When one thinks of cosmic heroes, what does one normally think of? Maybe the fearless test pilots like Hal Jordan, or the cunning adventurers like Adam Strange. Maybe even the noble philosopher like the Norrin Radd. Or maybe the alien who sees Earth as something worthy of defending, like Mar-Vell. But sometimes, a cosmic hero can just be a regular person, a Joe (or Jane) Everyman who just happened to end up with incredible power...and that power allows them to bring out the hero within.
Wendell Elvis Vaughn was such an everyman. He first appeared in Captain America #217 (January 1978) under the guise of Marvel Man. However, in Incredible Hulk #234 (April 1979), he would take up the superhero codename that he's most famous for using: Quasar.
As Quasar, Wendell uses the Quantum Bands, a pair of oversized bracelets that allow manipulation of the electromagnetic spectrum. He also can create constructs of solid light with them, kind of like Green Lanterns with their Power Rings. He's served as a member of the Avengers, was a "Defender for a Day", and also led the Annihilators for a time.
Even thought the character had been a part of the Marvel Universe since the 1970s, it would not be until 1989 that he would get his own solo comic series. The first issue of that series is what we're looking at here. This comic would last sixty issues. So, with that out of the way, let's take a look at Quasar #1!
The cover is a Paul Ryan piece. It's a bit basic, but it is well-drawn. It depicts Quasar flying at the viewer, his Quantum Bands blasting away and our man Wendell himself having a big smile on his face. He must really enjoy blasting...whatever he is blasting.
"The Price of Power!"
Writer: Mark Gruenwald
Penciler: Paul Ryan (Layouts), Danny Bulanadi (Finished art)
Inker: Danny Bulanadi
Colorist: Paul Becton
Letterer: Janice Chiang
Editor: Howard Mackie
Editor-in-Chief: Tom DeFalco
The story begins with a meeting at Stark Industries.
The meeting is over the Quantum Bands, a pair of vambrace-like bracelets. These bracelets were obtained after the events of Fantastic Four #165 (December 1975). They were obtained when the 1950s-era superhero Robert "Marvel Boy" Grayson seemingly went mad and became a supervillain called the Crusader. However, it would later be retconned that the Crusader that fought the Fantastic Four in that issue was not the real Robert Grayson. That's a story for another day.
SHIELD wants to know how those bands work. Tony Stark himself is there, and he's not interested in helping SHIELD make weapons out of them. Fury tries to convince him by saying that the bands may also be used to find ways to protect others. One of the scientists there, a Dr. Gilbert Vaughn, is interested in studying the bands. He's looked at some alien artifacts in his day, and he's always up for seeing another one.
After the meeting adjourns, Vaughn asks Fury how his son is doing. Yeah, Gilbert Vaughn is Wendell's dad. So, what is our man doing now?
As a trainee SHIELD agent, Wendell has to know how to protect himself. Wendell finds himself in a bit of a pickle here. He's working on passing his third and final exam in hand-to-hand combat, and the cadet he finds himself facing up against is Gail Runciter, who is one of the best fighters in his cadet class.
The two start their bout, Wendell trying to force the bout into a punch-fest. You see, Wendell is no Bruce Lee. He's no kicker. He prefers to hand out the knuckle sandwiches. Gilbert arrives to see Wendell fight. The bout ends, and Wendell feels he did lousy. Gilbert leaves, asking Dum Dum Dugan to not tell him he was here. The next day, Dugan announces the results of the tests to Vaughn.
Vaughn has done pretty well on everything he needs to be a field agent. Surveillance, cryptography, the works. However, there's one problem. Vaughn is not an aggressive guy. A field agent needs to have a killer instinct. A mean streak. The will to win. Vaughn is a smart and likeable guy, but that's the issue. He's too nice to be a field agent. This leaves Vaughn feeling like a failure.
The next day, Gilbert Vaughn and his crew (Doctors Stanley Zane and Madeline Reznek), are examining the Quantum Bands.
They know the Bands can absorb energy, but they haven't figured out how to get the energy out of them. They've been studying the bands around the clock, and Zane wants a break. He heads out to get a drink, but he has a little task to get to first.
