Marvel: The Lost Generation #4 (November 2000)

It's that time again! It's time to rejoin the First Line as we see their history from their death to their birth. Last time, we saw the Line deal with an old enemy of the Black Fox's, alongside the Mighty Thor, before the humbling he got in the Marvel Age. As we go further back in the Line's history, we end up seeing the First Line, and the United States, suffer a horrific tragedy. You'll see what I mean as we look at Marvel: The Lost Generation #4!

The cover is a John Byrne and Al Milgrom piece. It's pretty neat, if a bit basic. The "main event" of the cover is what appears to be a pair of monsters fighting it out. And we also got members of the First Line staring at this in confusion. I think. I mean, I admit, I'm confused, too. Who are these monsters? Why are they fighting each other? Well, only one way to find out! Read the comic!

"Lightning in The Day"
Writers: Roger Stern and John Byrne
Penciller: John Byrne
Inker: Al Milgrom
Colorist: Glynis Oliver
Letterer: Jack Morelli
Editor: Ralph Macchio
Editor-in-Chief: Bob Harras

The story starts in 1947. A spaceship has crashed on Earth. In particular, the American Southwest. Inside the small ship are a pair of Skrulls.

"Ohh, this is the last time we drink Contraxian ale before flying..."

Meet Velmax and his commander, Zuhn. You may know Velmax as the First Line member Effigy. But this is some years before he helped found the group, and decades before he'd embrace Earth as his home. 

The Skrulls got shot down trying to silence an Earth aircraft that spotted them. When they leave the craft to examine it, Zuhn gets shot by another Terran.

"Holy smokes! ...y'all ain't gonna probe me, are ya?"

Velmax tries to scare him off by taking the form of a monster. It does work, as the human flees in his truck. Velmax witnesses the man's truck crash into a...rock or something? I don't know. The Skrull soldier goes to investigate and finds the man dead...and based on the smell of alcohol, he was also dead drunk.

Yeah, this is why you don't drink and drive, kids. Especially when you're fleeing from aliens. Velmax learns about the man by checking his wallet. The man served in the Army (presumably during World War II) and was cited for distinguished service. The Skrull then goes to bury him, presumably to help hide any evidence. His name? Jacob "Jake" Scott.

Yeah, there was a "real" Jake Scott. It was not an identity created by Velmax from whole cloth. He literally took the identity of a dead man. But that was in the past.

We next jump ahead to the First Line's base. The time? 10:15 AM, Rocky Mountain Time. The date? November 21, 1963. Nightingale senses that something very bad is about to happen. Beverly, aka Liberty Girl, asks if one of the voices in the healer's head ha4s become precognitive. It's not a premonition or anything like that. It's more like the mysterious healer feels strange resonances, feelings of imminent danger and loss. Basically, this day is giving her a LOT of bad vibes. Gee I wonder why...

Liberty Girl, being the savvy sort here, decides tell "the boys" about this. Who are said "boys"? Why, the Carney Boys, of course! Patrick Carney, the Yankee Clipper, and his younger brother Timothy, aka Kid Justice.

"I am the KING of the pommel horse!"

Yes, this is a younger Tim, long before he became the more serious Mr. Justice. He's a cocky teenager, thinking he can take on the world. He and Patrick are taking on a training robot created by the Black Fox. The robot is able to toss around Pat, despite his power belt giving him superhuman strength. Tim tries to sneak up on the Fox, but true to the Batman pastiche that he is, he magically saw it coming. 

"MY NOSE! MY BEAUTIFUL PERFECT NOSE!"

Fox tells him experience taught him this, and Tim will learn as well...if he lives long enough. Tim angrily storms out of the training room. He's about as fed up of Black Fox's Mary Sue nature as we all are.

 

It's here that Liberty Girl and Nightingale enter. Black Fox questions Yankee Clipper's decision to make Kid Justice a member of the First Line considering his attitude. But that'll have to be tabled for now. After all, there's some dark clouds coming. It's here we go next to the Northwest Territories of Canada, in particular a Chipewyan reservation outside of Yellowknife. A young man is lifting a large log by himself, showing that his strength matches his size.

🎵"Doo doo doo, carrying a log, doo doo doo..."🎵

Tired of the men's taunts, the powerhouse swings around the big log and slams it on the ground, scaring them off. He the finds himself in the company of Pixie. She's not just impressed by his strength, but the extraordinary self-control he showed with it. She's been watching this man for a few months now, and she believes that he is ready...and she just flies off with him. 

"You got nice muscles! PIXIE WANT SNU-SNU!"

