Doctor's Orders Are Made To Be Ignored, If Carol Can Remember Them

I mentioned this a little bit when I reviewed Captain Marvel #10 & 11 (ages ago now), but I like Carol's reactions to her situation a lot. They seem very real. I mentioned the part about how she feels dizzy after lifting a train and that worries her, when it seems perfectly natural to me. But Carol knows something isn't right with her, so everything she feels that doesn't seem normal feeds into that. It's like when you wake up with a headache, and then you sneeze, or suddenly feel hot, and you figure, "Oh great, I'm getting the flu". Maybe you aren't, maybe the hot flash is entirely unrelated, but in your mind, they must be connected, and it's terrible because every additional symptom makes whatever you think you've got seem even worse.

Beyond that, there's her stubbornness in ignoring her doctor's orders not to fly. It's kind of odd, because she actually has a confirmation of something being wrong with her, but she doesn't want to acknowledge it. It was harder for her to ignore when it was lurking in the shadows, when she didn't know exactly what it was. Now that she does, and she knows what she isn't supposed to do, she's unwilling to allow it to limit her.

The part that worked best - from Carol's specific characterization - was the silent panel after her doctor tells her that the lesion could kill her brain cells, and cost Carol her memories. It only lasts one panel, but the fact she gets up and deliberately turns he back to her doctor, her friend, and us in the next panel is significant. If there's anything that would bother her, losing her memories would be it. She's had them manipulated by Marcus (man that was a terrible storyline), outright stolen by Rogue, if she knew Tony Stark was Iron Man at one point, then he took that from her when he used his satellite to reestablish his secret identity by wiping people's memories. Her mind's been through a lot, is what I'm saying. It's natural that would get her attention, and also that she'd try to blow it off, but wouldn't be able to do it with a straight face. So she turns her back.

Maybe the Other Danvers Was The Shadow

I had a post last week about the Carol Danvers psyche inside Rogue's head. Over the weekend, I came across a discussion of A + X, which apparently had a story where Carol willingly let Rogue borrow her powers. This being the Internet, a long discussion ensued about whether Carol would agree to such a thing, and what was the actual status of their whole relationship.

The key point is one of the comments had a link to a page on Uncanny X-Men dot net, and the way they describe the situation made me want to revisit the idea.

They way it's described there, the Carol within Rogue's mind is the real deal, her 'true essence' as they put it. I'm not sure what this means for the memories in Carol's physical body. Are they just a copy Xavier made from what was in Rogue's head, or were they stored somewhere within Carol's mind, a backup of sorts?

I vaguely remember reading somewhere (I think it was an Avengers comic), that while Carol got some of her memories back, she didn't feel any emotional connection to them. They might as well have happened to another person. Which is in stark contrast to the Carol in Rogue's mind, who quite clearly still felt things with regards to her past. We see it in the mourning of her brother, her concern for Logan during their time in Genosha. Those past events still mean something to her.

It's interesting, because it suggests Rogue took more than just Carol's memories and powers. She took some vital emotional aspect that couldn't be restored along with the memories. Carol lost more than just the raw data of her experiences, she lost the personal aspects that color that data. The flavor, if you will. Maybe it was the writer's use of the word "essence", but it makes me think she took Carol's soul as well. That would raise the question of whether Carol Danvers herself is running around without a soul, which doesn't seem to be the case.

I guess if we were going to discuss souls, we'd have to try and define the term, and I don't know really how to get into that. Fortunately, we're discussing it a comic book sense, so we can fudge things a little, maybe. It's something separate from life force. Layla Miller was able to resurrect Strong Guy, but he's minus a soul. I believe he's shown a somewhat concerning lack of empathy for people outside their group, but other than that, seems to be getting along just fine. There's also the fact that when Rogue went through the Siege Perilous, she and Carol were separated. Which meant there were two Carol Danvers out there for awhile. But Rogue and the Carol inside her found they were still sharing a life force, one which was insufficient for two bodies. Magneto ended up stepping in and saving Rogue, and I guess that means that Carol "died", for whatever that means.

So I think we can differentiate between souls and life force in Marvel comics, at least. You can still be up and moving around without the former, but not the latter. I don't what it means for the Carol Danvers who was Binary. Her situation wasn't precisely the same as Guido's. She could still feel things (like anger at Rogue, or the X-Men for protecting Rogue), but didn't necessarily feel any connection to her restored memories. It could be a case where the absence of a soul affects everyone differently, or it could be a matter of the circumstances. Guido died and was brought back. I'd guess his soul is in the afterlife somewhere, not unlike what happened with Oliver Queen when Parallax Hal brought him back to life. If we go with the idea Carol's soul was in Rogue, then hers was ripped out of her, while she was still alive.

There's also a question of what happened when Magneto killed the life-force sharing Carol. Did her psyche/essence/whatever, find it's way back to her original body. It doesn't seem to have gone back inside Rogue's mind. Whatever remnant of Carol is in there was depicted as being no stronger than any of the other shadows left behind. Of course, Carol was still talking about lacking a connection her past long after that (the Avengers comic I mentioned was post-Heroes Return, Mags killed Carol a year or so after Acts of Vengeance). If her soul made it's way back to her, it took its sweet time.

The Curious Case Of The Shadow Danvers

I was rereading some Australia era X-Men comics over the weekend. The team's first encounter with Genosha also raised some issues for Rogue. With all her powers nullified, Rogue feels completely helpless, to the point she's besieged by the shadows of the minds of the people she's touched over the years. Until Carol Danvers steps in and drives them off. She's stronger, more solid since Rogue took everything of her, and she makes Rogue a deal: She'll get Rogue out of this, but she gets to run the show. Rogue is understandably concerned about the chance Danvers will decide to keep control afterward, but doesn't see another option and agrees.

Turns out Rogue was right to be worried, as Danvers starts taking over on a more regular basis after that*. Danvers even decides to redecorate Rogue's place in the headquarters to suit herself, much to Rogue's consternation. And when she complains, Storm essentially tells her she brought it on herself. Which is true enough, but not at all a helpful thing to say. It's the sort of stupidly blunt comment I'd expect from Logan. Rogue gets all set to leave in a huff, and Danvers takes control again, stating she wants to give Rogue time to cool off. I think it would have been better to let Rogue fly off and calm down, rather than essentially jamming her in trunk of her own mind. That seems likely to only increase the resentment. But hey, I'm not espionage expert Carol Danvers, so what do I know?

