Tigra’s vengeance on the Hood

Fresh off my illness shipwreck, I figured we should sail back to shore with a good ol’ fashioned investigation.  I’ve wanted to do a Tigra article for a while, and finally I can declare that I have proof the supervillain the Hood may very well be Tigra’s arch-nemesis. Which honestly, is more impressive for Tigra than the Hood.  Let me explain.

Debuting in 1972, Greer Grant Nelson fought minor baddies for a few years as The Cat, who was mainly like DC’s Catwoman but without the whip and Batman fetish.  A few years later, she got zapped by a radiation gun.  To save her life, the Cat People (pretty much as you think) gave her an amulet that turned Greer into Tigra, the legendary defender of furries everywhere.  Now she has superhuman strength, agility, stamina, etc.  And despite you aggressively about to click away from this article, understand that Tigra has wonderfully evolved into a complex and interesting character far beyond any potential stereotype.

Her policeman husband was shot and killed.  Totally a conspiracy, too.  In response, she retreated deep into a crime-fighting distraction.  Nowadays, like She-Hulk, she loves her alternative self far more than her civilian identity, rarely if ever changing back into human form.  But let’s be fair — she’s literally a cat lady, and she knows it.  Let Greer explain herself:

Seriously, who could not have an inferiority complex when fighting alongside Thor?  Still, gotta keep those streets safe, which leads to her single most superhero-defining moment in her entire comic lifespan.

So I don’t have to type each one as we go, in order, here’s a list of the issues I’m using today:
Tigra #4, written by Christina Z and drawn by Mike Deodato
New Avengers #35, written by Brian Michael Bendis and drawn by Leinil Yu
Avengers: The Initiative #26, written by Christos N. Gage and drawn by Rafa Sandoval
Avengers: The Initiative #31, written by Christos N. Gage and drawn by Rafa Sandoval
Avengers: The Initiative #35, written by Christos N. Gage and drawn by Jorge Molina
Avengers Academy #8, written by Christos N. Gage and drawn by Mike McKone

We start off with Tigra breaking up a robbery attempt by the Punisher’s insane arch-nemesis:

Normally, the supervillain Jigsaw would go back to prison and Tigra would pat herself on the back. Evening well spent.  Except at this exact moment, the Hood is attempting to create his supervillain crime gang, and Tigra gets to be an example.  I’ve written about the Hood (Parker Robbins) a few times already.  Using his demonic cape and some magical enhancements from Loki, the Hood gets to join a danger category equal to other great magicians like Dr. Strange and Brother Voodoo.  But y’know, evil.

Unfortunately, to win over the trust and respect of the New York City super goons, the Hood has to prove that any superheroes who dare mess with his gang will get a punishment far worse than scrapes and bruises.

I would be remiss not to mention that this scene we’re in the middle of has its fair share of controversy.  Fans of Tigra firmly believe that her character is written horribly — she would never act the way she does here.  Others see it as Bendis using a random female superhero as a victim to showcase the Hood’s vicious capability (as his reign starts in this issue).  My opinion?  From a story standpoint, though certainly severe, I think this made Tigra’s character far more fascinating and prevalent than she would otherwise be today.

This single torturous act defines Tigra’s life for the next four years.  She soon joins the Avengers Initiative project as an instructor and even begins dating Hank Pym, a founding Avenger.  Not bad, right?  But as the Hood grips tighter onto his title of crime boss of New York, Tigra hasn’t forgotten what he did to her.  Not one bit.

Greer may have a legitimate reason to act the way she does, but she’s always had a temper problem. Thus begins a good ten issue revenge plot where she and her group of do-gooders would ambush and savagely beat the Hood’s henchmen.

We love the “edgier” superheroes, but Ultra-Girl’s right and we all know it.  The reason we love superheroes in the first place is their ability to rise above and be morally superior to the criminals they fight.  After the Hood suffers an embarrassing loss and capture by the Avengers when the Marvel event Siege concludes, Tigra finally receives that one-on-one she desperately seeks.

Oh yeah, did you know Tigra has a child?  It’s a half-cat, half-Hank Pym kid.

You see, we all figure that her confrontation and moral victory over the Hood would be the end of this little tale.  Now she remains a shining light of hope for superheroes everywhere.  Except that’s not really how PTSD works.  While she’s teaching at the Avengers Academy a year or so after this, that initial video of Tigra’s beating and humiliation by the Hood hits the Internet, forcing her to address it. Which she does, in the absolutely most perfect superhero way she can.

