation probably hasn't helped things, as we recall the tit-for-tat that has gone on between the two companies.

There's a friendly rivalry to Marvel and DC, that makes collecting and reading comics a bit of fun. Read interviews by Jeph Loeb over the past few years, and you get a great sense of this as his heckling switches sides like his exclusivity contract. That said, there seems to be a sincere underlying dislike between the conduct and interests of people representing the two parties.

We get a great sense of this conflict over the much talked about Daredevil/Batman crossover concocted by Brian Bendis and Ed Brubaker, while he was still writing for DC. The series - blocked by DC - resulted in the now infamous convention confrontation between a panel-hosting Bendis, and run-in interferer, DC Editor, Bob Wayne. It was actually a civil debate about what was and wasn't said, but it's more fun to make it sound like a wrestling clash.

So, considering the iffy blood between the companies, consider this clash as one for the ages. It might be the first and last time we see these two characters clash in this decade, if not years to come:

Setting the scene, various wacky cosmic occurances are manifesting in the depths of space, resulting in overlapping and misplacing of various pieces of each universe. The respective teams face off against Terminus and Starro, each succeeded against their counterpart's space-borne villain.

Metron and Grandmaster crossover in a similar fashion to warn each team of the impending doom, and send them after twelve artifacts of particular significance, thus the teams are spurred to cross over the threshold of realms, and seek out salvation for their universes. It is a task all too familiar. [DC versus Marvel]

Baffled by a universe that openly worships it's heroes, the Avengers find themselves observing a very different world in the DC Universe. Having already confronted each other over one of the artifacts, the Justice League, led by Superman, approach the heroes who do not belong in their world.

An uncharacteristically aggresive Superman accuses the Avengers of being invaders. Captain America, likewise acting a little odd, readies his team for a full fledged battle with the Justice League. Thor is all too pleased to oblige.

With little or no warning, Thor lets loose with Mjolnir, striking the unsuspecting Superman with force devestating enough to throw him across the city into a distant skyscraper!

So, we conclude our look at Thor versus Superman.

HAH! You were probably expecting the follow-up, but for the time being this is the extent of the fix you're getting. Sorry folks, it's just a matter of objective thinking: Thor beats Superman. There's certainly an argument both ways, and I think there's often far too much stock put into the 'magic' theory, but at the end of the day, understandable company mandates aside, Thor deserves this one!

The Fix: 5 The Issue: 5
Winner: Thor

The Top Five...
#1 Spider-man (-) (10) (Marvel)
Class: [Meta] Last Opponent: [Green Goblin]
Win Percentage: [68.2%] Features: [22]
Season 2006: [#2] Current Ranking: [#1]

At the beginning of the year we toted 2007 as out with the Batman, in with the Spidey, and that's certainly been the case. With twenty-two features, Spider-man occupies more entries than even Wolverine, and has amassed a rankings lead even Batman bows before!

With Spider-man 3 out of the way and only moderately received, it might be an opportunity to cool down on Spider-man entries. Although, while Web-Slinging Wednesdays has provided a substantial lead, it will only last so long with the increased schedule of posts.

Lucky for Spidey New Avengers is hitting all the right notes finally, while the Back in Black branding meanders it's way through highs and lows including the superb new collection series, Spider-man Family.

#2 Batman (-) (16) (DC)
Class: [Meta] Last Opponent: [Superman]
Win Percentage: [78.57%] Features: [14]
Season 2006: [#1] Current Ranking: [#2]

Despite Spidey's dominance, Batman clocks in a month-off without losing his grip on the number-two spot. During May we saw a return of Batmania as the I Believe in Harvey Dent campaign kicked off, revealing the first glimpses of Heath Ledger as Batman nemesis - The Joker.

All signs indicate a strong showing for Batman in 2008, but in the here and now the bridging effect remains in question. Grant Morrison's work on Batman continues to unimpress, while even Paul Dini's efforts have felt a little less than primo, when they weren't interrupted by fill-in issues.

