Father's Day

  Happy Father's Day, everyone!

To all those with fathers and stepfathers, father figures, and the mothers who have to do double duty, I want to wish you a wonderful day today!

Celebrated on the third Sunday in June, Father's Day had a couple of parts to its origin. One of the origins of the tradition was from a memorial service for a group of miners who died in an accident in Monongah, West Virginia in 1907.

In 1910, Sonora Smart Dodd, daughter of a Civil War veteran, founded Father's Day in Spokane, Washington. She was inspired to find it by a sermon about Mother's Day. She wanted there to be a companion celebration for fathers and fatherhood. She originally intended it to be on June 5, her father's birthday. However, a celebration was unable to be prepared in time, so it became the third Sunday in June.

The celebration was not a big success at first, but Dodd would not give up. She had help from various trade groups, like men's retailers. It would lead the holiday to be derided at first as just a stunt to rack up sales, but the trade groups got the last laugh as the holiday ended up growing in popularity.

In 1966, President Lyndon Johnson would declare the third Sunday in June as Father's Day. In 1972, President Richard Nixon would sign an official Father's Day into law. You can find out more about its history right here. 

Thank you for reading this blog entry! If you liked it, show it off! Take care of yourselves and each other! If you like what I write and want to give this blog a bit of additional support, please make a donation to my Ko-fi! See you next time!

Marvel Preview #11 (June 1977)

Since June is Pride Month, I wanted to take a look at a comic book starring a character that was a member of the LGBTQ+ community. Both the Marvel and the DC Universes have their fair share of characters that fit into that category. However, I wanted to focus on a character that most people are unaware that is LGBTQ+. As such, I chose Peter Quill, the original Star-Lord.

Star-Lord has graced this blog before, mostly as a member of the Guardians of the Galaxy. However, all the way back in August 2014, I did take a look at his debut in Marvel Premiere #4 (January 1976). Wow, twelve years ago. Boy, have I grown as a writer since then. 

I know you may be asking, "Wait, Peter Quill is LGBTQ+"? Well, yes, he is. He's bisexual and polyamorous. This was established in Guardians of the Galaxy #9 (December 2020). You see, Star-Lord had seemingly died saving the universe from the Greco-Roman gods (Yeah, that was a whole thing). But in actuality, he had ended up in an alternate universe. While there, he had ended up in the company of a pair of alien mercenaries named Mors and Aradia. Peter would end up in a polyamorous relationship with them for over one hundred years, even fathering a son with Aradia named Rocky, who was named in honor of Rocket Raccoon. 

The comic we're looking at today is one of his early adventures, long before his becoming a Guardian of the Galaxy, when he was just an angry astronaut, but had the potential to be more. This is Marvel Preview #11!  

The cover is a Ken Barr piece. It's pretty cool, depicting our man Star-Lord in space blasting at a spaceship. The cover promises one man against a galactic empire, and the story...kind of delivers. It also promises a science fiction spectacular in the tradition of legendary author Robert A. Heinlein. Fun fact, this got Marvel into a bit of trouble. You see, when this magazine originally came out, Heinlein's lawyers called Marvel Comics and basically told them, "Hey, he doesn't want people to think he's associated with you guys" because Chris Claremont was homaging a series of juvenile-aimed books Heinlein had written in the 40s and 50s for his take on Star-Lord. You can read more about that here. So, the magazines had to be recalled and reprinted. Personally, if I were him, I'd have been like "Hey, maybe will let me write something for them since they're fans of mine." Still, this is a great cover. I'd love to have this as a poster. 

"1: Windholme / Cinnibar / 3: Sparta / 4: The Hollow Crown"
Writer: Chris Claremont
Penciler: John Byrne
Inker: Terry Austin
Colorist: None (story is in black-and-white)
Letterers: Tom Orzechowski, Irv Watanabe
Editors: John Warner, Ralph Macchio, Roger Silfer
Editor-in-Chief: Arche Goodwin 

The story begins on the planet known as Windholme. A world on the outer rims of an imperial empire, this planet was settled by refugees. Refugees who just wanted to live their lives in peace and quiet. For three hundred years, they got exactly that. Until now. The empire has come to take their world., the planet itself for its resources, and the people for slave labor. 

However, one native of Windholme, a young man named Kip, is not content to stand by and let his people and home be enslaved. However, the armored soldiers of the empire have a way to counter his spirit, by savagely beating him half to death with their armored fists. The beating only serves to fuel Kip's defiance.

"You alien buttheads will never get my mom's snickerdoodle recipe!"

The lights suddenly go out. And when they get turned on, Kip...has gone. 

It turned out someone had used the darkness to rescue Kip. His rescuer is a fellow Windholme native named Sandy. 

"Also, I totally did not find your resistance really hot."

She's as tough as she is cute. She had figured more of the natives would want to fight back. She was impressed by Kip's courage, hence why she rescued him. Thing is, they're still on a ship heading for a planet called Kandahar. And once they get there, they'll pump the ship full of knockout gas. The two then hear an alarm klaxon.

The ship has caught an unusual sight.

"What? Can't a man do some space thinking in peace?"