This young man turned out to be one Sam Matonabbe, aka the future Oxbow. Yeah, this is how they met. I am not joking. This is one of the funniest moments of the whole maxiseries. 

Meanwhile, back in the First Line's HQ, the team at this time are gathered up (Black Fox, Yankee Clipper, Liberty Girl, Effigy, and Kid Justice) to hear about Nightingale's little bad feeling. She believes some great tragedy will hit within the next 24 hours...in Dallas, Texas. 

Yeah, if you're a bit of a history buff like I am, and you've been following this story so far...November 1963? Dallas? Yeah, alarm bells should be going off in your head, too. Effigy puts it together as well.

In Irving, Texas, a man named Lee is preparing a rifle to go hunting. He is caught by a woman named Marina. The two have an argument, and he angrily leaves, slamming the door.

The scene goes to an industrial plant east of Dallas. This plant is part of an aerospace company called  Winget. A man named Winget, presumably the head and founder of the company, has hired a man named Luke Garrow for a job. But first, Winget has a special device that he wants to show Mr. Garrow. It's a device that transforms him into a monster.

"I liked this shirt, man!"

Yup, this man is Howler. You may remember him from issue #6, where he was involved (and seemingly killed) battling the First Line on the Moon in 1969. You may also notice that his fur is white, whereas in his last appearance, it was yellow. Yeah, according to Howler's entry in the Marvel Appendix, this was because Marvel dumped shoddy production on the maxiseries, seeing it likely as an afterthought. I imagine his fur color was changed to yellow to make him more distinct in appearance from the First Liner Yeti, who was a white-furred monster-man himself. From an in-universe perspective, it can be theorized that Garrow regularly used this device after the events of this issue, and it changed his fur's color. That's what the Appendix theorized, and I'll go with it because it does make sense.

Yeah, sorry. Just wanted to give a bit of clarification. Anyway, Winget reveals that much like Mr. Garrow, he himself has the power to change shape. He is a supervillain known as Chimera, and he uses his own shapeshifting power to get one up on his corporate competitors when legit tactics fail. He proposes a partnership, which Garrow is all too happy to agree to.

That night, the two shapeshifters head towards another building. They find a guard sitting at a station. Garrow thinks this will be easy. One guard? Not a problem for a man with his power. He swats the guard away, only to find said guard is a dummy. Not "dummy" as in a stupid person, but a dummy like an actual mannequin. You know, the ones you see in windows of clothing stores.

Turns out the First Line saw this coming and set the two shapeshifters up.

Indeed it is. Chimera is understandably confused and decides, "Welp, time for me to hit the ol' dusty trail!"

During the fight, Black Fox explains that Garrow, being a fugitive wanted in several states (presumably for his activities as Howler), and that's why the First Line is there. He was spotted in the area, and the FBI called the Line in. Chimera realized the FBI are in Dallas because of the President's visit. The Line pursue the green shapeshifter. Liberty Girl tries to lure him in her direction using her cape like a bullfighter. Thing is, she's no Bugs Bunny, and Chimera is no Toro the Bull. 

Yeah, that's going to leave a mark. Liberty Girl is badly wounded, Nightingale going to do all they can to save her. Effigy continues the pursuit, wondering if this was the tragedy that the super-healer foresaw. He battles Chimera, the two shapeshifters using their powers to assume a variety of monstrous forms. Effigy is forced to impale Chimera, only to learn something shocking...

"I always knew you'd get me killed one day, Velmax..."

Yeah, Chimera was Zuhn, Effigy's old commanding officer. 

It's here we learn what happened to him after he was shot by the real Jake Scott. Velmax placed the injured Zuhn in a healing pod to keep him safe until it could fix him up from his gunshot wound. But then, the Army showed up. Velmax assumed the form of Jake Scott and gave them a story about evil aliens that he shot, and they dissolved like sugar in coffee. From there, Velmax maintained his cover, using Scott's lack of immediate family and good military record to start a career in politics. It took years, but he eventually got high enough federal clearance to find the craft they crashed to the Earth in. 

He had discovered that it had been taken apart and sent to various facilities. Velmax had also discovered that the healing pod that Zuhn was lying in was seemingly destroyed in a lab fire. Zuhn reveals that was obviously not the case. He had managed to get healed up and set that fire deliberately to cover his escape. A dying Zuhn's final question to Velmax is this: Why become Effigy and play superhero with the First Line? What as the point? Velmax tries to explain that he himself is not sure. Perhaps his years of living here has had an effect... 

It's at this point that Cassandra Locke arrives. Yeah, remember her? She's been doing a bit of time-jumping throughout this whole thing. She looks in on the First line mourning Liberty Girl. The Yankee Clipper goes to warn her about something, but her time-travel belt reacts to his power belt...

