AVENGERS/SQUADRON SUPREME '98
Annotation by Sean McQuaid

(Published July, 1988, simultaneous with books cover-dated September)

"To Challenge a Champion!"
By Kurt Busiek (plot), Kurt Busiek & Len Kaminski (script) & Carlos Pacheco
(pencils), with Batt/Russell/Wiaceck/Vey/Neary (inks), RS/Comicraft/DL
(letters), Tom Smith (colors), Tom Brevoort (editor) and Bob Harras
(editor-in-chief).

Avengers Assembled: Thor, Iron Man, Giant-Man, Captain America, Hawkeye,
Scarlet Witch, Vision [II], Wonder Man, Firestar and Justice (as members);
Swordsman [II] & Magdalene (as honorary members).

Other Characters: Squadron Supreme (Doctor Spectrum, Hyperion,
Power Princess, Whizzer II, Skylark, Moonglow II, Shape & Haywire) and
Imus Champion.

Note: This story takes place between Avengers (v3) # 7 and Avengers (v3) # 8.


EXTERIOR COVER
This issue's cover illustration (drawn by Carlos Pacheco & inked by George
Perez) features the Avengers (Firestar, Justice, Thor, Captain America,
Scarlet Witch, Iron Man & Hawkeye) and the Squadron Supreme (Skylark, Shape,
Haywire, Whizzer, Power Princess, Hyperion, Doctor Spectrum & Moonglow) in
the hands of a symbolically huge Imus Champion.


INTERIOR COVER
The events of Avengers (v3) # 5-6 are recapped: criminal billionaire Imus
Champion manipulated the otherdimensional heroes known as the Squadron
Supreme into attacking the Avengers, but the Avengers freed the Squadron
from Champion's mind control. For more information on the Squadron and their
background, see the EMA annotations for Avengers (v3) # 5-6


PAGE 1
Justice holds a statuette of Avengers founder Henry Pym (currently known as
Giant-Man), depicted in his guise as the original Ant-Man. Portraits of
Pym and the other founding Avengers, more clearly visible on page 2, can be
seen in the background.

The other figure in the statuette is Nash, one of Pym's favorite ants.
Pym could communicate with and control ants using the cybernetic helmet he
wore as Ant-Man, and ants often assisted Pym in his adventures. Nash
first appeared in Avengers (v1) # 93 as part of a trio of ants (Crosby,
Stills & Nash, christened after the popular musicians of the same names)
who accompanied Pym on a journey into the Vision's android body. Crosby
died during that adventure, but Nash survived to join Pym in subsequent
exploits before dying himself, years later, in the Giant-Man limited
series (which ran as a supporting feature in part of the print run of
Avengers [v1] # 379-382 under the Marvel Double Feature banner).

There's a certain symmetry to this scene, continued on page 2. Justice and
Firestar are the team's newest recruits, and Justice is speaking reverently
of the team's original members. It's a nice moment, fostering a sense of
the group's rich ongoing history.


PAGE 2
Justice and Firestar are in the upstairs hall of Avengers Mansion, which
apparently serves as a sort of de facto trophy room. On the wall in
front of Justice we can see portraits of the founding Avengers: Giant-Man
and the Wasp, Thor, the Hulk and Iron Man (in his third armor) as they all
looked circa Avengers (v1) # 2-5. Below the portraits are statuettes of
Avengers members Wonder Man, Captain America and Hawkeye. The Wonder Man
statuette appears to depict Simon in his original costume, posed as he was
in his debut appearance on the cover of Avengers (v1) # 9.

The spiny costume in the display case in the foreground at left is the
battlesuit of longtime super-criminal Alexander Gentry, better known
as the PORCUPINE. Gentry was a U.S. government weapons designer who
invented an armored battlesuit coated in sharp, protective quills and
outfitted with a host of concealed miniature weapons. Convinced that the
government would give him virtually no credit or reward for his brilliant
designs, Gentry kept the suit to himself and decided to use it for personal
gain as a costumed criminal called the Porcupine. Gentry was defeated by
the original Ant-Man (Hank Pym), who soon defeated Porcupine a second time
in his new guise as Giant-Man. Despite these defeats, Gentry continued to
pursue a long, undistinguished criminal career that brought him into
conflict with heroes such as the Fantastic Four, the X-Men, Captain America,
the Defenders, Iron Man, the original Yellowjacket (Pym in yet another
costumed identity), the Wasp, Nighthawk and Nomad.
Eventually, however, Gentry grew weary of his unsuccessful criminal
career and decided to sell his suit to the highest bidder so that he could
retire comfortably. Unfortunately, the Porcupine had long since developed a
reputation as a loser. As a result, most criminals and criminal
organizations had no interest in the Porcupine armor, and the few offers
Gentry did receive were insultingly low. Desperate, Gentry took the unusual
approach of offering to sell his battlesuit to the Avengers for a fair
price, arguing that this would prevent the suit from falling into criminal
hands. Captain America, intrigued by Gentry's offer, agreed on the condition
that Gentry assist him in a sting operation aimed at capturing members of
the criminal Serpent Society. Gentry reluctantly accepted the terms, but
was fatally wounded in the process of helping Captain America capture
several Society members. Captain America tried to console the dying Gentry
by praising him for assisting in the capture of dangerous criminals, and
assured Gentry that he was a worthy opponent, but the despairing Porcupine
insisted with his dying breath that he was an insignificant loser. After
Gentry's death, Captain America had the Porcupine battlesuit displayed in
Avengers Mansion, labeled "Battle Armor of the Porcupine--Honored Foe of the
Avengers".
Mister Hyde smashed the Porcupine display when he and the other
Masters of Evil invaded Avengers Mansion in Avengers (v1) # 273-277, but
the display has obviously since been reconstructed, perhaps when the Mansion
itself was restored by Ute the Watcher in Avengers (v1) # 375.
The Porcupine first appeared in Tales to Astonish # 48. His
subsequent appearances included Tales to Astonish # 53, Fantastic Four
Annual 3, X-Men (v1) # 22-23, Captain America (v1) # 130 & 158-159,
Defenders # 37-38 & 63-64, Iron Man (v1) # 127 and Avengers (v1) # 167.
He extensively redesigned his battlesuit into the model shown here in
Captain America (v1) # 285 (the original Porcupine armor was much bulkier,
much spinier, and looked, in Luke Cage's words, like a "walking haystack").
The Porcupine died in Captain America (v1) # 315.

The marionettes hanging in the foreground at right were carved by gypsy
shaman Django Maximoff in the likeness of his adopted children Wanda and
Pietro, better known as the Avengers members Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver.
The puppets were carved from the mystical wood of Wundagore Mountain,
and the lonely, slightly mad Django used them to entrap the siblings' souls
in the dolls so that they would all be together as a family again. The
Avengers forced Django to free Wanda and Pietro, who forgave the sad old
man for his desperate actions and spent some family time with him before he
died. The Wanda puppet was later lost when the dying Django and the Avengers
used it to exorcise the demon Chthon from Wanda and trap the demon in the
doll, which was then buried in an avalanche. Django was a toymaker by trade,
though, so he may have carved one or more copies of the Wanda and Pietro
marionettes, two of which we see here. Django and his puppets appeared in
Avengers (v1) # 173, 181-182 & 185-187, much of which is collected in
the Avengers: Yesterday Quest paperback.