It appears to be a gigantic version of our man Star-Lord. Just sitting there. In space. Thinking...menacingly. But it's a bit of a trick. It's actually Peter's ship named...Ship. Yeah, the man's a lot of things, but he's not very imaginative when it comes to names.

Ship cripples the slave transport, and the real Star-Lord flies in. The guards are tough, but he is tougher, easily taking care of them. Kip finds a discarded blaster and uses it to make a hole in another guard. As far as he's concerned, Star-Lord is his new best friend. Speaking of Peter, he makes his way to the bridge. He notices that the bridge crew are leaving said room in a hurry. That's because they rigged the bridge to blow.

Peter figures the whole ship is rigged this way as well. The bridge crew are stopped by Kip. Thanks to Peter's actions earlier, he and Sandy manage to liberate the other Windholmers. And they give the bridge crew the most brutal beatdown ever.

With the slaves freed, Peter offers to take them back to Windholme. Unlike their other homeworlds, the Imperials haven't made that world uninhabitable yet, so they can still build new lives there. It's here that Kip and Peter formally meet for the first time. Peter says he'll leave a network of satellites to protect Windholme. Kip points out that those satellites could fail somehow, leading to Windholme getting attacked again. It reminds Peter of his own childhood tragedy, witnessing his mother dying and his swearing for vengeance. In essence, he feels a kinship with Kip.

Kip wants the blood of those who sent the slavers to Windholme. And he's willing to go through Hades to get it. Star-Lord points out one logical problem: they have to find that someone first. Luckily, Ship has a lead. But they have to move quickly. 

Two days pass. The captured beings are settled on Windholme. With that problem solved, Kip, Sandy, and Quill can now pursue the beings that tried to enslave their people. Ship points out that Kip is what is known as a "Windrunner". He's actually a powerful psychic being that used his power to help on hunts. Quill asks if Kip can use his talents to find the slavers' base. He agrees to try.

"Check it out, guys! I'm a cloud!"

Said talents allow Kip to find the slavers' home base, the planet Delta Corianus IV, or as it's commonly known as, Cinnbar. The leader is a man named Kyras Shakati. A man who is as twisted and evil as they come. Alright, they got a name and place. It's time to wreck shop.

The trio head to Cinnabar, a planet of pleasure and pain. Quill, Sandy, and Kip sneak their way into what is presumably Shakati's palace, when most of the staff are out in dreamland.

The group encounter what appear to be metal statues of soldiers.

"Ye gods, what ugly statues!"

However, these statues are actually advanced automatons, and their weapons aren't strong enough to destroy them. Sandy finds a hidden panel that could be used as an escape hatch, but a trap door activates, sending the three seemingly parsecs away.

"Oh great, all my stuff is still here!"

This is the Sea Fang, the ship that belonged to Kip's parents. But it cannot be. According to Kip, he saw this ship get destroyed and his parents die as a result. The three spot a giant King Kraken about to attack the Sea Fang. They must owe Liam Neeson money.

The monstrous giant squid smashes into the boat, sending Peter Quill overboard. However, Quill doesn't go down that easy. Despite the Kraken managing to grab him, the Star-Lord gives him the tip of a harpoon.

Kip finds himself back with his parents and ends up seeing them die again. Something funny is going on here. Star-Lord resurfaces, and it gets weirder.

Star-Lord's plastic surgery got horribly botched.

Peter finds himself seeing two things: himself and his new traveling companions in the seas of Windholme...and at the same time in a chamber under a crystal.

Clearly, someone is screwing with their minds. But what is real, and what is the illusion? The Kraken, injured but still alive (and presumably really freakin' angry) rears up to attack again. Star-Lord's senses tell him he has no weapon, but at the same time, he can feel his blaster in his hand. The desperate astronaut makes a gamble. 

"Aw, man! I had only one payment left on that thing!"

And it was a good one. The seas, the Kraken, it was all an illusion generated by a crystal based on Kip's own memories. An alien named Arak...

No, not him! He's a DC guy, and he's from Earth! This Arak is an alien flunky, easily taken down by Sandy, who is a talented thief, and not half-bad fighter either. Shakati pleads for mercy, offering Star-Lord information that he may find very important. Sadly, it's never revealed as Sandy tosses a dagger into his heart. Sandy reveals that she spotted a blaster implanted into one of his fingers, and he was going to give Peter a faceful of laser. While Peter scans the computer banks, Kip and Sandy bond a little and suddenly decide that hey, being a couple would be nice. Let's try that!

More of Shakati's men attack, and the three decide to, well, make like a banana and split.

It's leave, Tannen! Make like a tree and leave! But that's not important right now. The three head to a craft, only to learn it's booby-trapped. They try to fly off in it, they blow up real good. 

Ship makes her way through the atmosphere and gets the three out of there before the place, well...blows up real good.

Star-Lord was able to learn something from Shakati's computers: the slavery ring was funding a coup. There's a plot to replace the emperor of this interstellar empire with his uncle Prince Gareth. The ship is on its way to Sparta, the imperial homeworld, and the Empire's forces are trying to stop Ship from getting there. Ship suffers a bad hit, and Quill dumps Kip and Sandy in a lifeboat. Their mission: warn the Emperor.

