Marvel Team-Up (Vol. 1) Annual #6

"The Hunters and the Hunted!"
Published October 1983
Writer: Bill Mantlo
Penciler: Ron Frenz
Inker: Kevin Dzuban
Cover Artists: Ron Frenz and Klaus Janson

What's Going On?
Spider-Man has noticed a distinct drop-off in crime in the warehouse district, combined with an increase in dead teenagers and bad guys suffering from cold numbness.  Spidey recognizes this as the MO of superheroes Cloak and Dagger.  When he catches up with them, they reveal that someone is trying to replicate the process that gave them super powers; the bad guys are kidnapping teens, injecting them with experimental drugs, and those kids are dying.  Why are they trying to create a new Cloak and Dagger?  To fight the current C&D and become junkie criminal muscle.  Obviously.

Meanwhile, the New Mutants (Cannonball, Psyche, Sunspot, and Wolfsbane) were allowed to catch the muscial "Cats" in the big city by themselves.  Instead of heading back to Xaver's school right away, Sunspot drags the team to a video arcade.  Some local punks try to start some trouble, so Sam and Roberto publicly use their mutant powers to defend themselves.  They try to get to the bus station so they can go home, but get lost and encounter more angry punks.  In the ensuing scuffle, Roberto gets slashed by a switchblade, and Rahne has a bullet graze her head.  The two incapacitated heroes are captured by some opportunistic criminals, and they are taken back to the warehouse district.  Their idea is that, since mutants are already genetically special, they might stand a better chance of surviving the Cloak and Dagger drug.  As it turns out, the crooks are right. 

Roberto gains some Cloak-ish powers and Rahne gets more Dagger-y.  Spider-Man, Cloak and Dagger, and the New Mutants manage to all arrive at the church where C&D take shelter, so they all team up to punish the criminal and purge the drugs from Sunspot and Wolfsbane. 

Writing!
Well, this is the first issue of Marvel Team-Up that I have ever read, so I don't have much of a frame of reference for how good this is compared to the average issue.  That said, it's a pretty basic story, designed to highlight Cloak and Dagger right before they star in their first limited series.  As far as I can tell, all the characters are portrayed faithfully, which is not always the case with guest appearances.  It's not inspired, but Mantlo succeeds in shoehorning Spider-Man and the New Mutants into what is essentially a Cloak and Dagger story.

Art!
This isn't great work from Ron Frenz and Kevin Dzuban.  Frenz's pencils can tell the story well enough, in the typical Marvel house style, but Dzuban's inks highlight the fact that Frenz isn't great at drawing facial expressions.  While they might not be pretty, the characters are fairly distinct visually, so that's a plus.  I was less of a fan of the action scenes; I wasn't looking for realism, but you at least hope for Kirby-esque energy, right?  These scenes just looked awkward.

It's always interesting to see how artists choose to handle superheroes that wear "civilian" clothes.  I find the "their clothes evaporate" option one of the more amusing ones.

Retrospectively Amusing:
- For some reason, Dani seems to be assuming that Cloak and Dagger are homeless.  I think she's right (I'm not too familiar with the characters), but damn that's a big assumption about people you've barely met.  Do they smell like urine or something?

- Cannonball refers to Dani as "Psyche."  I don't know if that's happened once in New Mutants.

- I love this frame of Rahne in times Square:

- Check out how abruptly this issue ends.  Here is the last page:

"Yeah."  Nicely stated, Spidey.

Worth Noting:
- As far as I can tell, this is the first time someone other than Chris Claremont wrote any of the New Mutants.

- While this isn't as bad as some of the other instances of women being easily defeated in fights in New Mutants, it would have been nice if Rahne had stood up for herself here.

- Since I'm focusing this blog on all things X-related, I typically wouldn't spend time on a Spider-Man book.  Obviously, this issue happens to co-star the New Mutants, and is eventually referenced during Bill Sienkiewicz's run.

A Look Back at Magik: Storm and Illyana Limited Series

I have been aware of the Magik: Storm and Illyana for many years, but this was my first time actually reading it.  Not long after I started getting into comics, Illyana fell victim to the Legacy Virus in Uncanny X-Men #303; at the time, I didn't really know much about the character, but the fan letters eulogizing her in subsequent issues intrigued me.  I started to collect back issues of New Mutants and started to piece together her character's journey throughout the years.  She was never one of my favorite characters, but she was a teleporting sorceress with a sword and was occasionally demonic --- it's not like I didn't think she was cool.  When I started this blog, I thought it would be fun and interesting (for me, anyway) to finally pick up some of the ancillary X-Men-related comics from the era I'm reviewing, and that's what brought me back to Magik: Storm and Illyana.


