Avengers West Coast #79
Infamous Monsters of Hollywood Part 4: Fade Out
At California’s iconic Griffith Park Observatory, patrons are in for a surprise spectacle when the Tower of Shadows — headquarters of the Night Shift — suddenly materializes near by. The Night Shift and there leader Hangman have come with their hostages — the Avengers Wonder Man and US Agent, as well as an entire film crew — to film the final scene to Hangman’s film The Night Shift Takes Hollywood. Hangman intends to goat the rest of the Avengers West Coast into participating in a final battle to the death to end his film. When US Agent suggests that they do something, Wonder Man reminds his teammate that they have the safety of the kidnapped film crew to worry about.
Meanwhile, Spider-Woman has returned to the Malibu home of Stella Houston, the ex-girlfriend of Jason Roland, and actor who went missing years earlier. Stella has called Spider-Woman to share her suspicions that the Hangman is actually her long lost boyfriend.[1] When they turn on the television, they find another live broadcast of Hangman and the Night Shift goading the Avengers to face them at the observatory. As Spider-Woman prepares to head out, Stella insists on coming along. Taking to the air in a Quinjet, Spider-Woman checks in with Iron Man and the Scarlet Witch who have been following leads on the Night Shift. Iron Man reports that his trip to New York to recruit Doctor Strange didn’t pan out as the Sorcerer Supreme was busy with another investigation, but promised he’d come lend a hand as soon as he can.[2]
Back at the observatory, the LAPD have arrived and set up a cordon around the area. Meanwhile, the film crew decides to turn on their captors, goaded on by a woman named Mona. When the Night Shift’s Needle is about to kill her he is zapped by the Living Lightning. As it turns out, Mona is an old childhood friend of Miguel Santos and he admits to her that he’s always had a crush. Mona responds by kissing Miguel for rescuing her. That’s when the rest of the Avengers — Iron Man, the Scarlet Witch, Hawkeye, and Mockingbird — arrive on the scene. With the heroes finally arriving, the Hangman has Wonder Man and US Agent released from their ectoplasmic restraints so they can join the other Avengers in the upcoming battle to the death. As the battle breaks out, the Avengers have a hard time against their foes because their powers have been boosted by magic.[3]
As the battle rages on, Satannish grows impatient with the Hangman’s plans and emerges from a mystical portal to join the battle. The demon then begins boosting the Night Shift’s powers even more. Needing mystical assistance, the Scarlet Witch then channels her hex powers to summon Doctor Strange who has been off in another dimension investigating a number of strange spirits that appeared there. As the Sorcerer Supreme emerges from a mystical portal, Stella Houston gets close enough to the Hangman to remove his hood and confirm that he is her former lover, Jason Roland. When she tries to reason with him, Jason rejects her attempts to get him to turn on Satannish and strikes her aside. That’s when Doctor Strange reveals that the spirits he had been tracking were the partially pilfered souls of the Night Shift. As it turns out, Hangman’s deal with Satannish to boost their powers was done in exchange for the Night Shift’s souls.
Realizing that they were all being used, the Night Shift join the Avengers and Doctor Strange in trying to drive Satannish back to his home dimension. However, the demon seems to be drawing power from some unknown source. Iron Man quickly deduces that Satannish’s strength is being drawn from the people watching the battle on live television. Quickly, he and the Living Lightning use their powers to short out the TV cameras capturing the battle cutting Satannish off from his source of power. As Satannish begins phasing back to his proper plane of existence he reaches out and punishes Hangman for his failure by striking him down, leaving Roland in a catatonic state.[4] With the battle over, Doctor Strange apologizes for not heeding Iron Man’s request for aid soon. Hawkeye meanwhile asks Miguel how his first real mission as an Avenger felt, but he is too busy catching up with Mona to listen. Clint then hopes that things are quiet for a little while as he’d prefer to not have to deal with anything more complicated than a regular bank robbery.
Recurring Characters
Avengers West Coast (Iron Man, Hawkeye, Scarlet Witch, Wonder Man, US Agent, Living Lighting, Spider-Woman), Mockingbird, Doctor Strange, Satannish, Night Shift (Hangman, Brothers Grimm, Dansen Macabre, Digger, Gypsy Moth, Misfit, Needle, Tatterdemalion, Tick Tock), Stella Houston
Continuity Notes
This was confirmed last issue when the Hangman revealed his true identity to Wonder Man after capturing the hero.