The boat lands in a stormy area of Sparta. It takes three days for the storms to dissipate enough for Gareth's search parties to look for them. One finds the seeming remains of Ship, only to get a Mighty Punch from Star-Lord. 

"Oh no, doctor said I wasn't supposed to get punched in the jaw!"

Star-Lord takes the man into Ship and fits him with some hypno-probes. Peter uses the probes to interrogate the man. After an hour, he reveals that Kip and Sandy are not only alive, but they are "guests" of Prince Gareth at his chalet.

Ship provides him with a sword, and off they go. True to the guard's statement, Kip and Sandy are at the chalet, and Gareth's men are not showing them his comic book collection. Star-Lord managed to arrive and frees the two Windholmians. However, Gareth himself has decided to show his face, and he's brought a friend of his.

"We were enjoying a nice game of Space Parcheesi, and then you all decided to make that racket!"

Meet Rrouthk'ar, Sith-Lord of the Argiuan Confederacy. Huh, a Sith-Lord. Does that mean the Jedi are a thing here, too? Never mind. Peter gives an item to Kip and Sandy. He tells them to get it to the Emperor. They run and Star-Lord engages Rrouthk'ar and Gareth in a swordfight. 

During the fight, Star-Lord realizes that Rrouthk'ar was one of the aliens that murdered his mother as a boy. This fills the former astronaut with rage, and that rage empowers him to give the reptilian Sith-Lord a sword to the heart. Now it's down to Peter and Gareth. During the fight, Gareth reveals that he is a proud man and was not content to sit in the shadow of his nephew. The throne was supposed to be his by right! Gareth uses his sword to remove Peter's helmet. When he sees his face, Gareth is shocked.

Peter takes advantage of Gareth's distraction to disarm him. Peter refuses to kill Gareth. After all, he's the Star-Lord, and it has to stand for something. Gareth stabs the man with a poisoned blade, and Peter gives him a sword to the heart. The dying Gareth falls to the mountains below. Peter gets held up by some royal guards. Ship has something to say about that as she appears in the sky. 

Kip and Sandy then arrive with the Emperor. And we have another Star Wars moment.

"Believe me son, it's just as awkward for me. Want to get drunk?"

A few hours passed. Gareth's conspiracy got smashed. Star-Lord got the poison cleaned out of his system and presumably he and the Emperor got really drunk. Not to mention Kip and Sandy got proclaimed as heroes. The Emperor (later it would be established his name is J'son) tells about how he fled to deep space, as like Sandy, he was no fan of court life himself. He was on his way home after being summoned when his ship got damaged and he crashed in the Colorado mountains. This was where he met Meredith Quill. She nursed him back to health and helped him repair his ship. During that time, the two fell in love. As such, they did what people in love did.

She wanted to come with him, but J'son had to let her stay on Earth. It was not only safer for her, but also...she was pregnant with Peter. He would get dragged into court intrigue, and that was the last thing he wanted for his son. Eventually, he called for his uncle Gareth to go pick them up. But instead, he went to Shakati's palace and sent Rrouthk'ar to go get them. The original plan was to take them to Sparta and arrange their deaths at a later time. But the big lizard botched it up by killing Meredith. 

Gareth covered that up by telling J'son that Meredith had died in childbirth and Peter was stillborn. J'son never could love again after that. He never married either. How could he? In his eyes, Meredith Quill was perfect. No other woman in the universe could equal her. But today is still a happy day, as J'son and Peter have gotten to meet for the first time. Peter says that he has no desire for a throne or an empire. Peter Quill is a seeker at heart. He's searching for something. Or maybe he just has a need to see what's out there, beyond the stars. He doesn't need a throne. He has the universe. If J'son needs an heir, Kip will fit fine...as long as Sandy helps keep his head straight. He flies off, J'son lamenting that he can't go with him.

Star-Lord heads back to Ship. She herself is sad that for all her abilities, she cannot be something she truly wants to be: a woman that Peter loves. But they still have each other, and there's still many adventures for them to be had. They got a legend to carve. And carve Star-Lord will. Not so much Ship. Poor Ship gets forgotten.

I enjoyed this issue, although it does have some flaws. For one, Kip and Sandy do hook up rather quick. I do wish this story had more time to give them more interactions. Maybe they should have gotten together at the end. Also, the story establishes Kip has psychic powers, but we don't really see him use them that much. Kip says his talent is a "private" thing, implying that he has reasons to hide it. I wish we learned more about that. Were psychics like him the victims of prejudice on Windholme? I would have liked to have learned. Still, this was a fun story to read, and it is neat to see the early adventures of Star-Lord before the MCU made him a household name.

I also liked the end showing that despite their distance, both Peter and J'son are at heart, men who desire freedom and the stars. I did like that J'son and Peter parted on good terms. I do want to see them interact some more. 

John Byrne and Terry Austin's pencils and inks are great. The linework is so clean and it's a treat for the eyes.  

If you want to read this story for yourself, I recommend tracking down the 2014 trade paperback Star-Lord: Guardian of the Galaxy. It collects Star-Lord's original 1970s and 1980s adventures, as well as the 1996 miniseries that introduced the Sinjin Quarrel incarnation of Star-Lord. Thanks for reading this blog entry! If you liked it, show it off! Take care of yourselves and each other! If you like what I write and want to give this blog some additional support, please make a donation to my Ko-fi! See you next time!

