It's been a while! We had another child so I'm now officially 15 months behind the time. I'll address that in a subsequent post, but let's move through the posts I had sitting in my draft folder first, shall we?
Annihilation - Scourge: Beta Ray Bill #1: This issue is as straight-forward as they come. Bill and Lockjaw help save a planet from a monster, and they hang around a few days to join in the celebrations. It conveniently means that they're on hand when the Sentry bursts into the Positive Zone. Bill is quickly overwhelmed, but he manages to use Stormbreaker to hurl the Sentry back into the Negative Zone. With the planet saved, he and Lockjaw head into the Negative Zone to retrieve Stormbreaker, as Bill has now reverted to his mortal form. The most interesting moment comes when the Cancerverse's Dr. Strange initially possesses the planet's inhabitants. Bill eventually defeats Strange, and the inhabitants revert to their normal forms, implying that, at least initially, the Cancerverse's corruption isn't permanent in the Positive Zone. We'll see how relevant that is.
Annihilation - Scourge: Silver Surfer #1: This issue is perhaps the most consequential of all four one-shots. It's tough going at first as it essentially serves as a post script to "Silver Surfer: Black," which I didn't read. Abnett does a solid job of walking us through Norrin's new status quo: he's now intangible, and he fears that he's somehow part of the threat that he senses approaching the Universe. He's also on hand when another tear in reality's fabric occurs, and he follows it into the Negative Zone. He makes relatively quick work of the Cancerverse's Captain Marvel and Ronan, though he's forced to flee as more Revengers come his way. He's surprised when they don't follow him into a planetary debris field, but he soon discovers why: Bob Reynolds' human self is there. Bob explains to Norrin that Mr. Fantastic was correct: the Negative Zone could cure him. But, the problem is how he was correct: when Bob absorbed the Negative Zone's energy, it split him and the Void in two. The Sentry that we've been seeing is the Void, not Bob. The Cancerverse then drew the Void to it, which worked well given their complementary belief systems. Bob informs Norrin that he's dying, since he's an incomplete being. Norrin then realizes that he was part of this event not because he was connected to some sort of death energy, as he previously expected, but because he and Bob were both incomplete beings who could help. He then merges with Bob, and they are presumably headed to find the Void.
At any rate, this issue is the best of the lot so far. The previous issues haven't been bad, per se, but they all felt like the one-shots that were: origin stories for characters we're unlikely ever to see again. The Doom that Zdarsky gives us here is less ephemeral, since he's (theoretically) the Doom that we already know. Zdarsky shows Reed Richards in our near-future trying to convince Doom to abandon his path as the United Nations prepares to invade Latveria. Doom refuses, and Reed frantically tries to activate a time platform to buy more time. Doom tries to stop him and ultimately awakens in 2099. Initially amnesiac, he eventually confronts his future self who remembers the moment of how he first came aware of his new reality. I don't remember how the the original Doom 2099 originally came to 2099, but by showing us how this one did (if it's different) Zdarsky at least gives us a greater connection to the characters. It's no surprise that he, of all the authors, finds a way to do so. But, he also has a trick up his sleeve as, on the last page, he reveals that the new Doom has Mr. Fantastic's powers.
Unfortunately, we're not told why this new Doom's trip to 2099 would result in a different outcome than the one the existing Doom 2099 remembers. But, maybe we'll get there at some point. I only later realized that Doom is the person forging something from "Marvel 2099: Alpha" #1, since Doom tells Uatu that he'll send the Kingpin after him, as he does here. Uatu predicted Doom meant this Doom, and I'm guessing new Doom is the Doom who sends back Miguel in "Marvel 2099: Alpha"#1. Confused? Me, too. But, Zdarsky gives it the ol' college try here so I'm at least willing to see where we go.
Spider-Man 2099 #1: I honestly have no idea what story Spencer is telling here, given the way that it ends.
The first 29 pages seem to laying the groundwork for new Miguel's origin story. We learn that anyone working for Alchemax has to agree to take Rapture. It enhances your cognitive functions, but it means that you're addicted to it; missing a dosage is lethal. Although coming from a different angle, it's in line with the original "Spider-Man 2099" storyline where Miguel was similarly hooked to Rapture, though I can't quite remember why. We also learn more about the mutated spider-man that we first saw mentioned in "Marvel 2099: Alpha" #1. A month ago Miguel visited Alchemax's lab in the Ravage to investigate the mutants it created hoping to find some new application for the research, since he hadn't invented anything for a while. Miguel knows little about them, expositing that they're just rumors in Nueva York. But, he finds little to replicate; the mutations occur simply because of the time people spend in the Ravage. One night, he hears a spider-man mumbling. He goes to investigate, and it attacks him, screaming "ouroboros," the same word the new Doom said to the existing Doom in the hope of disabling the Doombot.
In the present, Miguel is trying to deal with his Rapture addiction by seeking it from a pusher Downtown. In exchange, he subjects himself to Mystique, which allows the pusher to steal his social credits for a while. However, the pusher (who Miguel at one point hallucinates as the Green Goblin) wants more than the bargain, pledging that he's going to put good use to Miguel's credits. Gabe and a group of Vultures save Miguel. We learn that Gabe works in the boroughs trying to save the Thorites. He disapproves of Miguel working for Alchemax, but he admits that Miguel had to do it to provide for him and his mother after their father died. Here, Spencer is also staying true to Miguel and Gabe's original dynamic, though I'm not displeased to see an idealistic, instead of idyll, Gabe here. (Gabe also brings Miguel to St. Patrick's cathedral, which made me smile.) Miguel accuses Gabe of being overly idealistic, and Gabe admits that the Thorites and Vultures are brutally violent. Like Miguel, he doesn't feel like he has a choice, since someone has to help the people born into the boroughs. I liked Spencer emphasizing how both O'Hara brothers were essentially stuck on their own sides in situations they don't like. At this point, Miguel leaves. Gabe finds Miguel's Mystique pin, and he seems ready to use it to expose Alchemax's wrongs, something he pushed (to no success) Miguel to do. Meanwhile, Miguel hallucinates Spider-Man 2099 appearing before a graffiti-ed "ouroboros," and it seems like his powers are ready to manifest.
At this point, I'm pretty happy. As I've laid out here, Spencer is engaged essentially in a soft reboot of Spider-Man 2099, since most of the developments are similar to the ones that we saw in the original series. However, Spencer then goes totally off the rails. Miguel's powers don't manifest as expected. Instead, he begins to "remember" "our" 2099, including the iconic first moments of "Spider-Man 2099" #1 where Miguel is escaping the Public Eye. He collapses, only to find an old man standing over him who claims to be him. Yeah, I have no clue either.
Given that I enjoyed the first 29 pages, I'm also willing to give Spencer a chance here, depending on where this story ultimately goes. But, as someone for whom Spider-Man 2099 is essentially this blog's totem figure, I also admit that I'm worried that I'll once again be disappointed that Marvel just can't capture the magic that Peter David did on the original series.
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