Tag: Night Man

A Look Back at Prototype #14 (1994)

A Look Back at Prototype #14 (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 enthusiasts, comic book collectors and fans of the Malibu Comics! It’s been months since the last time I reviewed a comic book of Prototype. For me Prototype is one of the more defining characters of the entire Ultraverse and I really enjoyed reading each issue of the monthly series (which started in 1993 along with many other UV titles). Prototype is not a mere imitation of Marvel Comics’ Iron Man. In fact, the armored character has a lot more depth and the overall concept of the Prototype monthly series involves corporate intrigue.

Now we can see more of the armored ultra in this look back at Prototype , published in 1994 by Malibu Comics with a story written by Len Strazewski and drawn by Roger Robinson.

The cover.

Early story

The story begins inside a high-tech facility. An executive enters a room and approaches a powerful, technology enhanced being called Manhattan Project. He tells him to do his duty. In response, Manhattan Project (note: he appeared in Prime #18) grabs the executive by the throat and kills him.

Elsewhere, chaos strikes the city as the armored Gordon Bell unleashes his fury which Prototype, Ranger, Night Man and The Solution witnessed. Bell pointed at Prototype promising he will come back for him.

Some time later, Jimmy Ruiz (Prototype) visits and meets Lisa Lopez, the director of human resources. At this point, the destruction of Gordon Bell’s own office as well as the recent corporate merger put Jimmy in a bind with uncertainty. To his dismay, the job offered to him pays less than half of what he was making due to technical evaluations related to the merger. Even so, he decides to accept the new job…

Quality

The money shot!

This is an enjoyable, character-driven story of Prototype. It is a refreshing way of presenting the title character after having read lots of Prototype comic books that had the spotlight divided between Jimmy Ruiz and Bob Campbell. The corporate intrigue continues nicely in this story but the stakes have been raised not only with NuWare and Ultratech, but also with Jimmy Ruiz.

The Prototype pilot finds himself in a new stage of his life, one that is full of uncertainty and pain as his high-paying job is no more and a lot of secret technology records got destroyed. Apart from a destroyed career, Jimmy also has to struggle with the power surging in him which requires him to use the Prototype armor to reduce the extra power.

Prototype encounters Manhattan Project in this issue and I can say that it was not only action-packed but also had a nice combination of intensity and emotions. The said encounter was short but every moment of it was very enjoyable to read.

Conclusion

Major career challenge for Jimmy Ruiz.

Prototype (1994) is a lot of fun to read and anyone who is true follower to Jimmy Ruiz will be happy to that there is very strong focus on him. It seems that this story marks the turning point of his life and sets the stage for more surprises and intrigue as the corporate world turned upside down.

If you are seriously planning to buy an existing hard copy of Prototype (1994), be aware that as of this writing, MileHighComics.com shows that the near-mint copy of the comic book costs $14.

Overall, Prototype (1994) 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

A Look Back at Prototype #13 (1994)

A Look Back at Prototype #13 (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 geeks, comic book collectors and fans of the Ultraverse. In this latest Ultraverse-related retro comic book review, we will check out what happened to Prototype and his companions after the events that took place in issue #12. I personally enjoyed that particular comic book and it has been almost three months since I last reviewed an issue of Prototype.

Now we can start this look back at Prototype , published in 1994 by Malibu Comics with a story written by Len Strazewski and drawn by Dean Zachary.

The cover.

Early story

The story begins with TV news coverage of an explosion that happened at one of the buildings along Wall Street. The TV newscaster reports that another battle between ultras rocked the headquarters of Ultratech in downtown Manhattan which sparks rumors of corporate infighting.

Behind the scenes at the corporate tower, Jimmy Ruiz/Prototype, Bob Campbell/Ranger and Felicia Campbell discuss matters in front of the robot Prototype 2000 (the same machine responsible for the loss of Bob’s arm) which projects an image of Ultratech chairman Gordon Bell as its head. They noticed that the robot thinks and acts like Gordon Campbell, even going as far as calling the name of a secretary who left the company some years back. Felicia believes the robot has some sort of body detachment syndrome. For Bob, it does not matter as Gordon Bell still owns a controlling interest in the corporation.