The thing that only just occurred to me this weekend was that Carol Danvers was already up and moving around. I don't know why, since I knew about Binary, but I had been assuming that if Carol's mind was manifesting in Rogue's head, then Carol herself was still in a coma. I guess I figured if she was up and about, they would have gotten those memories back to her, and the Carol in Rogue's head would be the same sort of shadow as all the rest. Wikipedia says Xavier got her the memories back, but whatever he did didn't clear her presence from Rogue's mind.

But the whole thing raises a question with me of what are that Carol's rights. She has all the memories, up to a point, of Carol Danvers. She is Carol up to that point. But at the same time, there's a Carol Danvers out walking around that also has all those memories. This isn't a case like Ben Reilly/Peter Parker, where Ben has all of Peter's memories up to a point, but he has his own body (even if it is an exact copy of Peter's, it's a separate entity).

Memory Carol is in someone else's body. Not willingly, but that's how it is. Given that her body is moving around, and it has all the parts of her as well, would that make her no more than a copy at this point. Does she have any right to assert control over Rogue? It isn't as though Carol Danvers ceases to exist when she isn't running Rogue's body. Carol Danvers has her life, so does this one have a right to one taken at the expense of someone else? Kind of makes Memory Carol into a more benevolent version of the Shadow King.

* Something to do with Inferno, which followed on the Genosha arc's heels. I don't know, I skipped those issues. I'm not interested in the crossover that, near as I can tell, demonizes Maddy Pryor so that Cyclops and Jean can have the baby. No thank you.

What I Bought 9/21/2012 - Part 6

We wrap up the reviews with a couple of recently started solo titles.

Captain Marvel #3, by Kelly Sue DeConnick (writer), Dexter Soy (artist, pgs. 1-16), Rich Elson & Will Quintana (artists, pgs. 17,-18), Karl Kesel & Javier Rodriguez (artists, pg. 19), Joe Caramagna (letterer) - No, you're not reading that wrong. 19 pages, not 20. Nice, Marvel. As though I wasn't questioning myself buying the title enough already.

Carol helps fend off the Prowler attacks. She lets one Japanese pilot return to his base and bring everything they have, so he'll know when he loses that he never stood a chance. A. . . questionable strategy to put it mildly. Carol also confirms the Prowlers are Kree, though what they're doing her she doesn't know. She chats a bit about her origin with some of the ladies she's fighting alongside, morning comes, the fight starts. It's going well, then the Prowlers form into a giant mech. Hmm, second mech in the last two days. The Elson and Quintana bit is about several female pilots, including Helen Cobb, butting up against bureaucratic stupidity/institutional sexism that keeps them out of the NASA. That last page is, I don't know what, unless it's a sign Carol's appearance in WW2 is already changing history.

I have absolutely no idea where this story is going, why Carol's in the past, how those two bits at the end are connected, no clue at all. Which is more frustrating than having a hunch, because then I could at least judge whether I thought I'd like how it'll go. Soy's artwork is, hmm, there's some good work with the expressions, especially in the quieter moments, when Carol's talking to Daisy and Bijoux (that's a great name). Some of the others are a little flat, not really clear on what the character's feeling. The fight scenes are dull, there's no real sense of flow, just a bunch of vaguely interconnected panels. That might be how it's scripted, might just be how Soy does things, I don't know.

Hawkeye #2, by Matt Fraction (writer), David Aja (artist), Matt Hollingsworth (colorist), Chris Eliopoulos (letterer) - I know a lot of people are going ga-ga over these covers, but they're a bit too minimalist for my taste. Oh, and I still haven't gotten my hands on issue 1. I saw a copy available online, but they wanted 23 bucks because it was an Adi Granov variant. Cripes, I may not love these covers, but I sure as hell ain't paying that much for a comic with a cover done by an artist whose work I can't stand. I mean, I'll take Granov over Greg Land, but probably not ahead of Harvey Tolibao, if that gives you an idea of where his work stands on my personal spectrum.

Clint's recruited Kate Bishop into whatever this big thing he's investigating is. It starts with a circus performance for a bunch of mob boss types, including Wilson Fisk and Madame Masque, among others. Turns out it's the Ringmaster and his revamped Circus of Crime, out to rob all these wealthy crooks. This seems ill-advised, as the Kingpin doesn't take kindly to such things, but what the hell. Kate and Clint stop the heist, mostly without incident. Other than Clint taking a crowbar (and several fists) to the head, and Kate getting grazed with a bullet. Then they steal all the money, so now all the mob types will be after them. I repeat, ill-advised. Clint's does a pretty poor job of explaining why he wants Kate to work with him, but eventually is honest enough she agrees.

So it's interesting. There are times I wonder if he isn't being written as too much of a dork, but I mostly write that off as him trying to be a helpful teacher to Kate, when she's more than capable, especially in some areas where Clint has very little experience. Certainly this Hawkeye rings more true to me than Remender's, whose Clint still seems too purposefully abrasive, rather than simply speaking without thinking.

As for Aja's art, it's gorgeous. I mean, there are a couple of pages where the faces are kind of rough, but on the whole, the expressions are good, he lays out the action in clever ways where it flows clearly from one panel to the next. Even the brief skirmishes Clint and Kate have separately (page 11), where it switches from one to the other from panel-to-panel work, because it serves to highlight how their respective fights are going in opposite directions. Plus, there's a nice bit in panel 5 where Clint's punching one guy as another leaps at him from the right. In panel 6, Kate is on the left side, slugging an attacker to the right with a fire extinguisher. It's like the guy jumped into the next panel, wound up in an entirely different fight, and got clocked.

Also, Hollingsworth's colors. They aren't extremely bright, like the Horie's work on Dial H, but they're effective. They aren't murky, or obscuring the art. They monochrome backgrounds in places highlight the Aja's linework and made the figures stand out more. It's great stuff. Hopefully Fraction's writing can keep up. He did use the word "cornpone", which is one of those words like "poltroon" I wish I used more often. That's promising, in its own way.

I love ending on a positive note. Tomorrow, I don't know yet what tomorrow's post will be. See where the mood takes me.

Are We Sure This Man Should Be Flying Planes?

That wasn't actually where I planned to go with yesterday's post. Originally, I was going to talk about how Carol's refusal to use her powers to save the T6 reminded me of the only two Green Lantern comics my dad owned.

Like Captain Marvel #2, they both featured stories where Hal refuses to use his power ring to deal with a problem, opting instead to rely on his natural abilities. He's doing this as a way to prove something about himself, much like Carol. Since this is Hal Jordan we're talking about, though, he can't help putting his own twist on things. Two twists, in fact.