Juneteenth

 Today is Juneteenth!

What is Juneteenth, you may ask? Well, Juneteenth is a portmanteau of "June Nineteenth". The purpose is to celebrate the end of slavery in the United States.

"But wait!" You may ask yourself? "Didn't slavery end in 1863 thanks to the Emancipation Proclamation"? Well, sort of. You see, said Proclamation did play a major role in the end of slavery in the United States. However, the Proclamation only applied to states that were in the Confederacy. As a result, slavery was still legal in states that never seceded from the Union. It would not be until the 13th Amendment's ratification in 1865 that slavery was truly ended in the US.

So, what does that have to do with Juneteenth? Well, on this date in 1865, Major General Gordon Granger ordered that the Proclamation be enforced in Texas. Often celebrated on the third Saturday in June, the day is celebrated with cookouts, family get-togethers, and education of African-American culture. Early celebrations were held at churches due to African-Americans being barred from public facilities.

Over the 20th century, celebrations would decline due to the instatement of Jim Crow and the Civil Rights Movement. African-Americans could still continue to celebrate in Texas. In the late 1970s, Texas would be the first state to enshrine Juneteenth as a state holiday. Juneteenth celebrations would make a comeback in the 1980s. On June 17, 2021, President Joe Biden would sign the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act into law, making it a federal holiday, the first new one since Martin Luther King Day in 1986.

If you want to learn more about this holiday, you can read about it here and here. Thanks for reading this blog entry! If you liked it, show it off! Take care of yourselves and each other! If you like what I write and want to give my blog some additional support, please make a donation to my Ko-fi! See you next time!

The Flash #62 (May 1992)

The Flash has had a long and wild history ever since the original, Jason Peter "Jay" Garrick, debuted all the way back in 1940. And like many other superheroes, others have worn the lightning-bolt symbol over the decades of the character's existence. And one of the most prominent holders of the Flash mantle was a Mr. Wallace "Wally" West.

With the death of Barry Allen in Crisis on Infinite Earths, it seemed to make sense that Wally would inherit the mantle. After all, Wally was Barry's nephew by marriage, and he had a long career as Kid Flash both in the real world and in-universe, even being the founding member of two incarnations of the Teen Titans: The original 1960s incarnation, and the more famous Wolfman/Perez 1980s team.

Thing was...that was not the original plan. Turns out the original plan was to introduce a new character as the new Flash. This new character would be named Mackenzie Ryan, a single father with a young daughter named Jamie. Also, unlike his predecessors Jay Garrick and Barry Allen, Mackenzie would not be a speedster. Instead, he would have the power to manipulate various forms of energy, light, sound, that kind of thing. Mac and Jamie would be on the receiving end (and unseen) of a phone call in New Teen Titans #19 (April 1986). Ultimately though, as history shows, this never happened and Wally took up the mantle.

With a new Flash also came a new comic for the Scarlet Speedster, launching in 1987. This new series was launched by writer Mark Baron and artist Jackson "Butch" Guice. This series would have Wally be public with his identity and reside in New York City. Issue #15 would see writer William Messner-Loebs and artist Greg LaRocque take over the book. This run would be notable not only for introducing Linda Park, Wally's girlfriend and eventual wife, but also reintroducing the Pied Piper. The Piper was an old foe of Barry Allen's but became an ally to Wally. It was also established here that he was one of DC's first confirmed gay characters. The title won the first GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Comic Book in 1992. Loebs' final issue on the book was issue #61 (April 1992). Taking over for him would be Mark Waid.

Waid had been involved with DC Comics for several years at this point. His first story was published in Action Comics #572 (October 1985), an eight-page Superman story called "The Puzzle of the Purloined Fortress". He mainly worked as an editor around this time, overseeing various titles. 1989 would see him step down to be a freelance writer, although he still continued to work for DC, mainly in their short-lived Impact Comics line. However, it will be his coming on board The Flash as the new writer that would make him a big name in the industry. His run not only introduced the Speed Force, but his run would also emphasize the Flash's history and legacy. Waid's actual first Flash tale was Flash Special #1 (1990), a one-shot tale that was put out to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Flash's debut, the tale being an overarching story involving the Jay Garrick, Barry Allen, and Wally West Flashes. This story also introduced a new far-future Flash: John Fox. 

The comic we're looking at here is Waid's first issue as the then-new writer of the Flash's own ongoing comic book. Is it a strong start, or is it an early stumble? Let's look at Flash #62!

The cover is a Greg LaRocque and Jose Marzan Jr piece. It's pretty good. It shows a very young Wally West seemingly being blasted by lightning, this event taking the young boy towards his destiny as one of the World's Greatest Super-Heroes.