Behind and below the marionettes we can see the Cask of Ancient Winters,
which Thor brought to the mansion recently in Avengers (v3) # 6. Avengers
butler Edwin Jarvis said at the time that he would put the cask on display
in the upstairs hall, and he has apparently done so since then.

In the distant background at left, we can see a display case containing the
heads of various models of ULTRON, the rogue robot created by Henry Pym
years ago. Ultron somehow developed a brilliant but malevolent consciousness
defined by a hatred of Pym and, by extension, hatred of the Avengers and all
humanity, whom Ultron regards as inferior. As such, Ultron has repeatedly
attempted to destroy Pym, the Avengers and the entire human race, sometimes
in concert with human villains such as the Masters of Evil. Ironically,
Ultronís own creations--his robotic mates Jocasta and Alkhema, and his
android servant the Vision--have all turned against him over the years;
Jocasta and Vision even joined the Avengers. The Avengers and other heroes
have repeatedly destroyed Ultron, but he inevitably reconstructs himself in
a more advanced form and returns to menace the world anew.
Ultron first appeared in Avengers (v1) # 54. His appearances
include: Avengers (v1) # 54-55 (as Ultron-5, alias Crimson Cowl, formed
second Masters of Evil in unsuccessful attempt to destroy Avengers);
Avengers (v1) # 57-58 (as Ultron-5, created Vision II as a weapon to use
against Avengers; destroyed by Vision II; revealed to be a rogue creation of
Henry Pym obsessed with destroying humanity in general and Pym in
particular); Avengers (v1) # 66-68 (reactivated as Ultron-6; incorporated
the super-metal adamantium into his robotic body; destroyed by Avengers);
Avengers (v1) # 127 (reactivated as Ultron-7; disrupted wedding of
Quicksilver and Crystal in Attilan); Avengers (v1) # 134-135 (Ultron-5
depicted in flashbacks to the Visionís origins); Avengers (v1) # 161-162
(reactivated as Ultron-8; created robotic mate, Jocasta, who turned against
him; defeated by Avengers); Avengers (v1) # 170 (behind the scenes);
Avengers (v1) # 171 (battled and deactivated by Avengers; rejected by
Jocasta); Avengers (v1) # 201-202 (reactivated as Ultron-9, deactivated by
Avengers); Avengers: Emperor Doom (temporarily brainwashed by Sub-Mariner
and Purple Man into serving Doctor Doom); West Coast Avengers (v2) # 1-2
(as Ultron-12, with Grim Reaperís Lethal Legion, abducted Hank Pym and
Wonder Man; defeated by Avengers); West Coast Avengers (v2) # 6-7 (Ultron-12
evolved beyond its hatred of Pym and humanity, reconciling with Pym;
Ultron-12 destroyed by reactivated Ultron-11; Ultron-11 destroyed by
Wonder Man); Avengers (v1) # 280 (revealed to have mind-controlled Edwin
Jarvis into working with Masters of Evil); Avengers West Coast # 65-68 (as
Ultron-13, conspired to "robotize" humanity into his "androne" slaves; with
Grim Reaper, defeated by Avengers); Avengers West Coast # 89-91 (evolved
into "ultimate" Ultron, escaped Vault, created robotic bride Alkhema and
conspired with her to slaughter humanity; with Alkhema, defeated by Avengers
and hurled into outer space); Avengers West Coast Annual 8 (conspired to
wipe out humanity; plans thwarted by Alkhema and Avengers; captured by
Avengers).
Ultron appeared most recently in the Vision limited series, when
he was one of several sentient robots infected by a disease that caused
mental delusions. Ultron then believed himself to be an aging drunkard, and
was last seen in the custody of his estranged "son", the Vision.

As Vance says, Hank Pym discovered the subatomic particles (dubbed
Pym Particles) that make it possible to instantaneously shrink or enlarge
matter by either accruing mass from another dimension or shunting mass to
the same dimension. In recent years, that dimension was revealed to be a
prison realm used by the alien race known as the Kosmosians, who have
interacted with Earthlings on several occasions. The Kosmosians use the Pym
particles for various applications in their world, including the manufacture
of robotic Growing Men for the time tyrant Kang. Hank Pym is the principal
manufacturer and user of Pym particles on Earth, but other past and present
users of Pym particles include Janet Van Dyne (alias Wasp), Clint Barton
(alias Hawkeye/Goliath II), Bill Foster (alias Black Goliath/Giant-Man II),
Scott Lang (alias Ant-Man II), Erik Josten (alias Power Man/Smuggler/Goliath
III/Atlas) and Rita DeMara (alias Yellowjacket II).

As Vance says, Pym developed a means of electronically communicating
with insects, an ability he has used in all of his identities as a costumed
adventurer, beginning with his guise as Ant-Man. Scott Lang currently uses
the same technology as the second Ant-Man. The Wasp can grow natural
antennae that perform the same function, thanks to genetic mutations
engineered by Pym.

As Vance says, Pym was a pioneer in the fields of robotics and
artificial intelligence, his most significant and most infamous creation
being Ultron, an artificial human-like intelligence gone criminally insane.
Pym also created the lesser-known and less groundbreaking Rover, a robotic
vehicle with a simplistic, dog-like intelligence.
As Vance says, Pym's early adversaries included Egghead (Elihas
Starr) and the Human Top (David Cannon, now known as the Whirlwind). Egghead
was a brilliant scientific genius who used his skills for criminal gain, and
was arguably Pym's greatest foe. He formed and led criminal groups such as
the second Emissaries of Evil and the third Masters of Evil, with whom he
conspired to frame Pym for treason and various other crimes. Pym defeated
Egghead's Masters single-handedly in the end, though, and Egghead himself
was accidentally killed when Hawkeye prevented him from shooting the
victorious Pym in the back.
Egghead first appeared in Tales to Astonish # 38. His Avengers
appearances include Avengers (v1) # 63-65 (with Puppet Master and Mad
Thinker, conspired to rule world; kidnapped Black Widow; threatened Earth
with orbiting death ray, thwarted by Barney Barton and Avengers; killed
Barney Barton; hired Swordsman to kidnap Hank Pym; defeated and captured by
Goliath II); Avengers (v1) # 217 (framed Hank Pym for treason); Avengers
(v1) # 222, 224 & 227-230 (formed third Masters of Evil, abducted Hank Pym,
defeated by Pym, accidentally killed by Hawkeye while trying to kill Pym).
Whirlwind (formerly the Human Top) last appeared in Avengers (v3)
# 4, when he was apprehended by Justice and Firestar. For more information
on Whirlwind, see the EMA annotations for that issue.