The first is that Hal takes this approach to his superheroics, rather than his day job. This translates to relying on fisticuffs and the fact he's apparently an excellent skier(?) to fight crime. This is somewhat passable against a couple of art thieves (though it makes things much harder than they need to be), Even against a former circus clown/acrobat who developed magnetic bracelets that let him move through the air like he's swinging from an invisible trapeze, it can work. The Aerialist is a fine athlete, but no superhuman. When it involves an alien overlord roughly the size of the Hulk, it's a less advisable. Fortunately, Thraxon was foolish enough to think a blow to the head would finish Hal, and grew overconfident. If you've spent any time on comic blogs, you know head injuries are a common occurrence for Hal Jordan, but hardly a game ender.

The second is that, unlike Carol Danvers, who is trying to surpass an older pilot she considers her hero, Hal is trying to prove himself better than. . . Green Lantern?! Because first Carol Ferris, and then a lovely young lady who ran a ski resort Hal worked at after leaving Ferris Aircraft, both fell head over heels for the ole' ring-slinger. They both think GL is so ginchy, Hal can't see straight. Or maybe that's all the blows to the noggin. At any rate, that's how you get a superhero who refuses to use the most powerful weapon in the universe, which is sitting on his finger, in favor of slugging it out with big blue guys in feathered helmets.

Leave it to Hal Jordan to endanger his life - and his entire sector of space - because he's jealous of himself.

Carol Danvers And Surpassing Her Inspirations

Reading Captain Marvel #2, I was struck by Carol's determination to pull Helen Cobb's T6 out of its icy stall without resorting to using her powers. It tied back into something DeConnick had written in the first issue, where Carol mused on how she couldn't compete athletically because her powers give her an unfair advantage. In the cockpit, though, her ability to fly under her own power, or to bench press a tank are irrelevant to how good a pilot she is.

Carol Danvers takes being a pilot as seriously as she takes being a super-hero, and takes a lot of pride in her abilities as both. In the hero biz, Carol may be measuring herself against Mar-Vell, or Captain America, or maybe just her own standard of what a hero should be. As a pilot though, it's Helen Cobb who's the measuring stick, and DeConnick's done a good job already of suggesting that trying to surpass Cobb is something that's driven Carol for years. Carol was impressed by Cobb, maybe even a little in awe of all she'd accomplished when they first met. But not so much that she didn't get a little irked when Cobb suggested she and her contemporaries weren't a patch on Cobb and the women she flew with. That's not such an unusual thing. Old people have been telling young people that their accomplishments or idols aren't shit compared to the previous generations since, well probably forever. But I get the feeling from the fact Carol is still trying to surpass Cobb, that her attempt to show what she could do wasn't as impressive as she hoped.

Which brings us to the T6, where Carol first demonstrates that yes, Helen Cobb could reach 37,000 in a T6, then sets out to go higher. She could simply claim the record for herself (and that may be how it would go down in the record books, since she can only show it was possible Helen could do it, not that she actually did), but she wants to first establish what Helen can do, then use it as something to try and beat. It's just kind of interesting that it's important to support Helen first, then press forward. That's the key to Danvers, I think. She's not content to merely be as good as those who came before her. She feels the only way to truly honor their accomplishments is to better them.

Because Helen wouldn't have had any superpowers, Carol naturally can't use hers when the plane begins to stall. It'd be a cheat, a crutch, even if no one but her would ever know. She'd know. I think in her mind, she figures Helen tried to go higher as well, probably had the same icing issue, but obviously recovered, since she delivered the plane to the Peruvian general. Carol using her powers would be an admission she's not a good enough pilot. That Helen beat her again, and Carol has too much pride to accept that willingly. I'm curious to see how that resolves once she returns to the present. Will she have the chance to pull the plane out, will she have to use her power, or will it be too late entirely?

What I Bought 7/30/08

Last week, Ken needed someone to look after the store for him for a couple of hours, since he had some stuff to do, and Tom was on vacation. I didn't have anything better going on, so I agreed to do it, and in return Ken hooked me up with some cash, and some store credit. Pretty sweet for me basically sitting on my butt in the A.C. reading for 4 hours. So I trot* to the store today, ready to do some purchasing, except, nothing from my pull list came in this week. And since I'm scared of new things, I used some of the store credit on some Heroclix boosters instead. It netted me a couple of things I want, and something that I can hopefully trade for stuff I want.

One of the figures I got was the Ms. Marvel, the actual Ms. Marvel. See, this set is Secret Invasion, so WizKids decided to be clever and for five of the figures (Ms. Marvel, Yellowjacket, Mar-Vell, Dum Dum Dugan, and Elektra), make one version that's a Skrull, and one that's the real deal. They're the same points, but they have different stats and powers. The problem is, both versions look identical, and for four of them, both look like Skrulls (both Dugans, for some reason, look human). Which makes no sense.

If we're dealing with the real Carol Danvers, why the hell is she green with a wrinkly chin? And if it's the Skrull impostor, why is she running around in Carol's outfit (and with blond hair), but otherwise appearing Skrull-like? That's just bound to blow one's cover. So I may have to see if I posses the skill to repaint the figure and file of those wrinkles, or I can always try gluing the old Warbird figure from the Critical Mass set on the base. It's roughly similar, just no green skin or wrinkly chin.

Anyway, don't worry about my lack of new comics this week. I'll find interesting stuff to post about until next Wednesday, promise**.

* Well, "trot" may not be the right description. "Stagger sweatily" might be more appropriate. Damned humidity.

** Warning: Promise only good on Earth-298, also known as Age of Apocalypse Earth.

Splitting The Difference

From Ms. Marvel #21, page 8:

Carol Danvers: We're the same person. I am Ms. Marvel. It's just a costume --

Cru: Questioning: How you lead life you do, and believe that?

So what does that mean? It seems to suggest that Carol, unknowingly or not, divides herself into two people, Ms. Marvel and Carol Danvers, and that the two are very different, and will approach things differently. It's probably true, since in #19 she tells Rick Sheridan that's she only Ms. Marvel when the costume is on, which certainly suggests a division in her mind. Is it really there? I'm going to poke through my issues from this year (so starting at #11) and see if anything jumps out.