As happy an ending as this kind of story can get.

Doctor Octopus bullies Iron Man

In comic books, geniuses live like kings.  Cool powers (both super and authoritative), good-looking significant others, and the respect of billions.  While society can argue otherwise, comic books are sort of a soap opera for nerds, so why not glamorize the culture that supports the industry?  And in the comic book world, I think Tony Stark’s intelligence gets a little downplayed nowadays in favor of his pew-pew armor, and that’s unfortunate.  He’s almost certainly in the top ten smartest people in the world and can easily go scientifically toe-to-toe with genius heavyweights like Mr. Fantastic, Hank Pym, Black Panther, and Beast.  Oh, and Doctor Octopus.

In Invincible Iron Man #501-503, written by Matt Fraction and drawn by Salvador Larroca, we see the two scientists at their peak with dangerously high stakes — like most science competitions I imagine. Doc Ock gets Stark’s attention the only way a supervillain should.

We get the crippled, dying doctor this time.  As you can imagine, he has a proposition.  An evil proposition.  By the way, if you’re a supervillain who spends most of his time living in caves and underground sewer lairs, it’s hard to get word out about the whole sickness thing.  Spider-Man certainly won’t be able to find an appropriate time to insert this info during Avengers dinner, and Doc Ock can’t make a big announcement holding Oprah’s hand or anything.

You enjoy ego?  You’re going to get 20 images of it.  Despite discovering he’s nowhere near as invincible as his series suggests, Iron Man still possesses the self-esteem of a high school star quarterback and Octavius has mastered the art of gloating years ago.  To recap, either Stark fixes Doctor Octopus or admits he can’t do it.  That’s it.  And oh, how he’ll try — ego’s at stake after all — but not before a verbal beatdown.  I mean, the doctor did shoot a rocket through Stark’s penthouse.

You must be wondering why doesn’t Stark just laser blast him into space and go about his day texting models.  Well, two reasons.  First, and I didn’t show you this, the slightest repulsor blast will cause the nuke to go off.  More importantly, his friends are being held hostage by Electro and Sandman. You can make many criticisms of Doc Ock, but the man’s called the Master Planner for a reason.

By the way, if you’d like incentive to buy this book, have you ever wanted to see Pepper Potts battle two of the Sinister Six?  Of course you do.  Here’s a taste:

Girl’s been upgraded in the past few years.  Far away, the battle of wits commences in the secret Octo-dungeon.  And the diagnosis?

In the next few pages, Stark makes one of the most compassionate and honest speeches I’ve read in comics.  Y’know, the problem with being a good guy is taking time to make sure even the bad guys don’t die unnecessarily.  It’s a tough break.

Look, as the violence starts, just remember that Iron Man tried.  He really did.  While Stark has matured as a character the past few decades, the same can’t really be said about Octavius.

Would Iron Man win this brawl if it continues?  Definitely, but I mentioned it before — Doc Ock prepares for everything.  He’s an evil, fatter version of Batman.

Unpredictability and back up plans for back up plans have made Doc Ock one of the most dangerous Spider-Man villains, with his  metallic arms usually the least powerful of his weapons.  And when Stark faces the situation at hand, he realizes the truth: he just lost to Doctor Octopus.  So now, how’s he going to get the bomb disarmed?  Remember that other option Stark had back in the beginning of the story?

You should be uncomfortable.  This is an embarrassing moment for all of us.  But as a character known for incredible narcissism, having Stark so quickly and easily shed his dignity shows Iron Man as the admirable and respected man we expect from our superheroes.  Not the crying and begging part, but the sacrifice of Stark’s self to protect the helpless.  That’s literature as it should be.

By the way, if you check earlier, Doc Ock totally does call it a bomb.  City saved, but a tough day for Iron Man.  At least Stark has the consolation of Octavius’ impending doom a few months from then. Well, I mean he did until last month.

We’re done with Doctor Octopus for a while, I promise.  Go check out Superior Spider-Man #1 that went on sale this week — mainly to support Dan Slott and his endeavor in trying to tell new, interesting stories for characters that have been around for fifty years.  Seriously, I’ve watched some of the YouTube rants that rail against the body switch and there’re wrong.  Every one of them.  Our culture thrives through innovation and crazy ideas, so why not let Spider-Man get in on that?

