Spider-Man Unlimited #13 (August 1996)

Since I watched Spider-Man: Brand New Day (which was great, by the way), I wanted to take a look at a comic focusing on the Web-Slinger. And on a whim, I ended up picking up a comic that was from a rather...wild era for the Webhead: the 1990s.

The 1990s were...quite an interesting set of years for the character that could arguably be said to be Marvel's mascot: Spider-Man. He had an animated series (Notably, this cartoon was the first to use the "Spider-Verse" concept), and yes, he also had a glut of comic books during that era. Spider-Man is arguably one of Marvel's most popular characters that lacked an X-Gene at the time. In fact, the comics even billed him as the Non-Mutant Super Hero. While the quality of the comics' stories of the era can be argued about thanks to the second Clone Saga, there was no doubt that people were buying Spider-Man comics by the bushel. 

The comic we're looking at here is the first issue of Spider-Man Unlimited. This book lasted from 22 issues, going from 1993 to 1998. The issues were published quarterly (meaning four times a year) on glossy paper, an unusual practice at the time. In the 2000s, all of Marvel's books would get that printing treatment. The early issues were tie-ins to various crossovers like Maximum Carnage and the second Clone Saga. Later on, they switched to telling stand-alone stories. 

Another Spider-Man Unlimited series would be released in 1999 that was a tie-in to the 1999 cartoon of the same name. This one only lasted six issues. A third series of the same name debuted in 2004. This series was an anthology title that lasted a bit longer, 15 issues published bimonthly. Like the first series, this one was set in the mainstream Marvel Universe. So, with all that out of the way, this is Spider-Man Unlimited #13!

The cover is a Frank Teren piece. It's...pretty decent. It depicts the Scorpion looking like he's about to rip off our man's jaw, while Power Man and Iron Fist look on in horror. It's pretty dynamic, but I admit, I wish it was done by a different artist. 

"The Sting of Conscience"
Writer: James Felder
Penciler: Joe Bennett
Inkers: Randy Emberlin, Al Milgrom, Steve Montano
Colorist: Christie Scheele
Letterer: Jack Morelli
Editor: Ralph Macchio
Editor-in-Chief: Bob Harras

The story begins with J. Jonah Jameson in...a bit of a pickle. And like in some of the pickles he's found himself in over the years, this is one he really brought on himself. You see, he's been kidnapped by a man he'd be happy never to see again: MacDonald "Mac" Gargan, aka the original Scorpion. You see, all the way back in Amazing Spider-Man #19 (December 1964), Jameson had hired Gargan (then just a regular private investigator) to find out how Peter Parker to get those, well, amazing pictures of Spider-Man he does. However, Gargan was never able to find out how, as Peter's Spider-Sense allowed him to constantly evade the man. In the next issue, Jameson funded an experiment to give Gargan the powers of a scorpion, complete with armor grafted to his body that included a mechanical stinger tail.

Gargan showed to be stronger and tougher than the Webhead, but the treatments, combined with the fact that he could not remove his suit, made Gargan go crazy. He's had a hatred for Spider-Man, but his real vendetta was with Jameson, blaming him for his current state. 

Mac here's got his exoskeleton modified and even a brand spanking new stinger. The first sting will hurt. Bad.

The second sting will paralyze the victim, killing them in 24 hours. The third finishes the job. In fact, the only reason that Gargan hasn't killed Jameson already is because he's being paid to kidnap the media mogul. But...if Gargan believes that Jameson was trying to escape, well...things can happen.

Jameson tries to buy Gargan off, but he's not biting. After all, Jameson is the reason Gargan is like this now, and Scorpy's new benefactors are giving him a very fat check for this.

Over at the Daily Bugle, there's a bit of a panic going on over Jameson's being missing. Ben Urich theorizes that this is connected to the Bugle's investigation of Rand/Meachum, but Robbie Robertson wants some actual proof before of it.

