What If...? 39 - Timequake

What If the Watcher saved the Multiverse?

What If...? #39
Writers: Roy Thomas & Jean-Marc Lofficer
Penciler: Gavin Curtis
Inkers: Ian Akin with Don Hudson
Letterer: Janice Chiang
Colorist: Ed Lazellari
Editor: Craig Anderson
Editor in Chief: Tom DeFalco

The Watcher visits the Deputy Secretary of the Time Variance Authority and learns that his cosmic oath to not interfere has been suspended amidst the emergency. Immortus has become a quantum wave infiltrating a succession of alternate realities and will eventually reorder the multiverse. The Deputy Secretary relates the origins of the Time Keepers by the TVA's last director, "He Who Remains," at the end of the universe to teach the next universe how to avoid this one's mistakes but his first creations were flawed and became the Time Twisters, who went destroying multiple eras until "He Who Remains" negated their existence and created the Time Keepers instead. With the timelines at risk the TVA acts decisively by... holding a meeting of the board to discuss multiple matters then launching an "Anti-Immortus Campaign" of posters, leaflets and T-Shirts. Another proposal is to change Immortus's origins and so far the quartet recruited from the different timelines has been sent into Limbo where they face various guardians such as Tempus, a squad of robots and the Space Phantom's race. However the quantum wave keeps resetting events. The Watcher proposes going back to the very early days of Immortus before he was Rama-Tut or Kang, when he was just Nathaniel Richards, inhabitant of an alternative Earth where his time travelling ancestor of the same name (and Reed Richards's father) had helped rebuild the planet after an invasion. The younger Nathaniel had explored his ancestor's fort and the Watcher sees this as the key point. However the TVA are obsessed with using the "Saturnyne Symbiont" that when implanted will make it impossible for Immortus to store much Nexus energy but don't know how to get it into him. In Nathaniel's youth he explores the fort and discovers his ancestor's time machine when the TVA transport in the Fantastic Four of another timeline where they had different powers and Reed's mind now occupies Dr Doom's body. However they are too aggressive and Nathaniel suspects a trick to prevent him gaining the time machine so activates the fort's internal weaponry, killing them. In Limbo Irondroid and Dr Doom are killed and not reset when the next Immortus wave sweeps over. The Watcher suggests an alternate Fantastic Four who can convince better - a version of the team who never gained super powers. This team's Reed Richards operates a dampening field to neutralise the weapons and then tries convincing by producing a DNA analyser to prove they are related. Nathaniel is convinced and let's Sue administer the Symbiont. Things to reset with everyone returning to their timelines whilst Immortus cannot contain the power and explodes. At the end of time Immortus meets the restored Time Keepers and then a second trio appears. It becomes apparent the Watcher was actually dealing with the Time Twisters and there are two alternate realities at the end of time, one where He Who Remains replaced the Twisters with the Keepers and one where he did not. The Twisters melt away into pods and the Keepers return to watching over the timelines. Back at the TVA the Time Zone Manager returns from his holiday and the Deputy Secretaries all try to take credit. The Watcher leaves and reflects on how the threat was defeated by four special humans with no power at all.

After four chapters largely serving to recruit characters from individual timelines and set up the threat we now get a very heavy final issue with a strong dose of the comedy as the Time Variance Authority is a satire on how big organisations work or rather don't with the added gag of all the ranks of middle management looking identical and being drawn as Mark Gruenwald, Marvel's then-Executive Editor and continuity cop. There's a lot of continuity to this issue with the origins of the Time Keepers, the Time Twisters and Immortus all proving relevant to the plot whilst we also get appearances by just about any character or race ever connected to Immortus's Limbo (though, seemingly, not the Limbo of Inferno) as well as appearances by two different Fantastic Fours from the original What If...? series (issues #6 and #34 and there's nothing contradictory here that stops this being a later adventure for either team). But at it's core the narrative flows smoothly and never gets confusing in spite of the umpteen timelines, flashbacks and time travel involved.

(Immortus's original timeline is called "'Warlord's Earth' for the sake of brevity" by the Watcher, which now stands as a reminder that all the numbering of various different timelines was not used by Marvel at this time outside of Captain Britain and Excalibur.)