"Flash: Year One - Born to Run!, Chapter 1: Thunder Struck"
Writer: Mark Waid
Penciler: Greg LaRocque
Inker: Jose Marzan Jr.
Colorist: Glenn Whitmore
Letterer: Tim Harkins
Editor: Brian Augustyn
Executive Editor: Dick Giordano

The story begins with Wally West, aka the third Flash, in the Central City Airport. He was waiting for someone when, in superhero comic tradition, he finds himself having to deal with something. Not a supervillain, just some mundane terrorists. They had committed some local bombings. The police managed to catch them, but there was still one bomb left. Turns out, the bomb was supposed to go off at midnight. And of the braintrust terrorists set it to go off at noon accidentally. The time now is 11:55 AM. 

Despite this, they refuse to tell where it is. Wally is fast, so he's able to quickly search the airport and can't seem to find the bomb, until he gets a brainwave.

It's an airport. Why work to hide something there? You could put it in a regular bag, "lose it", and then the airport staff unknowingly hides it for you. Wally looks through the lost-and-found area and finds his explosive quarry.

"This candy bar disguise is terrible!"

Wally realizes he has less than a second left before it blows. Zooming through the airport at Mach 3, he can see the bomb starting to go off. To Wally right now, a microsecond might as well be an hour. It gets him thinking about a game he used to play as a kid every Fourth of July. He would light a firecracker and hold on to it as long as he could before he threw it. He managed to get pretty good at it, and his dad gave him a whupping for it. Wally always thought his father Rudolph was overreacting, but this whole thing makes him think he may have had a point. Wally's lucky he still has all his fingers.

With the airport saved, Wally then meets up with the person he was waiting for: his grandfather Professor Ira West. A Nobel Prize-winning scientist, West has a brilliant mind, but can be rather addled by simple thing like where he put his glasses...while he's wearing them. Wally feels bad about him coming, as even though he's a super-speedster and Ira lives only twelve miles away, Wally never visits. But then again, family is a bit of an issue for Wally. 

Wally's face says it all about his family.

Ira had three children, two daughters and a son: Charlotte, Rudolph, and Iris. Charlotte is arguably the least famous of the West siblings, first appearing in DC Special Series #11 (May 1978). She was the eldest and always talked down to Wally. Rudy was next, and he and Ira were never close. But then, Rudolph never seemed close to anyone. And finally, there was Iris. She was adopted by the Wests, her biological parents coming from the future. Yeah, that was a whole thing.

Unlike Charlotte and his father, Wally has nothing but fond memories of Iris. She was like a second mother to him, but she passed away three years earlier. Yeah, she was seemingly murdered by Professor Zoom in Flash #275 (July 1979), but then her life-force was brought back to the future and she was resurrected. Yeah, that was whole thing. Presumably, Wally is unaware she actually is alive in the future.

Since then, Wally hasn't seen much of Ira. When he gets to Ira's home, he looks through some of old Iris's effects. Mainly, her scrapbooks. Iris kept many scrapbooks of Barry Allen's time as the Flash. Wally wonders if she did the same for him, but he shakes it off. He wasn't Barry Allen. Barry was King Arthur, he was the court jester. But then, he finds another scrapbook. This one yellow with a red lightning bolt on it.

Wally should not have been surprised she kept a scrapbook about him.

Yeah. She was just as proud of Wally during his time as Kid Flash. It gets Wally thinking back to one particular summer: the summer he was ten years old. It was during that summer that he got spend time at Central City with Iris. The young Wally thought that Central was the coolest place in the world. Cooler than Disneyland, cooler than the Moon. Why? Because it was the home of the Flash. In particular, the Barry Allen incarnation. He went there by bus. It was a long ride, but Wally endured it. When he arrives at Central, Iris offers to take him to the Flash Museum. However, as it is in superhero comics, we get some action. In particular, the Flash dealing with some armed jewel robbers.

"This is better than the movies!"

It seems to go well...until Barry falls thanks to some of the thieves' ill-gotten gains spilling on the ground.

Wally is left wondering what to do, until he sees a handyman with a large wrench. And he gets, well...a bolt of inspiration.

One of the robbers has the Flash dead to rights and is about to provide a bullet to the speedster's brain...until a geyser of water hits him in the face.

"Aw, man! Why couldn't it have been a beer wave?!"

Wally decided to take a cue from AC/DC and let the robber have a drink on him. You see, growing up in the hot summers of Midwestern America had taught Wally an important lesson: Fire hydrants are a great way to cool off and can pack a watery punch. It didn't KO the thieves, but it did buy the Flash several valuable seconds to recover. And when you're the Fastest Man Alive, a few seconds are plenty to work with. The Scarlet Speedster easily takes down the robbers, leaving them nice and KO'd for the cops.

Before he leaves, he thanks Wally and says the kid's his hero today. So yeah, Wally's day just got a lot cooler. Iris returns (having called the story in), and then introduces her to her fiance, forensic scientist Barry Allen. In comparison to the Flash, Wally finds Barry Allen a rather dull man. Barry and Wally heads to his apartment, as Iris has to work. It's here that the forensic expert reveals something to Wally: He and the Flash...

...are friends.

Actually, this makes a bit of sense. Barry just met Wally, and he likely feels he doesn't know the kid well enough that he can be trusted with the knowledge of his secret identity. Keep in mind, it also can be implied at this point, Iris is unaware Barry is the Flash, so...yeah. To prove to young Wally he's not making this up, Barry uses a little bit of his speed and a bit of trickery.