Vance's comparison of Pym to Da Vinci is apt since Da Vinci, like
Pym, was a multi-talented man who applied his genius to a wide variety of
endeavors.


PAGE 3
The Avengers are engaged in a workout in their mansions's training
facility, nicknamed the Playroom. Hawkeye's feet are locked into a machine
similar to the one he trained on at the western Avengers Compound, a machine
first seen in West Coast Avengers (v2) # 42; the mechanism spins Hawkeye
around in various directions at various speeds, in positions ranging from
upright to upside down, and tests his ability to hit targets under these
random conditions.


PAGE 4

Panel 1:
Present in addition to the active Avengers are honorary members the
SWORDSMAN (Philip Jarvert) and MAGDALENE, warriors from an alternate Earth
who came to the Avengers' world as pawns of the madman Proctor, but rebelled
against him and joined the Avengers instead. They were last seen in
Avengers (v3) # 1-4, when they aided the Avengers against Morgan Le Fay and
the Whirlwind before declining an offer of full Avengers membership.

Panel 2:
This exchange confirms what previous stories have already hinted at:
that the supposedly deceased Wonder Man, whom Wanda has been summoning back
to life repeatedly of late, will only appear if and when Wanda truly needs
him. She can't simply make him appear anytime she wants him.


PAGE 5

Panel 6:
One wonders if Cap has decided to maintain a reservist roster of two on a
regular basis, since he invites Swordsman and Magdalene to fill the reserve
slots vacated by Firestar and Justice. Said slots had been offered to
Firestar & Justice on the spur of the moment before, but it now seems that
Cap intends to make them a standing policy. Whether the reserves will expand
beyond two members (as they have in the past) remains to be seen.


PAGE 6

Panel 1:
Swordsman and Magdalene refuse full Avengers membership for the second time,
citing the same reasons they gave in Avengers (v3) # 4: that they feel out
of place on the Avengers' world, and that being with the Avengers' drives
home that sense of discomfort since the couple were Avengers on their own
worlds before they were destroyed. Swordsman, for instance, was once
portrayed as being greatly disturbed by an encounter with an alternate
Hawkeye since he and his world's Hawkeye were good friends. Being around
this world's Hawkeye and the other Avengers may simply be too uncomfortable
for Swordsman and Magdalene.

Panel 2:
Cap speaks truthfully when he says he knows what it's like to feel out of
place: after all, he's a man from an entirely different era (the 1940s),
and missed out on decades of history while he was in suspended animation
following World War II. When the Avengers revived him and reintroduced him
to the modern world, he felt very much out of place at first.


PAGE 7

Panels 2-3:
The Avengers lost the right to launch quinjets within New York City airspace
some time ago, but apparently regained it as of the first issue of the
current series; however, they apparently require FAA approval for any
given flight plan now.


PAGE 8

Panel 1:
Pictured here are most of the early members of the Squadron Supreme (the
picture is symbolic rather than a flashback to an actual gathering since
some of the costumes shown here conflict with each other in terms of
chronology): Hawkeye (II), Lady Lark (now Skylark), Cap'n Hawk, Nuke,
Arcanna (now Moonglow), Amphibian, Power Princess, Nighthawk, Doctor
Spectrum, Tom Thumb, Hyperion and Whizzer (II). Of the early Squadron
members (those active prior to the Squadron's Utopia Program), the only
one absent is the Skrullian Skymaster.
Current Squadron members Lady Lark, Arcanna, Power Princess, Doctor
Spectrum, Hyperion and Whizzer are wearing their original costumes. Spectrum
is brandishing his power prism, the alien crystal that formerly served as
the source of his energy powers. For more information on Lady Lark, Arcanna,
Power Princess, Doctor Spectrum, Hyperion and Whizzer, see the EMA
annotations for Avengers (v3) # 5-6.

The second HAWKEYE (Wyatt MacDonald) was an expert archer who used
his skills as a costumed crimefighter and was invited to join the Squadron,
becoming the team's first recruit since its founding. He served faithfully
for years, later changing his costumed alias to Golden Archer (II), forming
a close friendship with teammate Doctor Spectrum and a long-running romance
with fellow member Lady Lark; however, in the early days of the Squadron's
Utopia Program (an attempt on their part to solve all of society's problems
by temporarily usurping control of the U.S. government), the archer was
traumatized by a near-death experience at the hands of an angry mob. This
unnerved him, and he was further shaken by the fact that Lady Lark no longer
seemed to be in love with him, instead turning to his bitter rival, Blue
Eagle. His confidence eroding, the archer made two major mistakes: he
was captured by the Institute of Evil and coerced into betraying the
Squadron to them, and he used the Squadron's "behavior modification"
technology to brainwash Lady Lark into loving him more passionately than
ever. When the Squadron found out about the latter incident, they expelled
him from their ranks in disgrace.
Eager to redeem himself somehow, MacDonald adopted a new identity as
Black Archer and joined the Redeemers, a group organized by former Squadron
founder Nighthawk to oppose the Squadron's Utopia Program since it infringed
on various civil rights despite its good intentions, and could become a
despotic tyranny in the wrong hands. When the Redeemers and the Squadron met
in battle, it was Black Archer who struck down Doctor Spectrum, shattering
his power prism (which led to its energy powers being somehow transferred to
Spectrum himself). Heartsick at having struck down his best friend, the
archer threw down his weapon and caught Spectrum as he fell from the sky,
saving his life; but Spectrum's enraged teammate, Blue Eagle, fatally
bludgeoned Black Archer from behind moments later. His death was mourned by
the Squadron thereafter, especially Lady Lark (now Skylark), who loves the
archer to this day. She is mercifully unaware of how MacDonald forced her
to love him, and is also unaware of the fact that it was her close friend
Blue Eagle who killed him. The Squadron has apparently decided that
knowledge of either of these things would be too painful for her.
Like his former namesake, the original Hawkeye, Black Archer was a
highly trained athlete, physical combatant and archer, armed with a bow and
a wide array of specially designed "trick" arrows.
The Squadron were created as parodies of DC's Justice League of
America, and MacDonald is the Squadron's equivalent of the JLA's Green
Arrow. Both are costumed archers, both had long love affairs with a
hypersonic-voiced martial artist (Green Arrow's Black Canary and Golden
Archer's Lady Lark), both had friendships with their team's incarnation of
Green Lantern (JLA's Green Lantern and the Squadron's Doctor Spectrum), and
both feuded with their team's resident stuffy birdman (the JLA's Hawkman and
the Squadron's Blue Eagle).
MacDonald first appeared as Hawkeye (II) in Avengers (v1) # 85, when
he and his fellow Squadron members mistakenly battled the visiting Avengers
in the belief that they were communist agents. He first appeared as Golden
Archer (II) in Avengers (v1) # 141-142/144/147-149, when he was among the
Squadron members manipulated into battling the Avengers by the Serpent
Cartel. He later appeared in Defenders # 113-115, when the Defenders
(whose ranks then included Vision [II] and Scarlet Witch) helped the
Squadron free their world from the control of Overmind and Null the Living
Darkness. After that, the tale of his downfall and death unfolded in the
Squadrom Supreme limited series. He became Black Archer in Squadron
Supreme # 10 and died in Squadron Supreme # 12.
MacDonald is wearing his original Hawkeye costume in this
illustration. He later wore different outfits as Golden Archer (II) and
Black Archer.