What's also notable is the way the threat is resolved. The Watcher may have broken his vow to not interfere rather more than he might care to remember but he's not one to get actively involved himself. Instead he uses his knowledge and travel abilities to help others reach solutions. This may be the first comic story in which he's been the headline character (the earlier comedy issues in both series don't count) but he's not going into action all powers blazing or trying to confront Immortus directly. Instead he observes and recommends, staying completely in character. However the Time Variance Authority is played for laughs and one has to wonder just how such an organisation could ever have come to play a key role in the multiverse unless there's a highly competent frontline staff. Instead salvation ultimately comes through a version of the Fantastic Four.

Normally the idea of travelling back in time and stopping a disaster through changing history is a bit of a cop-out in time travel stories. Here it seems to work that by introducing an element into a character's past it only takes effect in the relative present which is probably best not thought about in detail. But what does stand out is the way that salvations ultimately comes not through the exercising of powers but by thinking through the situation and convincing. The Fantastic Four are the foundation stone of the Marvel Universe and so it makes to sense to use a version of them to bring resolution but here we have the twist that they are without powers. And so we get an affirmation that what makes them fantastic isn't stretching or flaming on or turning invisible or rocks or for that matter having wings, stretching, having a robot body or being a super powered mind occupying another. No it's good will and knowledge that saves the day and shows how these four are special people cosmic rays or no cosmic rays. That really is the sort of insight into characters that What If...? stories can often give.

As a whole Timequake has been a rather awkward story. It's refreshing to see the series trying something a bit different and presenting a saga with consequences but it's been let down by awkward choices of alternate worlds that have required some heavy resetting to get the characters to where they're needed and several of the chapters haven't done a good job of providing a substantial story with a clear difference from the regular Marvel history. It's also been complicated by the Time Keepers and the Whisperer introducing elements into the timelines that have shifted them away from how things would otherwise have panned out. But this final chapter instead focuses upon how disruption is responded to and how the Watcher calmly finds a solution.

Although the storyline as a whole has been a bit disappointing this final chapter is easily the best. It presents a very different take and approach from a traditional super comic, reflecting how different a character the Watcher is. It also makes good use of a couple of classic What If...? stories without having to make changes of one kind or another to get the characters to where they need to be. Instead it gives us an opportunity to see how the characters respond in different circumstances whilst still being true to themselves. The series is at its best when it does this. It also gives the Watcher the opportunity to do more than merely narrate or observe and Uatu comes out the stronger. The whole story may have been weak but this is a fantastic conclusion.

(There is also a one page gag strip entitled What If Magneto Was Stuck in an Elevator with Colossus, Iron Man and Doctor Doom? credited to "Cullen Montano Going Joyce". It's a silly premise and the punchline just doesn't come off.)

Power Pack 42 - Inferno

Power Pack face their worst nightmare as they discover the Bogeyman really is under the bed.

Power Pack #42

Jon Bogdanove who both wrote and penciled lightly
Stan Drake who finished in ink tightly
Don Hudson inking the backgrounds slightly
Glynis Oliver who still colors brightly
Carl Potts editing nightly
Tom DeFalco Editor in Chief Politely
[And Joe Rosen lettering with credit overlooked unknightly]

(In case you're wondering about issue #41 it was an unrelated issue by a different team that saw the Pack dealing with a landlord committing arson so as to use the insurance to clear his debts.)

In Limbo Douglas Carmody gets changed by N'astirh and sent to Earth. The heatwave in New York coincides with all four Power children coming down with a fever and being unable to join together to use their healing powers to cure themselves as their parents are constantly around. The flat experiences more of the weirdness as living sewage and mildew invade whilst out on the streets Carmody and other demons make their presence felt. The Powers plan to leave the flat to stay at a relative's who has a water supply but Carmody sneaks into the building and confronts them in the lift. Grabbing the parents he demand the children reveal their secret.

Many of the foes thrown into Limbo in various issues have been transformed by the magic there into something far more demonic and dangerous and so it's natural to give Carmody a power upgrade beyond a simplistic man using technology into something far more powerful and dangerous. His demonic form retains his obsession with decency, attacking gangs in the street and then picking on a loud obnoxious fat man and stealing his suit to create a suitably comic appearance for this monstrous foe.

Much of the issue focuses on a seemingly ordinary family trying to survive in the madness caused by illness, the heatwave and now reports of the demons invading New York with the complication that the children could easily cure their illness and deal with many of the immediate problems but it would require them to give away their secret. Meanwhile their parents are suffering the effects of the madness with Jim worn down by the heat and long walk home through streets overflowing with rubbish when public transport packs up whilst Maggie is showing signs of collapsing under the strain.