"Yes. I am awesome!"

Wally is in awe. Barry Allen, the rather dull CSI is friends with the Flash? Yup! Heck, Barry even has his own lab that he lets the Flash use if he needs to crack a case. He thanks Wally again for saving his life earlier and asks how he can return the favor. And Wally's basically like:

Well, more in the manner of utter amazement than confusion like Spidey here. The Flash doesn't tell Wally who he is under his mask, but he is happy to tell Wally how he got his speed powers. Basically, Barry was working in a lab during a thunderstorm. A bolt of lightning hit him and a wall full of chemicals. Now, normally, this would result in a man getting royally toasted. But instead, Barry got powers. Wally thinks that's the coolest thing ever and wishes something like that happened to him. And wouldn't you know it? There's a thunderstorm brewing over Central City...and Wally is standing next to a wall of chemicals and a window. Certainly something like that couldn't happen again? Barry doesn't think so. After all, lightning never strikes the same place twice, as the old adage says. As if the lightning bolt wanted to prove Barry wrong, said bolt strikes the shelf of chemicals, dumping their electrified contents all over Wally. And that's how the story ends. Be careful what you wish for, folks. You just may get it.

I thought this was an enjoyable issue. This issue is clearly meant to be a jumping-on point, familiarizing readers with the character of Wally West, who he is, and how he first gained his powers. We get the idea that even though Wally comes from a dysfunctional family, he still highly values it. They are important to him, even if it seems like he wasn't important to most of them. We see how much he especially valued Iris and Barry Allen. Not to mention there was a good chuckle had about Ira's absent-mindedness. I can't help but wonder that if this was written today, Ira would be seen as suffering some form of dementia. The beginning is also rather exciting, showing Wally's brains and experience.

Greg LaRocque's art is really good. It's very clean and detailed. The characters are expressive, and there's some strong storytelling. I also love how he, Marzan Jr, and Whitmore render Wally's suit. To me, it makes Wally's Flash suit look like it's meant to be shiny, helping differentiate his suit from his uncle Barry's. 

If you want to read this for yourself, I recommend tracking down the 2016 trade paperback The Flash by Mark Waid, Book One. Thaks for reading this blog entry! If you liked it, show it off! Take care of yourselves and each other! If you like what I write and want to give this blog some additional support, please make a donation to my Ko-fi! See you next time!

World Oceans Day

 Today is World Oceans Day!

World Oceans Day is about, well, celebrating the ocean. This day was first proposed in 1992 by representatives of the Canadian government as well as the Oceans Institute of Canada at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. June 8th was chosen as the 1992 Earth Summit was held from the 3rd to the 14th of June. This day was also inspired by a 1987 report by the Brundtland Commission determining that the oceans needed more representation compared to other sectors.

In 2008, the United Nations made a declaration officially recognizing this day. And it's rather important. The ocean is arguably the biggest biome on Earth. It hosts the vast majority of life on Earth and helps provide Earth with about half of its oxygen. It also serves as a heat reservoir and has an effect on climate and weather. Sadly, despite the importance of oceans to life here on Earth, they do have their fair share of threats. Overfishing, climate change, pollution, that kind of thing. The oceans are extremely important to our planet, and we should do all we can to protect them. Thanks for reading this blog entry! If you liked it, show it off! Take care of yourselves and each other! If you like what I write and want to give my blog some additional support, please make a donation to my Ko-fi! See you next time!

Marvel: The Lost Generation #7 (August 2000)

It's that time again! It's time to join the First Line, the Lost Generation of Marvel's superheroes, as we look at their history from the end to the beginning. Last time, we saw Pixie and Black Fox battle the Fox's old enemy Nocturne in late-70s Romania. And now, we go a few short years back, still in the turbulent 1970s, when the First Line cross paths with another old-school Marvel villain. This is Marvel: The Lost Generation #7!

The cover is a John Byrne piece. I do like it, although I do think that the rendition of Nocturne in the back does look a bit...stretched and incomplete. I wonder if Byrne was homaging the cover of X-Men #100 (August 1976) with this cover. I didn't see an "after Cockrum and Crespi" on his signature, so maybe it wasn't an intentional one. We got members of the First Line and the Invaders facing off, which is actually a pretty cool thing to see. Makes you wonder what Nocturne's involvement is in this whole thing. And the Invaders are not the surprise guest stars? Well, who is? Only one way to find out!

"Highly Placed Sources"
Writers: Roger Stern, John Byrne
Penciler: John Byrne
Inker: Al Milgrom
Letterers: Jack Morelly, Jim Novak
Colorist: Glynis Oliver
Editor: Ralph Macchio
Editor-in-Chief: Bob Harras

The place? Cleveland, Ohio. The time? The Nixon Era, which means this story is set between 1969 and 1974. So, this issue is set likely not too long before the events of the last one.

First Line members Pixie and Effigy are joining forces with Russian heroine Katyusha, as well as English heroes Ian Fitzwilliam-Dare/Templar and his Scottish squire Vulcan to face something unseen. Elsewhere, something smashes into some snow. But that's not important, you're here to see some superheroes fighting villains, right? Well, we do get some of that, in the form of the First Line facing off against...the Invaders?! And the Red Skull?! And they're on the same side?! And they're all under the command of Nocturne?!