But on a happier note, over in Times Square, Luke Cage is finding himself in an old hangout: The Gem Theater, where he and Iron Fist ran their old Heroes for Hire business back in the day, starting with Hero for Hire #2 (August 1972) until the events of Power Man and Iron Fist #125 (September 1986). Afterwards, Cage was forced to relocate to Chicago and start over in Marvel Comics Presents #82 (August 1991). This led up to his 90s series, which we looked at before. His return to NYC would be chronicled in Cage #20 (November 1993). While he did like his time there, he'll always be a New Yorker at heart. 

He noticed that none of his old friends were there to meet him at the bus station. But not because they didn't want to be there. They had something else planned.

"Now eat some cake, Lukey!"

Yup, they were preparing a homecoming party!\

It's a small party, consisting of Colleen Wing, Misty Knight, Toby (a homeless man who helped Luke on cases here and there back in the day), and D.W. Griffith, the current owner of the Gem. Yeah, his uncle Max had passed away and D.W. had inherited the Gem as a result. He's having trouble keeping the place afloat as people aren't watching westerns much anymore, and a company is buying up the neighborhood to put in a theme park. You know, D.W., you could well, diversify the films shown at the theatre. Show other stuff! It's your theatre now, man! You can do that!

Cage offers to help by being a paid tenant of D.W.'s. Colleen Wing tells Luke that she's been needing some help with Nightwing Restorations, since Misty Knight has started working at Murdock, Nelson, and Sharpe in Daredevil #353 (June 1996). Luke turns the offer down, as he is not someone to accept charity. Uh, Luke? She's offering you a job. A paid job. You're not freeloading, you're doing a job. A job where you'll get paid. And you can use of that check to pay rent to D.W., helping him keep the Gem open. Everyone wins.

Colleen wonders where he'll get cases without her help, but as is wont in superhero books, the phone rings.

It's Robbie Robertson, and he wants to hire Luke to find Jameson.

Cage is only here because he's being paid.

As you can see, after the events of his 90s series, Cage has returned to his classic look, metal tiara, yellow shirt and all. Ben Urich gets a call from the cops, and he informs Jameson that the Scorpion was the man who took Jameson, as seen in the beginning of the issue. Someone asks Robertson if Cage can handle the Scorpion. Cage just tells the smartmouth that he can handle him in the classic Cage way. 

In a coffee house, one of the employees witnesses this on TV. It's Ben Reilly, a clone of Peter Parker who was operating as Spider-Man at the time. Yeah, that was a whole thing. The 1990s Clone Saga is...an utter mess to explain, and I have neither the time nor desire to explain it here.

Anyway, Ben finds Jameson's home trashed, and meets Marla Madison, Jameson's wife. He's surprised that someone actually willingly married the man. Marla married JJ in Amazing Spider-Man Annual #18 (1984). Ben was in a self-imposed "exile" during that time. Again, 1990s Clone Saga, too long to explain here.

She gives him a note that he she didn't give the cops or Robbie. The note confirms Ben Urich's theory that he was kidnapped in response to the Bugle's looking into Rand/Meachum. And then he gets ambushed by the Scorpion.

"Hello, baaaaaaaaby!"

Marla does the smart thing and runs to get some help.

Ben fights Gargan, but the Scorpion is able to get a sting in on the current Webhead. And like Gargan promised earlier, Ben is hurting. Bad. Gargan spots Marla and tries to give her a taste of his tail, too. Ben saves her and gets a second sting for his trouble. Our hero now has 24 hours to live. 

Despite this, he's able to get Marla away.

Over at Nelson, Murdock, and Sharpe, Luke asks Misty where Danny is. He has a hunch Rand/Meachum is somehow involved in this and wants to talk. She tells him that he's not been in a communicative mood recently. Luke's not worried. He's always had a knack for crashing parties. He heads to the Rand/Meachum building and finds Danny with a guest.

"YES, MY BELLY TATTOO IS SWEET!"