And then the Bogeyman attacks and forces the children to reveal their identities to their parents.

The debate about whether to tell them or not had been running for a good while both in the stories themselves and on the letters page but seemingly resolved with a decision to not do so. However the cliffhanger to this issue blows so much open and offers a real prospect that a major lasting change is being made here.

This makes the slower pace of the issue feel natural. It's all building up to the key moment at the end so it helps to give us a final look at what life has been like for the parents before the bombshell. Making such a bold move is a shock but also offers true change going forward.

Captain America 369 - Acts of Vengeance Aftermath

This issue continues the search for the Red Skull, as Crossbones leads an assault on the Hellfire Club in the belief that this is where Magneto is holding him. Meanwhile Captain America is searching for Diamondback, the ex-member of the Serpent Society trying to reform.

Captain America #369

Writer: Mark Gruenwald (all)
Penciler: Ron Lim (main)
Penciler: Mark Bagley (back-up)
Inker: Danny Bulanadi (main)
Inker: Don Hudson (back-up)
Letterer: Jack Morelli (all)
Colourist: Steve Buccellato (all)
Editor: Ralph Macchio
Editor-in-Chief: Tom DeFalco

This is very early in the development of Cap and Diamondback's relationship and there are obvious obstacles on both sides. Here it's Diamondback's friend the Asp who expresses the most concern, though the art is also a slight problem in depicting Diamondback incredibly young, almost a girl, in panels where she has her mask off. There's also Cap's social conservatism, making his disapproval clear when he discovers the Asp is working in a strip club. And there's the problem of Diamondback's hidden past with Crossbones which is hinted at here.

The assault on the Hellfire Club is straightforward with Crossbones leading a diverse team of the Voice, Mother Night and Machinesmith using the body of the Sleeper. Each has particular skills that are utilised in the mission as they break into the basement and search through the club's cameras, though it ultimately proves a futile search. Then they find Cap, Diamondback and Selene, the Club's Black Queen, all converging in the sewer leading to a fight. The fight itself is complicated by the close quarters and Selene's desire to avoid drawing too much attention to the Hellfire Club, but it does result in Cap and Diamondback finding themselves in an interesting situation.

The second strip focuses upon the Skull as he completes his situation trapped in the darkness. He starts hallucinating and is visited by the spirits of his past. First comes his angry father, who attacks him for his mother's death in childbirth and suggests his son follows him into suicide. Then comes another "father", Adolf Hitler, who also took his life in an underground bunker. The Skull's daughter also turns up to express her hate, whilst Arnim Zola urges the Skull to kill himself and be reborn in a perfect body. However Captain America counsels against suicide. In just five pages we get a fascinating glimpse at the Skull's life and the forces that have driven him, as well as a struggle in which his most hated foe once again wins.

This issue continues a good solid plot that continues to build on the events of "Acts of Vengeance" and show the impact on the various characters, rather than simply moving onwards. However the Cap/Diamondback relationship can seem surprising when introduced this way and also needs a little more care with the artwork to avoid unintended suggestions.

Captain America #369 has been reprinted in:

• Captain America Epic Collection: The Bloodstone Hunt (2018)

Captain America 368 - Acts of Vengeance Aftermath

This issue sees both Captain America and the Red Skull's organisation following up the events of "Acts of Vengeance", with both trying to find Magneto.

Captain America #368

Writer: Mark Gruenwald (all)
Penciler: Ron Lim (main)
Penciler: Mark Bagley (back-up)
Inker: Danny Bulanadi (main)
Inker: Don Hudson (back-up)
Letterer: Jack Morelli (all)
Colourist: Steve Buccellato (main)
Colourist: Nel Yomtov (back-up)
Editor: Ralph Macchio
Editor-in-Chief: Tom DeFalco

For someone so notorious a continuity watcher as Mark Gruenwald, it's surprising that this issue doesn't seem to know where it fits into place around the end of the crossover. Thus whereas Captain America and the Avengers support crew are clearly set after the climax, over in Washington DC it's implied that this is the first time a Red Skull robot is activated to take the absent Skull's place and thus would be set before the climax. Finally a panel at the end of the first story showing Magneto's current location is the same scene as happened during the Mandarin's attack in Avengers #313. This sort of thing is frustratingly all too common around crossovers and makes for much headscratching over the correct order of things.