"Oh no, we triggered the Skittle Effect! We're all going to taste the rainbow!"

Both Cassandra and Patrick Carney vanish, and Nightingale is left rambling about circuits, death...and destiny. Timothy Carney is left confused. Where's Patrick? Is he dead, as well? Thing is, folks...we'll learn where Pat ended up in the future. I promise. Effigy assures the cops and FBI that Chimera won't be a problem ever again, which is true. Unlike many villains who return from the grave in stories, Chimera will stay dead, dead, dead. Forever.

The First Line head back to their headquarters with Liberty Girl's body. Effigy whispers that he never expected her to be their first casualty. Ever the optimist, he Black Fox expected it to be Kid Justice. The two discuss what to tell the press, as they'll be all over this...

...well, except for one thing. The date is November 22nd. The time is 7:50 AM. The man we saw earlier, Lee Harvey Oswald, walks into a Dallas book depository, and his actions will heavily shadow the Line's first major tragedy...

I did enjoy this comic. The theme of tragedy is prevalent in this issue, considering the historical event coming in the foreground, the death of Liberty Girl, and the disappearance of the Yankee Clipper. 

Stern and Byrne cleverly used real-life history to pull a tragic twist. We expected the big tragedy to be the First Line failing to prevent the Kennedy assassination, but it tuned out the tragedy was not only the Yankee Clipper vanishing, but Liberty Girl also being the first member of the Line to die in battle.

Yeah, the death of Liberty Girl can be seen as a bit of another "Women in Fridges" moment, much like with Miriam in issue #, but at least Beverly here got to have some dialogue, some interaction with the other First Liners, and also some idea of her personality, if it was just basic stuff. She was a brave and fearless young woman who clearly loved being a hero. I could also imagine that she and Nightingale were friends. So, her death, combined with her encounter with Cassandra Locke in this issue...yeah, it would affect her mentally. We also get the idea that she and the Carney brothers were close, this being the catalyst for Kid Justice to become the more serious Mr. Justice we saw in earlier issues.   

Also, I can imagine that some would find it a bit iffy about using the Kennedy assassination as the background to this story. But it does make sense. In general, the Marvel Universe's history is very similar to real world (Issue # not withstanding), so it makes some sense that the Line would have witnessed Kennedy's death. It makes sense they would have tried to prevent it...if they could. This story is clearly an excuse for the Line to not prevent it. Yeah.

My opinion on John Byrne's art here hasn't changed. Still better than the Liefeld imitators. 

If you want to read this for yourself, you'll have to find the back issues somewhere. This maxiseries was never collected into a standalone trade. It was collected in a 2018 omnibus: The Marvel Universe by John Byrne, Vol. 2. So, yeah. I would like a trade collection of this maxiseries myself. 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: The Lost Generation #5 (October 2000)

It's that time again! It's time to return to the adventures of the Lost Generation of Marvel Super Heroes: The First Line! Last time, we looked in on the Line as they helped prevent the Skrulls and their super-villainous cronies from wrecking the historic Moon Landing. But they had another adventure in the Swingin' Groovin' 1960s. Let's take a look at it! This is Marvel: The Lost Generation #5!

The cover is a John Byrne and Al Milgrom piece. I love it! It's such a cool cover. You have the First Line gasping in shock at a familiar hammer. Gets you wondering why Thor himself has shown up.

"Wild in the Streets"
Writers: Roger Stern, John Byrne
Penciler: John Byrne
Inker: Al Milgrom
Colorist: Glynis Oliver
Letterer: Jack Morelli
Editor: Ralph Macchio
Editor-in-Chief: Bob Harras

The story begins in Asgard, the realm Eternal. Odin is sitting on his throne, and he is not a happy skyfather. It's not the throne itself, that's fine. The new cushions are nice and comfy. What he's angry about...is Thor.

"Thou has spilled the royal coffee on mine favorite couch for the last time, Thor!"

You see, Odin had been working to renew a royal truce between Asgard and Niffelheim. Things were finally cool between the Asgardians and the Storm Giants. Of course, Thor had to go and screw it all up by trespassing on some forbidden lands. Dagnabit, Thor...

Thor defends himself by saying there was a legit reason he was there. He was pursuing a monster that was a threat to Asgardian and Storm Giant alike, and he feels Odin is deliberately ignoring that part. Odin is in no mood to hear it. He tells Thor that the Thunder God must go to Midgard (what the Asgardians call Earth), and see this evil to its end. And it's here that we head to Earth. 