Yeah, that's something that'll shock a reader. Meanwhile, we learn what crashed in the snow. 

"Oh GAWD, what'd I drink last night?!"

Yup, it's our heroine Cassandra Locke. She realizes that she has ended up in some snowy mountains. Meanwhile, back with the First Line! A chained-up Oxbow is horrified at the idea of the Invaders in league with the Red Skull of all people. Mr. Justice (who is also chained up with the First Nations powerhouse archer) notes that the Skull has brainwashed the Invaders before. Around the time of Invaders #5 to be exact. If Nocturne has learned how the Skull pulled it off, then the First Line is going to be for one heck of a fight.  

Meanwhile, out in the snowy mountains of...somewhere, Cassandra is trying to figure out where she is. While also not freezing to death.

She then spots a trail of flame in the sky. That means only one thing: the Human Torch. But is it the Jim Hammond Torch or the Johnny Storm Torch? Only one way for her to find out: follow that fiery trail.

Back to the fight! Captain America tosses his Mighty Shield at Oxbow and Mr. Justice, who are struggling to free themselves. Vulcan blocks the shield with his sword...sort of.

"I knew this sword was tough, but boy howdy!"

Don't worry, folks. Templar is just as confused as you are. After all, isn't Captain America's Mighty Shield supposed to be for all intents and purposes indestructible? That's a second sign that there's something funny about these "Invaders". The first was Vulcan noticing that if this was somehow the supposedly-dead Bucky Barnes, he'd be in his 50s by now. Remember, this was long before the Winter Soldier storyline in Captain America's book revealed Bucky was actually alive, but that he was also actually an older man who was trained in black ops that looked like a teenager. 

Meanwhile, Cassandra finds the source of the flame trail: Johnny Storm, the second Human Torch. She realizes that she's in the Modern Age of Marvels. But enough of that revelation! Back to the titular "Lost Generation"! First Liner Reflex realizes these Invaders are fake.

He rips off "Captain America"'s mask, revealing that...

"NOOO, NOT MY PRETTY ZOMBIE FAAAAAACE!"

It's a zombie! Yes, these "Invaders" are actually zombie minions of Nocturne's. Realizing they are not really alive, our heroes take care of these fake wartime heroes...only to find that Nocturne has escaped. Again.

Back in the snowy mountains, Cassandra watches Johnny Storm make a fire, and then get attacked.

"Where's my money, Johnny?!"

Yup, it's the former First Liner known as Yeti. Cassandra is left confused as to how he could have survived the First Line's destruction in issue #12. It's not implausible. I mean, can't imagine every single member of the team died. And considering it's the Marvel Universe...yeah. Anyway, let's look in on Washington, DC.

"I know the First Line wants to see me naked!"

President Richard Nixon, in a fit of paranoia thanks to his being up in his ears in the whole Watergate scandal, is seriously considering revoking the First Line's government privileges, for some reason. My guess is that he's trying to distract the press. Again, Watergate. Jake Scott (aka the Skrull hero known as Effigy) is horrified by this, as it's nothing more than domestic subversion. Black Fox also makes his way into the Oval Office and gets in Nixon's face about it. 

Back in the snowy mountains, Johnny Storm pursues the Yeti, having heard him say he must warn the other Inhumans. Johnny pursues him, hoping Yeti will lead him to Attilan where Crystal is. Yes, Cassie is in the Himalayan mountains, during the events of Fantastic Four #99 (June 1970). In that comic, Johnny Storm had flown off to the Inhuman city of Attilan (which was in the Himalayas at the time), thinking that his then-main squeeze, the classical Greek element-manipulating Crystalia "Crystal" Amaquelin was taken there against her will. He was also attacked by the Yeti in the original comic. Clever stuff by Stern and Byrne here.

Black Fox and Effigy argue over the former's actions in the Oval Office. Fox wants Nixon stopped. If he outlaws the First Line, then it will harm their ability to help others. He suggests Effigy impersonate Nixon, but the Skrull refuses, believing that'll make him no better than Nixon. Robert Paine tells him that if Scott won't do something, he will. 

The story then goes to the 22nd century, in Tranquility City. Cassie Locke's father Alexander heads to her room, and finds it still looks like it's being used, even though she's been gone for a week at his point...from his perspective. That's because it is still being used.

"And if you call me 'Flathead' again, I will kick you in the nards."

Meet Omega-20, or as he likes to be called, "Gene". I don't know, he seems more like a "Tom" to me, but if he wants to be called "Gene", I'm not going to judge.

Alex Locke never liked the idea of Cassie dating Gene. Mainly because of the fact that Gene here got himself genetically altered for life in deep space. To him, it's something crazy people do. Gene also said that Omega-20 is his "cyborg classification", so I'm assuming that he also has some cybernetic parts put in. Anyway, Gene knows full well that Alex doesn't like him and Cassie together due to Alex having a prejudice against people like Gene. 

