GLORY/ANGELA #1 - April 1996

Angels in Hell

Credits: Rob Liefeld (story), Jim Valentino (script, layouts), Andy Park & Pat Lee (pencils), Sean Parsons & Marlo Alquiza w/Alan Martinez & Kyle Roberts (inks), Christian Lichtner & Extreme Color (colors), Steve Dutro (letters)

Summary: Metatron informs Glory and Angela that Celestine has been possessed by Malebolgia since her resurrection. They travel to Hell to rescue the captive Celestine, discovering that Malebolgia has expanded his rule past the Eighth Circle. Glory and Angela are unable to defeat Malebolgia, but they receive help from an unexpected source -- Lucifer. Lucifer sends Malebolgia back to the Eighth Circle and returns Celestine’s soul. He takes the heroes to his posh lair and opens a doorway to the previously unknown Tenth Circle, the Elysium. Celestine is restored as an angel, while Glory and Angela are returned to Earth by Metatron.

Spawntinuity: Malebolgia declares himself second only to Lucifer, which is a more specific categorization of his place in Hell than Spawn has revealed so far. Lucifer is portrayed as a handsome, middle-aged man in a business suit. He tells Angela they’ll meet again soon.

The Big Names: Future "controversy" magnet Pat Lee is the co-artist. Randy Queen’s Darkchylde is previewed in a backup story.

Creative Differences: The title of this one-shot was originally solicited as “Hell’s Angels.”

Review: Hmm…this final chapter of an Extreme Studios crossover looks like a rushed mess. I just can’t believe it. Judging by the recap of the middle issues of the crossover, all we’ve missed is a fight scene between the Extreme heroes and an army of undead soldiers resurrected by Celestine with the angels’ satellite, and the “shocking” revelation that Malebolgia’s possessed her the entire time. The finale consists of more pointless fights, a few splash pages of Malebolgia (the only character the artists seem interested in drawing), and the introduction of Lucifer. I guess there’s some irony in having Lucifer play the Deus Ex Machina role, but it’s hard not to view this as a stereotypically bad Extreme comic.

As far as ‘90s crossovers go, this one was remarkably low-key. I don’t recall any promotion in Spawn whatsoever for it, and don’t remember any hype in Wizard for the event, either. Clearly, this was an attempt to cash in on the “Bad Girl” fad, but it’s also the first major storyline to bridge the Todd McFarlane and Rob Liefeld corners of Image (Spawn and Chapel have a history, and Badrock faced Violator, but they never triggered a crossover event). It seems like it should’ve been a bigger deal. In terms of Spawn continuity, it’s Angela’s first appearance since her miniseries, the introduction of Malebolgia’s boss Lucifer, and the final confirmation of an idea hinted at in Alan Moore’s first fill-in…the Tenth Circle of Hell is actually Heaven. McFarlane was even introducing a new angel, Tiffany, into the mythos at this time. Couldn’t he have coordinated it with this event? This storyline opened with a decent premise; unfortunately, no one seemed too interested in the execution.

X-FORCE/YOUNGBLOOD #1 - August 1996

Credits: Eric Stephenson & Robert Napton (writers), Stephen Platt, Dan Fraga, Richard Horie, Ching Lau, Michael Linchang, Mark Pajarillo, & Andy Park (pencilers), Marlo Alquiza, Eric Cannon, Robert Lacko, Sean Parsons, Norm Rapmund, & Lary Stucker (inkers), Kurt Hathaway (letters), Dan Shadian, Extreme Color, & Quantum Color (colors)

Summary: X-Force rejoins Ricochet Rita in the fight against Mojo. Mojo enlists the aid of Youngblood’s enemies, the Four, to squelch the rebellion. Meanwhile, Youngblood member Sentinel develops a transdimensional accelerator that enables the team to return to Mojoworld. With Youngblood’s help, X-Force defeats the Four. The heroes are shocked when Dazzler emerges from Youngblood’s craft. She takes Shaft and Shatterstar to Mojo’s dungeon to release Longshot, as the united teams confront Mojo. Outmatched, Mojo triggers an explosion. Badrock and Caliban protect their teammates from the debris, but Mojo escapes.

Continuity Notes: Dazzler reveals that she was actually Mojo’s servant, the Agent, from the first chapter of the crossover. After Mojo’s nexus in the Extreme Universe was destroyed, his magic wore off and she returned to normal. She hid out in Youngblood’s ship and emerged when they reached Mojoworld.

Gimmicks: There’s an alternate cover by Rob Liefeld that manages to get the title mixed up.

I Love the ‘90s: Badrock calls breaking through a wall his impression of the sitcom Home Improvement.

Review: Okay, this one is the mess you were probably expecting. I’ll start with the art. Apparently, each individual pouch on a character’s costume required its own artist, so approximately nine thousand people were brought in to draw this thing. The issue opens with Stephen Platt doing his standard McFarlane/Adams impersonation:

It ain’t pretty, but you at least have the impression that some effort went into this. As the story progresses, the amount of detail lines drop, and the composition somehow manages to get even worse:

By the time you reach the final pages, the art looks like a napkin sketch that was blown up to standard comic size:

Why, it’s almost as if the book was thrown together at the last minute to meet a deadline.

The first chapter of the crossover was at least coherent and enjoyable on its own terms. This just reads like a generic team-up of generic ‘90s heroes fighting generically ugly ‘90s villains. The wit of Stephenson’s first script is gone, as the characters are now incredibly stiff and barely anyone shows signs of a personality. Not only is the plot an awkward fit with the first chapter (Ricochet Rita is given a lot of attention in the opening, while Mojo II, a fairly prominent character in the first chapter, has just disappeared in-between issues…plus, the idea that Badrock would be a “savior” to Mojoworld is forgotten), but it also introduces ideas seemingly at random that are never resolved.

After the issue opens with a lengthy monologue by Ricochet Rita, lamenting Dazzler’s death, Rita disappears without explanation. Dazzler’s “death” is resolved, but Longshot is thrown into the story for no real reason. He’s freed during the final pages, as Mojo escapes the fight, and has literally nothing to do. There’s also an abortive plot thread about Shatterstar, Siryn, and Warpath abandoning Cable during the fight with Mojo’s minions because they feel he’s wasting time. Shatterstar perks up when he hears Longshot’s name, reviving the long-forgotten hint that he’s Shatterstar’s father, but it’s another idea that isn’t addressed by the story’s end. Another abandoned idea is the concept that the X-Force and Youngblood team-up is actually helping Mojo, since it boosts his ratings. There’s no resolution, as the issue just ends with a big explosion and another hint that a sequel is on the way. The story isn’t as much of a mess as the art, but it’s close. It’s a shame, since the first installment proved that these comics don’t have to suck.