Issue(s): Thor #446
Cover Date: Apr 92
Title: "Now strikes the Starforce!"
Credits:
Tom DeFalco - Writer
Pat Olliffe - Penciler
Al Milgrom - Inker
Pat Garrahy - Assistant Editor
Ralph Macchio - Editor

Review/plot:
The Avengers on the Shi'ar homeworld are having an audience with Empress Lilandra, but it's not going well, in part because Lilandra's Prime Minister, Araki, doesn't seem to have a high opinion of them, and in part because Thor is acting like a hothead, not restraining himself when Smasher of the Imperial Guard accuses him of behaving like a "rabid beast" during his fight with Gladiator.

We get a sense that there is something more going on with Araki when the Avengers take their leave for the moment, and Araki pulls out a dagger while saying that Lilandra considering negotiating with the Kree is treason.

But he's interrupted when one of the Imperial Guard show up. Meanwhile, the Kree Starforce team, with Ronan the Accuser added to their ranks (but minus Doctor Minerva and Captain Atlas), show up and engage with the Imperial Guard.

The Avengers join forces with the Guard against the Kree. Thor again uses his control over lightning to affect Living Lightning, although this time to re-power him instead of to control him.

Meanwhile, Bouncing Boy ("Hardball") vs. Shatterax, with an assist from Captain Marvel.

Thor and Smasher bond while fighting Ronan.

Starfox is not participating in the main fight. He noticed Araki acting suspiciously, so was following him. But he had to put that aside when Ultimus showed up to kill Lilandra.

Note that Ultimus is a "Kree Eternal".

Lilandra manages to take out Ultimus with a big gun, but she says that Starfox's courage inspires and shames her. Based on that, Lilandra decides not to deploy the Nega-Bomb, and orders it recalled.

Unfortunately we already saw that Skrulls have taken control of the bomb.

And in any event, brace yourself, because Lilandra is going to do a major reversal on that change of heart the next time we see her (in the biggest continuity mix-up in this series, which is otherwise very well coordinated).

I am really liking Pat Olliffe's art. I liked Ron Frenz, who will be back, but his Silver Age-ish style combined with Tom DeFalco's very stilted Silver Age-ish dialogue gave the comic an overall old fashioned feel. DeFalco's scripting doesn't feel as bad with Olliffe's art, and this is an enjoyable part of the Galactic Storm crossover.

Quality Rating: C+

Historical Significance Rating: 1

Chronological Placement Considerations: This is part fourteen of Operation: Galactic Storm. It continues in Captain America #400.

References:

• Complaining about the Avengers, "Araki" says that one of them might be trying to sabotage the Nega-Bomb, a footnoted reference to Wonder Man #8.
  
• Starforce are sent after Lilandra supposedly in retaliation for the assassination of the Kree leaders Ael-dan and Dar-benn in Avengers #346. Korath thinks to himself that they would have arrived sooner if Ronan the Accuser hadn't been delayed fighting Iron Man in Iron Man #279.

Crossover: Operation Galactic Storm

Continuity Insert? N

My Reprint: N/A

The second scan seems to be broken here.

Oliffe is going for a Neal Adams-by-way-of John Buscema. Tom Palmer could have had some fun with this.

Continuing my re-read of Thor in the early 1990s, I was unfortunately (and not unexpectedly) somewhat underwhelmed by the two issues that were part of the "Operation Galactic Storm" crossover.

Pat Olliffe, who was doing fine work on the Tales of Asgard back-ups, blew me away with his execution of the sci-fi / space opera material. He really does an amazing job penciling these two issues. I'm actually grateful that Olliffe was the one to work on these issues. I can't help thinking Frenz might have made everything in the Shi'ar Empire a bit too 1960s Kirby-esque. Olliffe, in contrast, has a bit of a European feel to his art style, giving these two issues a distinctive tone.

fnord previously indicated one of the weaknesses of DeFalco's scripting was that rather than showing Eric Masterson as an everyman who is seeing all of these amazing sights and incredible beings for the first time usually spends all his time cracking bad jokes. Here at least we see Eric really in awe of the Shi'ar Empire. I also like the bonding between him and living Lightning. Not only are each of them new to the Avengers, they're also both from a blue collar background, so there is a certain common ground for them to find.

(continued) In the end, though, these two issues are just big fight scenes. The crossover barely gets advanced, and it really feels like DeFalco is just killing time here.

I really think that "Galactic Storm" was waaaaay too long. It could have been told in half the time. Instead of crossing over into every since Avengers-related title for three months, a much better idea would have been to just have it be eight to ten chapters and run between Avengers and Avengers West Coast for four to five months.

"Galactic Storm" interrupted too many plotlines in the various solo books. Captain America #400, which should have been a huge anniversary issue, was reduced to a pointless illusionary fight because it fell right smack dab in the middle of this crossover. Thor doesn't suffer nearly as much, but these two issues nevertheless feel unimportant.