Sunday, February 25, 2018

Sunday Splash Page #9

"Guess the Fire Burned Away the Belly of Her Outfit" in Amazing Fantasy (vol. 2) #9, by Fred van Lente (writer), David Ross (penciler), Kevin Conrad, Jonathon Glapion (inkers), Guru eFX (colorist), Rus Wooton (letterer)

This volume of Amazing Fantasy started in 2004, and seems like it was a series designed to pitch new characters, or revamped versions of existing characters, to see if they'd stick. This was the series that introduced Anya Corazon (Arana, later Spider-Girl), and Amadeus Cho.

In between those two stories was this six-parter, which introduced a new version of Scorpion. A teenage girl whose body can absorb toxins and then use them as a weapon, and is being chased by SHIELD and AIM. Thasanee's left unsure of anyone's motives, unsure of her own origins, trying to figure out how to make it through this and which way she wants to go. Leonard Kirk shares art duties with Dave Ross. Kirk's work is more simplified, smoother, Thasanee looks younger in the issues he draws. Ross makes her look older, makes the costume more like a second skin.

The story also introduced SHIELD agent Derek Khanata, who Jeff Parker went on to use in all his Agents of Atlas work, and Monica Rappacini, who is AIM's Scientist Supreme (and maybe was MODOK's ex in his more human days). Scorpion's gone on to some scattered use here and there, mostly in books Fred van Lente was writing or co-writing. Ditto for Rappacini.

The series ends with Khanata selling Fury on the supposed value of a SHIELD agent posing as a superhero to infiltrate the superhero community. But I'm not sure she got used enough in other books for the idea to really take root. The constant upheaval within SHIELD related to all the nonsense about who gets to be Boss of All Superheroes that's been going to for the last 15 years doesn't help.

This is the only story from this title I bought, picked it up in a manga-sized digest version a few years back. Marvel doesn't do those anymore, does it?

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