CAP'N HAWK (James Dore) was the son of Jonathan Dore, who invented a winged
flying suit that he used as a World War II era adventurer called the
American Eagle. When Jonathan retired, he passed on his wings to his son,
James, who became a costumed crimefighter as the new American Eagle. James
was invited to join the Squadron, becoming the group's third recruit, and
soon changed his alias to Cap'n Hawk. Years later, he changed his alias
again to Blue Eagle, a name that echoed his father's title but was still
uniquely his own. Though one of the more aggressive, impatient and
self-righteous members of the team, Blue Eagle served long and well with the
Squadron, becoming one of their most dedicated and capable members. He had a
long-running feud with his teammate Golden Archer, a feud that intensified
when they became rivals for the affections of the archer's longtime lover,
Lady Lark. When a desperate Golden Archer used the Squadron's behavior
modification technology to brainwash Lark into loving him, he was expelled
in disgrace. Blue Eagle in particular was outraged over the archer's
betrayal of the group's trust, and especially his violation of Lady Lark.
When the archer subsequently battled the Squadron as Black Archer alongside
the Redeemers, a furious Blue Eagle bludgeoned the archer to death with his
mace. Minutes later, however, Black Archer's teammate Lamprey killed Blue
Eagle by leeching the power from his wings, causing Dore to fall to his
death. The Squadron mourned Blue Eagle's demise, and his close friend Lady
Lark (unaware of the fact that he had killed Black Archer) adopted his wings
in his memory, becoming the heroine known as Skylark.
Blue Eagle's winged costume allowed him to fly at great speed with
considerable range and maneuverability. He was a collector of and an expert
in the use of various antique weapons, such as swords, nets, slings and so
on. His favorite weapon was his mace.
Blue Eagle is the Squadron's equivalent of the JLA's Hawkman,
another winged hero who specializes in the use of antique weapons. Blue
Eagle's feud with Black Archer mirrored Hawkman's feud with the JLA's
Green Arrow.
Dore first appeared as American Eagle (II) in Avengers (v1) # 85,
when he and his fellow Squadron members mistakenly battled the visiting
Avengers in the belief that they were communist agents. He first appeared as
Cap'n Hawk in Avengers (v1) # 148-149, when he was among the Squadron
members manipulated into battling the Avengers by the Serpent Cartel. He
later appeared in Defenders # 113-115, when the Defenders (whose ranks then
included Vision [II] and Scarlet Witch) helped the Squadron free their world
from the control of Overmind and Null the Living Darkness. He became Blue
Eagle in Squadron Supreme # 1 and died in Squadron Supreme # 12.
Dore is wearing his Cap's Hawk costume in this illustration. He wore
different outfits as American Eagle (II) and Blue Eagle.
NOTE: Jonathan and James Dore have no known connection to Jason Strongbow, a
costumed adventurer known as the American Eagle on the Avengers' Earth.

NUKE (Albert Gaines) was a factory worker whose exposure to nuclear waste
gave him the ability to generate and manipulate nuclear energy. Calling
himself Nuke, he became a costumed crimefighter and joined the Squadron
Supreme as their sixth recruit. Shortly after the Squadron embarked on its
Utopia Program, Nuke learned that his bodily radiation levels had been
increasing, and that they were responsible for the fatal cancer contracted
by his parents. Mad with grief and guilt, Nuke swore vengeance on his
teammate Tom Thumb when Thumb failed to find a cure for cancer. When Nuke's
parents died, the insanely grief-stricken Nuke even tried to kill Thumb,
but was opposed by another Squadron member, Doctor Spectrum, and Nuke
accidentally killed himself in the ensuing battle.
Nuke's body constantly generated nuclear radiation which he could
harness for a variety of effects, such as flight and energy blasts. He
is the Squadron's equivalent of the JLA's Firestorm, another brash young
hero with nuclear powers.
Nuke first appeared in Defenders # 113-115, when the Defenders (whose
members then included Vision [II] and Scarlet Witch) helped the Squadron
free their world from the control of Overmind and Null the Living Darkness.
The events leading up to his death unfolded in Squadron Supreme # 1-2, and
he died in Squadron Supreme # 3.
Nuke is wearing his original costume in this illustration, but
switched to a different outfit with radiation containment properties shortly
before his death.

AMPHIBIAN (Kingsley Rice) is a mutant born with the ability to survive
underwater indefinitely, an ability he used as a costumed adventurer. He
became a founding member of the Squadron Supreme and served faithfully
with them for many years until the group embarked on its Utopia Program,
which Amphibian regarded as ethically dubious. He resigned in protest when
the Squadron began using brainwashing technology and returned to the oceans,
where he has lived a life of solitary seclusion since then.
Amphibian can survive in either air or water indefinitely. He
possesses superhuman strength, durability and sensory acuity necessary to
survive and function in the ocean depths. He is capable of communicating
with certain forms of marine life.
Amphibian is the Squadron's equivalent of the JLA's Aquaman, another
aquatic hero who communicates with sea life. Amphibian's resignation from the
Squadron was echoed in DC's Kingdom Come limited series, in which Aquaman
forsook the Justice League during a time of global crisis and retired to the
sea. Amphibian appears here in his original costume.
Amphibian first appeared in Avengers (v1) # 148-149, when he was
among the Squadron members manipulated into battling the Avengers by the
Serpent Cartel. He later appeared in Defenders # 113-115, when the Defenders
(whose ranks then included Vision [II] and Scarlet Witch) helped the Squadron
free their world from the control of Overmind and Null the Living Darkness.
His estrangment and resignation from the Squadron occurred during the
Squadron Supreme limited series.