Yeah, the big floating dude there is called the Contemplator. One of the Elders of the Universe, his particular deal is basically understanding the spiritual and mental aspects of reality. At this time, he's been playing mentor to Danny, since around the events of Marvel Comics Presents #125-136 (April-September 1993) The two have a little heart-to-heart. Danny feels the two had fallen from grace and has become cynical about being a hero. Cage tells him that he still can. Danny admits that he has little to do with the day-by-day running of his company. One of his senior advisers, a Jason Quartermaster (yeah, that's totally not a supervillain name) is more in tune with things.

Luke meets up with Quartermaster, who is shown to be fascinated with Cage's steel-hard skin. As Luke leaves, Jason makes a call. He's getting too close. Cage returns home and finds the Scorpion waiting. The man tosses a briefcase of money at Cage, but if anyone knows Luke Cage, the man doesn't accept bribes. The two end up fighting.

Cage is a powerhouse, but the Scorpion himself is no slouch. His tail can't sting Luke (bulletproof skin and all), but Gargan is still able to punch Luke hard enough that it actually makes his nose bleed.

Thankfully, Spider-Man is able to save the day...sort of. Remember, the Scorpion stung him with a neurotoxin that'll kill him in 24 hours. And it's dulling his strength and Spider-Sense. Gargan does get sent packing, but not by the heroes, by police sirens. As crazy as he is, Gargan is aware if the cops find him, they'll call in the Avengers or Code: Blue. And he can't deal with them now. So, he's out of there.

The two discuss the situation. Spidey's got less than 12 hours left to live. And he can't find a cure in time. He also promised Marla he'd find Jameson. So, the two agree to work together on this. Spidey points out that whoever made Scorpion's new toxin must have made a serum to counteract it, just in case. They'd need a big biochemistry lab to do it. Cage may know where one can be found...

Spidey heads to the Daily Bugle's archives, hoping to find a clue to the Scorpion's new hidey-hole. However, the Bugle seems to have no archives on him...which makes sense. Jameson created the Scorpion, I can imagine he'd want the kept on the down-low. As such, Ben is doing a Spider-Man tradition: angsting about his dying and all that. He then gets an unlikely angel.

"I actually came to tell you to leave. You know how Jonah gets, Webs."

 Yes, Marla Jameson herself. She wonders why Spider-Man does what he does, considering her husband's hatred for the man. He points out that fate gave him his power and that he has to do what's right with it. Great power must also come great responsibility, and all that. 

Marla has a theory to offer: that as much as Spider-Man uses his costume and powers to play hero, Garnagan also uses his power and identity as the Scorpion to play villain. Gargan in deluded, saying he "died" when he became the Scorpion. And one cliche when it comes to criminals, superhuman or otherwise, is that they return to the scene of the crime. This sets off a lightbulb, a spark of inspiration in Benny's head.

Time passes. It's 5 PM, and many of the Rand/Meachum office workers have gone home. Cage makes his way into the building and finds someone waiting for him.

"Yes, Cage! It was me, the obvious villain!"

Yes, it's Jason Quartermaster. Told you that was a supervillain name! And he's also not lying when he says his universal solvent can harm Luke. When our man gets some of it on him, it's able to burn his skin. The two go at it, Jason ranting about how smart he is, and how he's better than everyone else because of it. Misty Knight comes to the rescue, trying to get him from the damaged catwalk with her bionic arm. Cage, having enough of Quartermaster's mouth, uses the chain he has around his waist as an improvised whip to knock Quartermaster into the vat of his solvent. And then everything starts exploding.

Yeah, Luke and Misty better find that serum quick. Quartermaster clearly booby-trapped the lab, just in case. We then go next to the ruins of Ravencroft Hospital. It's here that Gargan has Jameson captive, the very place he first became the Scorpion. He gives Jameson another sting. Since that's number two, Jameson now has 24 hours to live.

 He rants and raves about his lousy life as a private investigator, and how Jameson offered him a way out of it...and made him into a monster simply because of his grudge against Spider-Man. And speaking of Spidey, he makes his entrance here. The two fight, but again, Ben is dying from Scorpion's toxin. This allows the Scorpion to take him to the woodshed. Thankfully, Luke and Misty have arrived. And they brought another man with them. 

