There are a few series notably absent from "Acts of Vengeance". We've already seen
Excalibur and we'll come to
Silver Surfer later, but there's some other notable absentees. Most of the titles that don't take part are set in different universes (e.g.
Nth Man,
What If...), licenced titles (
Transformers,
Alf), creator owned (
Groo Chronicles,
Sleeze Brothers) or reprints (
Classic X-Men) so have their reasons. But also missing are
Nick Fury, Agent of Shield and
Sensational She-Hulk.
Damage Control (volume 2) #3
Writer: Dwayne McDuffie
Artist: Ernie Colon
Letters: Rick Parker
Colour: George Roussos
Editor: Sid Jacobson
Big Guy you don't wanna mess with: Tom DeFalco
The last on the list is especially surprising as it had only recently been launched with John Byrne writing and drawing the title in a very unique fashion, with the star aware that she's a character in a comic book and having a tetchy relationship with her writer. But Byrne left the series just as "Acts of Vengeance" was getting started, leading to a sudden rush of fill-in creators (such that she began issue #9 not having a clue who the names in the credit box were) for the next few issues until Steve Gerber emerged as the permanent new writer. Amidst all this, an "Acts of Vengeance" crossover was lost.
Whether this was all a coincidence or not is unclear, as She-Hulk briefly turned up an issue early, but this issue goes some way to providing a substitute by guest starring her. The story focuses on the consequences of the new owners causing chaos, with much of the workforce on strike, managers scrambling to find replacement contractors and two disgruntled sacked employees seeking their own act of vengeance. Amidst all this She-Hulk is borrowed from the Avengers to help with the heavy work, including getting the Daily Bugle building back into position. However she's attacked by two armoured guys with no fixed names (they eventually settled on "New" and "Improved") and then has to endure a team-up with Speedball.
Surprisingly this issue contains what should be a major moment in Marvel history. The original Avengers mansion had been relocated to Hydrobase and has now been recovered from the water, with Damage Control commissioned to recover it and return it to its original location in Manhattan. Unfortunately the project falls victim to the weakest of management trying to replace the engineers, with the mansion lost in the river. It's a surprise to find such an iconic building meets its final end as a part of a joke in a comedy series, but it's fun nonetheless.
The corporate commentary is more limited in this story, merely focusing on the cluelessness of the new owners in their approach to both the strike and operations, and the result is a much more madcap comedic piece than before, reflecting She-Hulk's own series. This series continues to be a good, fun distraction.
Damage Control (volume 2) #3 has been reprinted in:
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