NIGHTHAWK (Kyle Richmond) was born the heir to a pharmaceuticals fortune that
he inerited when his father died of a heart attack. Shortly after his
father's death, Kyle was shocked to learn that much of the family fortune
had been amassed through unethical means. Hoping to make up for the misdeeds
of his father, Kyle became the costumed crimefighter known as Nighthawk. As
Nighthawk, he was one of his world's most celebrated and respected heroes,
matched in deeds and reputation only by the super-powerful Hyperion, who
quickly became Nighthawk's recurring ally and close friend. The duo became
even more legendary when they joined other heroes in forming their world's
finest super-team, the Squadron Supreme.
The Squadron suffered their first major setback when the Serpent
Cartel (a coalition of business interests and political forces secretly
serving the demon Set through the influence of the Serpent Crown) took
over the United States government, manipulating the Squadron into a conflict
with the Avengers. The Avengers helped the Squadron see the Cartel for what
it was, and the Squadron soon ousted the Cartel from American politics,
after which Nighthawk decided he could better serve the country by running
for the presidency. He was elected by a landlside, and retired from
crimefighting to become one of the most popular and effective American
presidents in the history of the Squadron's world. Unfortunately, he was
one of the first people brainwashed years later by the Overmind, an alien
who conquered the Squadron's Earth on behalf of the demonic Null by mentally
enslaving key political and military figures, as well as most of the
Squadron. The Squadron eventually defeated Overmind and Null with the aid
of the Defenders, but not before their world had been thrown into social
and political turmoil by the Overmind's short-lived global regime. Richmond
resigned from the presidency since the general public was unaware of how
the Overmind had controlled him, and Richmond figured few people would
believe the truth.
With post-Overmind America in a state of social and economic
collapse, the Squadron decided to embark on their Utopia Program--an
ambitious plan to not only restore stability to the United States, but also
to eliminate all of the country's social ills; however, the program's
implementation would require the Squadron to assume control of the United
States government and suspend certain civil liberties, making it a
controversial plan even among the Squadron's own membership. Nighthawk in
particular was vocally opposed to the Utopia Program from the start, and
resigned from the Squadron in protest when a majority of the group's
members voted to undertake the Utopia plan.
While the Squadron set about implementing its Utopia Program,
Nighthawk gathered various allies who were also opposed to the Squadron's
actions, organizing them into a group known as the Redeemers. A year after
the Utopia Program began, the Squadron had achieved most of their goals
in terms of achieving a model U.S. society, and were in the process of
handing power over to civilian politicians when Nighthawk's Redeemers
attacked in hopes of forcibly persuading the Squadron to dismantle the
Utopia Program, since Nighthawk feared its powers could be abused in the
hands of rulers less benevolent than the Squadron. Several Redeemers and
Squadron members were killed in the battle that followed, including
Nighthawk (who was murdered by Squadron member Foxfire), and no side won a
decisive physical victory, but Nighthawk's arguments had finally convinced
Hyperion of the Utopia Program's flaws. Speaking on behalf of the Squadron,
Hyperion conceded victory to the Redeemers and resolved to dismantle the
Utopia Program. Nighthawk was mourned by all as a fallen hero.
Nighthawk had no superhuman powers but was a highly trained athlete,
acrobat and unarmed combatant with a keen tactical mind. He appears here in
his original costume, but he went on to wear two other Nighthawk outfits
before his death.
Nighthawk is the Squadron's equivalent of the JLA's Batman, an
ordinary human driven to fight crime in a dark costumed guise using only
his mental abilities and physical skills. His friendship with Hyperion
echoes Batman's friendship with Hyperion's JLA counterpart, Superman.
Nighthawk first appeared in Avengers (v1) # 85-86, when he and his
fellow Squadron members mistakenly battled the visiting Avengers before
joining forces with them to battle Brain-Child. He later appeared in
Defenders # 112-115, when the Defenders (whose ranks then included Vision
[II] and Scarlet Witch) helped the Squadron free their world from the
control of Overmind and Null the Living Darkness. The rest of Nighthawk's
life and death was chronicled in the Squadron Supreme limited series.

NOTE: Nighthawk is not to be confused with his counterpart on the Avengers'
Earth, the Kyle Richmond also known as Nighthawk. Nighthawk [II] was
empowered, outfitted and christened in imitation of the Squadron's Nighthawk
by the Grandmaster, an alien who had employed the Squadron Supreme as pawns
in the past and hoped to duplicate their successes with his own criminal
version of the Squadron, which he dubbed the Squadron Sinister. This
criminal Squadron (including Nighthawk II) first appeared in Avengers (v1)
# 69-70, when they unsuccessfully battled the Avengers. Nighthawk II soon
reformed and joined the Defenders, becoming a mainstay of that informal team
for most of its history until his apparent death. He has recently returned,
however, and is currently starring in his own limited series.

TOM THUMB (Thomas Thompson) was a genius dwarf who used his intelligence
and his inventions to become a costumed crimefighter. Impressed by his
exploits, the Squadron invited him to join their ranks and he became their
second recruit. Though one of the least physically powerful Squadron members,
Tom became utterly indispensable to the group as the principal source of
their advanced technology. When the team embarked on its Utopia Program,
Tom Thumb was responsible for designing and building many of the devices
that made the program's implementation possible, including a Hibernaculum
facility designed to keep recently deceased human beings frozen in stasis
until science found a way to revive them. Ironically, Tom himself became the
first resident of the Hibernaculum when he died of cancer. Shy and
introverted, Tom had no truly close friends in the Squadron apart from AIDA
(Artificially Intelligent Data Analyzer), a sentient computer of his own
creation, and Ape-X, a super-intelligent cyborg ape who became Thumb's
scientific collaborator after she joined the Squadron.
Tom Thumb was an innovative expert in a wide variety of scientific
and technological fields, including computer science, medicine, psychology,
force field technology and spacecraft design. He was gifted with total
recall and great manual dexterity. When in battle, he utilized a variety
of high-tech weapons and devices of his own creation.
Tom Thumb is the Squadron's equivalent of the JLA's Atom, both
being brilliant scientists known for their small stature. In some ways,
though, Thumb is more like DC's original Atom from the Justice Society
of America. Like the original Atom, Tom Thumb derives his alias from the
fact that he is simply short in stature. The JLA's Atom is a normal-sized
man who can shrink to tiny sizes at will.
Tom Thumb first appeared in Avengers (v1) # 85, when he and his
fellow Squadron members mistakenly battled the visiting Avengers in the
belief that they were communist agents. He later appeared in Avengers (v1)
# 148-149, when he was among the Squadron members manipulated into battling
the Avengers by the Serpent Cartel; and Defenders # 113-115, when the
Defenders (whose ranks then included Vision [II] and Scarlet Witch) helped
the Squadron free their world from the control of Overmind and Null the
Living Darkness. Tom Thumb died in Squadron Supreme # 9.
Tom Thumb is wearing his original costume in this illustration.
Towards the end of his life, he usually wore plain coveralls or other work
clothes since he no longer concealed his secret identity.