We're still in the 1960s, before the Moon Landing. A mysterious singer has a whole lot of young people ensorcelled by her magical songs. Among the people enraptured is Autumn MacRae, the superheroine Sunshine, much to the horror of her husband Fred, aka Captain Hip. 

Yeah, you may remember the MacRae family from earlier issues. It can be presumed that their daughter Truth is very young at this point. Pixie tells Fred there's nothing they can do now, as they need to find out who is behind all this at the moment.

The singer on the stage would have a natural knack for getting people under her spell, as this singer is no ordinary woman: this woman was Venus. As in the Olympian Goddess of Love.

Funny enough, Timely Comics (the predecessor to Marvel Comics) published a romance comic series starring Venus from 1948 to 1952. It lasted 19 issues. The series started out light-hearted but would take on darker sci-fi and horror themes through its short run. It's also notable for introducing an early version of Marvel's incarnation of Loki. 

If we go by how Marvel incorporated their Golden Age comics into their canon, then we can assume that not only were the events of those series canon, but they also happened in-universe in the late-40s/early 50s. So yeah, Venus would be running around in the MU in the 1960s.

She herself has seemingly fallen under the spell of a mysterious man.

"Now, who wants to hear some Chubby Checker?!"

He laments that his power no longer works on everyone, just the young, but since gods can have eternal youth, they still work on Venus. Backstage, the ensorcelled Sunshine is brought backstage. Venus wonders how she could be affected, as Sunshine is in her mid-twenties at this point, too old for the power to work on her. But Sunshine says that age is a state of mind. The man behind is worried about something else. If Sunshine was in the crowd, then other superhumans could be there as well...and that could get the attention of the First Line. And much to his fear, Pixie is spying on him. She spots a man towering over her and hits him with her petrifying pixie dust. But it has no effect. You can guess why.

"Urgh! Tastes like cranberries! I hate cranberries!"

Heh heh, that's pretty funny. Anyway, Captain Hip is off looking for Sunshine himself, as he thinks Pixie flaked out on him. He finds her, but she has no idea who she even is. In fact, she blasts him with her powers. She can create kaleidoscopic light effects that can dazzle or even hypnotize people. She can even use this power to control minds...which makes you wonder how she can be effected by Venus. But then again, Venus is a goddess, and Sunshine has to actively try to control someone's mind, so...yeah. Either way, Captain Hip is out of action for a while.

Meanwhile, Black Fox is angrily grumbling about "the hippies".

"Those hippies stole my car!"

One member of the Line, a Major Mercury, thinks this is just kids acting up, a tradition in every generation. Black Fox disagrees. This isn't normal juvenile delinquency. The Fox believes an old enemy of his is behind this. A man...called Rumor. Thankfully, Pixie has brought Thor to the First Line. The Black Fox is naturally unhappy with Pixie just bringing presumed gods straight to their command post, but the argument is tabled for now. After all, there's a massive gathering of youths...being led by Sunshine and the now mind-controlled Captain Hip. 

One First Liner, Frank (who may or may not be Frankenstein's Monster. Personally, I think he's a different monster. That's because in the comics, the actual Monster was in suspended animation in the 1960s, and wouldn't be revived until the Marvel Age), doesn't want to hurt the kids. Mr. Justice is sure Black Fox has a plan, but he disappeared.

Makes sense when you keep in mind that Robert Paine is meant to be a pastiche of Batman. Thor's had enough and is eager for some action. Oxbow will hold the fort down as he's been sidelined with a broken leg. I imagine he got injured in an earlier battle. 

Meanwhile, Effigy is sneaking around. He thinks about how the world is seemingly falling apart since 1963. He hints something really bad happened then, but he's not going to let an entire generation of Americans suffer. After all, he owes it to the Yankee Clipper. He sneaks in pretending to be a child that's hard of hearing and ends up recognizing Venus. Effigy's thoughts reveal that he and Venus first met in 1952. Again, the last issue of Venus's comic was published in 1952, so it can be assumed that they met after the events of it. 

Effigy asks for Venus's autograph. Rumor tells her to keep him close by, not realizing the boy is actually Effigy. He then puts on a special mask.

"The mask makes me feel pretty!"

To Effigy, the mask confirms that the man is Rumor, mind controlling war criminal. During World War II, he was a hidden member of Hitler's elite, using his powers to subtly amplify the madman's own charisma and persuasive abilities. Until he ran into an Allied intelligence agent named Robert Paine. Yup, Paine was an Allied spy before he became the Black Fox. Rumor managed to flee the future costumed crimefighter and had not been seen since. Effigy had heard, well, rumors about Rumor's activity since, mostly that he may be helping the Soviets, but this is the first confirmed activity he's been involved in since the war. Makes you wonder what he was doing in the last nearly twenty years since.