Well, in #11, Carol has gone on a date with the mysterious William Wagner, and they've made it back to her apartment, and Carol hears a noise. She immediately shifts to her costume, and finds Arana and an AIM agent in her bedroom. It seems as though when the Ms. Marvel part of life comes into play, all "Carol" stuff just has to get set aside until it's convenient. When William asks her to call him later, when everything's OK, Ms. Marvel says 'I promise', but she's off panel at the time. Then in the next panel she's standing with Arana and the AIM agent, but William's nowhere to be seen. Ms. Marvel did try to call him, during a fight with Battleaxe, but that makes it seem as though she's just fitting him in where she can.

In #14, it's Carol that's telling Tony Stark she wants to help Julia Carpenter, and when she tells Julia she's going to help her, she's in costume, but not wearing the mask. Then in #15 she has a dream about a date with Mr. Wagner, only it ends with her waking up next to (ugh) Wonder Man (in the dream, not in reality). She's not in costume, but she is wearing a shirt that says "Property of the Avengers". That actually reminds me a little of Buffy wanting to have steadfast Riley Finn around to talk to, but being more attracted to the Angels and Spikes of the world. Carol likes to get out of the superhero world for awhile, but Ms. Marvel is too big a part of life for that to seemingly work out.

Following that, we have the MODOK story, where the end consists of Carol blowing off some steam by punching a piece of metal (since she'd punched right through a standard heavy bag two issues earlier, while sort of wearing the costume. It was a tube top sort of setup. No idea how to interpret that.) At any rate, Carol's hands actually bleed from punching the metal, while Ms. Marvel hadn't bled in any of the recent issues.

It seems as though Carol is more vulnerable than Ms. Marvel, and more eager to talk. When she wanted to check on Arana after the Doomsday Man skirmish, Arana's father yelled at her and she retreated in the face of his anger. She stood there dumbfounded when Maria Hill may have implied Carol was getting her freak on with Director Stark. She seems more willingly to express the doubts she had about rounding up heroes during Civil War when she's in civilian garb. She tries to mend relationships more readily, while Ms. Marvel seems more aggressive, confident certainly, a lot like Spider-Man back in the old days, only Carol's not nearly so timid as "puny Parker" was. It's certainly not a complete division, because Ms. Marvel doesn't just resort to violence right off the bat. When dealing with mind-controlled Wonder Man, or Tigra & Silverclaw, she wanted to talk initially, and struck back when it became obvious that talk wasn't going to solve things, but she was willing to stand there and little Puppet Master blow himself up, and she was about to kill Doomsday Man at one point. Hmm, does Carol seem to be fighting a lot of people who want to die (Doomsday Man), or are near death (MODOK, Puppet Master)?

The dichotomy certainly seems to exist in her relationships. Wonder Man seems as excluded from Carol's life, as William Wagner is from Ms. Marvel's. After the kiss incident, Simon wants to see if Carol wants to do something later, and Carol politely declines, and tells him maybe he should take a few days off, get away from the helicarrier for a bit, in other words, get away from her. So I think Carol really is two separate people in a sense, and she either isn't aware of that, or tries to deny it. I wonder which is the more uncommon situation amongst the capes as a whole.

The one thing I'm uncertain about is why Ms. marvel always takes her mask off to interrogate prisoners. She does it when they captured the Scientist Supreme, and those Chilean soldiers. Of course, she is usually trying to get information, so perhaps the friendlier, Carol approach, works better.

The Phalanx Haven't Captured Our Imagination - Yet

Quick one, about how nicely things can tie together sometimes. If you still haven't read this week's Quasar then SPOILERS!, I guess.

In the Annihilation: Conquest - Prologue, Phyla complained to Moondragon that she didn't think she had the imagination to use the Quantum bands properly. And it's true, her attacks were pretty basic: swords, shields, occasionally a whip or a giant fist (no boxing glove though). It seemed to be a part of her larger issues of self-doubt, and concern over her ability to be Quasar

So it's rather appropriate that in this week's issue, where Phyla's embraced the legacy of Quasar, she finally unleashes her imagination, and that provides the advantage that wins the day. She moved past her doubts, and now she's really a force to be reckoned with. I like that.

Besides that, it really shows all the various creative teams have been collaborating, because the original "imagination" comment was written by Abnett and Lanning, but Christos Gage has been handling the Quasar mini-series, so you get the feeling everybody's on the same page here, which makes me feel really good about this as a whole.

Also, quick note to Carol Danvers: You've been trying to become an A-list hero, the "Best in the World"? Phyla's showing you how. You stop trying to be the best, and you just do the best you can. All the time. Don't worry about whether it will be enough, because if you maintain resolve, it likely will be. Yeah, it's kind of hokey, but that doesn't mean it's wrong.

So Conflicted

I can't quite decide how I feel about Warbird after this week's issue. It's a combination of things: the decision to let Puppet Master kill himself, the decision to lie about the events, and just some other, general things. 

As Fortress Keeper noted, it's a very Golden Age move for the hero to choose not to save the life of the imperiled villain, especially if said villains want to kill themselves. And if Puppet Master would rather blow himself up than die in a prison cell, well, I have no quibble with that, except for the part where he tried to take Carol with him. Of course, Carol noted she could have stopped him, but chose not to, apparently trusting that the regenerative effect she keeps exhibiting would save her again. I'm not sure I would put my life in the hands of some odd occurrence I don't wholly understand, but it was her call. 

I guess the hang-up I have, such as it is, comes from not feeling it was necessary to be so cold. I know Carol has killed before; even if she hadn't said so, I read Busiek's "Kang War" story, and I saw her take a sword and run that one villain (The Master? Old Alpha Flight Enemy Guy?) through with it. But, that was a dire situation, as the Avengers wanted to use his technology to fight off Kang, but without naming him ruler of the world (which had been his price for assistance). He wouldn't surrender, and Carol was too worn down to simply beat him until he gave up, so death it was. I could understand that situation, and besides, Carol demanded the Avengers convene to decide whether she should be drummed out of the group for it herself. The others were inclined to let it go, but she felt it needed to be dealt with (it helps that the people handing down the decision were the ones who were telling her not to beat herself up over it, but still.) 

Contrast that to her telling her strike team that she had no idea Puppet Master was going to blow himself up, and it caught her totally by surprise. Why hide the truth? It seems oddly inconsistent with someone who one panel before was reflecting on how she could do anything now. I'd more expect her to be saying, "Yeah, I knew the button was to trigger a bomb, and I knew I'd survive because of this weird regen effect, so I let him blow himself up. He was an evil, creepy bastard, so what of it?" 