The SKRULLIAN SKYMASTER (real name possibly Skarnax) was an alien
Skrull explorer who was stranded on Earth when his spacecraft malfunctioned.
Rescued by human astronaut Joe Ledger, the grateful Skrull gave Ledger a
power prism which Ledger used to become the costumed hero known as Doctor
Spectrum. The Skrull himself also became a hero on Earth, and was known as
the Skrullian Skymaster, or simply the Skrull for short. He and Doctor
Spectrum became founding members of the Squadron Supreme, but the Skrull
only served for a few months before Squadron member Tom Thumb repaired his
ship, after which the Skrullian Skymaster returned to his space travels.
The Skrullian Skymaster was superhumanly strong, and possessed the
natural shape-shifting abilities of the Skrullian race.
The Skrullian Skymaster is the Squadron's equivalent of the JLA's
Martian Manhunter, another green-skinned, shape-shifting alien who joined
a human super-team after being stranded on Earth.
The Skrullian Skymaster (usually referred to simply as the Skrull)
first appeared in a flashback cameo in Squadron Supreme # 1, and has made
hardly any appearances outside of flashback cameos and informantional
volumes. Mark Gruenwald had originally planned to use him more prominently
in the Squadron Supreme limited series, but giving the Squadron their own
book was a touchy business to begin with since they were based on DC's
JLA characters, and DC was opposed to the addition of Skrullian Skymaster
since he obviously duplicated their Martian Manhunter, who had just returned
to a position of prominence in the JLA by that time. All that being the case,
Gruenwald wrote the Skrullian Skymaster out of the Squadron series almost
entirely, and tried to avoid the creation of further overt JLA parallels in
general. As a result, most of the Squadron's later members (the ones who
joined during the limited series) were not Justice League counterparts like
the early Squadron members (though one of them, the Shape, could be
construed as a spin on JLA members Elongated Man and Plastic Man).

Squadron members not present in this illustration apart from Skrullian
Skymaster include Ape-X, Doctor Decibel, Foxfire, Lamprey, Quagmire,
The Shape, Redstone, the original Moonglow, the original Thermite, Haywire
and Inertia, all of whom joined in the Squadron Supreme limited series.
Decibel, Foxfire, Lamprey and Thermite died over the course of the limited
series, during which Ape-X became catatonic and Quagmire was lost in action.
Quagmire later turned up on the Avengers' Earth as a super-criminal. Inertia
and Redstone died in the Squadron Supreme: Death of a Universe graphic
novel, during which Moonglow retired from adventuring. Of the later
recruits, only Haywire and Shape remained with the Squadron as of the SS
graphic novel's conclusion.


PAGE 9

Panels 1-2:
As Hawkeye says, the Squadron didn't act very grateful when the Avengers
freed them from mind control yet again during the recent events of
Avengers (v3) # 5-6; but as Captain America points out, the Squadron have
good reason to be more frustrated than anything else. They've been trapped
on the Avengers world for months now, holed up in Project Pegasus while
they seek a way home, and they must be annoyed at how often they've been
defeated and/or rescued by their counterparts, the Avengers.

It's interesting that Cap is the one to stick up for the Squadron here since
he was rather judgmentally critical of them in Avengers (v3) # 6. Perhaps
he feels guilty about that. In fact, Cap is diplomatic and conciliatory
toward the Squadron throughout this story, a welcome development since the
character had generated some reader criticism in recent months after his
somewhat uncharitable treatment of both the Squadron and prodigal Avengers
member Warbird in Avengers (v3) # 6-7.


PAGE 10
The Squadron's reaction to the Avengers' arrival is a bit over-the-top, but
not entirely implausible given factors discussed later on page 12.

The sword and shield formed by Doctor Spectrum are highly reminiscent of the
energy weapons wielded by the senior Green Lantern (Alan Scott) in DC's
Kingdom Come limited series, a clear homage to KC artist Alex Ross on the
part of Carlos Pacheco. It's a fitting homage, too, since Doctor Spectrum is
Marvel's version of DC's Green Lantern.


PAGE 11

Panels 6-9:
Busiek seems to be characterizing Haywire very much as an in-your-face
practical joker (for which there is some basis in the Squadron's previous
appearances, though not quite to the extent indicated here). Like the
kinder, gentler Cap of this story, the wacky Haywire seems to answer certain
reader concerns, in this case a general opinion of Haywire as the most
blandly indistint and pointless member of the Squadron.


PAGE 12

Panels 5-6:
Busiek provides some nice explanations here for why the Squadron overreacted--
not only because of the current threat (which the Avengers might have been
a part of), but because of how touchy the Squadron are about mind control,
having been victimized by it so many times before. Busiek also provides an
intriguing explanation for why the Squadron have seemed so consistently
vulnerable to mind control in the past: the fact that they had little
experience with mind control prior to encountering people from the Avengers'
universe, that their mind-controlling foes all originated in the Avengers'
universe, and that as a result of this they may be lacking in a degree of
immunity to mental domination possessed by the inhabitants of the Avengers'
universe. In other words, as fans have speculated for years, the Squadron
may be especially susceptible to mind control. It's also nice to see
Hyperion come across as intelligent, rational and reasonable in this scene,
since Busiek has tended to portray him as a boorish, ill-tempered lout
until now. By touching on Hyperion's smarter side in this story while still
incorporating the character's aggressive temper, Busiek comes closer to a
more convincingly unified take on the character that incorporates all of
Hyperion's past portrayals: the angry strongman of the Thomas & Englehart
stories, and the rational statesman of the Gruenwald stories.


PAGE 14

As Hawkeye says, he and the Avengers fought Imus Champion once before, in
Avengers (v1) # 109. Imus was last seen as the mastermind behind the
manipulation of the Squadron Supreme in Avengers (v3) # 5-6. As Champion
says, his interest in "the collection of...singular artifacts" is a recent
development. In a way, it makes him very much the mortal equivalent of
the Avengers' alien foe the Collector, an Elder of the Universe obsessed
with collecting objects and beings that he deems unique. One wonders why
Busiek gave Champion this Collector-esque modus operandi when the Avengers
already count a similarly equipped villain among their frequent foes.


PAGE 16

Panel 2:
Hyperion's "atomic vision" refers to superhuman powers stemming from his
eyes, including the projection of energy beams and an ability to see much
further and with far greater acuity than a normal human, the equivalent of
Superman's heat vision and telescopic vision.

Panels 4-5:
Justice and Firestar remain true to form: Vance is giddy with fanboy
enthusiasm over the prospect of battle, while the more sensible Firestar
appreciates the gravity of the situation and is only interested in a safe
resolution to the crisis.

Vance's Whirlwind comment refers back to Avengers (v3) # 4, when he and
Firestar captured the super-criminal by that name.

Panel 6:
Foreshadowing, anyone? After Vance lecturing Firestar on the significance of
Hank Pym's ability to communicate with ants, one can see a Hank Pym rescue
in the offing given the juxtaposition of an ant in the foreground with
Firestar thinking about how she wants to get a message out.


PAGE 17

Panel 2:
The prank Haywire describes sounds very much like a similar trick he pulled
on Inertia in the SS: Death of a Universe graphic novel, when he used his
tanglewire to tear off Inertia's bikini while they were playing frisbee.
She returned the favour by using her power to tear off his trunks, after
which they engaged in some outdoor lovemaking.

INERTIA (Edith Freiberg) was a superhuman adventurer with the ability to
transfer inertia (momentum) from one object or person to another. She
and Haywire were recruited into Nighthawk's Redeemers, where the two of them
first met, and then joined the Squadron Supreme on behalf of the Redeemers as
double agents, falling in love along the way. Haywire and Inertia both
survived the Redeemers' overthrow of the Squadron's Utopia Program, and
they stayed on as members of the Squadron thereafter until Inertia was
killed in an effort to halt the Nth Man, whose expansion then threatened to
consume their universe. Haywire and Inertia both first appeared in Squadron
Supreme # 10. Inertia died in the Squadron Supreme: Death of a Universe
graphic novel.