After some intense talk, Jimmy uses his Prototype armor switch off Prototype 2000 but got blasted by energy which pushed him back to Bob and Felicia. Prototype 2000 then shows the virtual Gordon Bell telling “Katie” to turn the TV on so he can see how the company stock is performing…

Quality

How do you you deal with a machine that actually thinks and acts like a human?

I can declare that Len Strazewski really ramped up the corporate intrigue several notches high in this particular issue. There is a lot of corporate world talk and the good news here was that nothing ended up being boring. The most notable aspect of the story was the presence of Prototype 2000 with the mind of Gordon Bell really reacting to the corporate developments. Of course, there was still sufficient focus on the protagonist Prototype piloted by Jimmy Ruiz. At this stage of the Prototype series, Jimmy has gone through not only many battles using the powered suit of armor but several setbacks in his personal life. Apart from the turmoil at Ultratech, Jimmy not only has to keep his job but also save his reputation. Not to be outdone is Bob Campbell (the original Prototype pilot) whose relationship with Felicia got developed a bit more and their exchange of dialogue was nicely written.

Within the story is a major twist that really added a whole lot of depth into the narrative. It’s a twist that I did not anticipate and I strongly recommend you discover it yourselves once you read this comic book. Oh, and there is a certain supporting character from the Mantra series who also appeared here.

As for the art, Dean Zachary did a descent job visualizing Len Strazewski’s script and capturing the typical smooth sequencing of Prototype in action scenes. There is enough scenes of spectacle here to keep you entertained.

Conclusion

Jimmy Ruiz, Bob Campbell and Felicia discuss matters in the presence of virtual Gordon Bell.

I can say that I had a blast reading Prototype (1994). To put things in perspective, this one is just a part of the Hostile Takeover storyline that eventually connected with other characters of the Ultraverse such as the Night Man and The Solution (a heroes-for-hire team). The writing of Len Strazewski is so good, this one is worth reading all over again. It should be noted that topics like corporate intrigue or business world internal affairs got presented with a strong flavor of superhero stuff that prevented the story from turning into a bore. This is one intriguing and compelling read. Lastly, I should state that this comic book is one of those Ultraverse Premiere flipside issues, the other side of which contained short stories about Iron Clad, Pixx of UltraForce, Flood and Lady Killer of The Strangers.

If you are seriously planning to buy an existing hard copy of Prototype (1994), be aware that as of this writing, MileHighComics.com shows that the near-mint copy of the comic book costs $8.

Overall, Prototype (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. 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

A Look Back At Break-Thru #1

A Look Back At Break-Thru #1

carlocarrasco

When done right, a crossover storyline showcasing a big mix of superheroes getting involved in a huge event can be memorable and worth revisiting years after getting published.

Back in 1993, Malibu Comics launched the Ultraverse which involved many talented creators. Right from the start, it was made clear that there was a shared universe occupied by The Strangers, Night Man, Prototype, Prime, Mantra, Hardcase and many others.

Before the end of 1993, Malibu launched Break-Thru which started a new storyline that involved many of the above characters plus Firearm, The Solution, Sludge and Solitaire. Adding more punch to this comic book was Malibu’s hiring of legendary artist George Perez who worked on the classic Crisis on Infinite Earths maxi-series of DC Comics.

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A great cover! One of the best ever for any Ultraverse comic book!

Here is a close look at Break-Thru mainly written by Gerard Jones, drawn by George Perez and inked by John Lowe with colors by Moose Baumann. Credited as contributing writers were Steve Englehart, Mike W. Barr, Steve Gerber, James D. Hudnall, Tom Mason, George Perez, James Robinson and Len Strazewski.

Early story

The story begins immediately after the end of Exiles . A man falls to his death from the top of a tower thinking he was reaching the moon at night. Elsewhere, an airplane sharply goes up with too much altitude as the pilot obsesses with going to the moon

As it turns out, the media reports about people trying to reach the moon and getting restless. A member of Exiles lies helplessly on a bed with his entire body covered with medical materials for his injuries. A doctor presses him for answers and he claims to know that Amber, one of the Exiles members, looks a lot like a young lady floating over Los Angeles. He thinks she is responsible for the madness that has been going around the world.