Maybe I'm just not sure what I want out of the title. I liked it when Carol went patrolling in the first issue, I thought that was being proactive, but that might be kind of hard when you're working for SHIELD. I wonder how many of those criminals that escaped the Raft in the early issues of New Avengers are still on the loose. Perhaps Carol could aim her strike team towards rounding them up, before they cause trouble. There have to be a few left. I know Count Nefaria escaped, go get him. I like the Carol/Arana relationship. I know a lot of people don't like Arana, but I've got nothing against her, and I think her enthusiasm is a good influence on Carol. 

Mallet! suggested Carol is becoming the hero who makes the tough, possibly unheroic choices, because it seems right to her, regardless of how it makes the public view her. I can live with that. I think it was a tough choice for Carol to go against the law and reunite Julia Carpenter and her daughter, and I whole-heartedly support that. I'm just not sure letting Puppet Master blow himself to smithereens was a tough choice. The tougher choice would have been to capture him, even though you do really want to see him go BOOM! I suppose we'll see how it goes next issue, find out if Carol has to make any difficult decisions in her conflict with the blue alien.

What Is The Dark Terrible Secret?

Move in is mostly complete, except for the severe cleaning of the old place that still remains. That's going to be unpleasant I'm sure, but that's for tomorrow. For tonight, I want to investigate the troubling past of William Wagner.

For those of you confused as to who dat, it's the guy currently in a relationship with Carol Danvers, aka Ms. Marvel. He has some secret that Carol's public relations lady dug up, one involving extensive surgery. So the obvious (and hopefully fun) question is, what's the secret?

While I'm sure it'll wind up being some tie to Carol's past, some foe trying to make good, I'm not up to date on her rogue's gallery to the point I can hazard guess. The only one I knew was Doomsday Man, and I think he's out of commission for the foreseeable future.

So, for kicks and giggles mostly, I'm going suggest that William Wagner was previously Wilma Williamson (probably not her actually name). I think it would be kind of interesting to gauge Carol's reaction to finding out the fellow she's interested in was at one point in a woman's body.

Granted, I've stories with that element before, on Star Trek: Next Generation, and in an issue of GrimJack, but another perspective can be enlightening. I can't say why the idea is interesting me, maybe just the idea of undergoing such a serious physical transformation is intriguing to me.

Anyway, that's my quick hit, half-assed guess. Now it's your turn.

Should The Gesture Mean More... Or Less?

Carol Danvers helped reunite Julia Carpenter with her daughter. This is something I'd call unquestionably good. So why am I having a hard time giving her credit for it?

Part of it could be that she's the one who helped drag Julia off to prison in the first place. It's that she has to atone for her actione in the first place that's bothering me. If say, USAgent had been the one that arrested Julia and separated her from her daughter (because he would do that, no doubt), and then Carol decided to help Julia because she just felt bad for her, it would be a lot cleaner. Carol would just be a good person helping someone in need.

But I think the thing that really bothers me is that Carol is holding all the cards in this situation. She's a legally registered hero, supposedly the leader of the government's premiere super-team, while Julia is just another damn vigilante, refusing to follow the law. Julia has zero leverage here legally. There's nothing forcing Carol to do any of what she does, other than her own guilty conscience. It feels like we're supposed to see this and say 'Oh, isn't Carol such a good person, helping this down-on-her-luck mother recover her child.' Gotta admit, it would probably make great p.r. (Or maybe not. The government probably wouldn't want the public to know registered heroes are blatantly ignoring custody rulings to help prior fugitives, although maybe if you mentioned that the gesture convinced another hero to join the "right" side, and well, I'm getting sidetracked).

This really bugs me, because Carol is trying to make amends for something that the government and Tony Stark say she has no reason to feel bad about, and that should make me happy. And it sorta does. Seeing Julia hugging Rachel was one of the feel-good moments of my comics this week (though there wasn't much competition in the heartwarming category), and knowing that Carol helped make this happen makes me feel better about Carol as a hero. But there's still that nagging little part, telling me she wouldn't have been in this situation in the first place if she hadn't gone pro-reg.

It just occurred to me, maybe I'm thinking about the stunt Carol pulled on Jessica Drew and that's what's bugging me. Because it really isn't cool to lie to a friend about Captain America being alive, just so Iron Man can capture them for whatever his reason is (to stop the anonymous "them" from capturing the New Avengers first, personal glory, it's the law, he's just a jerk, etc.,)

Peekaboo!

Question for the day: What is the dealie in Carol Danvers skull?

We know there's something there. Beast saw it when he did a comparison of Carol to her alternate reality self. Then he chose not to pursue his curiosity any further. Way to be Hank. Some scientist you are. Carol keeps having dreams of being on an operating table, and hearing weird voices, and now she's getting mysteriously healed of the zombie infection. So what's going on?

Two predictions, though they're really just the different sides of the same coin.

One, MODOK has shrunk himself and is hiding inside Carol's skull, until he can devise a way to eliminate that AIM committee that wants to overthrow him. As Fortress Keeper once noted (and it's there on his site... someplace, I'm just lacking in time to find it), MODOK has the hots for Ms. Danvers (understandable, even if she is currently a tool of The Man), and so he's subtly altering her from within, so she'll be more receptive when he makes his move.

Man, that sentence is seventeen kinds of unsettling. Moving on!

Two, it's not MODOK, but it's a device implanted by MODOK, to transform Carol into MOBIRD! Or WARDOK! Or something like that. A device designed to alter her physiology would explain the way she was miraculously cured of the infection this week.

Well, there's my cheap joke. And that was pretty much all I had. So, thoughts?

How Much Does Intent Count For?

I've had this one on a backburner for awhile, so let's see how it goes. This arose from Cable/Deadpool #35 and Ms. Marvel #10, and it deals with a connection between the Rogue/Carol Danvers relationship and the Cable/Deadpool situation.

Carol made it pretty clear that she isn't over what Rogue did to her, however many years ago Marvel says it was. Rogue absorbed not only Carol's powers (though Rogue seemed stronger and more resistant to injury than Carol and lacked the energy powers. Weird), but her memories, and the emotions that went with them. Even after Xavier helped restore Carol's memories, she had no connection to them. Rogue effectively took away Carol's life up to that point. She did it because she heard Mystique and Destiny talking about how Carol would one day seriously harm Rogue, and so Rogue decided on a preemptive strike.