Panel 3:
Hawkeye's comment about Haywire "getting on [his] nerves so easily in the
past" is curious since they've only met on three occasions (Avengers [v3] #
5-6 and this comic book), all of them quite recent, and this story is the
first time they've had much in the way of noteworthy interaction. As Hawkeye
says, though, this somewhat overbearing characterization of Haywire is
reminiscent of Hawkeye's own younger days.

Panel 4:
Hawkeye's mental remark about having more in common with Hawywire than he
thought refers to the fact that Hawkeye's own wife, Mockingbird, was killed
in action, just as Inertia was. Mockingbird died in Avengers West Coast #
100.


PAGE 18
Brain mines are mind control devices that are effective once attached to a
victim's head. Though Champion refers to his weapon as an Eternal brain
mine, I was under the impression that these gadgets were primarily
employed by the Eternals' traditional enemies, the Deviants.

After subduing Hawkeye & Haywire, Champion says there are sixteen heroes
left to defeat. Apparently, Champion's many skills don't include counting:
even if he were to count Wonder Man (and Wondy's existence seemed to be
news to Champion later on), there are only sixteen heroes in total to begin
with. After Hawkeye and Haywire are subdued, there are only fourteen heoes
left (and Champion is
probably only aware of thirteen of them).

PAGE 19

Panel 1:
Scarlet Witch and Moonglow compare notes on the mystic arts, notably the
increasingly erratic nature of Wanda's own mystical abilities.

Panel 3:
The Wand of Watoomb is an immensely powerful mystical talisman that has
appeared in previous Marvel stories. I last saw it used by the sorcerer
Xandu against Doctor Strange.


PAGE 21

Panels 1-3:
Very nice, thought-provoking little sequence here. Hyperion talks about how
he gave up his secret identity (cartoonist Mark Milton) when the Squadron
embarked on its Utopia Program, believing his Mark Milton activities to be
a superfluous diversion--but now he wonders if that might have been part of
the problem with the Squadron's Utopia Program, the fact that giving up
their "civilian" guises, their lives among ordinary humans, made them lose
touch with the perspectives and values of the people they were trying to
help. In short, the Squadron lost touch with their humanity, grew more
arrogant, and made mistakes accordingly. This is almost exactly what
happens to Hyperion's DC counterpart, Superman, in the Kingdom Come limited
series: he abandons his Clark Kent secret identity, leads the Justice League
in a misguided attempt to forcibly impose order on society, and resumes his
Clark Kent identity after seeing the error of his ways. DC's Kingdom Come
echoed many of the characterizations and plot threads from Marvel's earlier
Squadron Supreme limited series, the Hyperion-Superman comparison being only
one of many parallels between the two books.

Thor's reference to being "forced into a human guise" refers to recent
events in his own ongoing series, where he has been forced to assume the
guise of Jake Olson, a paramedic accidentally killed during one of Thor's
major battles. A mysterious higher being known as Marnot forced this
transformation on Thor for reasons as yet unclear, though it echoes Odin's
earlier attempt to teach Thor humility by trapping him in the frail mortal
form of Donald Blake.

It's oddly logical that Hyperion and Thor would confide in each other like
this, since each is without a truly godlike peer in his respective group.
Hyperion might be the only one here who fully understands what Thor's going
through, and vice versa.

Panel 4:
Hemidall is the watchman of the Asgardian gods, renowned for his
supernaturally keen eyesight.

Panel 7:
"Great Scott!" Nice bit of Superman-esque dialect from Hyperion.


PAGE 22
The WIZARD (Bentley Wittman) is a scientific genius whose many inventions
and feats of intellectual skill made him a major celebrity until he began
attacking superhuman heroes in the jealously misguided belief that they
would steal the public spotlight from him. The Wizard has since become
infamous as a master criminal, both alone and in concert with various other
super-criminals. His first foe was the second Human Torch (Johnny Storm),
and their battles led to the Wizard's recurring enmity with the Fantastic
Four, an enmity which so obsessed the Wizard that he founded and led a
criminal equivalent of the Torch's super-team known as the Frightful Four.
The Wizard's one notable conflict with the Avengers was his involvement in
the "Acts of Vengeance" conspiracy against them, a scheme engineered by Loki
(during which the Wizard appeared in Avengers Spotlight # 26, Avengers [v1]
# 312-313, Avengers West Coast # 55 and Avengers Spotlight # 29). The Wizard
first appeared in Strange Tales (v1) # 102.
The Wizard's principal weapons include his wonder gloves, also known
as his power gloves. They magnify the force of their wearer's blows and
increase their wearer's weightlifting ability to superhuman levels. The
gloves can generate electrical energy, concussive force, force fields and
vortexes.

SETH is Marvel's equivalent of the mythological Egyptian serpent god Set
(the name of an elder demon in the Marvel Universe), and a major recurring
foe to Thor. He is also an enemy of Khonshu, patron god of the former
Avengers member Moon Knight. Seth's legions once battled various members of
the Avengers in West Coast Avengers (v2) # 41. Seth first appeared in Thor
(v1) # 240.


PAGE 23
This sequence is, at best, implausible. Champion's string of victories in
this story seems a bit unlikely in general, but this is one of the weakest
moments since Champion's victory relies on a chance mishap, Hyperion getting
pinned by Thor's hammer. Why Hyperion decided to grab Thor by the hammer is
beyond me, as is how Hyperion ended up under the hammer in the process.


PAGE 24

Panel 1:
As Iron Man's thoughts indicate, he was probably teamed with two high-speed,
high powered Squadron members since he'd be one of the few Avengers able to
hold his own against them if the Squadron turned against the Avengers once
more.

Panel 2:
Whizzer's real name is Stanley Stewart. His wife and daughter, Madeline and
Tina, are mentioned here.

Panels 2-3:
Iron Man's sympathetic thoughts about the Squadron's exile echo similar
observations he made in Avengers (v3) # 6 after seeing a sketch of the
Whizzer's family in his quarters.


PAGE 25

Panel 4:
In addition to the wonder gloves, Wizard's principal weapons include his
anti-gravity discs, which negate the force of gravity on whatever they
attach to. The Wizard uses specially manipulable models of these discs in
his own costume to give himself the power of flight, but also uses
pre-programmed versions of the discs as weapons: these discs (such as the
one Champion has here), coated with an adhesive that makes them very
difficult to dislodge, will propel their target into the upper atmosphere if
they are not not removed or disabled.


PAGE 26

Panel 5:
Another Alex Ross homage from penciler Carlos Pacheco: Doctor Spectrum
generates a sword and a suit of armor that look very much like the
costuming and weapon of the senior Green Lantern from Kingdom Come.