Danny screamed when he realized he forgot to wash the suit.

Yes! Danny's back, baby! The Iron Fist is back!

He helped Misty and Luke find the antidote for the Scorpion's toxin. Luke and Danny then take on the mad armored arachnid-man, Danny using his namesake Iron Fist to smash the Scorpion's tail. Feeling a lot better, Ben also jumps in to help as Misty tends to Jameson and gives him some of the antidote. Of course, Jameson is very grateful to the heroes for saving his life.

The battle ends when the Scorpion seemingly dies...of a heart attack.

Ben examines the exoskeleton. He discovers that it was booby-trapped to pump Gargan full of the same toxin that was in his tail in case he was defeated or captured. Luke points out that Danny was no failure because when it came down to it, he did the right thing in the end. Danny admits Luke is right about that, but he laments that he hesitated, something he didn't do in the old days. He has to leave, to find himself again. This is meant to lead into the events of Iron Fist #1 (September 1996). 

Code: Blue arrives to take the presumably-dead Scorpion to the morgue. But it turns out...he's not dead.

He busts out of custody and is picked up by another truck. Quartermaster's a bust, but it's not a great loss. In fact, it's merely the beginning...

The story ends with Luke getting his fee to DW to help save the Gem, and Ben watching Jameson on TV. Being the grateful sort that he is, Jameson accuses Spider-Man of being in cahoots with the Scorpion. So, things are back to normal.

I'm not too familiar with James Felder's writing. In fact, I think this is the first comic I've ever read which he penned, and I have to admit, I think this was a very enjoyable read. He really gets Luke Cage as a character, and same with the disillusioned Iron Fist. Yes, I think his return back into the suit is a bit quick, but that's due to the story's page limit. I also liked the way he wrote Ben Reilly. He is a lot like Peter Parker in personality...which makes sense as he's a clone of the original Webhead. I also liked that Marla is a bit more tolerant of Spider-Man than her husband is. Allows a nice contrast to Jameson. And of course, Jameson learns nothing from his nearly dying at the hands of the Scorpion, a villain he helped create. 

Jason Quartermaster is a bit of a basic villain, but he works for the story. I do wish he stuck around, because I can imagine this dude going after many other heroes out of a desire to prove his so-called "mental superiority". He'd be a good villain for any superhero to fight. 

Joe Bennett's artwork is...alright. It is clearly in the style of the likes of Rob Liefeld, but with more...competence, for lack of a better word. His art would improve over time, as shown in his work on Immortal Hulk. I do like his tweak of Scorpion's design, though.

Yeah, I wanted to look at a Spider-Man comic, and yet, I ended up looking at one that reunited Power Man and Iron Fist. Life is funny like that. If you want to read this for yourself, I recommend tracking down the 2016 trade paperback Luke Cage, Iron Fist & The Heroes for Hire Vol. 1. It's a great trade. 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!

VisionQuest Trailer, My Thoughts

What determines a person's identity? What makes them who they are? And if you were an android that was destroyed and rebuilt..., were you still that same android? Or are you now someone...or something completely different? These questions have plagued a certain android Avenger since his own rebirth. 

VisionQuest is the 18th television miniseries in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. It's also part of a sort of "trilogy" that includes WandaVision and Agatha All Along. Jac Schaffer of WandaVision was involved as head writer of the project but eventually left, with creator Terry Matalas taking over as showrunner. It features Paul Bettany reprising the role of the Vision from previous MCU entries as he attempts to not only figure out who he is, but also ends up helping a teenager who may be one of his long-lost sons. 

VisionQuest was filmed from March-July 2025 in Pinewood Studios in London. Yeah, the same studio that did the James Bond and Carry On films. Let's look at the trailer!

So, Vision is now in Ireland. I honestly would like to visit Ireland one day. It seems like a very pretty country.

I know this is meant to imply Wanda, but there could be a twist. It could mean someone else.