A Green Goblin intermission

We have two more days of Doctor Octopus after this, but every once in a while in my “research,” I come across something that makes me do a literary double-take.  Yesterday, I read Peter Parker: Spider-Man #44-47, written by Paul Jenkins and drawn by Humberto Ramos.  A visceral excitement overwhelmed me.  While not perfect, the story amazes and the art’s so emotionally done that I have to interrupt our Doc Ock stories so I can share this with you.  Immediately.

Let’s briefly get into a little publication history of Green Goblin.  He premiered in Amazing Spider-Man #14 and quickly became Spider-Man’s arch-nemesis.  Until Amazing Spider-Man #121 in 1973.  I can’t overstate the importance of that issue not just for the characters but for comics in general.  At the end of the issue, this happened:

The Green Goblin threw Gwen Stacy off the George Washington Bridge and when Spider-Man tried to save her, the immediate stop from his webs broke her neck and killed her.  Brutal, sure,  and the first moment in comics that truly shocked readers — before that, the death of a major character was unthinkable.  Amazing Spider-Man #121 ended the Silver Age of comics single handedly and brought forth the edgier Bronze and later Modern Age of comics.  Nowadays, comics kill off major characters like a throw at a superhero dartboard, but this was a way different time for the literary medium.

Norman Osborn, the Green Goblin, accidentally caused his own death in the next issue.  And he stayed dead for 23 years.  For newer readers and those who caught onto comics in the past decade or two will always see Green Goblin as the web-slinger’s most dangerous and influential foe.  How can we argue that a man who was absent for half of Spider-Man’s entire history could possibly be his number one baddie?  Today I hope to prove it.

As we start our story, Parker’s had some tough days.  He’s still estranged from his wife, for one.

And as thus commanded of a superhero’s life, things get worse.  Much worse.

Green Goblin didn’t ambush our hero just to lob a few pumpkin bomb and have his jollies.  I mean, he’ll do that, but with his son Harry (currently) dead, Osborn needs a successor to the Green Goblin throne.  Comes with a Fortune 500 company and a supervillain arsenal that rivals small countries. Spider-Man’s always been the worthiest contender in Osborn’s mind — all Osborn has to do is rip out that sense of morality and instill a bloodthirsty hatred and vengeance.  Sounds easy enough.

Green Goblin’s plan involves a lot of heartbreak and emotional devastation.  That’s what makes him the arch-nemesis.  Y’see, he knows Spider-Man’s secret identity as Peter Parker since the 1960s, and unfortunately, part of his “convincing” involves forcing Parker to accept and embrace his anger and hate.  Very Jedi/Sith stuff.  Look, Spider-Man doesn’t have the emotional fortitude of killers like Wolverine (though even Wolverine gets overcome with guilt and runs naked in the forest every five or six years).  Parker killing a man will set him on a path that he won’t recover from.  A supervillain slippery slope.  Green Goblin totally know this.

First on the innocent victim checklist:

Obviously, Spider-Man isn’t about to let anymore of his friends or loved ones get hurt.  Time to end this insane, rambling charade.  Just a heads up, I cut out large portions of the upcoming issue-and-a-half brawl, but I promise all the important stuff’s still in there.

Did you know Harry Osborn and Liz Allan (another childhood friend) got married and had a son?  The kid’s named Normie and probably about three or four years old.  There’s some trivia you’ll never need.

And with that, the Green Goblin’s won this round:

Phenomenal page by Ramos.  C’mon, the green goop dripping down, the tears in his eyes, that death stare, the purposely tiny text — this page is a masterpiece.  I’d print it out and frame it, but I think the picture’ll bring up too many questions without context.

Oh, the beauty of Green Goblin tears.  Yeah, that’s probably from the spicy green goop, but can’t a case be made for the frustration and emotional intensity both of them are experiencing?  Osborn’s entire legacy hinges on this fight.

Both foes are roughly the same durability and strength, but Parker could absolutely crush Osborn’s skull into goblin paste in a heartbeat.  And with that threat the Green Goblin just made?

Of course Spider-Man can’t kill anybody, no matter the stakes or the leverage.  That’s what makes him a superhero in the first place.  I want you to pay close attention to this next part.  Parker and Osborn have a heart-to-heart they’ve badly needed for decades.

The worst part of that verbal exchange?  The words hit harder and truer than any punch could. Parker’s shown his unbreakable morality — the reason we love and value him so much as a character.  Spider-Man won, Green Goblin lost.  As it always will be.