PAGE 27

Panels 1-5:
The Zodiac Star-Blaster (also known as the Star-Blazer) is an energy weapon
formerly employed by the leading figures in the original Zodiac crime cartel,
most of whom were killed in West Coast Avengers (v2) # 26-29. Taurus
(Cornelius Van Lunt), the last survivor of the original Zodiac, was wielding
a Star-Blaster when he died in battle with Moon Knight in West Coast
Avengers # 29. Zodiac first appeared in Avengers (v1) # 72. The Star-Blaster
first appeared in Avengers (v1) # 120.

As Champion says, Spectrum's powers are vulnerable to ultraviolet rays, which
disrupt his energy constructs. This was originally a property of his power
prism, but his body apparently has inherited the same vulnerability since
being permeated with fragments of the prism.


PAGE 29
Another fascinating bit of character interplay from Busiek here, as Power
Princess cautions Firestar against letting Justice determine the direction
of their life together. It's a nice bit of characterization for both
characters, and it's an intriguing echo of Busiek's own Winged Victory
character from his Astro City series, a character who acts as a counsellor
to women as well as a crimefighter, and a character who, like Power Princess,
owes more than a bit of her conceptual inspiration to Wonder Woman.


PAGE 31
Another of Champion's more improbable victories here: Champion doesn't hit
Power Princess with a wonder glove, but is still somehow able to down her
with one punch despite her superhuman physiology and armored helmet. And
Firestar should have been able to toast the toppling tree with ease.


PAGE 34
Concealed gas emitters were indeed among the many weapons in the Porcupine's
armor, and this sequence makes the opening scene's inclusion of the
Porcupine suit a nice piece of foreshadowing.


PAGE 36
And speaking of foreshadowing, all of Justice's talk about Hank Pym in the
opening scene seems to have inspired Firestar to call him to the rescue,
as hinted by her encounter with an ant on page 16. GIANT-MAN (Hank Pym,
a.k.a. Ant-Man) was last seen in Avengers (v3) # 1-4, when he and the
Wasp downgraded to inactive Avengers membership status after helping to
reestablish the team's active roster.


PAGE 37

Panel 3:
Multiple readers (including myself) were surprised and perplexed at the fact
that Firestar can apparently communicate with ants. Nice idea for a plot
twist, in a way, but the complete and total lack of any explanation for how
she accomplished this makes for a rather hokey climax.

Panel 6:
Lurch (originally played by Ted Cassidy) was the immensely tall butler on
the Addams Family television show, which spawned a couple of movie spinoffs.



PAGE 38

Panel 1:
Champion has generally been dismissed as a small-timer in the past since
he fought the team only once and did so in the course of enacting a
needlessly complex, absurdly grandiose, downright weird and ultimately
unsuccessful scheme to salvage some sunken nerve gas by submerging the
entire western American coastline. The current Champion storyline seems to
have been Busiek's attempt at making Imus seem somewhat more formidable, but
he may have laid it on a bit too thick in this issue, what with Champion's
implausible (to put it mildly) series of victories over the heroes and Cap's
speech in this panel about how Champion shouldn't be underestimated again.

Panel 2:
Super-heroing may not be Firestar's dream job, but not even the jaded Ms.
Jones is immune to the thrill of a compliment from Captain America. Nice
moment.

Panel 5:
"The Crisis" in the Squadron's universe that Iron Man refers to here is
the group's battle with the Nth Man (Thomas Lightner), a being from the
Avengers' universe who was expanding throughout the multiverse and absorbing
entire universes. Lightner was transformed into the Nth Man by the Nth
Projector, a dimension-spanning device created by Roxxon Oil in hopes of
hurling Project Pegasus into another universe. Lightner was Roxxon's double
agent inside Pegasus (which Roxxon regarded as a threat to the oil and
gas industry) and was supposed to use the Nth projector to wipe out the
facility, but he decided instead to expose himself to the projector in hopes
of gaining superhuman power and became the Nth Man. Quasar (III), Thing,
Bill Foster (then known as Giant-Man II), Thundra and the Aquarian joined
forces to expel Nth Man from the Avengers' universe, but he went on to
threaten other universes, including the Squadron's. The Squadron failed
to stop him, and several of their number died in the process, but the crisis
ended when Arcanna's baby boy Benjamin voluntarily assumed the Nth Man's
form and gave Lightner back his physical humanity in exchange. The Squadron
found themselved stranded in the Avengers' world shortly thereafter.
Roxxon's initial attempts to destroy Project: Pegasus, culminating
in the creation of the Nth Man, were chronicled in Marvel Two-In-One #
53-58. The Squadron's confrontation with the Nth Man and Lightner's
abandonment of the Nth Man form happened in the Squadron Supreme: Death of
a Universe graphic novel.
The repeated references to the Nth Man disaster as "The Crisis" are
ironic since the Squadron Supreme's universe is Marvel's version of the
DC Comics universe, and the DC universe's greatest catastrophe was the
Crisis on Infinite Earths, also known simply as The Crisis. And in both
DC's Crisis and the Squadron's "crisis", the heroes fought to save their
world from an oncoming wave of white nothingness that was devouring
universes.

PAGE 39

Panels 1-3:
Magdalene is able to open space warps by using her staff as a focus. The
precise nature and source of this ability has never been revealed, though
she has been shown to be able to traverse dimensions as well as space.

Panels 4-6:
Haywire's past characterization revolved principally around his romance
with Inertia, and he had no other relationships within the Squadron, nor
any private life outside the Squadron to speak of, so it makes sense that
he doesn't see any future for himself in the Squadron's world now that
Inertia is gone. Some readers (myself included) had wondered why Squadron
Supreme writer Mark Gruenwald bothered to keep Haywire in the Squadron after
killing off Inertia since Haywire didn't really seem to fit in (he's the
only young member of the Squadron left, he's the only surviving Squadron
member who was loyal to Nighthawk's Redeemers, and he's the only surviving
Squadron member who doesn't seem to parallel a JLA character). Happily,
Busiek seems to have something else in mind for him.
Note that Hawkeye seems stunned at Haywire's decision to stay. For
some thoughts on Hawkeye's attachment to Haywire and what it might mean, see
the "Thunderhawk" post for some purely speculative thoughts on the matter.


PAGE 40

Panel 2:
Haywire says he wants to visit the Pacific Northwest while he figures out
what to do with his life. Interesting travel plan, since that's
where Avengers writer Busiek hangs out...and that end of the country is
also where another Busiek-written super-team, the Thunderbolts, are
hanging out these days. Might Haywire be running into them at some point?

Panels 3-5:
It's never made clear what sort of world Swordsman and Magdalene would
be comfortable in since the Avengers' world is inadequate for their needs,
especially since odds are slim that they'll find a world that's as welcoming
as this one yet different enough to not raise unpleasant memories of the
sort Swordsman mentions earlier. Apparently, though, they're willing to
take the chance, and we'll have to take their word for it when they say this
is what's best for them. Presumably they're a loose end that Busiek wanted
tied up, and bringing them in on the dimension-spanning Squadron case was a
way to take care of it without simply writing them out for the sake of
writing them out.