Man, this must be awkward for the Vision. He has the memories of his relationship with Wanda, but none of the emotional connections. It must be so awkward and confusing for him.

 And in Vision's case, he means that quite literally.

Vision did try adopting a goldfish, but it did not end well. What with the Irish Mob and the stolen gold and somebody accidentally drinking an expired magic potion that got mixed with a mai-tai. Yeah, it was a bad week.

I love how blatantly artificial that house and those gardens look. Helps really show we're in the mind of a machine. I know it's likely special effects that are not quite finished yet, but I think it's nice touch if it's intentional.

He also competed in the World Hula Hoop Competition. Won a silver. 

I wonder if Vision can play films from streaming services in his head theatre. I bet he has all of them in there. 

Wait, James D'Arcy?! From Agent Carter?! Now that's a surprise!

From what I understand, these people here are all meant to be avatars of the various AIs we've seen in the MCU. There's EDITH, who appeared in Spider-Man: Far From Home, the two robots Dum-E and U from the Iron Man films, and of course, D'Arcy is playing the pre-Vision JARVIS, who was modeled on Edwin Jarvis, who appeared in Agent Carter and Avengers: Endgame.

ULTRON?! How did he return?!

I mean, I thought he was trapped in that body Vision destroyed in Age of Ultron. Did he manage to download himself into Vision and was hiding all this time? Or is this a remnant of Ultron's original code that was used to create Vision? 

I love that Ultron's human avatar is basically an old professor with a sinister edge. And of course, James Spader. 

They aren't wrong, Vision. You do remember what he did to Sokovia, right?

"I will call you a lot of things, but Pee-Paw will not be one of them!" ...yeah, I get the feeling that Ultron and Vision's interactions will be the most fun parts of the miniseries.

I think we got the ultimate theme of VisionQuest right here, the quest for Vision to find...himself, really.

Well, I have to admit, I am excited about this miniseries. I do have some questions about where these AIs came from, but I imagine we will get some answers in the show. I have heard that they're supposed to be remnants of the various AIs we've seen in the MCU over the years. I do wonder what happened to DUM-E and U after Tony died in Avengers: Endgame. I imagine maybe Pepper or Happy inherited them. We know Peter Parker doesn't have them. As you can see, I have a lot of questions, and I hope to get plenty of answers. 

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Avengers: Doomsday Special Look, My Thoughts

Last month, I looked at the trailer for the upcoming film Avengers: Doomsday. The 39th film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, this film is a multiverse-spanning adventure that'll being together the heroes of the MCU Earth, the Fantastic Four of Earth-828, and the X-Men of Earth...X-Men to take on the Multiverse-spanning threat of Doctor Doom! And now a special look is out! Let's look at the trailer!

That scene is very Doom. It's regal yet menacing. They nailed it.

Sue's dialogue here seems to confirm that this Doom is from Earth-828. Which...makes sense. He was hinted at in First Steps, and he did appear in the mid-credits scene of that film.

I also get the impression from Sue's dialogue here that she saw a side of Doom that not many others did.

The scene with Doom looking up at the painting? That's a nod to the comics. In the comics, Doom's mother Cynthia was a sorceress who was killed by the demonic Mephisto when Doom was a boy. One of his goals was to free her soul from his Hell-like dimension. Which I believe he pulled off alongside Doctor Strange in the graphic novel Triumph and Torment. 

Man, that Doom costume is amazing.

I think that's Earth-828. 

Those scenes all have the theme of family linking them. The found family in the X-Men. Scott Lang and his daughter Cassie. Johnny Storm and his nephew Franklin. Steve Rogers and his baby. Thor and his adopted daughter Love. Loki, Thor's brother. Shuri, the sister of the late T'Challa. Shows just how "broken" (how Sue described Doom as) really is.

Ohhh, Thor's going to give Doom one heck of a headache...

...or not.

With two fingers. With TWO. FINGERS.

"Hell answers to me. For I. Am. Doom." That is a Doctor Doom line. That is something they would say. Whatever they say about this movie, I think they'll nail Doom.