DC's had a raw deal of it lately, and I for one would like to see that rectified, and with such a narrow collection, Batman inevitably leads that charge. It might not be enough to catch the Amazing Spider-man, but it will almost certainly ensure Batman remains a looming presence in 2007.

#3 Iron Man (RE) (6) (Marvel)
Class: [Super] Last Opponent: [The Mandarin]
Win Percentage: [64.29%] Features: [14]
Season 2006: [#3] Current Ranking: [#3]

Speaking of 2008 films, Iron Man sneaks in the backdoor to hit the Top Five for the first time in 2007. His participation in various team-up appearances, as well as several features as part of Ultimate Alliance Mondays have earned the golden avenger a spot back at the top.

Despite coming out of Civil War with a new significance in the Marvel Universe, as a character Iron Man has not prospered. His directorial role of SHIELD seems to have pulled him away from the battle, and in the [Mighty] Avengers side of things, he's the victim of Ultron and nasty circumstances.

World War Hulk promises an opportunity for Iron Man to get back into the proverbial ring, but with my budget looking as tight as it is, it'll be a small miracle if we actually get to feature any of World War Hulk. Now might be a good time to remind everyone that they're welcome to show generosity by hitting the PayPal donations button higher in the menu. HAH!

#4 Wolverine (-1) (11) (Marvel)
Class: [Meta] Last Opponent: [Elektra & The Hand]
Win Percentage: [50%] Features: [18]
Season 2006: [#4] Current Ranking: [#4]

Sheer volume of appearances almost always guarantees Wolverine the numbers to stay afloat, whether it be intended or not. As part of the New Avengers team, Wolverine snuck his way into a feature in May, which kept him from sliding more than one spot on the top five.

Despite promising the ultimate showdown between arch-rivals Wolverine and Sabretooth; Jeph Loeb's work on the solo title, Wolverine, has failed to deliver, which really leaves him with the incidental appearances.

Fortunately for readers, Wolverine's path has become more focused, leaving him with minimal gratuitous appearances in a Marvel Universe that is becoming far more balanced. New Avengers marks the character's key team appearance, which isn't a bad place to start, but looking at the schedule, it seems unlikely we'll be seeing Wolvie next month.

#5 Black Adam (+13) (new) (DC)
Class: [Super] Last Opponent: [Azraeuz]
Win Percentage: [100%] Features: [3]
Season 2006: [n/a] Current Ranking: [#13]

The rising star of 2007 is undoubtedly Black Adam, and as with characters passed, the fifth spot features a character we've consciously sponsored. Of course, featuring Black Adam hasn't at all been an obtuse conceit. The character has been at his very best this year, continuing out of 52 and World War III into an upcoming mini-series drawn by site favourite Doug Mahnke, and regular appearances in Countdown.

As good as all of this has been, you have to wonder if the character's path might not be diluted by the events of losing his powers, and quickly regaining them. Likewise, the sheer quantity 52 may make it difficult to sustain such a purpose driven character in the top five.

The slaughter of Bilaya guarantees he will remain the top of his field, but even with continuing successes, it might be a tough ask to see Black Adam sustain and prosper above fifth spot. Certainly an earned entrant, but presumably short-lived.