There are some good contrasts between the way Cap interacts with Avengers support crew and the way Crossbones does with other operatives in the Red Skull's base. But there's also a strong sense that the Skull's organisation is not merely people held together by pay or fear but does contain people who actually enjoy working for the Skull and the challenges it brings. And the prospect of the organisation collapsing because of the Skull's disappearance brings real fear.

The core focus for both the hero and villains is on finding Magneto, with the real one only making a single panel appearance here. Both Captain America and Crossbones have tried the research and contacts method, but Machinesmith has his own idea - send out a robotic duplicate in public to lure the real one out. Unfortunately it gets a little silly when Machinesmith, controlling the robot through his ability to transfer his consciousness between devices, decides he has to act "very un-Magneto like" and starts chewing the scenery. And all the attempt brings is Captain America instead.

The back-up story is a quick history of Machinesmith, told by the robot himself to the Sleeper he's working on. It recounts one of the more awkward parts of the character's history - his having been the second Mister Fear, a point where the two characters' history were merged some time back. Otherwise this is a tale of how a boy became fascinated by robots and developed as an engineer and then when he was killed in battle his robots preserved his brain patterns in mechanical form. The main surprise is how explicit the story is about Machinesmith's sexuality. He's presented as a highly camp character and here he talks to the Sleeper like a surgeon operating on his own romantic partner. His dialogue about putting his consciousness into other robots and enjoying the intimacy is extremely blatant. At the end he even removes his synthetic face to reveal his robotic one and kisses the Sleeper. At first the over campness feels unnecessarily stereotypical but it's easy to forget that until 1989 the Comics Code Authority had effectively barred the depiction of LGBT characters (the precise wording is complicated, hence some had got passed it) and to some extent exaggerated clichés were the most effective ways to get the message across. The code may have just changed but editorial policy might not yet have.

Otherwise this issue is quite a good example of Mark Gruenwald's epic run on the series which really deserves a complete collection; fortunately this issue is from a period covered by the Epic reprints. It shows how to use a crossover as a useful way to create interesting developments in a series and prepares the ground for a search for the Skull.

Captain America #368 has been reprinted in:

• Captain America Epic Collection: The Bloodstone Hunt (2018)

Punisher War Journal 12 - Acts of Vengeance

The late 1980s saw the Punisher surge to such popularity that within two years he had gone from having no series at all to being only the second Marvel character to have two ongoing monthly series. The two titles largely orbited each other in their early years, making passing reference to events in the other series but normally avoiding crossovers. Companywide events can be harder to avoid but rather than running one long story told over all titles (as with the Spider-Man books both here and during "Inferno"), it instead goes for a two-parter in the older title and then a sequel that readers of the other series don't need to be aware of. It's not immediately obvious why this is, although if Punisher War Journal was only sold in the direct market then it may have been to avoid confusing newsstand readers who would only have been able to access half of the story. It also means that sequential collections of either title don't contain the parts from the other.

Punisher War Journal #12

Story: Carl Potts
Pencils: Jim Lee
Inks: Al Milgrom
Background inks: Don Hudson
Letters: Jim Novak
Colours: Gregory Wright
Assistant Editor: Rob Tokar
Editor: Don Daley
Editor-in-Chief: Tom DeFalco

Unfortunately for contemporary readers this would all have fallen down due to the order in which the books were released. Despite clearly taking place in the order Punisher #28, Punisher #29, Punisher War Journal #12 and Punisher War Journal #13, they were instead released in the order Punisher War Journal #12, Punisher #28, Punisher War Journal #13 and Punisher #29, thus beginning the sequel even before the original story. This arrangement looks even odder when noting that Carl Potts was the editor on Punisher and the writer on Punisher War Journal. One possible explanation is that Punisher War Journal began coming out approximately every six weeks but stepped up the frequency to monthly with issue #10 and this threw the planned schedule with no time to insert a fill-in to restore it.

The problems don't arise until nearly halfway through the issue when we get a scene of the Kingpin and Doctor Doom continuing their taunting of one another about how easy it would be to take the Punisher down, with Doom brushing aside his reasons for not doing so in the earlier story before the Kingpin takes on the task and opts to contract Bushwhacker, a former foe of Daredevil. The method of recruitment is interesting, with the mysterious stranger first sent to bribe a news anchor on "CMN", a twenty-four-hour news channel that Bushwhacker watches, to deliver coverage that approves of the vigilante but disapproves of the mercenary. Then he contacts Bushwhacker, claiming the Punisher is an ally of Daredevil as the clincher.