At its simplest, this exists to explain what happened to Illyana between panels in Uncanny X-Men #160; she was taken as a seven year-old to the dimension of Limbo and returned as a thirteen year-old, even though only a few minutes passed on Earth.  As the series explains, Illyana became the magical apprentice to the demonic lord of Limbo, Belasco, who corrupted her soul. 

Illyana eventually defeated Belasco, but never regained her innocence or the bits of her soul that had been sullied.  That's a pretty clear narrative, and it sets Illyana up with a tragic background that plants the seeds for her eventual tragic demise.  I like the basics of the plot, and I like what it does for the character.  It's less of a superhero tale and more of a swords-and-sorcery fantasy story, but there's nothing wrong with that.  The execution of that plot, though, is pretty rough.

The writing on the series was done by Chris Claremont, who co-created the character and made sure to feature her in both the pages of Uncanny X-Men and New Mutants before this series came out.  He formatted the story so that each issue has a different character teaching Illyana, until she is ready to act of her own accord.  Since there are only four issues in this series, having Belasco, Cat, and Storm take turns teaching in sequential issues makes the repetition of the theme obvious and boring.  Claremont also had a hard time selling the concept of Illyana actually having a dark side.  There are some panels where the art makes her look demonic --- and that does the lion's share of the work for this concept --- but the writing essentially has Illyana telling the readers that she loves Belasco, despite no evidence of it.  As the series ends, it is hinted that this has all been an introduction to her joining the New Mutants. 

If they had had any part to play in the story, that may have been exciting.  But they don't.

Despite having three different pencillers (John Buscema, Ron Frenz, and Sal Buscema), the art is fairly consistent throughout.  I'm assuming we have Tom Palmer's inking to thank for that.  Unfortunately, the artwork isn't anything special.  None of the artists have a good grasp on how to make Illyana age subtly; she looks like a little kid until they decide to give her breasts and a bikini.  Here's a typical page for you --- vaguely young Illyana, some swords, a monster, and dull backgrounds:

For a series that takes place in an alternate dimension and features sorcery and magic, there is precious little imaginative artwork here.  That's a damn shame.  If Marvel had assigned an artist with a tendency toward the surreal or imaginative (I'm thinking maybe Bill Sienkiewicz or Walt Simonson, given the time period) to this title --- this could have been a classic, even with dull writing. 

Perhaps I should back up and mention one of the oddest things about this limited series.  As mentioned above, this entire series takes place during a scene in Uncanny X-Men #160.  That was published in August 1982.  The first issue of this series was not published until December 1983, concurrently with Uncanny #176.  That's a long time to wait for a comic story to resolve itself, especially one about a character that wasn't very popular at the time.  In all fairness to the character, she was mainly kept in the background of scenes in that sixteen-month span, so there was no reason for her to become a fan favorite.

Why was this released so long after the story began in Uncanny #160?  I haven't found anything online that addresses this delay, but it is likely the result of Chris Claremont's workload at the time--- at this point, he was writing Uncanny X-Men and New Mutants and pretty much any special project that came up, like the Wolverine limited series and the God Loves, Man Kills graphic novel, which both came out during the sixteen-month gap.  According to retrospective interviews with Claremont and others, it also seems likely that Claremont's desire to not let others write "his" characters also played a part; I'm sure this series could have been published earlier if he had been willing to take a "plotting" credit and outsource the scripting to another writer.  I wouldn't be surprised if Marvel's publishing policies played a large part, too.  It took them seven years to put out the Wolverine limited series, so I can imagine they were a bit more hesitant to publish a limited series that was not guaranteed to be a hit.  Any or all of these may have been factors in the timing of this comic, but I think it's safe to say that, once Claremont was given the green light to proceed, there was not much time left to actually make the comics.  Three pencilers in four issues is an obvious sign that there were problems getting these issues published on time; maybe Claremont spent too much time trying to make the script worthwhile, or (more likely) maybe there was a tight delivery window between when the first issue was started and when the last issue needed to be completed.