Then you've got Cable. He links Wade's subconscious to the infonet, in effect torturing Wade with visual and auditory imagery of the people he's killed. His reasoning was it would force Wade to examine his life, and eventually come running to Nate for help in reevaluating his life. In terms of psychological damage it doesn't even begin to compare with what Rogue did to Carol. On the other hand, Cable can't claim that he did it out of self-defense. He did it because he decided that Deadpool needed to examine his life, and that was that. It's kind of a dick move, you know?

I think my original intent was to ask which person you think did a worse thing, or made a greater transgression, Rogue or Cable, but I don't think that's much of a question. I suppose, I just found it interesting that these two situations of someone messing with another person's mind popped up in the same week.

Finding Another Way

I don't really know where this post is going to go, so bear with me.

Fortress Keeper noted last night that I've stopped referring to Ms. Marvel as Warbird. I hadn't even noticed myself. Probably just forgetfulness, but it is harder to use the codename I prefer as she becomes less likable. And Ms. Marvel #8 made her quite unlikable. I've been feeling uneasy about that dislike though, and I think it's because Carol got played by Arachne.

Julia knew exactly what she was doing when she brought her daughter outside and put her in the car. She knew she'd never even get out of the driveway, what with Ms. Marvel and Wonder Man standing right there. There was no way she'd be allowed to leave, and she wouldn't be able to run, so she chose to fight. She chose to make Carol beat a fellow Avenger down in front of said Avenger's own daughter. I don't believe Julia did it to try and gain a psychological advantage, because there was honestly just too much aligned against her to win, even if Carol was thrown off her game.

I'd like to think she did it to try and give her former allies second thoughts. To make them, in the quiet moments, question what they've done, and hopefully, realize that they're on the wrong side. In that case, Julia's taking the long view. And it may have worked. Arana's certainly questioning what she's gotten herself into (don't worry Arana, the Adorable baby Panda knows you'll make the right choice), and Simon and Carol at least seem melancholy. It's something, right?

Or maybe I'm wrong. Julia may just have been angry. Angry that people she thought she could trust wanted to use her as a weapon to hunt down other heroes. Angry that when she refused, they turned on her. Angry that they locked up the person who helped her, that she also happened to be in love with. Angry that they were going to take her away from her daughter. And with all that, she just wants Carol (and Simon, and Arana, and the "cape-killers") to suffer.

I don't know if either guess is right. I do know that when Carol tells the Shroud, or Julia's parents, that it isn't about 'legislation', she's full of it. She claims that they're going to arrest Julia because she injured two dozen SHIELD agents, stole a car, rammed said car into Ms. Marvel, and, in general, refused to be arrested. But why did Julia do all that stuff? Because they came after her first. Yeah, it sounds schoolyard, but it's true. They wanted her to capture the Shroud (though it's more likely Tony wanted them in the same place so he could confirm she wasn't on his side), and when she wouldn't they came after her as well. She defended herself, the same as she did on the freeway when Ms. Marvel and Wonder Man came after her. Yeah, her driving endangered innocent lives, but Wonder Man's the one ripping off car doors and flinging them into traffic, and Carol is the one flipping the car into the air, in front of semis, so who's a bigger threat? And again, all that happens because they wouldn't simply let her be.

Why it was so important to capture her, rather than simply cutting their losses and moving on to someone actually "illegally" using their powers to fight crime, I don't know.

Hmm, I think the point of all this was me trying to see if Carol had a good reason to do what she did. Given the best response she's had to why she does what she does is "It's the law", I'd conclude "No". Oh well, at least all the guilt about disliking her is gone.

Rejuvenation

I think I've mentioned this before, but I figure it bears repeating: I think Robert De La Torre is doing a pretty good job as artist on Warbird, though some of what I like can probably be credited to Palmiotti as the inker. I know some people aren't enamored of his anatomy, but I think he does well with faces and action scenes, so that pretty much works for me. Which brings us to the what I'm contemplating today.

I've noticed that Carol looks older without her mask on than she does with it. There are some lines on her face. Personally, I think this is appropriate. Carol isn't some teenager, or young twenties girl, she's an older woman. Not Agatha Harkness old, but I'd bet she's early 30s. And when you consider her life up to now - infused with Kree DNA, mind-controlled, spent time in Limbo, gave birth to man she thought she loved (that's creepy just typing it), Starjammer, depowered, alcoholic, all manner of superheroic adventures in between - it hasn't been an easy early 30s. She should show some signs that she's been through ordeals. Of course, by that logic, I guess Peter Parker should look like he's in his early 50s, but that's a discussion for another time.

When she puts on the mask though, the lines are less noticeable. To me at least, she looks younger. This could be from a couple of things. First, the mask probably covers some of the lines, and I think it visually overwhelms the ones around her eyes that you can still see. If you look at her when she's doing the superheroing, you can still see lines around her eyes, but the mask draws attention away from them.

Secondly, I think she smiles more when she's Ms. Marvel, which I believe helps. And I think it ties in to the power of masks. I think for the characters, suiting up and going out to fight crime is a sort of Fountain of Youth. I mean, it certainly seems like a kid's idea, that you can put on a funny outfit, run around hitting people, and that'll make the world a better place. It doesn't really mesh with how things really are, even in a comic book world, as Ultimate Foggy Nelson pointed out to Ultimate Spidey. It's more complicated, and Carol knows that. She knows all about how the world isn't black-and-white, it's grey. But when she does the Ms. Marvel thing, she can forget about that for awhile, retreat to when things where simpler.

I think it even shows from issue to issue. I'd swear the lines are less noticeable in #5, when she's helping Dr. Strange fight the crazy and evil Warren Traveller, then in #6, when she's been drafted to round up non-compliant heroes like Prowler and Arana. One fight, it's very easy to decide who is right and wrong, the other? Well, in theory people who break the law are bad, but like I said, Carol's a mature woman. She knows it's not that simple. She just doesn't much like being confronted with it. Or maybe this is all subconscious on my part.

But I think the simple act of putting on the mask and going out to fight crime, it feels good. It's hard, but Carol seems to enjoy it. She certainly enjoyed beating down Stilt-Man. And I'd say from some personal experience, when you're enjoying yourself, you feel younger. Who knows? Maybe Carol has some power that unconsciously manifests when she dons the mask, and subtly de-ages her, an expression of what she's feeling when she goes out.

Are They Trying To Make Me Think We're Back In My Heyday?

Don't worry, I'm not talking about last month's issue, I just can't stand the most recent cover. So I'll get to Warbird #5 in a moment.