Super Stock...
1. Spider-man (-) (M)
2. Batman (-) (DC)
3. Iron Man (+1) (M)
4. Wolverine (-1) (M)
5. Daredevil (+1) (M)
6. Hulk (-1) (M)
7. Captain America (+1) (M)
8. Superman (-1) (DC)
10. Venom Symbiote (+11) (M)
11. Human Torch (+4) (M)
12. Mr. Fantastic (+2) (M)
13. Black Adam (+24) (DC)
15. Elektra (-5) (M)
16. Wasp (+7) (M)
17. Red Hood (+7) (DC)
18. Sub-Mariner (+8) (M)
21. Black Cat (+21) (M)
27. Silver Surfer (+39) (M)
29. Thing (+38) (M)
30. Invisible Woman (+40) (M)
31. War Machine (+42) (M)
35. Venom [Eddie Brock] (+53) (M)
40. Ronin [Hawkeye] (+61) (M)
41. Yellowjacket [Hank Pym] (+66) (M)
50. Aquaman (-7) (DC)
72. Spider-Woman (new) (M)
73. Deathlok (new) (M)
74. Gravity (new) (M)
75. Firebird (new) (M)
77. Iron Fist (+63) (M)
81. Luke Cage (+62) (M)
82. Dr. Strange (+64) (M)
91. Medusa (+102) (M)
92. Venom [Mac Gargan] (-20) (M)
97. Tombstone (-17) (M)
98. Sandman (-19) (M)
100. Deathstroke (-10) (DC)
145. Arachne (new) (M)
146. Century (new) (M)
150. Juggernaut (-8) (M)
158. Vulture (-23) (M)
159. USAgent (+5) (M)
200. Blacklash (-6) (M)
250. Rommbu (-5) (M)
252. Psycho-Pirate (new) (DC)
253. Green Goblin [Harry Osborn] (new) (M)
254. Dragon Man (new) (M)
255. Carnage (new) (M)
256. Speedy [Mia Dearden] (new) (DC)
257. Grey Gargoyle (new) (M)
258. Electro (new) (M)
259. Shocker (new) (M)
260. Chameleon (new) (M)
261. Hydro-Man (new) (M)
262. Hammerhead (new) (M)
263. Boomerang (new) (M)
264. Ronan (new) (M)
265. The Mandarin (new) (M)
270. Green Goblin [Norman Osborn] (new) (M)
272. Wonder Woman (-2) (DC)
279. Attuma (-35) (M)
280. Azraeuz (-41) (DC)
281. Lizard (-61) (M)
282. Brick (-25) (DC)
283. Magneto (-25) (M)


#152 The Joker
Class: [Champion] Last Opponent: [Batman]
Win Percentage: [0%] Features: [2]
Season 2006: [n/a] Current Ranking: [#277]

It's all about the movies these days, and in May you couldn't escape the buzz for the currently filming Batman Begins sequel, Dark Knight.
At the center of the hype was the viral marketing campaign that revealed for the first time an official picture of Heath Ledger as The Joker on the website, I Believe In Harvey Dent, Too.

While the movie remains a year away, the Joker has become one of the most talked about and anticipated characters to feature in any of the many superhero movies slated for the next few years. With Tim Story's failure to live up to the lofty standards of Dr. Doom, the Joker perhaps remains the most covetted villain role in superhero cinema, with a pedigree of Caesar Romero, Jack Nicholson and Mark Hamil.

As for the comics, things have simmering nicely for the character.
Recent appearances in both of the core Batman titles have ensured the expected interest in the character, with both Grant Morrison's experimental prose issue [Batman #663] and Paul Dini's ride-from-hell [Detective Comics #826] each garnering particular acclaim from fans.

The Joker has prominent appearances currently in Countdown wrapped up in a story with Superman's pal, Jimmy Olsen; and also a big story coming up in Batman: Confidential, which will delve further into the character's origins.
So, while not typically a fighter, we've got our Eye on Joker.

#58 Silver Surfer
Class: [Cosmic] Last Opponent: [Ronan]
Win Percentage: [50%] Features: [4]
Season 2006: [#21] Current Ranking: [#27]

In the more immediate future we're fixing to spend June looking at the starring characters of a different sequel - Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer. It should come as little surprise that the title character would be a person of interest in the coming month.

While Silver Surfer will no doubt be at the centre of buzz for the film, expect only so much from the character here on Secret Earths. Rather than go on a Silver Surfer blitz we probably couldn't fund, we're going to isolate the members of the FF as well, spreading our attentions across the board. This will hopefully also make up for the distinct misproportion to Fantastic Four issues in my humble collection, to entries on the site, because I loves me some FF!