Yeah, this wasn't quite what I expected from a "special look". I thought we'd get like snippets of interviews with the actors mixed with clips from the movie, that kind of thing, not a second trailer. But I'm not complaining. This film looks like it will be absolutely incredible! I can't wait to watch it! 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!  

Marvel Tokon Launch Trailer, My Thoughts

Back in June 2025, I looked at the trailer for the fighting game known as Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls. Developed by Arc System Works and published by Sony, this fighting game has a unique mechanic: you "unlock" fighters to form a team of four. And this game has announced four teams, the mighty mutants of the Unbreakable X-Men, the street-fighting space-faring Amazing Guardians, the valiant protectors known as the Fighting Avengers, the spreaders of evil known as the Knights of Doom, an also, the team of monsters and misfits known as the Samurai Outriders. We even got a trailer for the game's first DLC fighter, the X-Men's stalwart optic blasting Phoenix-powered mutant madman known as Cyclops. They even got Ray Chase from X-Men '97 to voice him. Pretty cool.

And that was all before the game was launched. And now it's finally here! Let's look at the trailer!

I love the Promoter. I really do.

Yeah, Champion. If you met your comic book counterpart, he'd happily tell you Earth tends to be planet that puts out some great challengers. After all, Earth is awesome.

I am not ashamed to admit this. I am so freakin' envious of the Champion's hair. I wish I had hair like that. Stupid genetics...

Those are good lines. Fit the characters pretty well. Although, I can imagine Spider-Man quipping that he's got laundry to finish.

Heh heh, I bet Logan just has so much fun slicing and dicing Deadpool. Man is darn near unkillable, so he doesn't need to hold back. 

J. Jonah Jameson had better pay Parker top dollar for those pics. He's earned that green.

I wonder what this "Battle Arcadia" is. Is it a bunch of mini-games? What kind of mini-games could you do with these characters?

I like the Training Mode and the Gallery. The Training Mode is a great way to try a character out, get some practice in, and see what fits your playstyle. And I also hope the Gallery has lots of concept art and stuff like that.

All streaks end at some point, Tryco buddy. Just ask Goldberg. And the Undertaker.

Well, I have to say that this looks like a very fun game. I hope it does well, and we also get lots of DLC characters. Personally, I would love to see Sony and Arc System Works dig deep into the Marvel library. Give us lesser-known characters like Solo, Hit-Monkey, Scream. Heck, I'd like to see some Inhumans in this game. You could do some cool stuff with Medusa's hair, or Triton doing some cool water stuff. Maybe Quake bringing the noise. The Inhumans really could use some spotlight nowadays. But sadly, it's not up to me. If it were, I'd give the Inhumans and lots of obscure characters spotlight. 

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!

Green Lantern #173 (February 1984)

It has been a little while since we last had a certain Emerald Gladiator grace this here blog. In fact, the last time any incarnation of the Green Lantern appeared here was back in May 2026, with my review of The Brave and the Bold #2 (May 2007), depicting the Hal Jordan Green Lantern teaming up with Batman to solve an intergalactic mystery. But the comic we're looking at here is long before that. The mid-1980s were an interesting time for Hal Jordan. He would spend some time in exile from the Earth at the order of the Guardians of the Universe, as they felt that he was favoring his own homeworld of Earth over the rest of Sector 2814. You know, like it's Hal's fault that a lot of crazy stuff goes down on his home planet he has to deal with, and he also has a life outside of the power ring. 

But as all things do, Hal's exile would end, and he'd return to Earth. But that doesn't mean Hal is going to have himself a nice, relaxing vacation. In fact, it'd be the opposite problem. Evil never rests, and neither does the drama of a superhero's civilian life. You'll see what I mean when I look at Green Lantern #173!

The cover is a Dave Gibbons piece. It's pretty good, depicting a brand-new villain taking on our hero, and showing that he is a genuine threat. 

