Obsessively putting our comics in chronological order since 1985.
| 1994-11-01 00:03:10 |
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Blackwulf #1
Issue(s): Blackwulf #1
Cover Date: Apr 94
Title: "Where monsters dwell"
Credits:
Glenn Herdling - Writer
Angel Medina - Penciler
Bill Anderson - Inker
Ralph Macchio - Editor
Review/plot:
As the cover tells us, this book introduces us to "a daringly different domain of the Marvel universe". It certainly does introduce a lot of new characters and concepts, and i was so overwhelmed by it when i first read it that i had to go back and pick up the Thunderstrike issues that (some of) the characters first appeared in, hoping that would help give me some grounding. But didn't really help because the characters just basically ran across the page and waved. In terms of a connection to the larger Marvel universe, there isn't anything in this first issue. But Glenn Herdling, who was also making some good usage of continuity in Namor at this time, actually is working an angle related to larger Marvel lore. And it's an area that always fascinated me: the division of baseline, Eternal, and Deviant strains in various species in the galaxy. And we just have to wait until issue #2 for that to get interesting. And the book will soon have a guest appearance by Giant-Man, and Ultron as a villain, and some Skrulls, and several established Kree characters.
In the meantime, this issue introduces us to the characters and factions better than Thunderstrike #4-6 did. And the series has Angel Medina on art. So despite my initial resistance, there's a lot going for the book.
We start with the bad guys. The main bad guy is Tantalus, which i think is a corrupted portmanteau of Tangerine Thanos.
He's got two sons, Lucian and Pelops. Pelops is older and wiser, Lucian is more of a brute force guy.
Tantalus has a personal interest in genetic stabilization, and so he orders Lucian to kidnap a scientist, Dr. Caitlin Maddox (spelled Kaitlin originally). Lucian goes after her with a crew of henchmen called the "Peacekeepers": Wraath, Schizo, and Bristle. They arrive just as Maddox was being accosted by some thugs in the subway.
But their enemy, Blackwulf, shows up with two members of his group, the Underground Legion: Sparrow and Touchstone.
Blackwulf surprises Lucian by quoting something that Pelops said to him earlier during a training session. This allows Blackwulf to knock out Pelops, and the Underground Legion get away with Dr. Maddox. Maddox later wakes up in their secret base.
She's introduced to three more members of the Legion, Touchstone, Toxin, and Wildwind.
Blackwulf explains that he's approached the US government about an evolutionary offshoot of humanity.
And Sparrow turns out to be a government agent assigned to the group.
Soon after explaining this, Blackwulf goes to Lucian and reveals that he is his brother, Pelops. But Tantalus shows up and kills him.
After Tantalus leaves, Lucian decides to take on the mantle of Blackwulf.
Everything is done competently but despite Angel Medina's art (i really like the panel of Mammoth in civilian clothing) everything feels dull. From what i've seen in Namor, Glenn Herdling's strength isn't in characterization, and despite some attempt at distinguishing the large number of characters by giving them personality quirks, it all feels flat. I also have to admit that when i first read the scene with Blackwulf talking about a genetically unstable offshoot of humanity, i was annoyed that it sounded so much like the Deviants without acknowledging that. But now that i know the direction the book is going in, i realize i should have been more patient.
Quality Rating: C
Historical Significance Rating: 1
Chronological Placement Considerations: This takes place after Thunderstrike #4-6. Next issue takes place the day after the end of this one. Most of the issues in this series take place in short succession, meaning that there can't be long gaps in between issues. Ultron's appearance in Blackwulf #2-5 has to take place before Vision #1-4, and issue #6 has to take place after Secret Defenders #25 (Mar 95). So those become the parameters for the placement of the entire series, and it means that the story begins much later than its initial publication date and a while after the Thunderstrike appearances (but from an in-story perspective, that doesn't seem to be a problem).
References: N/A
Crossover: N/A
Continuity Insert? N
My Reprint: N/A
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Comments
holy cameltoe on Sparrow!!
If I’m not misremembering, there were a few issues of Avengers that were also a setup for this book: they involved something called the Delta network, which involved Warlord Kro, and Blackwulf (Pelops) appeared on a computer screen or something in the course of the story. Although it didn’t involve the Blackwulf characters directly, it introduced some Deviant/Eternal themes that helped establish what this series was about. Or so I seem to recall.
Yep, you're thinking of Avengers #370-371, which were written by Herdling, and featured the Eternals and Deviants and had the first appearance of Tantalus (and also Blackwulf on a screen).
Something that’s omitted from this review—or maybe it occurs next issue—is Tantalus serving his henchmen a meal of “blackened wolf,” a reference to the mythological Tantalus serving his slaughtered son to the gods as a meal. That’s what gets Tantalus banished to the underworld, to be “tantalized” for all eternity. The mythological Pelops gets resurrected, but with a shoulder missing because one of the gods had already taken a bite...
