Tag: Firearm

A Look Back at Prime #10 (1994)

A Look Back at Prime #10 (1994)

carlocarrasco

Disclaimer: This is my original work with details sourced from reading the comic book and doing personal research. Anyone who wants to use this article, in part or in whole, needs to secure first my permission and agree to cite me as the source and author. Let it be known that any unauthorized use of this article will constrain the author to pursue the remedies under R.A. No. 8293, the Revised Penal Code, and/or all applicable legal actions under the laws of the Philippines.

Welcome back, superhero fans, 1990s arts and culture enthusiasts, Ultraverse fans and comic book collectors! Today we revisit the Ultraverse to take a look at one of the many tales of Prime from the monthly series that first launched in 1993.

Within the Ultraverse is a hero that was notably absent in the many UV comic books I reviewed, and Malibu Comics even published a regular series of the character. That character is Firearm who goes by the civilian identity as Alec Swan. Swan, who has no super powers, is a British private investigator who was formerly a member of an elite cover bureau in his home country. He has been working as a PI in California and he has encountered several super-powered people in the Ultraverse. In this comic book review, he gets involved with Prime.

With those details laid down, here is a look back at Prime , published by Malibu Comics in 1994 with a story written by Len Strazewski and Gerard Jones, and illustrated by the late Norm Breyfogle.

The cover.

Early story

The story begins Prime crashing into a secret facility where Colonel Samuels and his crew have been working in. Prime angrily accuses the colonel for lying to him and pushing him close to killing the people in the nuclear plant and almost getting him killed in a nuclear blast.

Samuels immediately pulls a switch to electrocute Prime (note: through the collar Samuel placed on Kevin Green’s neck) with a massive amount of energy which knocks him out. A short time later, Prime finds himself restrained in front of the colonel, guards and scientists. Samuels reveals to him that the secret society Aladdin has been stepping up efforts to control ultras (super-powered beings) since the incident on the moon (Break-Thru) happened, and they want him out of business.

What Colonel Samuels and staff do not realize is that Firearm is discreetly watching them and listening in the shadows…

Quality

The guards got fooled.

To begin with, I can say that the Strazewski-Jones-Breyfogle team literally turned things upside-down to tell a Prime story while smoothly integrating Firearm into the narrative. This is the first-ever encounter between Prime and Firearm (who at this point of the story met Kevin Green’s father)

Without spoiling the plot, I can say that this tale is heavy with the action which is justified by the presence of Firearm. Prime himself is in a more vulnerable state as Colonel Samuels has clever advantages over him. The result is a story packed with action and has some suspense and intrigue mixed in. The reading experience flowed smoothly and there never was any boring moment in any scene.

Firearm’s presence here opened some opportunities for the creative team to develop Kevin Green’s personality and what they came up with was executed efficiently and with depth. As for Colonel Samuels, his wickedness reached a boiling point in this tale and the creative team came up with something that caught me off-guard. I promise you, what happened to Samuels here is worth discovering and it will compel you to examine or anticipate the consequences of the action he took.

Conclusion

Somehow, Colonel Samuels and his staff failed to notice Firearm’s presence.

While the previous issue was a return to form for the regular series, Prime (1994) was a pleasing crossover tale that successfully showcased action, suspense, intrigue and new dimensions of Kevin Green’s personal growth. This first-ever encounter between Prime and Firearm was executed solidly and the reading experience in general was engaging from start to finish. The way I see it, this old Ultraverse comic book will please fans of both Firearm and Prime.

Overall, Prime (1994) is highly recommended.

+++++

Thank you for reading. If you find this article engaging, please click the like button below and also please consider sharing this article to others. If you are looking for a copywriter to create content for your special project or business, check out my services and my portfolio. If you want to support my website, please consider making a donation. Feel free to contact me with a private message. Also please feel free to visit my Facebook page Author Carlo Carrasco and follow me on Twitter at  @HavenorFantasy as well as on Tumblr at https://carlocarrasco.tumblr.com/ and on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/authorcarlocarrasco/.

A Look Back at Freex #15 (1994)

A Look Back at Freex #15 (1994)

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Disclaimer: This is my original work with details sourced from reading the comic book and doing personal research. Anyone who wants to use this article, in part or in whole, needs to secure first my permission and agree to cite me as the source and author. Let it be known that any unauthorized use of this article will constrain the author to pursue the remedies under R.A. No. 8293, the Revised Penal Code, and/or all applicable legal actions under the laws of the Philippines.

Welcome back superhero enthusiasts, 1990s arts and culture enthusiasts and comic book collectors! Today we go back to the wild 1990s and explore a part of Malibu Comics’ Ultraverse through a tale of Freex.  

Since after facing off with Contrary (who eventually became part of UltraForce) and her so-called school and students, Freex had been traveling far and long (refer to my previous Freex reviews here, here and here) and gained Old Man as a useful companion. Along the way, they encountered the unknown deep underground and even saw a powerful being. They even got to the city of Denver temporarily. As they went on, they found the path that led them back to civilization.

With those details laid down, here is a look back at Freex , published in 1994 by Malibu Comics with a story written by Gerard Jones and drawn by Scott Kolins. This is a flip-side comic book with Ultraverse Premiere (1994) on the other side.  

The cover.

Early story

The story begins with Freex – composed of Plug, Sweet-Face, Pressure, Anything and new member Cayman – have been traveling for some time deep underground with Old Man. They find themselves back in San Francisco, the one city that brought them together. While still a long distance away from the city proper and there are no locals who could see them, the team cautiously move to a high communications tower. Michael/Plug uses his special ability to transform himself into electronic matter and makes his way through the communications network of the city to do something very important. Cayman meanwhile becomes the object of discussion between Pressure and Sweet-Face as he has yet to share with them details about himself.