Black Fox is watching the march, and he finds it ironic that Captain Hip and Sunshine are leading them, despite they're being mind-controlled. You see, the Fox believes that the two got their powers thanks to secret drug tests from the CIA. Yeah, a government agency may have created the superhumans that just may end up destroying it.

The Fox tries to use some sleeping gas to slow the march down, but there's far too many people. He also manages to knock out Sunshine before her dazzle powers knock her silly. An angry Captain Hip starts beating him down with his own superior speed and strength. Thankfully, the Fox is saved by Thor, who has arrived with the rest of the First Line. They need to contain the riot; Frank gives it a shot by throwing a car over the crowd...but Major Mercury is able to bring it a gentle landing. That's because throwing a car could cause a fire and even an explosion thanks to damaging the gas tank.

How are the Line doing when it comes to containing the riot? Honesty? ...things could be better. A lot better. 

Thor was sorely tempted to bring down the lightning after one kid kicked him in the nards.

The First Line may be full of experienced superheroes with a variety of powers, but they're massively outnumbered. Not to mention the First Line really do not want to harm any of these people, being innocent victims of Rumor and Venus. And as if fate has decided to be a big troll, Venus manages to get Thor under her power.

Yeah. It's not a good day to be a First Line member. Frank gives the addled God of Thunder a Mighty Punch across the chops, showing that he can potentially match him in raw power. Effigy is just left completely confused by the whole thing.

To be fair to Effigy, he wasn't in the room when Pixie introduced Thor to the Line. Rumor uses his power to make Frank toss Thor away, reasoning that his power will work on the monster's child-like mind. Meanwhile, Captain Hip and Sunshine are back to their normal selves. Hip is confused as to why Sunshine fell under Rumor's spell. After all, she's no kid. But Sunshine has a theory: she's pregnant. Yup, the MacRaes are going to be parents!

Remember Truth McRae from previous issues? Yes, she's the kid they're going to have here. Anyway, the rioting youths are advancing on the Line. Thankfully, a massive tragedy is averted as Effigy manages to capture Rumor, and Black Fox ends the threat.

"Augh, that was my favorite voice box! WHY?!"

Yeah, Rumor's vocal cords can produce a subsonic pulse, and I'm guessing his mask has some tech in it that helps enhance it. With that, Rumor's threat is stopped. Black Fox offers an invitation to Thor to join the First Line. Thor is not interested. He was only here to help stop the threat. And now that it's done, he has better things to do with his time than hang out with a bunch of mortals. Like get drunk.

Remember, this is long before Thor re-emerged in the Marvel Age a humbler god thanks to his time as Donald Blake. Frank suggests that Captain Hip and Sunshine join up, but like Thor, they're not interested in it, either. They've always preferred doing their own thing. Also, now that they got a kid on the way, Hip and Sunshine have decided that now is a good time for them to retire. Hang up their costumes for good, as it were. The story ends with Venus wondering if that was really Thor. Lady, you're a goddess, I think you'd know if that was the real deal or not. 

Sadly, I have to say, this is the weakest issue of the maxiseries so far. And that's a shame, because the First Line meeting a pre-Marvel Age Thor? That is just ripe for story and character potential. The Line dealing with an arrogant Thunder God that could presumably take any of them to the woodshed if they annoyed him enough? That sounds a like a big old fountain of story potential. I did like Thor remarking during the riot that he'd rather embrace Hela than allow the rioting children to come to harm. It's a nice little bit of subtle foreshadowing, showing that even though at this point, Thor is more arrogant, self-centered and hotheaded, he still has lines that he will not cross. He still has a code of honor, and helps show a bit of the humbler god he'll become in the future.

I also admit, I was a bit thrown off by Odin sending Thor down to Earth to deal with a "great threat", but then I remembered that "Oh yeah, Nazi war criminal managed to somehow get a goddess under control". Personally, I would have gone with the idea of an Asgardian monster or mad sorcerer making their way to Earth. That would be cooler in my opinion. 

As for John Byrne's art, nothing new. I still enjoyed it. That's pretty much it, really.