Earlier in the issue we get a classic use of the split page technique to provide parallels and contrasts between the two strands of the story, as Bushwhacker is introduced whilst on a missing to kill a modern artist who is also a low-level mutant, whilst the Punisher attacks a group of drug importers by the dock. It's a good sequence in its own right but it also helps to introduce the Punisher to readers who may be encountering him for the first time, though this effect is limited when the issues are put in chronological order. Later the Punisher's origin is used in the story, further introducing him but also providing a rationale for how Bushwhacker is able to locate him when he makes his annual pilgrimage to the site where his family were killed.

Normally the villains in Punisher stories don't live past the end of the story, making it difficult to accumulate a long-term set of recurring foes. However as Bushwhacker originated from another series there's a possibility he could be an exception. An ex-priest who then worked for the CIA before turning mercenary, he has a cybernetic arm that can form itself into a variety of guns, making him difficult to literally disarm. His history compares and contrasts well with the Punisher, suggesting good future potential.

Overall this is a pretty strong issue that works well in introducing both the hero and foe and setting up the conflict in a way that works for both new and regular readers. It's unfortunate that at the time this came out of sequence but now that's no longer an issue.

Punisher War Journal #12 has been reprinted in:

• Acts of Vengeance Crossovers Omnibus (2011)
• Punisher War Journal by Carl Potts & Jim Lee (2016)

Captain America 367 - Acts of Vengeance

And now we come to the big moment as Magneto attacks the Red Skull...

Captain America #367

Writer: Mark Gruenwald (all)
Penciler: Kieron Dwyer (main)
Penciler: Mark Bagley (back-up)
Inker: Danny Bulanadi (main)
Inker: Don Hudson (back-up)
Letterer: Jack Morelli (all)
Colourist: Steve Buccellato (main)
Colourist: Nel Yomtov (back-up)
Editor: Ralph Macchio
Editor-in-Chief: Tom DeFalco

This issue once again contains two stories. To get the back-up out of the way first, it features the conclusion of the Cobra's encounter with Mr Hyde, with the former rediscovering himself, changing his costume slightly and modifying his name to become "King Cobra". It's been an interesting tale of self-discovery, though it could probably have benefitted from being told over two issues rather than three. Still it's a good little piece that has made use of the continuity from the mass breakout at the Vault, showing how Mark Gruenwald was often the master of tying things up.

So too does the lead story which tackles head on one of the biggest criticisms of "Acts of Vengeance". Of all the villains in the core alliance, Magneto is by far the most complicated character and had undergone a lot of development in the preceding decade as he moved away from his traditional villainous role into a much-more ambiguous anti-hero, complete with revelations about his past. Not all creators agreed with these moves and, as discussed a bit with Amazing Spider-Man #327, this particular era saw a lot of struggle over characterisation and direction with some issues doing their best to rationalise the changes around them. In this environment, using Magneto in an alliance of leading villains that could have been assembled at any point since 1967 was not going to sit too easily when it resulted in a Holocaust survivor working with a Nazi war criminal.

All that said, it should be noted that neither Magneto nor the Red Skull has actually done a great deal in the crossover so far. Most of the work of commissioning and dispatching villains has been carried out by Doctor Doom, with the Wizard doing some of the raw heavy lifting and the Kingpin providing organisational support. By contrast Magneto may have fought Spider-Man as part of an investigation, but otherwise has done little beyond observing and hectoring the other villains sent against Spider-Man. The Red Skull has done even less, just using the breakout from the Vault to increase the capabilities of his organisation. (Depending on chronology the Mandarin may or may not have done anything yet but if the latter then change is coming soon.) It's clear from his thoughts here that the Red Skull frankly has no interest in the overall plan and it's only the presence in his office of a portal to the committee room that keeps him attending. Was this perhaps a reflection of writer and editor boredom with the crossover as well?

