Issue(s): Wonder Man #3
Cover Date: Nov 91
Title: "Eye of the beholder"
Credits:
Gerard Jones - Writer
Jeff Johnson - Penciler
Terry Austin - Inker
Fabian Nicieza - Editor

Review/plot:
After last issue's moderately more serious Enchantress story, we go back to pure satire for this issue. We're literally in Howard the Duck/She-Hulk territory at this point, with a villain that could have - and, in my opinion should have - been taken from Steve Gerber's She-Hulk run. I am talking about "Gamma-Burn", a new female Abomination character.

This is not the Abominatrix from She-Hulk #21-23. But why not? If we're gong to have joke stories about gamma-irradiated female characters that look like the Abomination, do they really need to be about multiple characters.

The origin for this character is that she was researching a gamma-radiation cure for PMS, so we're already deep into Steve Gerber type stuff.

And she's mad about the superficial nature of Hollywood, where everyone is concerned about their looks.

She approaches a soap opera star that she thinks might love her for who she is, but his initial reaction convinces her that he won't, so she goes on a rampage that ends with her being restored by Wonder Man to her original beautiful form. And at that point she approaches the soap opera star again, but he's not interested in yet another superficial beauty; he's looking for that magnificent monster he saw earlier. Oh the irony, etc..

It might have been interesting to see more of a comparison between her and She-Hulk, but this is as far as that goes.

So it's not even good satire. It's very superficial (ironically), basic stuff.

"Gamma-Burn" is actually the secondary concern in this issue. The primary concern is a new sidekick, arranged by Wonder Man's agent to follow him around.

The Sidekick, "Spider", helps Wonder Man enact his idea to hit Gamma-Burn with more gamma radiation, by powering suntanning lamps with his ionic jetpack.

This does destroy his "one of a kind" backpack, which originally came from Stark Enterprises, and it's said it will take months to replace.

Spider turns out to be the younger brother of Ginger, Wonder Man's current love interest.

Quality Rating: D

Historical Significance Rating: 1

Chronological Placement Considerations: I guess we'll have to watch for Wonder Man's jet pack going forward.

References:

• A reference is made to Wonder Man's fight with Goliath from Wonder Man #1.

Crossover: N/A

Continuity Insert? N

My Reprint: N/A

It really should have been Abominatrix but my guess is she doesn't look that bad; heck Abominatrix has hair. Gamma-Burn...is probably just a way to say "looks" without trying that hard.

There was something weird with Spider that was never explained in-story...in fact, none of the characters ever seemed to notice it. But his sunglasses would change size, shape, colour, etc, from one panel to the next.