It's been an interesting morning though. My Internet went on the fritz, which left me scrambling to and fro, unplugging this and that in an attempt to fix it. The scrambling lead to me slamming my foot into the wall and tearing the skin off the end of my little toe, which was fun. I was starting to mellow down from that when I cruised by Seven Hells, and saw Devon's statement to those of us angered by the apparent fate of Cassandra Cain. If you've read this blog for any time at all, you can imagine how my mood went after reading that. I posted a comment, and now, for the first time, I've been asked not to comment at a blog again (don't bother to go look for it, it's gone).

Was I overly antagonistic? The more I reflect on it, yes. I told Devon that before (what I interpreted as) accusing the rest of us of not having read the books and understanding the character, he should do so himself. That was mostly in response to his assertion she shot David Cain in the head, killing him. I pointed out that Cain was nowhere to be found at the end of the issue, but there were assassins with broken necks all around, so probably she didn't kill him. Did I say it in an angry and sarcastic manner? Well, to whatever extent you can do that in print. On just about any other subject, it's the sort of comment I would delete five minutes later because I know I'm being rude and needlessly anatagonistic, in the process obscuring my point, if not losing it outright. But I didn't do that this time, so there you have it. Edit - 4:15 PM. So with my feelings of having acted like an idiot only increasing as the day rolled on, I e-mailed an apology to Devon this afternoon, and he was nice enough to accept it. Hmm, chalk one up for for my parents teaching me the value of being able to say "I'm sorry", and the value of recognizing your mistakes. So Warbird #5.

So, Dr. Strange came off as a bit more competent than last month. I am curious why he called Carol for assistance, then tried to stop her from helping when stuff starts to go crazy there at the end. What do you expect her to do Doc, just sit and wait for you to handle it? Traveler essentially had two Wands of Watoomb, and I've seen you get beaten by someone with just one (back when you and Spidey had your first team-up). I know I keep saying it, but it bears repeating: The ability to absorb energy is pretty handy. Carol really keeps using it to her advantage. I've got to admit I'm curious as to why Carol is going to turn down Captain America and side with Iron Man. I really hope it won't just be because she's trying to boost her image these days, and being a fugitive would hurt that. Maybe because she feels she owes Tony something for his help when she had the drinking problem, and giving her support to join the Avengers again? Of course, she has a military background, so maybe it's just a matter of being used to obeying government rules. She was the Avenger most likely to deal with various agencies and their regulations during her stint on the team it seemed.

Last month, I was wondering - and still am - about whether this Warren Traveler is any relation to the Judas Traveller from the Clone Saga. This month, Traveler brought Carol to a reality where everyone on Earth was devoured by a swarm of alien insects. I started wondering, is it some form of Ultimate Gah'lak'tus? Is it a universe where the Annihilation Wave wasn't stopped? But then I settled on another thought: it's an old Spider-Man enemy. No, not the Swarm. Well, not exactly.

Back in Spectacular Spider-Man #170-172, Spidey teams up with a bunch of his reformed former enemies (Puma, Prowler, Rocket Racer, and Sandman) to investigate a weird chest that Spidey had found in the ruins of a house recently. He'd been lead there by She-Hulk, who then left him buried under tons of rock. This put Spidey a bit at odds with the Avengers, especially after he showed up at Avengers mansion, and punched her in the jaw. Ignoring the fact he probably can't hit hard enough to send She-Hulk flying, with one punch, yet did just that, accusations are thrown around and Spidey's decision of teaming up with a bunch of former criminals gets the Avengers suspicions up. There's an obligatory hero versus hero battle, where Spidey's "Outlaws" somehow manage to avoid getting trashed long enough for the truth to be revealed.

The good guys find out that Space Phantom is behind all the trouble. I think this may have been his first appearance since his intial one in The Avengers. It turned out the chest contained a swarm of microscopic insects an explorer had found in the Amazon around the beginning of the 20th century. They were efficient hunting, killing and eating devices, and able to strike as a mass, enable them to even knock around Thor, while being immune to pretty much any attack you could conceive of. The heroes managed to seal it up in the chest again, Spidey webs it to Thor's hammer, and he tosses it in to space.

Around Amazing Spider-Man #350, a group called the Arcane Order, which I think had been started by the guy that found the swarm, tried to bring it back, using some machine powered by a mystical emerald stolen from Dr. Doom, a keepsake of his mother's, I think. Yeah, that's a bright idea. Spidey and the Black Fox, with a bit of an assist from Doom, managed to stop them from bringing back the swarm.

So I'm wondering whether this might be that same thing. It sounds larger, and more powerful, but it's possible that during the time in space, it multiplied, mutated, and grew more powerful. After all, I don't think anyone ever said where they ended up after Thor sent them on a space voyage.

It's Sorcerer Supreme, not Sorcerer Inept, Damnit!

Talking Warbird #4 here people. Few quick notes:

- OK, Strange says he bound Traveler with the Crimson Bands of Cytorrak. Great, except I don't see anything crimson holding the guy. I do see some stuff that's brown, looks suspiciously like packing tape. C'mon Doc, save that stuff for when you put antiquated books on Ebay, not when you're holding a guy who's got considerable, if possibly uncontrolled, mystical power.

- And why would you leave the Wand of Watoomb sitting out in broad daylight over your fireplace? The first time I saw that was your first meeting with Spider-Man, when a mage sent some hypnotized super-goons to steal it, and you were at least hiding it in a cabinet then.

- And when the hell did Wong start sporting the Alfred Pennyworth look? A white suit, with a green tie? OK, those aren't Alfie's colors, but it's his style of attire. Wong wears meditative green robes. Maybe he and Jarvis are double-dating these days? Now who could Wong be dating? Mistress Clea (behind Strange's back?)? Maybe Shang-Chi's sister? She was going to marry Black Panther, but he shot her down, so. . . I've got no clue, help me out here.

- Is this Warren Traveler any relation to the Judas Traveler that was such a pain in Spider-Man's butt during the Clone Saga (as if Webs didn't have enough to worry about already then)? Probably not, since that guy was apparently strictly low-level psionic, with perception altering powers, while this guy is a time-traveling sorcerer, but you can never tell.

- Doctor Strange has a publicist? What, she helps him get on Conan O'Brien, where he pulls Mindless Ones out of his cape? Wasting his time with that, no wonder he looks so incompetent these days.

