Issue(s): Marvel Comics Presents #53, Marvel Comics Presents #54, Marvel Comics Presents #55, Marvel Comics Presents #56 (Stingray story only)
Cover Date: Jul-Aug 90
Title: Family Matters: "Brotherly love" / "Confrontation" / "Pursuit!" / "Brotherly love"
Credits:
Len Wein - Writer
Jim Fern - Penciler
Mike DeCarlo - Inker
Kelly Corvese - Assistant Editor
Terry Kavanagh - Editor

Review/plot:
This is another example in Marvel Comics Presents for what *i* think the book should be about. Namely spotlighting minor characters that aren't featured elsewhere, and with stories that last for more than 8 pages, giving them a chance to actually do something. Recently we had Comet Man and Devil Slayer, and now we have Stingray. As usual i don't think the story is particularly great at accomplishing that goal, but at least it is making the attempt

The story starts off with Stingray and his wife Diane fighting off some sharks.

And then going home to what was surely meant to be Avengers Island, although the script says it's an Avengers-funded research facility in Florida.

They are contacted by the a Guardsman, who tells them that Diane's brother, Tiger Shark, is dying.

Why would it be said that the Avengers have moved "back" to New York? Did i miss the issues where they were stationed at the Newell Oceanographic Institute?

Another placement consideration is that this takes place after Tiger Shark's defeat in West Coast Avengers #16, and based on what the Guardsman says, Tiger Shark hasn't been anywhere else since being captured.

So that would rule out this taking place after Tiger Shark's appearance in Wolverine #19-20 during Acts of Vengeance. Which means that Avengers Island actually should be available, since it was destroyed during Acts of Vengeance. So why place Stingray and Diane on a random island in Florida that we haven't heard about before? I guess Marvel was just hedging its bets, or didn't want to cause confusion with readers who vaguely knew that Avengers Island had been destroyed but weren't thinking about the timeline.

The Vault has taken the liberty of bringing Tiger Shark to the island so that Stingray can help with whatever is ailing him. But it turns out that Tiger Shark was just faking (by slowing down his metabolism "like a shark"), and he breaks out of his tube and takes Diane hostage.

Why i hate Marvel Comics Presents (or at least one of several reasons). Something like this every eight pages:

I get that the cliffhanger/splashpanel combo between issues is the easiest way to create some drama and bring readers that missed the last installment up to speed. But reading this stuff all at once, it's a speedbump every eight pages.

A related problem is the way an entire installment can turn out to have no purpose. Issue #53 ends with Tiger Shark holding Diane and trying to escape. All of issue #54 has Stingray, with some help from the lone Guardsman stationed on the island, fighting Tiger Shark...

But it ends the way it begins, with Tiger Shark escaping with Diane.

The Guardsman is too injured to participate any further. Stingray has to pursue Tiger Shark on his own.

I included the scan of the unmasked Guardsman because i'm wondering if the intention at the time the story was drawn (before it was scripted) was that it was Michael O'Brien, the Avengers' security chief. O'Brien was the second Guardsman, and he was stationed on Avengers Island, although i don't believe he ever wore his Guardsman armor at that time. The fact that we're only seeing a single Guardsman on the island, and that artist Jim Fern took the time to draw him unmasked, suggests that it's someone we're supposed to know as opposed to just a generic guy. If that was the case, by the time this was scripted and colored (O'Brien has red hair), it was decided to just make it a nameless Guardsman. I could be completely off base here, and it's really not that important. I'm just looking for possible revisions since i think the location of the story was deliberately moved, so there may be other changes as well. Plus i think it's odd that O'Brien never used his armor as Avengers security chief, and this would have been a case of when he did.

Anyway, after an opening splash panel and a second page devoted to recapping the first two parts, issue #57 uses its remaining six pages to show Stingray searching for Tiger Shark. And fighting a giant squid.

Meanwhile, brother and sister get on each others' nerves.

It's not really clear why Tiger Shark took his sister.

Stingray locates Tiger Shark, and they fight.

The fight causes a cave-in that buries Diane.

Tiger Shark refuses to help rescue Diane, and he swims away. Stingray turns to the task of digging out Diane. But then Tiger Shark returns and starts helping.

During the rescue, a self-destruct sequence is accidentally activated (they are in an old Dr. Dorcas hideout). Tiger Shark stays behind to hole up a wall so that Stingray and Diane can escape. The idea being that there's still something of Tiger Shark's human side left in him.

This story could have been improved by hinting all along that Tiger Shark wanted his sister to try to reach out to his human side. Not only would that make the ending less saccharine, but it would have explained why Tiger Shark kidnapped her in the first place. I guess we can assume it's implied. But in terms of character development, the story is really really weak. In the long run that's for the best, since the last thing we need is to see an awesome villain like Tiger Shark reforming. But in the short term it would have at least made some narrative sense.

The first question to answer in a Stingray story is "what do i get from this that i wouldn't get from the Sub-Mariner". And there isn't really an answer to that question. As Dr. Walter Newell, Stingray is also a scientist, so that's potentially an angle to explore that isn't available for the Sub-Mariner. But aside from using that as the story engine (i.e., it's why the Vault brings Tiger Shark to the Newells' island), there's nothing science related about the story. Tiger Shark has family connections to these characters, but he has connections to Namor as well (and it's not like Tiger Shark's family connections are actually explored in this story, except in the most superficial way), and in any event that's not making a case for Stingray as a character. He can't always fight Tiger Shark. So without anything distinguishing for Stingray, we're left with a generic aquatic adventure and a grudge fight. Aquatic heroes are already a hard sell; the Sub-Mariner's ability to carry a series has been increasingly dubious. So the chances for Stingray were even less. Which is too bad. I was introduced to Stingray during Roger Stern's Avengers run, so to me he's always been an "important" character and a little intriguing, honestly just because he was with me during my formative years. So i'm definitely open to a Stingray story. But there's nothing really here.

Quality Rating: D

Historical Significance Rating: 1

Chronological Placement Considerations: This takes place "several months" after West Coast Avengers #16 and should be Tiger Shark's first appearance since that issue (excepting perhaps scenes of him in captivity at the Vault). Since Marvel went out of their way to make sure this didn't take place on Avengers Island, it can pretty much go anywhere between West Coast Avengers #16 (Jan 87) and Tiger Shark's Acts of Vengeance appearance in Wolverine #19 (Dec 89). A good policy to follow in such cases is to place the story as close to publication date as possible, so i'm placing this in 1989, before Acts of Vengeance.

References:

• Tigra and Hellcat defeated Tiger Shark in West Coast Avengers #16.
  
• Tiger Shark was created in Sub-Mariner #5, and Diane initially blames the process that Dr. Dorcas put him through for his ailment.

Crossover: N/A

Continuity Insert? N

My Reprint: N/A