New Mutants 83 - Acts of Vengeance

Here's an additional issue that isn't billed as part of the crossover or collected with it, but does a little preparation. This issue was published on the same day as Avengers Spotlight #26 and Amazing Spider-Man #326 so could have just as easily carried an "Acts of Vengeance" banner. As we'll see, this is as involved in the crossover as the next two issues which do. It even references the breakout at the Vault. However it's not offering itself to the world as part of the crossover and nor does it seem to have been collected as such.

New Mutants #83

Writer: Louise Simonson
Artist: Bret Blevins
Letterer: Joe Rosen
Colourist: Glynis Oliver
Editor: Bob Harras
Editor-in-Chief: Tom DeFalco

This issue, the last of Bret Blevins's run, contains just a couple of pages towards the big event, starting to set things up for a future issue. Rusty Collins is in a regular prison and learns of the Vault breakout from a paper when another prisoner is brought in, the Vulture. Widely taunted by the guards and other prisoners, the old man declares he will show them all and is inspired to seek help from Nitro whom he sees a report about. This is quite a quick little scene that serves to establish the characters for a later story.

The rest of the issue continues the New Mutants' long-running adventures in Asgard. Since the next issue is the first with a banner it's more appropriate to discuss this storyline there as this, presumably, was not intended to be read by readers coming in just for the crossover.

Overall the prison scene here is a straightforward piece that can help understanding the events in the next two issues, but this isn't something to search high and low for.

New Mutants #83 has been reprinted in:

• New Mutants Epic Collection: Curse of the Valkyries (2018)