Iron Man unsuccessfully attempted to recruit the aid of Doctor Strange last issue.
Mockingbird mentions how she busted Digger in the past. That was in West Coast Avengers (vol. 2) #40.
This is not the end of either Satannish or the Hangman who will target the Avengers again soon in Avengers West Coast #98-100.
Topical References
Two of the visitors to the Griffith Park Observatory have done so in order to get a look at the location that was used for an iconic knife fight scene in the 1955 film Rebel Without a Cause starring James Dean. This wouldn’t necessarily be considered a topical reference since RWAC is a Hollywood classic and the scene in question has reached iconic status and is being referred to in that context. Later, the Hangman also makes reference to Rebel’s director Nicholas Ray. Again, this wouldn’t necessarily be considered topical either since, again, the characters here are referencing a classic film.
The character Gypsy Moth has a problematic name. Specifically the term gypsy, which was a term used the Romani people. Many now consider it to be a pejorative and it is no longer part of common usage. Even the moth that was originally given that name is now referred to as the spongy moth in the scientific community. Its usage here can’t really be changed because this is what the character called herself. One could argue that the character herself gets a pass as Gypsy Moth’s alter ego is Sybil Dvorak, a person of Romani descent.
The TVs in this story are depicted as CRT models. This should be considered topical as this is an obsolete technology.
Stella Houston states here that Jason Roland wanted to be the “next Karloff”. This is in reference to Boris Karloff who became famous for his role in the 1931 film adaptation of Frankenstein and its various sequels and spin-offs. When Karlofff died in 1969 he was considered a horror icon. Given this status, many horror actors aspire to be as well known as Karloff. Given his almost mythic career, references to Karloff here wouldn’t necessarily be considered topical.
When the film crew revolts against the Night Shift, one of the crew members ask “are we men, or Mickey Mouse?” Mickey Mouse is the figurehead of the Walt Disney Corporation, first appearing in the 1928 animated short Steamboat Willy. The reference her wouldn’t be considered topical anymore given that Marvel Comics is now owned by Disney.
The story constantly cuts to people watching the battle of live television. These are rife with topical references. They include:
A family. The mother and father are concerned that the fight will get too violent, they decide to send their son to his room. The boy responds by excitingly stating that he can tape the fight on his VCR. Video Cassette Recorders were the most common method of recording television broadcasts at the time this story was published. As it is now an obsolete technology.
Some bar flies: one of them wonders why America needs B-2s and the SDI when the Avengers are around. This is in reference to the Northrop Grumman B-2 Spirit, aka the Stealth Bomber, which were constructed between 1987 and 2000. While the US military still uses these bombers today, they will eventually be retired out. SDI is the acronym for the Strategic Defense Initiative a missile defense program. While this program still exist it has undergone a number of name changes over the years starting in 1993. As of this writing (October, 2022) it is now known as the Missile Defense Agency.
The President of the United States: Here, the President is depicted as George H.W. Bush who was president from 1989 to 1993. He subsequently died in 2017. Here, the President wonders if he can “talk Schwartzkopf into cutting his book tour short.” This is in reference to Norman Schwarzkopf Jr., who is a former General in the United States Military. At the time this story was published Schwarzkopf had retired from service and had just released It Doesn't Take a Hero, a memoir about his life of service. Schwarzkopf died in 2012.
The Vice President: Is depicted as Dan Quayle who served as VP during President Bush’s tenure. Here, Quayle says that the battle between the Avengers and Night Shift is “big enough to take people’s mind off the economy!” At the time this story was published the United States was experiencing a mild recession that would last until 1995.
A group of Middle Eastern men: They wonder if the US would be willing to swap Satannish for remaining hostages. This is likely a reference to the Lebanon hostage crisis where 104 foreigners were kidnapped during the Lebanese Civil War. Negotiations to release the hostages began in 1989 and lasted until 1992.
The leader of China: Looks pretty generic here. This is likely supposed to represent Chen Yun, who was the leader of China at the time this story was published. He retired from the role in October 1992 and died in 1995.
Spider-Woman compares the Avengers battle with Satannish with “Custer’s Last Stand”. She is referring to the dramatic death of General George Armstrong Custer, a member of the United States Army during the Civil War and American Indian Wars. He was killed on June 28, 1876 during the Battle of the Little Bighorn. As this is a historical reference this would not be considered topical.