"Old Friends, New Foes"
Writer: Len Wein
Penciler: Dave Gibbons
Inker: Dave Gibbons
Colorist: Anthony Tollin
Letterer: Dave Gibbons
Editor: Len Wein
Executive Editor: Dick Giordano

The story begins with our man Hal Jordan flying through the skies of Los Angeles, California. Hal is feeling pretty darn good. His exile from Earth is over, he's still got his job at Ferris Aircraft (because the Guardians evidently don't pay their space cops), his relationship with Carol Ferris is going well. All in all, right now...life is good for Hal Jordan.

Let's see what comes along to screw that up, shall we? Hal spots a car veering wildly on the road, crashing through a divider. He's able to use his mighty power ring to stop the crazy vehicle (no, it's not a taxi). He checks on the driver, hearing he suffered a medical emergency like a heart attack. Good news is that the driver has no medical issues. The bad news? The driver was just drunk. 

Hal is, naturally and understandably angry about this. Man chose to drive in a debilitated state. He could have gotten himself and/or someone else killed. Hal decides to leave him to the cops, while showing them why he drove wildly...in his own way.

"...hey, I can't drink this, you green jerk!"

As he flies away, Hal laments that for all the things he can do thanks to his ring, he can't save morons from themselves. It's a sad fact of life, Hal. All we can do is just do better ourselves. After all, we can learn from others' mistakes as well as our own. Hal heads to the home of his lady love Carol Ferris, where she's getting ready to head to work herself.

"Nothing better than drying my hair out in the air..."

Hal is amazed that Carol was able to rebuild her home after the villain known as Goldface trashed the place in issue #151. She has great insurance. I can imagine there are special insurance policies in the DCU in case a supervillain wrecks a home. She tells Hal that he'd better get ready himself. But there's plenty of time, so Hal knows a way to spend it with Carol...

Out in space, a certain satellite cloaked from all detection technology is floating around.

Man, Ted Turner's cable satellites are WEEEEEIRD...

Inside the satellite, Lyla is grumbling about getting calls from a Congressman named Jason Bloch. Alongside his father Conrad, Jason has been on a campaign to bring down Ferris Aircraft. The elder Bloch co-founded the firm with Carl Ferris, Carol's father. Thing was, Conrad was a bit of a lazy jerk, leaving Carl with the actual work when it came to building the company while Conrad got drunk and chased skirts. Basically, Conrad got fired and built a new company that competed with Ferris.

Later on, long story short, Conrad Bloch lost a contract to build a solar jet to Ferris, went crazy, tried to blow up Ferris's protoype that resulted in his face getting wrecked, and the elder Bloch died facing Green Lantern, his sons Jason and Benjamin vowing revenge. 

2

Right. Well, Bloch has contacted the Monitor for aid against Ferris Aircraft. Especially since Green Lantern has returned to Earth. And as I said earlier, it was during a battle with GL that Conrad Bloch died. Lyla asks if this will cause some problems. The Monitor tells them it will...but not for them. In fact, it could be a boon for them in the form of potential extra business. I'm sure that won't lead anywhere.

Anyway, what's Hal up to? Well, he and Carol have arrived at Ferris Aircraft. And as is typical for a superhero universe, a minor disaster erupts, in the form of a falling girder. 

Thankfully, Hal is here to save a man from becoming girder kabob. And it turns out that this man wasn't just some ordinary employee.

"Heyyyy, you saved my hat!"

This is Richard Davis, one of Hal's oldest friends. He was Hal's commanding officer back in the Air Force and was a veteran pilot in his own right. Of course, considering how many times Hal's history has been rebooted and retconned, we can assume that's not the case anymore. 

Rich is seemingly glad Hal is back, as he figures Ferris could use a man like him. As the two leave, Rich secretly grumbles that Jordan always has to spoil things.

Yeah, I'm confused, too. Anyway, Carol takes Hal to another building. This one has a laboratory, where three more Ferris employees are working on an experiment.

"Carol, I think your company gives people too much free time..."