Sadly, this maxi-series has never been collected as a standalone trade. It was collected in a 2018 Omnibus: The Marvel Universe by John Byrne Vol. 2. Otherwise, you'll have to look around for the original issues. I got the maxi-series on eBay. 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: The Lost Generation #6 (September 2000)

It's that time again! It's time to look in on the adventures of the Marvel Universe's Lost Generation of superheroes! Last time, the First Line battled the "Invaders", Black Fox thinks retirement is for wimps, and the Line gets hit by the Watergate Scandal. As we go backwards, what other adventures did they have? Well, they did get involved in a certain other very important event. You'll see what I mean when I look at Marvel: The Lost Generation #6!

The cover is a John Byrne and Al Milgrom piece. It's pretty cool, if a bit deceptive. It depicts a monstrous creature about to attack an astronaut on the Moon, as shown in the astronaut's visor. It's a coo visual, like something out of a horror movie poster. As for why it's deceptive, well...you'll see what I mean.

"Crisis of Conscience"
Writers: Roger Stern, John Byrne
Penciller: John Byrne
Inker: Al Milgrom
Colorist: Glynis Oliver
Letterer: Jack Morelli
Editor: Ralph Macchio
Editor-in-Chief: Bob Harras

The story begins on a very special time, date, and place. The time? 9:32 AM EDT. The place? Cape Kennedy, Florida. In particular, launch pad 39A. The date? July 16, 1969. Ladies and gentlemen...we are witnessing the launch...of Apollo 11. 

Yup, the beginning of man's first trip to the Moon. I'm a bit of a space nut, so I was excited to look at this issue. The world is watching this historic event, including the Robert Paine, aka the stalwart First Liner known as the Black Fox. He isn't alone in his home at Foxwood Farms.

In the coming years, Katyusha would inspire Rod Stewart and ZZ Top.

Yes, he has the company of the beautiful Katyusha with him. Fun fact, her name comes from a Soviet rocket launcher created and used during World War II. Also, the name "Katyusha" is a pet name for "Yekaterina", the Russian form of the name "Catherine".

She remarks that truly; the Apollo 11 launch is a great day for world peace. Even though this means America will ultimately win the Space Race, the Moon Landing can be seen as a sign that ultimately people will be able to unite together regardless of things like national origin. 

Seeing this has gotten Kat in the mood for some sweet lovin'. She also wants to help thank the Black Fox for helping her defect. He warns her that if it's a relationship she's looking for, she won't find it with him. He's never been able to commit to anyone new ever since Miriam was killed by Nocturne, as established in issue #8. That's not a problem for her. She's not interested in relationships.

The date? July 20th, 1969. The time? 4:58 AM MDT. The place? The Hideaway (the original HQ of the First Line before Nixon stripped away their government privileges in the last issue). The First Line (Blackjack, Effigy, Nightingale, Firefall, Mr. Justice, Oxbow, Pixie) have been called in. 

"This better not be because somebody lost a contact lens again!"

Expect for the Fox, because he's...very busy with Katyusha. 

It's not like the Fox to remain incommunicado, so they leave it be. Effigy didn't call the Line in because he wanted to host a Moon Landing Watch Party. Effigy reveals that in the past, the Line discovered a spacecraft. Not the one in issue #11, the one Effigy is talking about will eventually be seen in a future issue. Remember, this maxiseries is numbered backwards, 12 to 1. 

Yeah, it is a bit confusing, I admit. Anyway, Effigy has been monitoring for signs of alien activity ever since. Two days ago, he picked up a signal. The signal revealed that the aliens that built that craft are back...and he believes that they're here to stop Apollo 11 from reaching the Moon. The Line are eager to stop, especially Oxbow and Mr. Justice, but Pixie points out a problem: How are the First Line going to get to the Moon? Well, ol' Effigy has an answer for that, too. But we'll have to see what Effigy has planned later on. Right now, we need to meet the villains of this adventure.

Howler also didn't want Axis anywhere near his LSD.

Meet Luke "Howler" Garrow, Typhoon, and Axis. They've agreed to work for a group of men who appear to be fond of bad Challengers of the Unknown cosplay. However, Howler is not a happy monster man. He fears he'll be short-changed when it comes to his fee. The Challengers cosplayers assure Howler he'll get his full pay. Axis doesn't trust these men. You see, Axis is an early example of a Neo-Nazi, and he doesn't like the idea of working with the monstrous Howler or the foreigner Typhoon (He's from Japan). Howler and Axis nearly brawl, but it's broken up.

"You'll all find out what it's like to be slapped by a laser!"

Meet Scythe and Positron. You may remember Positron from issue #9. That issue was set in the 1980s, so presumably at some point between 1969 and then, she had reformed and become a First Line member herself. She takes a dig at Axis, as to her, Neo-Nazis are no better than any other street criminal. The Challengers cosplayers make everyone settle down, as they have something special to show them. Which is when we cut to the First Line's reaction to Effigy's little revelation. 