Silver Surfer is also registering prominent appearances in the current Fantastic Four on-going under Dwayne McDuffie (Beyond!), along with a mini-series by J. Michael Straczynski (Amazing Spider-man), Silver Surfer: Requiem.

The Hammer...
Just over a week behind now, as I type this on the evening of June 8! A pleasure to be joining you once more, having successfully completed a big month of triple entries and a whole mess of Spidey!
I've got to throw a big shout-out to Rokk's Comic Book Revolution and a medium shout-out to ComicByComic! Both sites, particularly the Revolution, have been providing us with a lot of traffic, and that's greatly appreciated! Whenever I fall behind the hits tend to die off, and then what have I got spurring me on? WHAT'S MY MOTIVATION?!

Speaking of motivation... You'll be hearing about how you can pick up the first issue of the character superhero drama, The Kirby Martin Inquest, coming in the next week or two from Nite Lite Theatre. If you want the briefest of brief sneak peaks, you can hit up the website, where the main page has five pages.
I got the proof in the mail a couple of days ago, and it's looking pretty great. Certainly some things we'll learn from, but all in all it's just great to have a finished comic in my hot little fighting hands, which are much softer than you would expect. I get a lot of comments from women, y'know.

As already discussed, we're following up Spidey 3's Web-Slinging Wednesdays with a similar scheme for the upcoming Fantastic Four sequel. Fantastic Fridays will feature a member of the hero team, culiminating in a fifth week special featuring the Silver Surfer! Watch for regular entries, focusing on DC, on Wednesdays instead of the standardized Friday. If you have OCD, I'm going to blind you to this change of order by throwing up a times table smokescreen; 9, 18, 27, 36, 45, 54, 63...

You may have noticed in the catch-up process that I managed to get a string of entries done daily. As we approach July, the fantastic month of my mighty birth, I contemplate the possibility of aiming for daily posts during that month. As an avid stat counter, I'd be interested in seeing how daily posts might effect the hit counts, which are always of interest.
If you would particularly like to see this done, drop a comment and offer some encouragement, because I don't nearly hear enough from you all, even though I see you coming back for more. That's right. I'm watching. ALWAYS WATCHING!!!

We'll talk more about July a month from now, but the conceit would be to cram a whole bunch of DC in those thirty-one days, to help equate for the gross imbalance in company time share. What with Ultimate Alliance Mondays running until sometime around October, it seems like the right thing to do...

ALSO, if you enjoy hitting up the site but would just generally like to see more, be a sport and support by hitting the PayPal donations. Or, if you're more interested in getting some bang for your buck, save your pennies and stay tuned for details on how you can get your hot little hands on my print-debut as writer of The Kirby Martin Inquest.

And if you're from Marvel, or DC, or Dark Horse or someone, just forego the conclusions derived from reading the blog or comic, and hire me to do some writing for you, because I really need to pay off my gambling debts... Fighting under bridges just doesn't pay like it used to. I blame Van Damme for not making more of an effort to maintain his market value...

Why would Marvel or DC be hitting us up, you ask? Well, I just want to take great pleasure in mentioning we were visited by on-the-job representitives from prominent organizations such as; Activision, Sony Online Entertainment, MSN, NBC Universal, the US Navy, Philips and Cyprus Semiconductor.
Secret Wars on Infinite Earths wants to offer a big thanks for the interest of people from these organizations, and also apologise to everyone whose jobs we just cost by mentioning their blatant abuse of internet work facilities.

Why, with endorsements like those, it makes you wonder why our Technorati rating is so low! If you've got a blog, or have a friend out there with a blog, be sure to threaten them if they aren't already linking to us! Because Technorati authority makes me feel like a big man!

That's all for now, I think... Stay tuned for June!
It's going to be a big ol' month! Cheers!

May Hit Count: [5135/17928] (+900)