Issue(s): X-Force #3
Cover Date: Oct 91
Title: "Battlecry"
Credits:
Fabian Nicieza - Script
Rob Liefeld - Plot
Rob Liefeld - Penciler
Rob Liefeld - Inker
Suzanne Gaffney - Assistant Editor
Bob Harras - Editor

Review/plot:
Black Tom and the Juggernaut have taken over the World Trade Center, and they are opposed by Siryn. You might think that Siryn's powers might not be a match for the Juggernaut, but you haven't taken into account whatever she is hiding underneath all her hair.

But yeah, she's no match for the Juggernaut.

Rethink your entire plan of attack? Ya think? Maybe come back with a telepath, since the Juggernaut literally can't be hurt by physical means?

X-Force do show up to help out.

Note that the police and "New York's super humans" have been kept away from this hostage situation, and then Siryn attacked on her own. Doesn't seem smart. And then there's Cable saying that he's here to do what the Avengers-types are unwilling to do. Considering the way things work out, i think the Avengers' restraint was probably the right move (but it would have been nice to have actually seen things from the Avengers' point of view).

Also note that Cable and Siryn are old friends. I guess if Cable knew Moira, he'd know Siryn too. The fact that they saw each other recently during the Kings of Pain story is mentioned later, but "old friend" seems to imply they knew each other longer than that.

Anyway, Siryn joins up with X-Force. I see that she's taken care of her hair problem, but the effort has turned her into some kind of snake woman, with her neck at a weird angle and her pupils having disappeared.

The addition of X-Force isn't really an improvement of course. We now have an entire team of people that are not telepaths.

Actually, most of the group goes after Black Tom and his army of goons to try to rescue the hostages.

That is a VERY sketchy looking Cable there. And Fabian? Save the "on this like a lisp on Mike Tyson" lines for NFL Superpro. That's really bad.

Gideon and Sunspot have been among the hostages, and they finally make their move.

Warpath continues to get pounded by the Juggernaut...

...and then Spider-Man shows up.

And then Black Tom detonates the bomb that he's been holding back the police with. He'll later say detonated it because he'd already accomplished what he really wanted - bringing back the Juggernaut - and to show people that when he issues a threat, he means it.

Obviously more to say about this, but this is the first part of a crossover with Spider-Man, so more in the following entry.

Quality Rating: C

Historical Significance Rating: 1

Chronological Placement Considerations: Boom Boom doesn't appear in this issue but we'll see in Spider-Man #16 that she's in X-Force's ship. It's said that we are in "day three" of the takeover of the World Trade Center, but i don't know if that means three days from issue #1 or three days from last issue, or something in between (it depends on how long it's been public knowledge that Black Tom has been holding the investors hostage). This story continues directly in Spider-Man #16.

References:

• The Black Tom storyline has been building since X-Force #1.
  
• Cable and Siryn last saw each other while fighting Proteus circa X-Factor annual #6, and Cable is also aware that she "just went through some garbage with the Shadow King", a reference to the Muir Island Saga that ended in Uncanny X-Men #280.

Crossover: N/A

Continuity Insert? N

My Reprint: N/A

Black Tom blowing up the World Trade Center before it became a thing.

Ugh, the Youngblood Disease is spreading to Siryn (when her hair doesn't look like a feather duster), plus Juggernaut now looks like he's got a zillion teeth and has to have his closed eyes made white over a darkened face so we know he's got the same affliction! Since when was this art cool?

My God, that panel of Warpath jumping down to Juggernaut is ridiculous. It's like he's wearing a fat suit.

This issue makes Juggernaut's appearance in 2001's Amazing Spider-Man #36 particularly tasteless.

I don't know what's worse - Siryn with her head a good foot back from the rest of her body or Warpath being eight feet wide.

And was there ever a good explanation how Warpath, who had basically had his brothers enhanced abilities in his Hellions days suddenly became strong enough to take on Juggernaut? Other than Cable saying he just keeps getting stronger?