As Cayman himself was part of Contrary’s academy and joined Freex recently, he has trouble gaining the trust of the others. After wearing new clothes that Lewis found, a guy suddenly appears to them. He introduces himself to them as Evan…  

Quality

The very evil Rafferty monitoring Freex secretly and enjoying his advantage over them.

Considering what happened in the previous issues, this story feels like a breath of fresh air not only because of the new location the team got into but also because of strong twists that happened. Instead of going through fantastical encounters, Freex found themselves in situations that are more grounded with reality (within Ultraverse standards specifically) and more notably, the story emphasized crossover as Freex and Old Man encountered Firearm. The said crossover, quite cleverly, sets up Freex into a collision course with the serial killer Rafferty (who encountered The Strangers elsewhere within the Ultraverse). For the newcomers reading this, Rafferty is one of the most evil characters of the Ultraverse who has murdered a lot of people – including his own parents – and has developed tremendous hatred of Ultras.

The inclusion of Rafferty here also sheds light on the Freex’s past connection with the Night Man (click here and here). More notably, the said serial killer turned out to be so resourceful and totally obsessed with murdering people with special abilities, he became a formidable force towards Freex. This leads to a pretty powerful and twisting conclusion that must be seen.  

Conclusion

The gang by the tower.

With a good amount of intrigue, characterization spectacle, strong dialogue and the element of crossover, Freex (1994) is a pretty engaging comic book to read. The biggest feature here is having Freex in a conflict with a very obsessed killer who not only hates Ultras but also has an extensive record of murdering many people over a long period of time. In my view, the Freex-Rafferty conflict was nicely structured and it added depth to the plot. What happened in the end of this comic book should resonate with dedicated fans of Freex.

Overall, Freex (1994) is highly recommended.

+++++

Thank you for reading. If you find this article engaging, please click the like button below, share this article to others and also please consider making a donation to support my publishing. If you are looking for a copywriter to create content for your special project or business, check out my services and my portfolio. Feel free to contact me with a private message. Also please feel free to visit my Facebook page Author Carlo Carrasco and follow me on Twitter at  @HavenorFantasy as well as on Tumblr at https://carlocarrasco.tumblr.com/ and on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/authorcarlocarrasco

A Look Back at The Night Man #4 (1993)

A Look Back at The Night Man #4 (1993)

carlocarrasco

Disclaimer: This is my original work with details sourced from reading the comic book and doing personal research. Anyone who wants to use this article, in part or in whole, needs to secure first my permission and agree to cite me as the source and author. Let it be known that any unauthorized use of this article will constrain the author to pursue the remedies under R.A. No. 8293, the Revised Penal Code, and/or all applicable legal actions under the laws of the Philippines.

Welcome back, superhero enthusiasts, comic book collectors, 1990s pop culture enthusiasts and fans of Malibu Comics! Are you ready for another retro review of The Night Man?

Last time around, Night Man pursued the group Freex during the events of the Break-Thru crossover. By the time the story ended, there were these intriguing details about the powerful J.D. Hunt and his son Guy Hunt.

To find out what happens next to the Ultraverse vigilante after the end of Break-Thru, here is a look back at The Night Man , published in 1993 by Malibu Comics with a story written by Steve Englehart and drawn by Kyle Hotz.

The cover.

Early story

The story begins with newspaper coverage of the Night Man (pictured with Mangle) whose acts caught the attention of people at the Bay Area. Johnny Domino (Night Man) carefully listens to people around him commenting about his published acts and his radio transmissions as the vigilante. Even driving around San Francisco does not spare him from the continued public chatter of the Night Man. He then remembers a lady named Ginger and visits a unique place.

There, he notices a lady approach him. She introduces herself as Rita Diamond and recognizes him for his work with the saxophone. Rita tells him that she and her fiancé Roger Carrington are sponsoring a benefit event and that Johnny’s music would be fabulous for it.

After expressing some hesitation, he then accepts and plays at the event…  

Quality

The Night Man on his unexpected exploration.

Another solid story crafted by Steve Englehart here, only this time without the extra baggage of Freex and Break-Thru. I really enjoyed the way the build-up was staged during the first nine pages of the comic book (note: complete with key references to issue ) leading to an encounter with the new villain.

Before the encounter started, Englehart developed Johnny’s personality even more and took time examining him as a person and as a member of local society (as opposed to being a vigilante) of the Bay Area. When he changes into Night Man, he is portrayed to be reactive and very observant which I found enjoyable to read.

As for the new villain, I don’t want to emphasize details given the structure of the plot. This is something you readers should find out for yourselves.

The art done by Kyle Hotz is pretty good. There was this nice contrast of the art style between the day-time scenes and the night-time scenes. I also liked Hotz’s gritty look not only on Night Man himself but also on the villain and the many other characters in general.

Conclusion

Johnny Domino’s personal observations are nice to read.

The Night Man (1993) is very enjoyable to read and intriguing as well. It has a very good concept, more in-depth development of the protagonist, a solid twist and its references to issue should encourage you to revisit it. Adding value to this comic book is a short story about Firearm which should attract fans of the character.

If you are seriously planning to buy an existing hard copy of The Night Man (1993), be aware that as of this writing, MileHighComics.com shows that the near-mint copy of the comic book costs $16.

Overall, The Night Man (1993) is recommended.

+++++

Thank you for reading. If you find this article engaging, please click the like button below and also please consider sharing this article to others. If you are looking for a copywriter to create content for your special project or business, check out my services and my portfolio. Feel free to contact me as well. Also please feel free to visit my Facebook page Author Carlo Carrasco and follow me at HavenorFantasy@twitter.com