Dr. Zane is a spy! Hmm, I wonder who he's being a mole for? Maybe we'll find out later. Three days pass, and we reunite with Wendell at his old home in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. He's been feeling down about not being able to become a field agent. It's left him feeling like he's let his family down. Wendell's mother tries to reassure him that they're proud of him. And she may have something to perk him up: A letter from SHIELD.
It's Wendell's field placement. But it gets a bit awkward, because he's been assigned to guard Stark International's building in Pittsburgh...where his father is working.
Indeed. Our man Wendell starts his new assignment a couple of days later, when he meets a man named William Wesley. He's going to be the guinea pig for the Quantum Bands. He gets changed into an outfit that looks like it was designed by the House of Kirby, and tries them on. They go well with the outfit, but it has...effects.
Over the next few hours, Wesley starts to master the bands. However, his body seems to be glowing more and more as he uses them. The man tries to remove them, but discovers that they're stuck on his wrists. Evidently, some joker lined the insides of them with Gorilla Glue.
Regardless, Wesley discovers that the bands' energy is building up inside him, and the result is rather...explosive.
Yup. RIP William Wesley, the latest victim of kablooieitis. We hardly knew ye. Anyway, Stanley Zane has seen enough. It's time. Time to send in the people he's working for: Advanced Idea Mechanics.
A battle breaks out between the SHIELD guards and the high-tech terrorist force's battle droids. During the kerfaffle, Wendell is able to get the Quantum Bands and put them on. When he does, he starts getting visions of planets and stars. When William Wesley used the bands, he said he had the same visions. Wesley wrote it off as having too much pepperoni the night before. Could the bands be trying to communicate?
Wendell is able to run through the AIM trooper droids, the Quantum Bands allowing him to create constructs of solid light. Think Green Lantern, only the constructs are yellow instead of, well...green. Wendell feels the same energy buildup that ended up killing Wesley. He tries to vent it by destroying the AIM craft. However, it's no good. The buildup is still increasing. Wendell flies up higher into space, trying to prevent the explosion from harming anyone.
As he flies higher, he spends what may be the last few moments of his life saying goodbye to his parents. He then figures that he should just relax. After all, it'll end quick. Just go with the flow...
And it ends up saving his life. Turns out that instead of forcing the power to work with will, you just have to relax and go with the flow. Wendell's lack of a "killer instinct" ended up allowing him to use the Bands safely. He plans to fly to some unpopulated area to figure out how to master them further. Gilbert pleads with Wendell to stay and let him help with this. Wendell agrees, and the two hug. Aww.
A very special guest arrives, as he wanted to see the man who managed to beat up and entire AIM force on his own.
Yup, like in the first Iron Man movie, Nick Fury makes a surprise cameo. He's rather impressed with our man Wendell, and he has a proposition for him. And that, readers, was how Quasar was born.
I really liked this issue. As a first issue, it does everything that it's supposed to do. It establishes who Wendell is, and even gives us a little Marvel history lesson. Of course, that's thanks to Gruenwald being the continuity nut that he was. I've always been a fan of Gruenwald for that reason. Unlike many other Big Two authors today who treat continuity and history as something they can just conveniently ignore for the sake of story-writing, Mark Gruenwald was able to respect that history while adding something original.
I also liked how he used William Wesley to play with the trope of the Hal Jordan-esque cosmic hero. Like Hal, Wesley was a brave test pilot with strong willpower. Unfortunately, the Quantum Bands don't work like a Green Lantern ring, and Wesley paid for it.
Paul Ryan and Danny Bulanadi provided the art. Ryan did the layouts, and Bulanadi did the finished art. They make a very good team. The art is detailed and does some fine storytelling work. Comes off as a bit of a mix of Jerry Ordway and George Perez to me.
The Mark Gruenwald Quasar series is rather underrated, in my opinion. I've never seen anyone talk about it, which is a real shame in my opinion. If you want to read this yourself, I recommend checking out the 2012 trade paperback Quasar Classic Vol. 1. Thanks for reading this blog entry! If you liked it, show it off! Take care of yourselves and each other! Stay safe, stay healthy, stay home, wash your hands often, and wear your masks properly! Join me next time when the Justice Society continues on the biggest trial of their existence...
No comments:
Post a Comment