Obsessively putting our comics in chronological order since 1985.
| 1992-01-01 02:06:19 |
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Marvel Comics Presents #152-154 (Moon Knight)
Issue(s): Marvel Comics Presents #152, Marvel Comics Presents #153, Marvel Comics Presents #154 (Moon Knight story only)
Cover Date: Apr-May 94
Title: "Hung Jury"
Credits:
Chuck Dixon - Writer
J.J. Birch - Penciler
J.J. Birch - Inker
Michael Kraiger - Assistant Editor
Richard Ashford - Editor
Review/plot:
This is a Moon Knight story by Chuck Dixon (who was once the regular Moon Knight writer) and J.J. Birch, who penciled one Chuck Dixon Moon Knight story that was published several issues after Dixon's MK run officially ended. And at 24 pages, this story is similar in length to a single issue of Moon Knight. So (as confirmed in the comments by Ben Herman) this issue was intended for the regular series but it got relegated to Marvel Comics Presents for deadline reasons. The story features Chainsaw, a very minor villain who was introduced in the final issues of Dixon's run. Chainsaw subsequently appeared in Nomad and Punisher issues of the Dead Man's Hand crossover, and was seemingly killed in Punisher War Journal #47 when Daredevil crashed a helicopter on top of him. But this story doesn't reference that; when Chainsaw is said to be thought dead, it's a reference to when he was shot at the end of his last Moon Knight appearance.
Dixon wrote the Punisher issue, so this feels like evidence that this story was written before Dead Man's Hand. Of course for placement purposes it's also possible that Moon Knight just wasn't aware of Chainsaw's reappearance and second seeming death.
Chainsaw led a gang of white supremacists called the Pretorians (which were an offshoot of the Secret Empire). Moon Knight (as Marc Spector) and Marlene Alraune are attending a trial of one of the Pretorians. The trial is attended by other Pretorians, and later Chainsaw and the Pretorians threaten a member of the jury.
Moon Knight is tipped off to that fact by Betrand Crawley. Moon Knight tries to beat up Pretorians to get more information. But they're a little confused about why he would care (after all, his costume is one step away from being KKK robes).
Less from beating up the thugs, and more from detective work from Marlene Alraune, Moon Knight gets intel that leads him back to the jury member, and finds that his son has been taken hostage. He also learns that Chainsaw is still alive. And thanks to more detective work from Alraune, Moon Knight is able to go to Chainsaw's hideout. And nowadays Chainsaw has an adamantium chainsaw.
Thanks to Terry Kavanagh, i'm pretty sure half of Moon Knight's gear is adamantium too, but Moon Knight goes a simpler route in defeating Chainsaw, tricking him into bringing the building down by cutting all the support beams. Moon Knight rescues the boy and sends a message to the juror, who was stuck in the tricky situation of explaining to a jury with at least three people of color why he thought the obvious skinhead wasn't guilty despite overwhelming evidence.
Quality Rating: C-
Historical Significance Rating: 1
Chronological Placement Considerations: This can't take place at publication time, since Moon Knight was thought dead after the end of his series. As noted above, Moon Knight talks like Chainsaw's last "death" was after Moon Knight #22-24, before Dead Man's Hand. This story could still go after Dead Man's Hand, but since it has to be pushed back anyway it might as well go before it, and this placement coincidentally puts it after the other Chuck Dixon/J.J. Birch story in Moon Knight #34. (This placement also means that Moon Knight doesn't have all the adamantium yet, which is another serendipity.)
References:
- Moon Knight took down Chainsaw and the Pretorians in Moon Knight #22-24.
Crossover: N/A
Continuity Insert? Y - inventory story
My Reprint: N/A
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Comments
I'll be honest, fnord, I never would have made any connection between MK's costume and KKK robes without your site. But it must be pretty blatant as often as you mention it.
As a kid, I always thought MK had one of the cooler costumes. Makes me feel a bit odd about liking the costume.
I always thought his costume stood out because it wasn't colorful or dark like other super heroes.
I think i've only made a comment about it once before? But it was a common observation/joke at one point, culminating in a Twisted Toyfare scene.
Moon Knight #1 (1980) is the only other relevant result in a search for "KKK" or "Klan", but you also mention the unfortunate implications of wearing a "white hood" in Moon Knight v2 #6 and West Coast Avengers #38-39. So it's not like you mention it in every entry he appears in, but it's still more than just one other time.
Yes, this was an unpublished issue of Moon Knight's own series. If you look at the pacing, there really aren't what you would consider cliffhangers at the end of the first and second chapters, and the splash pages at the beginning of the second and third chapters are sort of generic.
I was a letterhack who wrote in pretty regularly to MCP back in the 1990s (yes, I do cringe when I see some of those letters of mine that they printed) and I vaguely recall asking if this was an inventory issue, and receiving a confirmation from Ashford & Kraiger.
I guess that, with Marvel Super-Heroes having finally dies a merciful death the year before, MCP became the default venue for unloading inventory stories. In all fairness, this one is a notch above most inventory issues, with decent work by Dixon & Birch.
fnord, I guess I was trying to comment more on my own naivete than how often you mention it. But I'm sure this isn't just the second time otherwise I wouldnt have noticed. Wasn't trying to imply you mention it all the time if that's how it felt.
Quick note, fnord: you mention his costume looking Kukluxklanish in MK #1 so its there right from the start:-) In addition to a few other issues. http://www.supermegamonkey.net/chronocomic/entries/moon_knight_1-2.shtml
I was just checking because I was afraid my memory was playing tricks on me. No offense intended, of course.
sorry, missed Morgan's comment. Seems he already answered that question.(and sorry for multiple comments in one thread)