- Speaking of publicists, this lady is up to no good. Her building scans information from your cellphone and records it? Why do I have the distinct feeling that little nugget is going to bite Carol in the rear sometime in the future? Or maybe not. Does she have friends that aren't in the superhero community, people that could be endangered if the wrong people got her cellphone records?

- Never mind. Carol doesn't have any non-superhero friends. If Spider-Man is any indication, having friends that aren't costumed adventurers is as taboo as smoking. Way to keep your heroes grounded in our world Joey, because there's no chance people with superpowers and secret identities would still have friends who weren't like them. Idiot.

Final thing:

- When the publicist calls Carol on her new phone, she tells her that until her apartment is repaired, she'll be staying at the Ritz. And here's the part I find interesting. The publicist says 'You're under the name Linda Danvers, since nobody would be interested in that name.'

There's a meaning there, obviously, given that Linda Danvers was Peter David's Angel-Supergirl. Is it a reference to the fact she's apparently no longer in continuity? Were Bill Reed, Roberto De La Torre, or Jimmy Palmiotti involved with that series? Or is it just a shout-out to Peter David, who's Fallen Angel series stars a character somewhat similar to Linda, that he had to switch to IDW because DC got annoyed about it for some reason? Or is it simply a jab at DC? Or all of the above.

- And why exactly isn't Linda Danvers in continuity? She wasn't a Kryptonian, so why does it matter if she called herself Supergirl before this anorexic, annoying twit that has the title now? Honestly, if you want a Kryptonian cousin for Superman, they should have just stuck with Power Girl. With her origin finally settled, and people who can write her well (and interestingly), she was fine for that role, plus calling herself "Power Girl" keeps her from just being a female version of the male character. Just a thought.

What's In a Name?

Well, if you're Cao Pi from Dynasty Warriors 5, cow urine. Seriously though, I'm gonna throw this out here, because it's driving me a little nuts. Should Power Girl start calling herself Power Woman instead? I'm not saying this is going to happen, it's just been on my mind the last few days.

I think this started after I said that Johnny Storm dates girls, but Ms. Marvel is a woman. It's tragic how some throwaway joke I made can cause me problems. I don't know why this is bugging me, since I like "Power Girl".

Using "Girl" gives me this sense that she's enjoying saving lives and stomping villains. She recognizes the importance of it, and that it's the right thing to do with her powers, but also that it doesn't have to be treated like work. She's got power, she uses it to do good, has fun, it's all good. If she changed the name, it would give me the impression it wasn't fun for her anymore. Now it's a job, so she has to take it seriously.

This really makes no sense given that Catwoman certainly seemed to be able to enjoy herself, at least until she found out about the mindwipe thing, while Wonder Girl doesn't seem to take a very light-hearted view of superheroing. Maybe that's the whole "trying to live up to Diana" thing, but Power Girl doesn't seem to have that same problem with Superman.

Or maybe I don't understand Power Girl's character at all. I haven't really read any JSA, so I'm mostly flying blind here. You tell me.

Reflections #2 - Ms. Marvel #1

First off, I never knew Jessica Drew smoked, but apparently she does. Obvious proof she's still evil. Second, I may have been wrong about Jessica and Carol working together in S.H.I.E.L.D. Which leads me to wonder how they became friends. Clearly they've known each other for years, their conversation demonstrated that. Could we get Bendis to write one issue covering this question? Just one, after a couple issues of impressive battles. Moving on to a some quotes.

"It's a long story and it involves me, Johnny Storm and a weekend in Las Vegas that - " This is a pretty funny line. Now, if they're suggesting a supervillain battle with some revealing "costume malfunction", that's one thing. If it's suggesting freaky-freaky, please. Carol Danvers is a woman, Johnny Storm dates girls. And green aliens impersonating his best friend's girlfriend. In other words, people who are easily impressed by flame powers, a smile, and an empty head. He and Hal Jordan should swap little black books. Irregardless, Johnny would be way out of his league with Carol, it wouldn't matter how drunk he tried to get her. A human Ben Grimm? He might have a chance.

"The other day Captain America offered me my old job on the Avengers. You know why? Because I'm me. Not because I've earned it. Not because I'm good enough for it." OK, that is a load of bull. True, Captain America didn't go so far as to call her up and ask her to join, he just asked if she'd like to join when she visited, but so what? Maybe Cap realized that a team with a double (triple?) agent, an absent ninja, a nutcase, and Wolverine, could use someone you can count on. And hey, Carol Danvers just showed up! She's been an Avenger, she's shown that she can follow orders and give them. She could really be a help to the team!

I guess I just don't get this whole idea of "I haven't earned it". When it comes to Avengers stuff, the big cosmic-level threats, only Captain America and Iron Man have more experience than her. Wolverine doesn't count because all that Phoenix stuff was really just dealing with Jean (or a cosmic entity pretending to be Jean) being batshit crazy. She's Avengers material, so put her on the team already! After Bendis leaves. Which should be soon.

I have to say a few things about her talking to the publicist. It seems like she's trying to become better known, to get name recognition so she's up in that Pantheon of the top Marvel heroes. But the great ones don't promote themselves. Their actions speak for them. Spider-Man is regarded as one of the best, at least by his peers, if not the unappreciative bastards of New York City (Marvel Universe New York! I'm not dissing the unappreciative bastards who live in this world's New York). It's not because he has a book deal, or appears on television shows. OK, he gets his picture in the paper a lot, but it's usually with a headline like "Spider-Man: Killer Bug-Person!" Still, the heroes know how good he is, and it's because of what he's done. Promoting yourself is such a, a, a Speedball move.

The publicist told her that to get on a Lettermen-type show, she has to have something to promote, like Reed Richards comes on with some device to help underpriveliged children. But that isn't Reed Richards, leader of the Fantastic Four, that's Reed Richards, brilliant scientist. Yeah, his name recognition comes from what he did as a hero, saving the world from Skrulls and stuff, but he's not on the show to talk about that. He's talking about what he does as a person to help the world. It would be like Peter Parker coming on Conan O'Brian to talk about some after-school program he started. If Carol has other career aspirations, then the talkshow circuit might not be a bad thing. But if she's trying to become the "World's Greatest Hero", it's going to matter a lot more that she's doing those patrols (which is a good idea), and saving cities from the attack of the Brood. Yeah, saving the citizens from the aliens that want to lay eggs inside them would be a good way to build some public recognition.

For the record, I'm not disappointed with the book, or annoyed, or anything like that. I gave it a good score because I legitimately enjoyed it, and I'll buy it again next month. It just prompted several different reactions in me. Which is a good sign.