"Even better?! This ship has a theme park in it!"

Yes, it's a flying saucer. It had crashed around 20 years earlier, so math says that means at some point around 1949. Wait, in issue #8, Cassandra Locke's researching allowed her to discover that Skrulls were running around as far back...as 1947. This could be the craft from that incident. The timeframe fits. Huh. Anyway, Effigy reports that it has taken him around ten years (so that means he's been working on this thing since circa 1959) to find a way to recharge its fuel cells. It also can't fly around outside the solar system, but to the Moon? No problem!

The reason it's here in the Hideaway is because when it was found, Effigy used all his government influence to have it brought here for study. Secretly, he wanted to repair it. Remember, Effigy is a Skrull living as a human. He had hoped to get this craft so he could go home. It's here that Mr. Justice raises a valid point. If the government had a hidden interstellar craft, why did NASA spend so much money on its space programs? Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo? Why do that instead of just reverse engineering the spacecraft? Likely would have saved some cash!

Well, there is a reason for that. NASA never reverse-engineered the Skrull craft...because they didn't know about it. Yeah. The Air Force's best minds pored over it, and they didn't learn much due to it being so advanced by Earth standards at the time. And with that, our heroes are going to the Moon.

On the trip, Mr. Justice thinks about how he had arranged for something from his elder brother the Yankee Clipper on Apollo 11's lunar lander, and how he's going to the Moon. 

So, how's the Apollo 11 mission going along? Well, rather seemingly rather swimmingly so far. The lunar lander is making its way to the Moon. Unknown to Buzz Aldrin and Neil Armstrong, they are being observed by another Skrull craft. The men inside the craft reveal their mission is to destroy the lunar lander. The deaths of Aldrin and Armstrong on the Moon will be a crippling psychological blow to the Earth's populace and make them too reluctant to pursue space travel This will make Earth much less of a threat to other worlds. Yeah, that's their plot. 

The villain Howler starts feeling funny. Positron recalls his powers are affected by the Moon. Being this close to it must be feeling like he's on overload...

The lander successfully makes it on to the Moon's surface. It's here we cut to the 22nd century. Alexander Locke is with Pixie and Gene. By this time, the site of the lander has been made into a memorial park to commemorate the lunar landing, the first step towards humans living on Earths only natural satellite. 

This fills Pixie with nostalgia and admiration for humans. They accomplished this feat with so much less than the Eternals have. Alexander just wants to know when the immortal ex-heroine saw Cassandra. Pixie can't say much, as the last time she crossed paths with the time-traveler was in issue #12. She did learn later on that she passed along the message for her father that was hidden on the lander. 

Gene doesn't believe this. When this park was established, the lander was thoroughly checked for authenticity. And there was nothing in those checks to indicate any such hidden message. Pixie is willing to bet that said message is there. Like Gene, Alexander is disbelieving of this.

But that's going to have to be shelved as a new problem comes up. The future cops have come to arrest Pixie. 

"You're also under arrest for mooning President Schenkel!"

Yeah, she's charged with threatening the Skrull Ambassador, likely something trumped-up. Pixie tells Gene and Alexander not to worry about her, she'll be fine. I'm presuming it's because it's because she's got one heck of a good lawyer. She tells them there's a key to all this. She's not sure where, but she suggests looking under the porch.

And speaking of porches, we go back to 1969. In particular, July 20th. The time? 10:42 PM EDT. Neil Armstrong climbs down the ladder of Apollo 11's lunar lander. He steps down onto the surface of the Moon and speaks the immortal words.

That's one small step for a man...one giant leap for mankind.

And with that, history is made. Man has stepped foot on the Moon. Meanwhile, on the Skrull craft, the First Line get ready for their own lunar jaunt. Unlike Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin, the First Line have access to Skrull technology. And among that tech is what is known as "Lifeboat Tech". What this does is temporarily supercharge the body's natural electromagnetic aura and hyperoxygenate its tissues...somehow allowing people to survive in the cold vacuum of space for a period of time.

I think we can also presume that Effigy modified this "lifeboat tech" to be used safely on humans. Anyway, the Line waits for Armstrong and Aldrin to step on the Moon. After all, their mission is not to upstage NASA, it's to stop the villains going to attack them. The Line doesn't need to take their glory. While on the Moon, Blackjack encounters Positron. 

"Oh, I don't have your music player, Blackjack."

She blasts at him, calling him a sellout. Howler roars that he's going to kill Blackjack and charges at him. And with that, the First Line and the supervillains duke it out.