The injured confirmed that the lady, floating high above with reddish energy around her, is none other than Amber. He claims, however, that he has no idea what happened but shared that she was already prone to volatile energy blasts.

Behind the scenes, members of Aladdin discuss what has been happening. One of them believes that Amber may hold important clues to the nature and origin of Ultras. The Aladdin people get distracted with noise caused by Eden Blake (Mantra in civilian form) who secretly eavesdropped on them pretending to be lost (note: a reference is made to Mantra to explain her new employment with Aladdin.)

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The military and Prime.

Aladdin decides to activate their own Ultra named Wrath. Over at the Pentagon, military officers discuss the information about Wrath they got received from their moles at Aladdin. Their leader wondered about sending Prime (with a modified look) on a mission but he can’t have anyone see how he modified the Ultra.

Meanwhile in the bowels of the Earth, a man who is not really a man watches…

Quality

In terms of storytelling, Break-Thru has a nice build-up. It took its time making references to the many, many characters of the Ultraverse. By the end of the comic book, you will realize there are different kinds of Ultras: the solo Ultras, the corporate Ultras, the freelancers, the work-for-hire Ultras, the accidental Ultras and the like. With regards to emphasizing the shared universe, this comic book shows that connections with the individual comic books are tight. References in what happened in Exiles , Prime , Mantra and others all helped build-up the concept of Break-Thru. The story is 35-pages long which, in my opinion, was sufficient not only to emphasize the conflict Break-Thru but also give readers enough space to get to know what exactly is going on, who are these many characters, what the institutions involved are, etc.

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Mantra with Prototype.

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The Strangers discuss what has been happening.

More on Break-Thru’s concept, I like the way the comic book emphasized how the sudden presence of multiple Ultras affected local societies, members of the public, the government, the secret groups and others. It also sheds light on how people, regardless of social class or status, react to the presence of people who carry special powers or have unusual talents over them. This reminds me of a key scene in the 2012 Avengers movie in which Col. Fury mentioned how the sudden presence of super beings caused a disturbance.

Spectacle? Unsurprisingly there is a good amount of action as well as incidental moments that kept the narrative entertaining.

Visually, Break-Thru is a great looking comic book thanks to George Perez who is famous for drawing multiple characters environments with his distinctive style complete with a high level of detail. There is not a single boring moment with his art and each panel has really nice visuals. The action scenes and incidental happenings (example: Valerie’s sudden burst of energy) come with a lot of punch.

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Freex got affected.

Very notably, Perez’s take on each of the Ultraverse characters is very good to look at and in some ways, certain characters look a lot better than they did in their respective comic book series. A perfect example here is the team Freex whose characters look more human (in style) and more lively. Of course, I don’t mean to say that the illustrators of the Freex series did not do a good job.

Perez’s drawing of Mantra is very good. Similar results with The Strangers, Hardcase, Solitaire and Prototype. Very clearly George Perez carefully did his research on the characters and their respective designs.

Conclusion

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Hardcase, Choice and The Solution on the move!

Overall, Break-Thru is a great comic book to read and it reflects the high quality and deep engagement the Ultraverse had when it was still under the control of Malibu Comics (note: Marvel Comics acquired them and drastically changed the UV for the worse in the mid-1990s). It definitely still is one of the finest superhero crossover comic books of the 1990s and, personally, I found it to be more engaging than the launch issues of other crossover storylines like Zero Hour and The Infinity Gauntlet. If you are interested, Break-Thru continued in Firearm , Freex , Hardcase , Mantra , The Night Man , Prime , Prototype , Sludge , Solitaire , The Solution , The Strangers and then in Break-Thru .

Break-Thru is highly recommended and you can buy a near-mint copy of it for $4 at Mile High Comics’ website.

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. Also my fantasy book The World of Havenor is still available in paperback and e-book format. 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