The redhead is April O'Rourke. The mustached man is Jose Alejandro Carlos Esteban Ramirez y Diego. Call him "Jake". The blond man in the funny chair is Clay Kendall. Both April and Jake are debuting here, and it's also established here that April is Clay's fiancée. The three are working on a psionics experiment, trying to tap into the supposed 90% of the human brain that humans don't use. Yeah, that's a pretty famous bit of pseudoscience. In reality, every part of the brain has a purpose. A popular trope in fiction with this myth is that the supposed "unused 90%" of the brain allows hidden psychic powers. Telepathy, telekinesis, that kind of thing. For example, a recent example of this myth/trope combination I know of was the film Lucy. So, yeah. It's a myth. Although I can imagine RFK Jr believing this. 

Anyway, Clay was trying to use his brain to move a paper airplane. Hal makes an attempt as well. The plane seems to move away...

But it was just a breeze. Me thinks Clay, April, and Jake need something better to do with their time. We then switch scenes to an area north of LA. A Ferris truck is driving through a road, with heavy security. The man in the passenger seat grumbles that there's no need for all this said security, but a man in the road illustrates that maybe there was a need for it.

"We demand...ein SHRUBBERY!"

Meet the Javelin. You may be familiar with him if you watched The Suicide Squad. A former German Olympic athlete turned supervillain, he is able to get past the so-called "heavy security" with his namesake weapon and get what's inside the truck.

Back at Ferris Aircraft, Hal reunites with his old friend Thomas Kalmaku, who is working on a new jet. This is the Solar Jet, the brainchild of another man.

Considering Eclipso is looming behind him, Bruce may not be as cured as he thinks...

Yes, Dr. Bruce Gordon, aka the (at this time) former supervillain Eclipso. Eclipso was seemingly destroyed for good in issue #139. Carol gets a call where she is informed that the engine of the jet was hijacked. Yeah, that's what Javelin stole earlier. Hal then races into action as the Green Lantern. He flies to the scene, the cops disbelieving that a man with a javelin could steal the engine. My brothers. It's the DC UNIVERSE. 

Hal's ring picks up the trail of the thieves, and it leads him to these this quartet of goofballs.

In the DC Universe, the Hell's Angels had to get high-tech.

Hal is easily able to deal with these men. They may have laser guns, but his ring can just whip up some mirrors to counter them. The Javelin himself then engages Hal.

Now you may be thinking, "This Javelin guy. He throws javelins." Well, yeah. That's why he's called that. "Now how can this guy go up against Green Lantern, the dude with the ring that lets him do just about anything?". Thing is, Javelin is well aware of what the Green Lantern is capable of. He's made some special javelins to take on the Lantern. One in particular allows him to get an advantage over the Emerald Gladiator. 

Now Hal Jordan knew what it was like to be Jill Masterson... 

Yup. Javelin prepared a special yellow javelin, knowing the power ring is useless against anything yellow. Yeah, this was decades before the Parallax retcon. And likely would explain why the Javelin's costume has a lot of yellow on it. The javelin covers Hal in a yellow plastic-like substance, and the story ends with Hal plummeting out of the sky like a rock.

This was a good issue, but it's one of those issues that's read best as part of a trade paperback than on its own. What this issue does is set up Hal's new status quo after his exile from Earth. We meet some new supporting cast members, and we get a shiny new villain in Javelin. And speaking of Javelin, I kind of like him. He has a cold-blooded streak yet treats his battle with Hal like he's competing in a spectator sport. I would like to see more of him. We also get a hinting of the Monitor, foreshadowing the Crisis to come.

Dave Gibbons has a wonderful art style. It's very pleasant to look at. It's very clean, and it almost has that Silver Age quality to it. No wonder he was chosen to do Watchmen. I also don't take much about lettering, but I love that he has his own distinct font for it.

All in all, this was a good little tale. It's nothing groundbreaking, but that's okay. Sometimes, being an enjoyable story is just fine. If you want to read this for yourself, I recommend tracking down the 2012 trade paperback Green Lantern: Sector 2814 Vol. 1. 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!