Thunderbolts

[Admin]

Thunderbolts #151
Written by Jeff Parker
Pencils by Kev Walker


The latest Thunderbolts run continues to impress as writer Jeff Parker and artist Kev Walker turn their attention to the team's most mysterious member, Ghost. In my opinion, Ghost getting the spotlight is definitely long overdue. We already know each characters origin story and their motives, but Ghost has been pretty vague. Now we finally get see to why.

You can tell Parker really cares for the characters because he gives an effort to tell us about what each character is up to during the team’s downtime, instead of simply not including them. Where things get especially interesting is when Moonstone tries to cure her boredom by chatting with Ghost. Being a former psychologist, Moonstone gets Ghost to open up and reveal what he claims to be his origin story. Parker unveils an emotional story about Ghost’s past involvement with a large company, which helps us relate to his constant belief of conspiracy theories, hatred of huge corporations, and never trusting others. That said, I can't help but wonder why Ghost would tell this to Moonstone, who is easily one of the most manipulative people on the team. Did he do this just for his own personal amusement or is he attempting to give Moonstone a false sense of leverage over him? I'm probably looking too far into this, but it's something that crossed my mind many times during the tale. As usual, artist Kev Walker does an excellent job giving a unique style for every facial expression and action panel.

The end of the issue will definitely come as a surprise for everyone. The Thunderbolts get a new and very powerful member, so I’m excited to see what Parker has in store for us.

3.5/5

Erik-El edit: Merged Thunderbolts reviews into one thread.

[Morpheus]

Agreed with the review. This was definitely a very solid effort, and the revamped Ghost is too entertaining a character not to have some time in the spotlight. Hopefully the issues you raise about Ghost's interaction with Moonstone will be addressed, later on.

[Admin]

Thanks, but unfortunately I'm leaning towards "Or was he just honestly bored enough to reveal his past to her."

[Morpheus]

Feb 1, 2011 8:48:32 GMT -5 Admin said:

Thanks, but unfortunately I'm leaning towards "Or was he just honestly forced by plot to reveal his past to her otherwise we'd still know little about him."

Hurm.

[Admin]

Feb 1, 2011 8:52:13 GMT -5 Morpheus said:

Feb 1, 2011 8:48:32 GMT -5 Admin said:

Thanks, but unfortunately I'm leaning towards "Or was he just honestly forced by plot to reveal his past to her otherwise we'd still know little about him."

Hurm.

Alright, I just started reading #152 and it looks like my assumption about their relationship was correct. There's no plotting or alterior motives behind the exchange between the two, it was just an honest attempt to bond.

[Morpheus]

Rather odd for those two. More so Moonstone than Ghost. Mostly because it has been quite a while (years, really) since we laast saw true emotional responses from her.

[Admin]

Issue #152 is action-packed, but development takes a seat on the sidelines. This issue revolves around writer Jeff Parker's latest addition to the team, Hyperion. Yes, you heard me right. Hyperion is now a Thunderbolt. He's come foward and claims he's offering to use his power to help the government. But the real question is which version of Hyperion is this? He's either a legitimate cosmic hero or a powerhouse villain. Needless to say, you'll find out towards the end of this issue.

Cage justifies the need for Hyperion because their latest mission is against some massive, and man do I mean massive monsters. Just like any stereotypical giant sized monster, they're off the coast of Japan and ready to attack. Seriously, I'm not kidding. This is where about 3/4ths of the issue will be spent showing how the Thunderbolts attempt to pair off and use their powers together, and Ghost allegedly just sits back and watches it all go down. But surely, we know he's up to something else which will naturally be revealed in the next issue.
And then the reveal about Hyperion takes place. Does he save the day and prove he's good, or does he slip up and reveal he's evil? If you're reading the issue, I think you'll find the discovery quite obvious, especially based on the way he conducts himself.

Regardless, I'm absolutely baffled as to why Cage would allow Hyperion on the team. Despite the need for power, this guy is WAY out of everyone's league and is more than capable of soloing the team with little to no effort. Right off the bat, he's skeptical of whether he can trust the man. He knows there's a 50/50 chance the dude is pure evil. But I'm going to give Parker the benefit of the doubt and assume they have a fail-safe in place that he has yet to reveal to us. I guess we'll just have to wait and see... Because otherwise, that was a really stupid play on Cage's behalf.

This was definitely one of those issues where you can just shut off your brain and enjoy the action, but the story-telling in the previous issue left me hoping for more interesting developments with the main roster. That said, if you're a fan of the characters or series, it's at least worth a read to remain current and the following events might be worth it.

3/5

[Morpheus]

I see some of my remarks concerning this issue left an impression on you.