Notably, Firefall engages Typhoon, thinking he can warp weather. But that's not exactly true. You see, the Japanese villain actually has the power to command particulate matter. Basically, he can make small particles of solids or liquids move around. Which he demonstrates by hitting her with a blast of moon dust.

As the fight continues on, Effigy makes his way to the Skrull mothership. He notices that it's more advanced now. Which does make sense. Anyway, he enters the ship and finds that the benefactors of the villains in this story are actually Skrulls in disguise. He reveals his own Skrull nature to them, playing that he had been long trying to get home. The other Skrulls pick up that the First Line are fighting their own superhuman operatives, and they believe Velmax betrayed them and led them here. 

Elsewhere, the battle is falling into chaos. Howler, enraged and crazed on moon power, literally tears Axis in half. But Axis was a Neo-Nazi, so nobody cared. Scythe slashes Howler open. Typhoon watches the infighting and decides that he's had enough.

He heads to the ship and sees the dead Skrulls inside. The Japanese villain ends up trapped inside the ship as it leaves Earth and then explodes. 

And with that, the day is saved. Apollo 11's mission goes off without a hitch, presumably with Armstrong, Aldrin, and even Michael Collins none the wiser as to the Skrulls' dark plans against them. The surviving villains (Howler is not seen in the arrest scene, so it can be presumed Scythe killed him) are taken into custody. Efifgy tells Pixie that he wanted to seize their ship to study, but the Skrulls on board refused to surrender, setting the ship to self-destruct. Oxbow thinks there's something he's not telling them. And Effigy confesses there is.

This wasn't the Skrulls' first mission against the Earth. And it won't be the last. Considering their future encounters with the Fantastic Four and the next generation of Marvel heroes, and stories like Secret Invasion, Effigy's prediction will turn out to be quite dead on. 

Days later, Velmax heads to a courthouse in Washington DC in his Jake Scott identity. He thinks about how crazy Earth is, but not much crazier than this idea he could ever return to the Skrull Empire. He sees himself as an immigrant to the planet, which is shown by him watching a ceremony welcoming some newly naturalized American citizens. He mentally says their oath of citizenship with them, and the story ends with him declaring that Earth is his home with tears in his eyes. 

This honestly so far has been my favorite issue of the maxiseries. Admittedly, the main reason is because it's set during the Moon Landing. As I said earlier, I'm a bit of a space nut. It does make sense that an alien race that has been secretly fighting the Earth since the 1940s would want to sabotage the Moon Landing. 

What I also like is that we get little bits of characterization from the heroes and villains in this story. For example, Scythe is shown to be a bit sardonic, Blackjack is shown to be cocky and fond of Positron, Howler is a hothead who becomes feral on the Moon, etc. Stern is great at this. Also, I love the twist of Typhoon's powers not being related to weather but allow people to think that he can. It does make sense that there are some villains who have names that don't fit their powers. It can be surmised that maybe Typhoon thought he had weather powers at first but discovered the true nature of them later on and kept the codename to keep people guessing. At least, that's my headcanon on it. And the scene with Fox and Katyusha. She was a fun character. Very likable. Shame things didn't work out with her and Robert.

I also liked the "cuts" in the comic. The Skrulls showing the villains their ship cutting to the First Line being shown their own, Pixie talking about the Lunar Module leading to the scene of the fateful Moon Landing, the landed Module cutting to the lunar park in the far future, it helps make the comic appear more cinematic. 

Velmax's storyline of fully embracing the Earth and America as his home is something I think that is hurt by the format of the maxiseries. Remember, it's going backwards through the First Line's history. However, this is not about him. This is not his story. So, it's not anything major. I can imagine some would have an issue with the story trying not to interfere with the Moon Landing. To be fair, the First Line's job is not to upstage the Moon Landing (Mr. Justice outright says that in the story). Also, in 2000, both Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin were still very much alive. As of July 2026, Aldrin is still living (Armstrong died in 2012). Marvel probably wanted to avoid a potential lawsuit if the Line were shown outright interacting with them. 

Byrne and Milgrom also turn in some strong art for this issue. It also helped contribute to the characterization of our heroes in places. Like in the arrest panel. Firefall is shown scowling at Nightingale in the back when she's talking to Mr. Justice. It makes you wonder if maybe she was fond of him. 

If you want to read this for yourself...sadly, Marvel: The Lost Generation has never been collected in a standalone trade paperback or hardcover. It was collected in a 2018 Omnibus: The Marvel Universe by john Byrne Vol. 2. But otherwise, you're just going to either hope you find it in your comic book shop's back issue bins or look online. I got all 12 issues on eBay. 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!