⭐ Issue Number 6 - Dated 17th August, 1991 ⭐
CYBERNETICS ● BARBARITY ● FANTASY ● VENGEANCE!
"[T]ell me that thing’s a big harmless garbage truck."
++ Negative. Object identified under MAINFRAME file as ALL TERRAIN ATTACK VEHICLE. ATAV’s firepower sufficient to destroy this unit. ++
++ Negative. Object identified under MAINFRAME file as ALL TERRAIN ATTACK VEHICLE. ATAV’s firepower sufficient to destroy this unit. ++
☆ Deathlok: The Brains of the Outfit:
Part Five ☆
Script: McDuffie / Wright | Art: Guice / Wright
In the previous issue it seemed like Deathlok's inner-conflict would be exceeding the outer one for some time to come, but the drama of that situation was either short-lived or simply pushed to the backburner for a while,
Issue 06's instalment begins in anguish, but mostly it's an action scene that's played out on paper. In a movie screenplay it would probably say something as simple as: D-Lok attempts an escape; there's much shooting. It would then be left up to the filmmaker(s) and storyboard artist(s) to construct the scene. I know it's a comic and not a film, but the two things can be similarly summarised: Deathlok attempts an escape and there's much shooting.
Issue 06's instalment begins in anguish, but mostly it's an action scene that's played out on paper. In a movie screenplay it would probably say something as simple as: D-Lok attempts an escape; there's much shooting. It would then be left up to the filmmaker(s) and storyboard artist(s) to construct the scene. I know it's a comic and not a film, but the two things can be similarly summarised: Deathlok attempts an escape and there's much shooting.
Beyond that, the human element in the cyborg strives to communicate with and influence the machine half. But asking a killing machine not to kill can result in the whole being vulnerable to attack, so some creative thinking is required - which is yet more action scene content.
☆ RoboCop: Murphy's Law: Part Two ☆
Script: Alan Grant | Art: Sullivan / DeMulder / White
RoboCop is fading, falling into a kind of coma that reminds him of his first death. Like is common in fiction, a coma victim can sometimes wake if they've a reason to do so — such as a person they love dearly or a duty to something outside of themselves — but Murphy's thoughts instead turn once again to the feelings of self-doubt that surfaced in the previous instalment, threatening to pull him further away from the world that created him. Officer Anne Lewis could perhaps provide the lifeline he needs, but she's on patrol, in an alley with problems of her own.
Grant's storytelling doesn't slow down even when the titular character is incapacitated. In life (especially in business and politics), when things go tits-up for someone, there's often someone else in the background who's willing to take advantage of it. In this instance it's Laszlo, who conspires to use Robo's drastic situation to further his own agenda.
He's not alone in such unsympathetic thinking, either. The makers of the Nixcops have similar ideas, albeit with a different target and a more immediate goal in mind.
☆ The Star Slammers: Part Six ☆
Script + Art: Walter Simonson
In order to be able to warn their home world that an invasion is coming, the Star Slammers are forced to make a tough decision. They're mercenaries, so are well-versed in turning a bad situation into an opportunity, but this time it's a tragic loss into a desperate escape. There's not much more I can say beyond that because, yet again, at just five pages it's too brief and I want to avoid spoilers.
Between the Star Slammers and Conan strips is eye level, a place for Havoc to report on things (mostly) movie related. Previously it had articles on 1991's The Rocketeer (Dir. Joe Johnston), Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves (Dir. Kevin Reynolds), and a look ahead to 1992's Bram Stoker's Dracula (Dir. Francis Ford Coppola). In Issue 06 it's the turn of that year's biggest actioner, Terminator 2: Judgment Day (Dir. James Cameron).
☆ Conan: Cauldron of Doom: Part Four ☆
Plot + Art: Buscema | Dialogue: Fleisher
The title changes from Cauldron of the Doomed to Cauldron of Doom, for whatever reason, but for Conan, who's fudging about still under an enchantment, none of that matters. The witch is bored with his amorous attentions, so puts the next phase of her plan into action. If the barbarian doesn't wake, he'll be a different kind of stiff.
Things eventually turn violent, with the respective genders battling their own, before coming to a rushed ending.
After the strip there's a two-page feature on Conan, illustrated with a Joe Chiodo painting - the same one used on Issue 81 of Marvel's Savage Sword of Conan (Oct 1982) magazine, amongst others.
☆ Ghost Rider: Life's Blood: Part Six ☆
Script: Mackie | Art: Saltares / Texeira / Wright
The advancements in Part Six can be summarised as: street gang + guys with guns + ninjas. When reduced like that it might sound good, but it's really piss-weak. Dan says no but means yes, and there's a FWOOSH into a full-page illustration to end. Like what I've just written, it's hardly worth the brief time it takes to read it.
It was common practice in Havoc's day for UK comics to have a letters page that readers could use to ask questions and offer opinions on how things were going (and often on how they wanted them to go thereafter). A response to a query in Issue 06 (from Andrew 'Frederic' Grisdale) hints at The Punisher being a future strip, something that didn't happen in the comic's lifetime. It's perhaps worth noting that The Punisher had his own Marvel UK title not long before that lasted for thirty issues (Aug 1989 - Mar 1990) before being cancelled, leaving a story arc unfinished.
- End -
No comments:
Post a Comment