I pretty much agree with everything, from the Ghost's sitting out of the action, and Luke's fail-safe (the T-bolts using devices to restrain members is quite a common practic), or even the Ghost being the one to provide the deus ex machina solution. Both as a standalone issue, and as part of what I presume to be a two issues storyline (I don't recall the solicitations for # 154-55) it just seems a few nothces down in comparison to the two previous issues, seeing as we can pin-point, and even predict certain developments without real trouble.

[Admin]

Feb 1, 2011 12:26:49 GMT -5 Morpheus said:

I see some of my remarks concerning this issue left an impression on you.

I pretty much agree with everything, from the Ghost's sitting out of the action, and Luke's fail-safe (the T-bolts using devices to restrain members is quite a common practic), or even the Ghost being the one to provide the deus ex machina solution. Both as a standalone issue, and as part of what I presume to be a two issues storyline (I don't recall the solicitations for # 154-55) it just seems a few nothces down in comparison to the two previous issues, seeing as we can pin-point, and even predict certain developments without real trouble.

LOL. Nah, I went into the issue with an open-mind and tried my best not to think about our previous conversation. Glad to see we agree on most matters, but I'm also curious about the newly revealed side-plot with Fixer. It's obvious he's secretly working with another individual, but for what purpose? Hopefully, that will be addressed in the next issue.

Also, with the way this issue ended, it absolutely has to be a two part story. What score would you give this issue?

[Power NeXus]

Cool! The T-Bolts are getting their cool characters back
Songbird, Fixer, Mach IV............ waitaminute. No Radioactive Man?

Dangit.

[Admin]

Last I knew, Radioactive Man was back in China. But yes, Songbird, Fixer, and Mach V are all main characters.

[Morpheus]

Feb 1, 2011 12:30:52 GMT -5 Admin said:

Feb 1, 2011 12:26:49 GMT -5 Morpheus said:

I see some of my remarks concerning this issue left an impression on you.

I pretty much agree with everything, from the Ghost's sitting out of the action, and Luke's fail-safe (the T-bolts using devices to restrain members is quite a common practic), or even the Ghost being the one to provide the deus ex machina solution. Both as a standalone issue, and as part of what I presume to be a two issues storyline (I don't recall the solicitations for # 154-55) it just seems a few nothces down in comparison to the two previous issues, seeing as we can pin-point, and even predict certain developments without real trouble.

LOL. Nah, I went into the issue with an open-mind and tried my best not to think about our previous conversation. Glad to see we agree on most matters, but I'm also curious about the newly revealed side-plot with Fixer. It's obvious he's secretly working with another individual, but for what purpose? Hopefully, that will be addressed in the next issue.

Also, with the way this issue ended, it absolutely has to be a two part story. What score would you give this issue?

Probably 2.5/5.

[Admin]

We think alike too frequently. I contemplated between 2.5 and 3 for quite some time.

[jakefury]

Nice review k4tz.

The last issue with Ghost was so story driven this one almost felt like a completely different comic.

[Admin]

Thanks Jake, and I completely agree.

[jakefury]

Ghost may be my favorite character in comics right now. This was long overdue.

[Admin]

Really? I had no idea. What did you think of his origin?

[jakefury]

He's really grown on me in the current T-Bolts run.

It was interesting. I remember his rant against corporations from Dark Avengers and I was always curious as to where the hate stemmed from.

[jakefury]

Review contains spoilers

Thunderbolts #155
Writer: Jeff Parker
Artist: Kev Walker
Color Artist: Frank Martin

First and foremost, some backstory to get everyone up to speed. In the last few issues the T’Bolts have lost a couple of members in Crossbones & Hyperion. In this issue, we see the beginning of a T’Bolts Beta Testing initiative that will train a group of back-up members in case something goes wrong on a mission. We also see Luke Cage and Man-Thing with the help of Dr. Strange going on a recruiting mission for a new member to assist them in dealing with magical threats.

I’m not a huge fan of Dr. Strange or Luke Cage but this is a pretty good issue. Their mission takes them to the Himalaya Mountains (weren’t the Avengers just there in the Bendis-Avengers?) to recruit their newest member. It’s not an easy mission (like they ever are) but in the end it’s a successful one.

Back at the Raft, we see the recruiting drive for the Beta Initiative kick into high gear and its spearheaded by US Agent and Songbird, who is now the new team captain. This fact isn’t sitting well with the Fixer by any means. Agent and Songbird make their way through the Raft and come up with the following candidates for the new Beta team.




Overall:
I wasn’t expecting much from a story featuring Dr. Strange and Luke Cage but this was a pretty good issue. I’m also interested in seeing the developments to come with Fixer/Songbird and also who becomes the next team member. Parker has set up these as the main plot points and I can't wait to see the results to come.

6.5/10

[jakefury]

Anyone got any ideas on who these guys and gals are?

Is that Dark Beast in the middle?