New Thunderbolts #8
A Shock to the System
The new Thunderbolts — Mach-IV (Abner Jenkins in his old Beetle armor),[1] Atlas (Erik Josten), Photon (Genis-Vell), Speed Demon (James Sanders), Joystick (Janice Yanizeski), and Radioactive Man (Chen Lu) — are in a battle with Batroc’s Brigade — Batroc, Machete,[2] and Zaran — in Newark, New Jersey. The team is performing poorly, making Abner wonder if Songbird (Melissa Gold) was right that the team won’t ever do right with him as the leader.[3] Eventually, the battle is won when Photon is able to invert the molecular structures of their foes, knocking them out. During the battle, Speed Demon saved the life of a woman, who repays his heroism with a kiss on the cheek.
Back at base, Blizzard talks to Sanders about his planned heist with the Shocker. He tries to convinces James that he can’t be both a hero and a villain. However, Sanders doesn’t want to listen. As Donny leaves the room, Janice wonders what’s bothering him. Erik figures that Gill is in conflict with himself over trying to reform and figures that Abe will set Donny straight. However, Abner is busy in his workshop trying to cannibalize his Beetle armor to repair his Mach-IV suit. He also tries to call Melissa, but keeps getting her voice mail, causing him to become frustrated. Donny then heads down to the training room where Photon and Radiactive Man are trying to figure out how Genis’ new powers work. When Chen notices Donny, they are about to leave. However, Donny actually wants to talk to Chen and get his help to find somebody.
Later, Speed Demon arrives at the home of Herman Schultz, the Shocker, who wants to help on a heist. They are going to break into a mansion on Long Island with a sophisticated safe. IT contains Nazi money that a Swiss bank is in the process of laundering.
Meanwhile, Melissa Gold has come to the Department of Homeland Security to see her old friend Dallas Riordan. She hasn’t seen Dallas since the original team broke up but has now come to take her up on a job offer that was offered to her the last time they spoke.[4] When she enters Dallas’ office, Riordan knows that Melissa is here to talk about Atlas, her former lover. Melissa is surprised and asked how she knew. That’s when Dallas moves out from behind her desk and reveals that she is back in her wheelchair.[5]
In New Orleans, Monica Rambeau is working on her boat while the news is playing on a portable TV. She is shocked when she hears that something about a hero calling himself Photon.[6]
That evening, the Shocker arrives at the mansion on Glen Cove. He is joined by Sanders who is wearing his old Whizzer costume, so as to separate his work with the Thunderbolts as Speed Demon.[7] Shocker explains that after he blasts through the security fence, he needs the Whizzer to hit all the security relays before the countdown timer runs down and sets off the alarm. Even though the Blizzard shows up and tries to stop Sanders before he does something he regrets. James is uninterested in listening and easily knocks Donny out with a series of rapid punches and still has enough time to finish shutting things down before the alarm goes off. The Whizzer and Shocker open the the safe and take the money. James then tell Herman to take the money, saying that he trusts him to keep the money safe.
Later, Donny Gill wakes up naked and suspended upside-down hanging from a bridge. A sticky note on his forehead reads “Thanks for trying!”
When the Shocker returns to his apartment, he marvels at all the money that he managed to score. However, moments later, the police come banging on his door and ordering Shultz to surrender. When he turns to grab his things and run, he realizes that his gauntlets and money are now gone — Speed Demon’s work — and while this means he’ll get off the hook, he still wants to kill James for stealing his loot.
Speed Demon then delivers the money to Abner Jenkins back at Thunderbolts headquarters. James reveals he knows about Abner’s arrangement with Baron Strucker and how they are short on money. All he say about the money is that it was stolen from someone who doesn’t really need it. The Radioactive Man understands that Abner is trying to do great things, but questions how much of his own soul he is willing to sacrifice in order to achieve them. Before Chen can leave the room, someone smashes through the wall to ambush him. It is Namor, the Sub-Mariner who has come to get revenge against Lu for apparently poisoning the people of Atlantis
