Issue(s): Nomad #18
Cover Date: Oct 93
Title: "Super soldier soiree"
Credits:
Fabian Nicieza - Writer
Rick Mays - Penciler
Greg Adams - Inker
Hector Collazo - Assistant Editor
Glenn Herdling - Editor

Review/plot:
As we learned in Captain America #420, Nomad has been kidnapped by Dr. Faustus, who is trying to brainwash him.

We learn that he was kidnapped by a group of goofbag mercenaries called the Wanderers, one of whom seems to be a big fan of the Green Arrow's fashion sense, if not his weapon choice.

Faustus doesn't have a lot of luck brainwashing Nomad until he hits upon a memory of Nomad's father. It turns out that his father was a Nazi spy, and also apparently ran a Nazi surplus store out of his basement.

Bringing this up is apparently key to breaking Nomad's defenses. Once Nomad is brainwashed, he's made the leader of the Wanderers and is sent to kill the Slug, who apparently Faustus is in a weird uncharacteristic rivalry with. The Slug turns out to also have a team of goofbag mercenaries.

Odds were like 50/50 that they all just broke out into the chorus of YMCA, but instead they start fighting. Nomad breaks away from the fight to go after the Slug himself.

I have no idea what that "I'm on it!" line in script is up in the right corner, but it totally fits the art, which feels like it's been run through a Meitu filter.

Nomad takes the shot, but it's blocked by Captain America.

Cap apparently doesn't remember that he got involved in this story because he was told that Nomad was a prisoner of the guy known for brainwashing.

One subplot shows Senator Bart Ingrid hiring Zaran and giving him the gun we saw last issue.

Not his usual type of weapon.

In the past couple of stories we've been getting scenes with Nomad's sister, Jill Coltrain. That subplot starts to get related to the one about Ingrid.

Rick Mays' art was interesting last issue, where the story was more character driven and low key. It's a bad fit here, though. Also, between Mays's very large panels and half the book being used for brainwashing hallucination sequences, not a lot happens in this issue. It might have been nice to develop Dr. Faustus' motivations a little more. Saying that the Slug has become a "rather large obstacle" (ha, ha) in Faustus' "plans to consolidate Flordia's underworld elements" leaves a lot unanswered, like "Why would a guy like Dr. Faustus bother with Florida's underworld elements?". It'll also become apparent that more was expected to happen in this issue with Cap than there was apparently room for, but see the next chapter of the story regarding that.

In the lettercol for this issue, someone lists a group of characters that they'd like to see Nomad encounter. One of them is Skull the Slayer, and the response is pretty scathing:

Skull the Slayer! Skull the Slayer? Gee, Jim, why don't we just go bring back 3-D Man. Or Millie the Model, for Pete's sake. Of course, we'll have a special in which HERBIE, the Fantastic Four robot kidnaps Bucky. Yeah. Seriously, Jim, they're good suggestions, and although we haven't seen him since MARVEL TWO-IN-ONE #36, we'd all like to see Jim Skully back in the Bermuda Triangle. Hmmmm... seeing as how Jack's a nomadic guy and all.

Uhhh, guys? Skull the Slayer was brought back (or rather, it was revealed that he was already back) literally in the Captain America issue leading into this story. You're not just mocking letter writer Jim. You're mocking Mark Gruenwald! I mean, i'm ok with that, but are you sure that you are?

And we'll totally take that HERBIE storyline, by the way.

Quality Rating: D

Historical Significance Rating: 1

Chronological Placement Considerations: This takes place soon after or possibly even concurrently with the end of Captain America #420. The is part one of The Faustus Affair. Part two is in Captain America #421. The Zaran appearing here seems to be the original, not the one who appeared in Master of Kung Fu: Bleeding Black.

References:

• Dr. Faustus says that he wants to break Nomad the way he broke Nomad's first partner in Captain America #236.

Crossover: The Faustus Affair

Continuity Insert? N

My Reprint: N/A