Thunderbolts (2013) # 20

"No Mercy, Part 1"

Cover Date: March 2014

On Sale Date: January 2014

Title: "No Mercy" Part 1

Writer: Charles Soule
Artist: Carlo Barberi
Letterer: VC's Joe Sabino
Colorist: Isreal Silva
Editor: Jordan D. White
Editor-In-Chief: Axel Alonso 

Cover Artist: Julian Totino Tedesco

At the abandoned Petoskey Stone Diner in Michigan, General Ross and the Thunderbolts (Deadpool, Venom, Elektra, the Punisher, and the Red Leader) find the place filled with robot guards that are activated by the team's arrival. After making quick work of the robots, Ross explains that beneath the diner is a research facility where the United States Government stored away all of the alien and exotic technology they have confiscated over the years. Ross leads them into the underground complex and the various team members start settling in: Punisher and Elektra talk about why Castle is still there since the team completed his mission in New York while the Leader fixes the gamma reactor that powers the complex. Later, the Thunderbolts talk about their next mission, which is being chosen by Ross: they have to take out their wayward teammate, Mercy, an alien "death goddess" who kills those she sees as "seeking death". The Leader suggests that they send Mercy to the place with the highest concentration of people praying for oblivion: Hell. When Deadpool asks how they're going to get here there, Ross and Venom have an idea.

At the Hoover Dam in Nevada, stunt biker Johnny Blaze is being interviewed by a reporter before he attempts to jump the dam (the single longest cycle jump ever attempted!). When the reporter mentions his failed attempts to become a Hollywood movie star, Blaze ends the interview and walks away. Despite the advice of his mechanic to cancel the stunt, Johnny guns his bike and jumps the ramp...then crashes straight into the canyon wall. He saves himself by transforming into the Ghost Rider, but transforms back when the safety crew extinguishes the flames from the wreck. At the hospital, Ross and Flash Thompson visit Blaze, having heard about the crash on television, and ask him for his help.

Later, back at the Thunderbolts' headquarters, Blaze has drawn up a mystical gateway shaped as a five point star with himself, Red Hulk, Leader, Venom, and Deadpool standing at each point. Elektra and the Punisher refuse to participate, and Blaze warns Ross that spells aren't really his specialty. Blaze transforms into Ghost Rider and tells the team to focus their thoughts on Mercy, who should be brought to them by the spell and then be sent to Hell. Unfortunately, the spell backfires and instead it's the Thunderbolts who get transported into Hell. 

"No comment!"

THE ROADMAP

Johnny Blaze last appeared in Uncanny Avengers Annual # 1.

Since his last appearance, this issue explains that Blaze had made an attempt to become a movie star, appearing in two failed action films. Johnny spent time in Hollywood as a stuntman years ago, in Ghost Rider (1973) # 13 through Ghost Rider (1973) # 26.

Blaze met Venom and Red Hulk during the "Circle of Four" storyline that began in Venom (2011) # 13 and he met Deadpool in Deadpool Team-Up # 897.

Blaze does actually have a history with using magic that dates back not only to his first appearance in Marvel Spotlight (1972) # 5 (where he summons Mephisto) but also to Ghost Rider (1990) # 14 where he uses sorcery to bind and trap Noble Kale.

CHAIN REACTION

Charles Soule and Carlo Barberi bring Johnny Blaze into the Thunderbolts as part of the "All-New Marvel NOW!" initiative!

Thunderbolts was one of the very first of the original "Marvel NOW!" relaunch of 2013, written by Daniel Way and drawn by Steve Dillon. I picked the series up for the first 12 or so issues before finally giving up; I could only take so much Dan Way before finally throwing my hands up in frustration. While the original concept of the Thunderbolts was "villains reformed into heroes", this new incarnation brought together a group of the darker anti-heroes of the Marvel Universe as an unlikely but interesting team. Putting Elektra, the Punisher, Venom, and Deadpool together with the Red Hulk was a cool concept (and was a clever play on the Red Hulk's alias as General "Thunderbolt" Ross), but the execution was extremely lacking. Charles Soule took over as writer in time for the title's tie-in arc to the "Infinity" crossover, but I had already given up on the series by that point.

Naturally, adding Ghost Rider to the cast meant I would once again be subjecting myself to what I viewed as an inferior title. I didn't have much enthusiasm for this issue, but it looks like Soule and new series artist Carlo Barberi have turned around a lot of the problems I had with the series under Way and Dillon. The team is entertaining to read about instead of irritating, and it looks like the Punisher (another of my favorite characters) is finally getting some decent mileage out of his involvement. I'm still not much of a fan of Red Hulk or Elektra, but I found I didn't mind their presence in this issue. 

The important addition to the series in this issue is, of course, Johnny Blaze, who hadn't been seen in any serious capacity since the end of the Rob Williams Ghost Rider series a few years ago. Soule gives a plausible explanation for where Blaze has been since his last appearance, he tried to become a Hollywood action star, which makes sense given the character's history as both a famous stunt biker and a former TV stuntman. Soule seems to know his Ghost Rider history, too, as he also makes use of Blaze's incomplete knowledge of casting mystical spells. I like Soule's take on Blaze as someone who is trying desperately to give his life some kind of meaning again outside of "vengeance", even taking him back to his days as a motorcycle stunt rider.

Carlo Barberi has drawn Ghost Rider and Blaze before, when the character appeared in the Deadpool series from a few years ago. Barberi has a nice, clean art style that's more appropriate for superheroes than the gritty anti-hero action the characters here generally call for. Thunderbolts is a series I could see someone like Jerome Opena or Tony Moore just knocking out of the park, but I have to give Barberi credit for producing clear and well-drawn action and character scenes. The book's visuals look far better here than they did under Steve Dillon or Phil Noto (who was surprisingly off-key during his brief run on the series). Barberi draws a good Ghost Rider that doesn't deviate much into exaggeration, which is honestly kind of refreshing.

All in all, while Thunderbolts still isn't a great series, it's far better than I thought it would be when I cracked this issue open. Here's hoping Johnny's stay with the team continues to improve the title. 

Any crash you can walk away from...