So how does this series rate, on the whole?  It's pretty inessential, to be honest.  You would think that an origin story like this would be must-read material, but everything here is presented in later comics, and those summaries feel more effective than this series.  It does help flesh out Limbo, but no writer (even Claremont) since has treated it like anything more than a generic Hell substitute.  It does explain the Soulsword a bit, so that's noteworthy; it's kind of weird that it was introduced in the pages of Uncanny, in retrospect, though. 

The comic definitely has a reason to exist --- Illyana's story had been begging to be told for a while --- but Claremont undermines the importance of this series by doing a good job summarizing it in future New Mutants issues.  I would recommend this for major Magik fans or completionists only.

Magik (Storm and Illyana Limited Series) #3

"Soulquest"
Published February 1984
Writer: Chris Claremont
Penciller: Ron Frenz
Inker: Tom Palmer
Cover Artists: Ron Frenz and Tom Palmer

What's Going On?
Two more years have passed, as Illyana has become Belasco's magical apprentice.  Under his tutelage, she has experimented with the warping of simple creatures --- something Storm warned her might cost her soul --- but without impressive results.  Storm finally makes her move and attacks Belasco in his stronghold.  She does not stand a chance. 

She also looks like a pirate

While she is battling Belasco, Cat (ever loyal to Belasco, since her change last issue) attacks Storm.  Illyana defends Storm and kills Cat.  Belasco promises to take the next step toward the total corruption of Illyana's soul, to  be followed with the stealing and sacrifice Storm's soul to Belasco's Dark Gods.

Sub-Plots, oh the Sub-Plots!
- Illyana is manifesting great magical power, but she does not have a lot of control over it yet.

- Belasco's magical pentagrams are made of red-black fire, and his back is turned to the point.  Typical Satanic imagery.  Storm's magical pentagrams are silver, and she faces the point; this is supposed to indicate that her spells are for healing.  Illyana's pentagram is silver...but we don't actually see which way she faces.  Hmm...

- Illyana is beginning to mainfest her mutant power, the ability  to control the "stepping discs" of Limbo, which can transport you in time and space.

- Illyana traveled back in time and witnessed when Storm's soul was corrupted by Belasco.  Years ago, when she was Belasco's apprentice and at the peak of her magical and mutant powers, Storm savagely attacked Belasco.  When he was helpless, she landed a killing blow.  The result was the corruption of her soul, but not the actual death of Belasco; apparently, he cannot be killed in Limbo.

- While Storm's soul was corrupted by Belasco, a lifetime spent trying to undo the damage has left her soul more good than evil, if no longer innocent.

Writing!
*Sigh* Another issue in, and another few years have passed without making me care about this story.  Ostensibly, we should be seeing Illyana losing her soul as she is Belasco's apprentice in this issue.  In practice...not so much.  She has a corrupt side that we see at the beginning of the issue, but it's only apparent for a few panels.  Instead, we are shown Illyana being an observer (yet again) as someone else attacks Belasco.  I was surprised that so much focus was given to Illyana killing Cat because there is no real foreshadowing of this scene in any of the Illyana/Kitty Pryde scenes in Uncanny X-Men around this time --- certainly nothing where Illyana specifically recalls murdering the alternate version of her best friend.  The writing in this series is not really justifying the existence of this series.

Art!
Again, I'm not terribly thrilled by the art, but there's nothing bad here.  The story is just underwhelming, so there is not much for the art to do.  The scene with young Storm attacking was pretty good, but not fantastic.  The sequence where Illyana battled Cat was solid storytelling, but nothing too fancy.

Retrospectively Amusing:
- Despite the cover of this issue, Belasco never asks Illyana to choose between his love and Storm's life, although the last page comes pretty close to mirroring the cover image.  Why thy felt the need to include the misleading dialogue on the cover, I don't know.

- Illyana's mutant power appears to be tied to Limbo.  She can control/manipulate the "stepping discs" that can transport her anywhere/when within Limbo.  These are supposedly a natural feature of Limbo, that have existed before Illyana arrived.  Over time, this ability becomes the ability to teleport wherever she wants on Earth, with the understanding that she is momentarily stopping along the way in Limbo.  It may seem like a slight difference, but the implied locality is actually a pretty significant change.