But regardless of motivations we get the best handling of the villains in the whole saga as Magneto swoops in to confront the Skull directly. There's no evasion as he first demands confirmation that this actually is the Nazi-era Skull then condemns him for the actions of the regime he served in. There's never any real doubt about the physical outcome of the confrontation - the Skull may have technical resources and henchmen but they're all ultimately reliant on metal and useless against the Master of Magnetism. Thus all the Skull can do is try to slow Magneto down as he seeks to escape. Instead the Skull's most powerful weapon turns out to be words:

We are very much alike, you and I, Magneto, both of us wish to see our Master Race inherit the Earth. You call my Fuehrer barbaric? Am I mistaken or did you yourself not kill hundreds of men by sinking a submarine a few years back? To help realise your minority group’s destiny, would you balk at the imprisonment of inferiors? The extermination of the unfit? Come, come, Magneto. Do not expect me to be impressed by your sanctimonious posturings of moral superiority! Let's let the past rest. We both have better things to do in the present!

At a time when in the real world there was a renewed drive to bring Nazi-era war criminals to justice, it's interesting to see some of the arguments paralleled here. There were many who opposed prosecutions, arguing that a previous generation had declared the task completed and individuals should be allowed to move on in the present. Others fiercely disagreed and were determined to bring the surviving leaders to justice. But even some demanding prosecution were attacked on their own records. Magneto's position as a fighter for mutant rights has often led to the freedom fighter or terrorist point behind argued out and it's a powerful rejoinder. When he does eventually catch and imprison the Skull he feels the need to declare "I should kill you and be done with it. But that would reduce me to the level of a common killer... make me no better than you. And I am better than you, Nazi." Instead of killing he locks the Skull in a shelter, removing the ladder and leaving just water with no way of escape. It's a brutal torture.

This story does a lot to fix the problems raised by Magneto's inclusion in the "Acts of Vengeance" and it does it brilliantly. It also seems to be aware of potential knock-on effects and so introduces Red Skull robots - a small army of androids that look identical to the villain and can replace him, similar to Doctor Doom's Doombots who are mentioned here. Whether this is deliberate preparation for later issues or simply seeding the idea to cover any future continuity problems with Red Skull appearances is unclear, but it's a nice touch.

Missing from the cover and this post so far is the star of the series. Captain America does arrive at the Skull's offices in the hope of discovering more about the conspiracy, but all he gets is a battle with the Controller and other henchmen then a wander through the wreckage as he tries to work out what's happened and who attacked the Skull. It's preparing the ground for later tales, but this is a rare issue of a series that belongs to someone other than the lead hero.

Overall this is by far the single best issue of the "Acts of Vengeance" crossover. Sometimes attempts at continuity fixes merely produce dry explanations for awkward points. This is anything but that, instead taking a messy scenario and turning it around to restore Magneto's ambiguous position without undermining his participation in the saga. It's a strong, bold chapter with some brilliant imagery and dark moments.

Captain America #367 has been reprinted in:

• Acts of Vengeance Omnibus (2011)
• Captain America Epic Collection: The Bloodstone Hunt (2018)

Captain America 366 - Acts of Vengeance

This issue continues the two-story format, with the back-up being a straightforward fight between the Cobra and Mr Hyde. It's an all-out action piece in which the Cobra has to overcome his fear and lack of self-esteem in order to defeat his old foe who seems unstoppable. It's an okay piece but these back-up sagas can often wind up running on for too many months due to the limited space available.

Captain America #366

Writer: Mark Gruenwald (all)
Penciler: Ron Lim (main)
Penciler: Mark Bagley (back-up)
Inker: Danny Bulanadi (main)
Inker: Don Hudson (back-up)
Letterer: Jack Morelli (all)
Colourist: Nel Yomtov (all)
Editor: Ralph Macchio
Editor-in-Chief: Tom DeFalco

The lead story gives us our first glimpse of the full committee of leading villains as they conclude their first summit meeting. Ever the businessman, the Kingpin has been chairing the board meeting, but we don't see direct exchanges between any of the six. However Magneto shows some sense in asking the mysterious stranger whether or not the Red Skull attending the meeting is the original, who was assumed to have died some time back. Given Magneto's history established since the Silver Age it's more than a little odd that he would be willingly working with a Nazi war criminal so it's good to see him questioning this, wondering if it could be a successor.

(There had indeed been another Red Skull for a while, a Communist agent who filled in various continuity holes such as the Skull's appearances in the 1950s Captain America stories and then later killing Spider-Man's parents when Peter Parker was just a baby. However he had been killed off just before the original Skull was brought back from the dead.)