I explain the events that led up to Superior Spider-Man

By now you must know that Marvel’s current longest running series Amazing Spider-Man ended on Wednesday with Peter Parker’s death and Doctor Octopus taking over the Spider-Man role.  I can already hear the groans from millions of comments on Yahoo! News.  And yes, without knowing anything (and an attitude smeared in bile and rage), it’s a strange and frustrating idea.  I’m here to reassure you that nope, this will be fantastic — quite possibly one of the best things to happen to Spider-Man in a long time.  The Amazing Spider-Man writer Dan Slott has only written genius, and as I explain it all to you from the beginning, I hope your fears will be abated as well.

The very first seeds of this switch were planted way back in Amazing Spider-Man #600, written by Slott and drawn by John Romita, Jr.  Y’see, turns out that Doc Ock’s supervillainy career hasn’t been all moneybags and maniacal laughs.

As you figured, Otto Octavius has been pummeled quite a bit in his 50 year history.  Click on the next picture for a larger version:

Doctor Octopus is dying.  Nothing can be done about it.  But unfortunately, a man of that ego won’t go peacefully.  Nope, time to skip robbing banks and put forth more ambitious plans.

Now, why is this important to Superior Spider-Man?  It’s what happens next:

Notice what happened?  Using Doc Ock’s own device, Spider-Man used his brain waves to overtake and control the Octobots.

In Amazing Spider-Man #672, written by Slott and drawn by Humberto Ramos, he uses it again in the conclusion of Spider-Island:

A few issues later, Octavius makes one final destroy-the-world scheme.  Luckily, Spider-Man planned ahead complete with a new Doctor Octopus-proof suit as shown here in Amazing Spider-Man #687, written by Slott and drawn by Stefano Caselli:

As you might expect, Spider-Man saves the world because Marvel comics have still been produced since this issue.

That cool Spider-Man outfit?  One neat little addition was a device that tapped into Doc Ock’s brain waves, similar to the helmet Spider-Man has already used twice.  Normally, that’s just one more reason why Spider-Man’s so resourceful and intelligent.  Except for one simple fact: Doctor Octopus is smart too.  Like a super genius.

Cut to Amazing Spider-Man #697, written by Slott & Christos Gage and drawn by Giuseppe Camuncoli.  The main story’s about two Hobgoblins running around, but that’s not important. Notice anything special on this next page?

See that golden Octobot?  It’s shown on many of the pages, but never actually focused on.  A delightful part of the background.  I, like most readers, brushed it off until the next issue written by Slott and drawn by Richard Elson.

It’s been 98 issues since Doctor Octopus was told he had a year (at most) to live.  Time’s up.

Honestly, I don’t think anyone saw that coming.  And they’re lying if they say they did.  Octavius’ final plan was to switch bodies with Spider-Man, taking with him all his memories and talents.  How?  Well, that’s what all this previous stuff has been about.  Click the picture below for a larger version:

Don’t you see the amazing part?  Spider-Man’s own genius backfired on him.  His scientific knowledge and ability allowed him 50 years of defeating opponents tougher, stronger, and more numerous — and now, it’s that same skill Doctor Octopus exploited to open up and switch with Peter Parker’s mind.  Beautiful!

Now we cut to Amazing Spider-Man #700, written by Slott and Ramos.  Parker as Doctor Octopus has broken out of jail to get his own body back.  Unfortunately, he has minutes before he dies.  And despite all his best efforts and plans, he loses.  Doc Ock wins.

Octavius’ body has given out and Spider-Man’s in prime condition.  No metal arm waving or last minute bursts of strength.  So, in Parker’s final act, he uses the memories the two of them share to force Octavius to relive Parker’s most important memories.  Why?  To teach Doc Ock the one thing he’s been lacking all these years: empathy.

And more.  Look, Octavius will live on as Peter Parker — that’s already been decided.  All Parker can do is make sure his legacy as Spider-Man and Spider-Man’s role in the world lives on in the right way.

Please understand this isn’t some cheap ploy or gimmick.  Superior Spider-Man will be around for a few years at least judging from the interviews with Slott.  We get to see Doctor Octopus with a second chance on life, and more importantly, as a superhero.  A better superhero.

Trust me, Spider-Man is my number one favorite, and now we’re getting Spider-Man stories that have certainly never been told before in Marvel history.  How can you not be excited?  If you want more, check out Avenging Spider-Man #15.1 for the first issue starring the Doc Ock Spider-Man, and Superior Spider-Man #1 goes on sale in January.  And finally, get your panties out of a bunch.