What's Covered?
Secret Wars Volume 2, # 4 - 5
Uncanny X-Men 198 - 199
Dazzler # 40
Alpha Flight # 40
Avengers # 261
The Thing # 30
Doctor Strange Volume 2 # 74
Roster Watch
Synopsis
Secret Wars Volume 2, # 4: Beyonder in Love.
The goofy Beyonder series continues. This time he decides that he wants to try his hand at love. So the Beyonder needs to find someone to love and Jim Shooter is the writer, want to guess who he picks? Yup, Dazzler. And does he do a better job with Dazzler than he did in the Graphic Novel (As covered in 28: X-Men Miniseries)? Not really.
So the Beyonder is still banging chicks left and right, but it's not satisfying enough.
This is pretty random, but he decides to re-animate some enemy of Thor's named Algrim and sets him on a collision course with Thor. This will pay off further on.
The Beyonder knows that Molecule Man is living a happy life in love with Marsha, so he goes to him for advice. He warns him that it needs to be real love, no manipulating or forcing.
He does a scan of the universe and of course he chooses Dazzler. She is the most wonderful woman in the galaxy! He tries to impress her by teleporting her all around the world, giving her everything she might want, but it doesn't work. I will mention though that she does start to think about it. I bet if I Google Dazzler's superhero weakness I will find "men."
The Avengers show up and start beating him up.
It turns out that the Beyonder had fakes the Avengers fight to make her feel sorry for him. He ends up deciding to make her his equal and he gives her unlimited power. Dazzler has all of this power and she enjoys it, but ultimately she does the hero thing and rejects his gift.
He ended up getting pissed and mind controlling her anyway. For a while he made her love him, but then he realized that wasn't what he wanted so he releases her and sends her back to her own comic.
Dazzler # 40: Yawn
This is the last issue of Dazzler available on Marvel Unlimited, so I assumed it would be a good one. I was wrong. Dazzler is being chased by generic mutant bounty hunters. Not much happens that's worth sharing about her, the X-Men, or the Beyonder, so we'll just move on.
Alpha Flight # 28: Something Happens
For some very shoehorned reason, the Beyonder stops in randomly with Alpha Flight. The last I covered Alpha Flight, I had featured their first 12 issues in 17: AF 1 - 12 (Intro to Alpha Flight). At that point I had said that I really wasn't feeling Alpha Flight. Well since this crossover picked up with Issue # 28, I did end up reading 13 - 28 to see what was going on. It got a tiny bit better, but not enough. I don't have any plans to read any more and I'm not even going to cover it in this blog. To make a long story short, Shaman's daughter had joined the team but got stuck in his magic pouch (yes, his magic pouch) and Beyonder showed up out of the blue and freed her, then left. That's all I really feel like sharing about Alpha Flight at the this time.
Avengers # 261: Tag, You're it!
Big B shows up and starts playing a game of hide and go seek for close to a full issue.
Eventually, he shares that he wants to become an Avenger in training. This ends up being quite short lived.
Secret Wars Volume 2, # 5: Despair
FIRST ALERT
I wasn't expecting this! And in a random Secret Wars issue, we have the first appearance of Boom Boom! She is a mutant who can make little timed energy bombs. She will eventually be a member of X-Force and I think she joined New Mutants at the end too. I love seeing how characters are introduced, but this is just out of left field.
This issue is all about despair. The Beyonder is angry after getting rejected by Dazzler. He meets Boom Boom by dismantling a train that she was on.
She calls herself "Time Bomb" in this issue, but I'm still going to call her Boom Boom.
She was on her way to the X-Men's mansion to get help with her mutant powers and Beyonder takes a liking to her so offers to bring her.
As soon as the X-Men answer the door, they begin attacking the Beyonder. Obviously the Beyonder is not in any danger, and this perpetuates the cycle of people hitting him immediately upon seeing him.
This makes Boom Boom become disillusioned with the X-Men and she ends up running off.
Big B picks Boom Boom up again and takes her to the hub of Celestials.
He's cranky so he really came there to start a fight. The Celestials are known as being some of the most powerful being in the galaxy, but he defeats them easily.
After they separate, Boom Boom deceives big B and calls the Avengers. They show up in full force and of course, start beating him up. He pretty much just sits there and takes it until they get tired, then Captain America tells them all to stop because it's not use. They let him go.
The Thing # 30: Rock Em, Sock Em
This issue was kind of dumb too. Basically the Beyonder is still pouting so he decides to get in a cage match fight with the Thing. The Thing becomes enraged and tries to kill him, but of course I can. This is a plot point that will be picked up later.
As the Beyonder is looking for answers, he comes across Dr. Strange. Dr. Strange takes big B in a trip down memory lane to show how he found his purpose. After showing him how he found his way, he suggests that the Beyonder become mortal, because it's only the threat of losing everything that makes every moment worth living.
I have a feeling that Marvel knew Secret Wars 2 would be the first time many readers were reading some issues. I know I like that many issues connected to SW2 give us a rundown of where they are coming from.
UXM198: Storm's Spirit Quest
Writer - Chris Claremont
Pencils - Barry Windsor Smith
For the first time in the Claremont era, I am choosing to not break down an Uncanny X-Men issue. Not that this wasn't a very good issue, but it was singular to Storm and did contain anything moved the larger story forward, with the exception of some character growth for our favorite former weather witch.
This Storm one-shot focuses on Storm laying half dead in the desert after her head being grazed by a bullet. She stumbles about in a fever dream and is about to lose herself until she finds a young girl who needs her protection.
UXM 199: All the Action Saved For This One
Writer - Chris Claremont
Pencils - John Romita Jr.
Cyclops is neglecting Madelyn more and more, this time doing a training exercise in the Danger Room. Rachel asks if she can talk to him alone and Scott, not understanding the importance of this request, blows her off. Scott, you're a dick, you know that.
Moira tells Scott and the rest of the team the truth about Charles, that he's dying.
Cyclops is strongly against Magneto taking over the team. This sets up his permanent departure (for a few years in publishing terms at least) from the X-Men and sets him up to join X-Factor (which I'll be covering shortly!)
Mystique meets up with Val Cooper (in her true form) and offers to transform the Brotherhood into FREEDOM FORCE and work as a vigilante group for hire for the government.
Val considers and tells Mystique that she will have a chance to do this but her team can't break any laws and she has to start by going after Magneto.
Rachel breaks into Jean's parents house and looks around, getting emotional about her mom being dead. This is where Rachel decides to take on the power of the Phoenix force to protect mutants from human extremists and the universe from the Beyonder.
FIRST ALERT
This marks the official superhero name of Rachel becoming Phoenix, a name that will stick from now on (As far as I know).
Kitty and Magneto attend the Holocaust museum. This also serves as a reminder that Magneto has been alive since World War 2, but he was de-aged when turned into a baby.
Freedom Force shows up and begins attacking Magneto. It isn't long before the rest of the X-Men show up.
FIRST ALERT
Not only is this the first time we see Freedom Force in action, but Sprial (from the Longshot mini series) has joined their ranks. We're going to see a lot more of Spiral from now on.
Spiral explains that she can't return to the Mojoverse yet, so she's fighting with Mystique to learn more about humans while she waits.
I just thought this was cool. Nightcrawler teleports Blob on top of the Washington monument.
Next up is Issue #200, so of course you can expect something huge. Magneto ends the fight by allowing himself to be arrested and next issue will be put on trial.
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