It's been notable that so far the Skull has actually done very little in the crossover beyond attending meetings, whereas Doctor Doom, the Wizard and the Kingpin have all been shown to be recruiting and directing individual villains and Magneto has personally investigated Spider-Man and the Mandarin is caught in the curse of chronology but will be seen in an already published but coming later issue. The Skull's low involvement is soon explained in his thoughts - he dislikes having to work the others and only attends out of fear they're plotting against him. It's a strong first sign of how difficult it is to get a super-villain team-up to work given the hatreds and rivalries amongst them. Indeed the Skull's main focus is on trying to take control of the mysterious stranger through the Controller's equipment rather than advancing the wider plans.

Otherwise this issue sees Captain America tracking down the Controller in the hope of capturing one of his control discs to use the technology to free the Sub-Mariner from another. It's unfortunate the Cap's earlier encounter with the Controller is explicitly referenced as it reinforces just how much this series hasn't really been conforming to the event premise of heroes being attacked by villains they've never fought before and this isn't offset by the presence of the Voice, an extremely obscure old Ant-Man foe who has also been recruited by the Skull and Crossbones but is only a peripheral presence in the fight. The conflict itself showcases Captain America at his best, both as a skilled fighter but also a cunning tactician who goes into a situation properly prepared.

Although it doesn't contain a previously unseen conflict, this issue is generally quite solid, moving the story forward for both Cap and the Skull as they grapple with the events around it. It also seems to be aware of some of the problems with the general premise of the alliance and may want to fix them.

Captain America #366 has been reprinted in:

• Acts of Vengeance Omnibus (2011)
• Captain America Epic Collection: The Bloodstone Hunt (2018)

Captain America 365 - Acts of Vengeance

This is another series which resorted to a lead and back-up strip format, but both tie in with the crossover, with each featuring escaped villains from the Vault and at least one attempt at recruitment made by the mysterious stranger.

Captain America #365

Writer: Mark Gruenwald (all)
Penciler: Kieron Dwyer (main)
Penciler: Mark Bagley (back-up)
Inker: Danny Bulanadi (main)
Inker: Don Hudson (back-up)
Letterer: Jack Morelli (all)
Colourist: Bob Sharen (main)
Colourist: Nel Yomtov (back-up)
Editor: Ralph Macchio
Editor-in-Chief: Tom DeFalco

It's not clear what level the Cobra was being invited for in the back-up story but he simply isn't interested in revenge. Over in the lead, Namor the Submariner is invited to join the central leadership bit has no interest, having abandoned his campaign against the surface world. However the Red Skull is interested and signs up. This gives us our first look at the full list of leaders with the Skull, the Wizard, the Kingpin and Doctor Doom all shown whilst both the Mandarin and Magneto are mentioned (and have been glimpsed in earlier issues). It's a very traditional collection, consisting of the arch-enemies of Captain America, Iron Man, the Human Torch, the Fantastic Four and the X-Men, with the Kingpin filling a triple role for Daredevil, the Punisher and being the highest-ranking strategic foe of Spider-Man. This line-up could have been assembled at just about any time since the Silver Age and the absentees from the line-up are highly suggestive. It's also notable that the stranger announces the Red Skull's participation before he actually agrees, a sign that other villains may have signed up to a more speculative than yet achieved version of the alliance.

Both tales deal with the fallout from the escape from the Vault, with the back-up seeing the Cobra discovering that Mr Hyde has escaped and rushing to act before his erstwhile partner achieves revenge. The former sees the Red Skull (well Crossbones does the actual work) pick up the Controller, a traditional Iron Man foe, and send him to the site of the sunken Avengers headquarters to attack Captain America, using Namor the Submariner as his tool. This leads to a quick fight at both sea and on land until Cap spots the control disc on Namor's neck and realises what's happening. The Controller and Captain America had briefly clashed previously in the Captain Marvel/Thanos saga back in the 1970s, but it was a fleeting encounter and, in any case, if there's one hero who can be expected to have looked up just about every known weapon and tool of even villains he hasn't fought, it's Captain America.

With this chapter it feels like the whole "Acts of Vengeance" saga is really coming together but there's a general problem with events being scattered across multiple issues meaning that Captain America is jumping back forth across issues, but at least there's a clear explanation. As we'll see when looking at some future issues, Mark Gruenwald was often the man who stepped in to pull the event towards coherence and deal with some of the particularly odd moments. This issue is from near the middle of his epic run on the series and shows a series in its stride with the main character benefitting from consistency and a developed world.

Captain America #365 has been reprinted in:

• Acts of Vengeance Omnibus (2011)
• Captain America Epic Collection: The Bloodstone Hunt (2018)