- The reference to a New Mutants issue makes it clear that she will be involved in that title, despite having only made peripheral appearances in issues #1 and #3 so far.  I guess it makes sense.  There are only a few young mutants in the Marvel Universe at this point, and she made the most sense to play a part in Xavier's school; Franklin Richards was both too young and a part of the family dynamic in Fantastic Four, Siryn would make more sense with her father on Muir Island, but Illyana's brother is an X-Man and she's been lurking in the background of the title for months.

Worth Noting:
- A scene in this issue plays a part in New Mutants #14, which will be published in a few months.

Magik (Storm and Illyana Limited Series) #2

"Cold Iron Hot Blood!"
Published January 1984
Writer: Chris Claremont
Penciller: John Buscema
Inker: Tom Palmer
Cover: Ron Frenz and Tom Palmer

What's Going On?
Illyana is trained by Cat to survive in a harsh, Savage Land-esque, portion of Limbo.  She spends nearly two years learning to survive in harsh terrain and how to fight with swords.  At the end of teh training, they sneak into Belasco's Citadel.  The idea is to get to Belasco's altar, where the barrier between dimensions is thin; Cat thinks she can use her phasing abilities to cross the dimensional barrier and get Illyana back to her home.  They almost succeed, but Belasco appears and pulls them back to Limbo at the last moment.  To punish Cat for killing his servant, Nightcrawler, as they infiltrated the citadel, Belasco transforms Cat, stripping her of her humanity and making her even more feline.  Illyana is drawn to Belasco and conjures the second Blood Stone, seemingly content with becoming his apprentice. 

Sub-Plots, oh the Sub-Plots!
- The fates of two more X-Men are revealed in this issue.  Colossus died at the hands of Belasco's demon lieutenant, S'ym, in an effort to save Cat's life.  Wolverine was also killed, as S'ym recalls feasting on his heart.  Nightcrawler was corrupted by Belasco and became his servant, until he was killed by Cat.  Granted, we knew about Colossus and Wolverine being dead from Uncanny X-Men #160, but we did not have any real details at that point.

- Storm tries to convince Cat to bring Illyana back to her sanctuary, but Cat refuses.  For reasons that are not entirely clear to me, Illyana states that Storm frightens her more than Cat does.

- Storm observed Cat and Illyana's attack on Belasco's citadel remotely, and watches Cat become enslaved by Belasco and Illyana willingly join his side.  Storm promises to destroy both Cat and Illyana.  Not Belasco, though, which strikes me as odd...

Writing!
Another issue in, and we've got ourselves even more exposition.  Granted, a few years have passed since last issue, but precious little has actually happened.  Illyana and Cat went to Belasco's citadel to try to escape this dimension; they failed and are enslaved by Belasco.  That brief synopsis makes this issue feel a lot more exciting that it actually is.  I'm not entirely sure what about this swords and sorcery tale is failing to impress me, but I'm bored.  Part of it is because Illyana's main character trait is being whiny.  Part of it is because I am not invested in any of the supporting cast, even Storm, Cat, and Nightcrawler; their survival means little, since we know the "real" X-Men survived in a comic published seventeen months earlier.  Perhaps the biggest reason is that Belasco is the big baddie of this title, and he has barely been developed in this title.  It does not help that he's hardly in this issue at all.

Art!
One of the challenges with this series is showing Illyana's changing age visually.  Buscema and Palmer certainly make an effort, but it has mixed results.  For every solidly done panel that shows an older Illyana with subtle signs of aging...

Lil' Illyana

Less lil' Illyana

...There is a page like this one, where the difference in age is less obvious and the colorist accidentally gave Illyana's unitard the color it had in her youth. 

You might think that they would have gone with something easier, like a different haircut or hairstyle, but no.

That said, I thought the team did a respectable job overall, and they did good work with two of the more gruesome moments in the script.  I thought the desiccated Colossus corpse looked pretty creepy.  I also was surprised to see the evil Nightcrawler getting a sword through the chest in a Comics Code-approved issue.  I guess it was okay because he was a demon?

Retrospectively Amusing:
- Cat's master plan is to get to Belasco's citadel and try to use her phasing power to cross the dimensional barrier to return to Earth.  Let's ignore the fuzzy comic book science of that (and the fact that she never uses her powers like that again) for now.  Let's also ignore the fact that Cat could have tried this stunt many times since she arrived in Limbo, but has not; I'm okay with the explanation she gives for that.  What I find amusing is the fact that she spends two years training Illyana for this, and then explains the plan to her only when they reach Belasco's altar.