Gene says his alterations were radical, but they are nothing compared to what the Skrulls were doing. Their diplomats preach peace, but they've been secretly reigniting the old flames of bigotry and hatred among humans. Alex blames Gene for Cassandra going off on her little time-travel adventure. Thing is, he did not tell her to do so. All he did was give her information. Cassie's a historian, so of course she'd see the pattern of Skrull deceit over the centuries. And someone else confirms this. Someone who's been dealing with Skrulls for a long time.

"I never did get that money Oxbow owed me."

Yup, Pixie is still around. Which makes sense, as she's an Eternal.

We then look in on Detroit of the mid-1970s. In particular, a man named Russell. 

This family should be a sitcom.

As you can see, he's a loving family man. A hard worker, formerly of Texas. His eldest son, a cynical sort named Russell Junior, just got fired from McDonalds. His wife Alma suggests he have a talk with him. He agrees to, after dinner. Until then, he be in his workshop. While down there, it's seen exactly what he's building: the Flatiron armor we briefly saw him wearing in issue #12. Oh yeah, didn't the First Line fight some fake Invaders? We kind of have forgotten about that, have we? Well, let's look in on them, shall we? Back in Cleveland, Pixie is in hot pursuit of Nocturne, but he manages to get away.

The next day, it's time for a happy occasion. It's the wedding of Templar and his lovely missus Rossalyn. 

"Gettig married is for losers! Did you see what it did to that one Parker guy?"

With this, Dare is hanging up his sword and retiring. Robert Paine is outraged by this, as he feels Dare is ignoring his responsibilities as Templar. Thing is, Dare has new responsibilities now, and his sword will be taken up by Vulcan. Not to mention that there are now plenty of other heroes that can take up the slack. Robert refuses to retire, even if he has to go underground. He'll still play best man for Ian, though.

Over in Georgetown, a week has passed. Effigy laments that he couldn't stop Nixon from rescinding the First Line's security clearances, which is why they're shown to operate underground in previous issues. The Skrull considers Black Fox's idea to pose as Nixon...but he shoots it down. Nixon has a family, and not to mention he swore he would be different. He would be better than that. He does admit the Fox is right, and there is something else he can do. All he has to do...is make a phone call...

"And after this, I'm ordering me some pizza!"

Yup, he places a call to Bob Woodward of the Washington Post. Yes, that Bob Woodward. The very same man alongside Carl Bernstein who would help expose the Watergate scandal to the public, which would lead to Richard Nixon resigning the Presidency. So, yeah. In the Marvel Universe, a Skrull was Deep Throat. Keep in mind, this comic was put out (based on cover dates) about five years before the informant's actual identity was revealed to the public.

As all this was happening, Cassandra had made her way to Attilan and met the Fantastic Four, who again, were going through the events of Fantastic Four #99. Reed is able to fix her time belt, which causes her to undergo another time jump...and the FF to forget she was ever there. She finds herself in 1961. And she intended to be in 1964. 

It's revealed that she was thrown off course thanks to something that happened in the upcoming issue #4. Remember, this miniseries is numbered backwards. She hears footsteps and spots the Sub-Mariner. This confuses her, as in 1961, he was still missing. He wouldn't be discovered until Johnny Storm discovers him living as a vagrant in Fantastic Four #4 (May 1962). She discovers that he isn't just around, he's become a servant of Plan Chu, aka the Golden Claw. Or as he was known back then, the Yellow Claw.

I enjoyed this comic. I do feel that this is one of those stories that's better enjoyed if you read the whole maxiseries at once. I do wish we had more of an idea as to why Nocturne and the Golden Claw created the fake Invaders. Was it for the purpose of disgracing them? I mean, this story is set in the late-60s/early 70s, so WWII was long over, but it was still fresh in people's minds, so maybe that was the plan? I don't know.

I can imagine that for Robert Paine, seeing Templar getting married must also be pushing his buttons a little bit, as the woman he loved was killed by Nocturne, as we have seen in the last issue. It does make sense why he would be angry at the idea of a fellow superhero wanting to retire after being a hero. For Paine, being the Black Fox was likely the only thing he felt he had in his life, and seeing Templar put away the armor for good must feel like he's being forced to see something he believes he can never have. It's a nice little character bit.  

I also have another question. In earlier issues, set later in the First Line's history, we saw they were still operating underground in the 1980s. Why didn't Gerald Ford or Jimmy Carter or even Ronald Reagan restore their governmental clearances and privileges? Was Nixon's move against the First Line seen as a popular one? I get the idea that he did it out of paranoia, and I also understand that in the Marvel Universe, mistrust of superhuman beings is a bit of a regular thing, but it's still something that confuses me.  

The usage of the Golden Claw does make some sense. He's appeared in stories set in the 1950s before, and it's a nice way to link the First Line to the rest of the Marvel Universe. 

John Byrne still turns in some decent art, but it doesn't quite fit his X-Men/Fantastic Four prime. I believe I have said that before.

If you want to read this for yourself, you're going to have to look on eBay for issues. It was collected in the 2018 Omnibus: The Marvel Universe by John Byrne Vol. 2, but this maxiseries has never been collected in a standalone trade. I think it may be available in Marvel Unlimited, though. Thanks for reading this blog entry! If you liked it, show it off! Take care of yourselves and each other! If you like what I write and want to give this blog some additional support, please make a donation to my Ko-fi! See you next time!