Thunderbolts #45 — Nick Peron

Jul 6

Jul 6 Thunderbolts #45

Heroic Tendencies, Part 1: The Inside Job

This story takes place during the events of Maximum Security #2…

Techno, who for weeks has been posing as the Ogre (the Thunderbolt’s inventor), has his work cut out for him. On top of monitoring the spread of the Ego-Spore threatening to consume the Earth,[1] he is also monitoring the life signs of three individuals in stasis,[2] searching for Scourge the assassin who recently attacked him,[3] as well as track down the missing Moonstone (Karla Sofen),[4] and find a means of stabilizing Atlas’ (Erik Josten) ionic powers.[5] He is particularly disturbed by Scourge’s attack. The assassin merely cutting off one of Techno’s arms before going into hiding again. Techno knows that he is being toyed with but doesn’t understand why.

That’s when he begins picking up Moonstone’s com signal and learns that she is currently attacking a SHIELD base on the Moon. He decides to report this back to the Thunderbolts — Hawkeye (Clint Barton), Mach-2 (Abner Jenkins), Songbird (Melissa Gold), and Charcoal (Charlie Burlingame) — who quickly return to base to decide their next move. Clint wants to drop everything and go to the moon, prompting Charlie to call him a hypocrite for abandoning the “greater good” for one teammate, unlike how he has handled Jolt’s murder. Techno — having reassumed his Ogre disguise — suggests that the team can kill two birds with one stone. He has successfully hacked SHIELD’s database and learns that the moon base is where the spy agency is holding the Kree Supreme Intelligence prisoner.[6] He suggests that by going after Moonstone, perhaps the Supreme Intelligence can help them stop the Ego-Spore threatening the Earth. When the team notes that they have no means of getting to the moon, the “Ogre” reveals that their new headquarters has a jump ship that is capable of reaching the moon in a matter of minutes. This surprises everyone and Clint makes a note to search their new headquarters more thoroughly once things have calmed down.[7]

Boarding the jump-ship, the Thunderbolts find themselves rapidly launched to the moon in just about six minutes time. However, by this moment, Moonstone has made short work of the SHIELD operatives on the Moon, including one armored in a mobile tank suit. She then uses her phasing ability to pass through the security door that leads to the Supreme Intelligence’s cell. Once inside, she is greeted by the artificial intelligence who refers to Karla as “daughter of the Kree”.

Back on Earth, in Washington, DC, investigative reporter Andrea Sterman has come to the Commission on Superhuman Activities to ask questions relating to her current investigation. She speaks to a man named Warton who is a little more pre-occupied with the Ego-Spore crisis going on outside. However, when asks why the files on Omega-32 have been erased, Warton invites her into his office so they can speak in private.[8]

While at a London hospital, a patient suddenly wakes up from his sleep and asks for water. His nurse quickly rushes out of the room to call Roger Aubrey of the V-Battallion’s Penence Council to tell him that their coma patient has finally woken up.[9]

Meanwhile, back on the Moon, Karla Soften finally gets the answers that she seeks. The Supreme Intelligence explains that she is one of the chosen so-called “Guardians of the Galaxy”. When Karal asks what it means, the hive mind explains that centuries ago when the Kree were still young, there was the discovery of an ancient gem on Kree-Lar. When they split the stone two — becoming the Alpha and Omega Gems — it unleashed powerful blast of energy that claimed many lives. However, it also drew the attention of other alien races who had discovered gems of their own and were trying to seek out their origins. They came to Kree-Lar to examine the newly discovered stones. Over time, they discovered that these gems were fragmented remains of the previous universe that existed before this one and were catipulted into the universe during the Big Bang. When all gathered, the stones were believes to advance the evolutionary traits of all living things in the universe. Soon the Hellfire Helix was constructed and a its other-dimensional energies were filtered through the Alpha and Omega Stones to empower other smaller gems. Each one representing a different element of the universe: earth, air, water, fire, life, death, anima, and gravity. By this point, Karla is able to put two-and-two together and correctly deduces that her Moon Stone is one of these ancient gems.[10]

The Supreme Intelligence continues by explaining that the gems found hosts that were reborn, genetically remade into evolutionary vanguards to maintain peace in the universe as the Guardians of the Galaxy. One of them was the Kree woman who has been haunting Moonstone’s dreams for weeks. Karla finally has a name for the woman, Ajes’ha, who wielded the Moon Stone some two hundred years ago. When she asks the Intelligence why she is haunted by Ajes’ha now in the present, the entity tells her that this was all because she asked the Moon Stone to speak to her.

At that same moment, the Thunderbolts have reached the Blue Area of the Moon. After some snippy debate, Mach-2 convinces Hawkeye to let him go out and scout ahead. Abe is glad to be out of the ship because there is tension among the group. Both Melissa and Charlie are acting out over Hawkeye’s seeming disinterest in trying to find Jolt’s killer and worries that about what will become of the team if this is allowed to carry on.

Inside the base, the Supreme Intelligence points out the obvious to Karla, that she wants to become good and so the Moon Stone is using Ajes’ha’s memories to to guide her. However, Karla refuses to believe that she is willing this upon herself. That’s when Mach-2 enters the room. Furious that the Thunderbolts are interfering with her solo mission she attacks him.[11] This is witnessed by the arriving Songbird and Charcoal who fight back against her. The battle comes to a quick end when Moonstone blasts a hole to the outside, causing decompression. Luckily, Charcoal is able to stretch out his body in an effort to plug the hole and prevent Mach-2 and Songbird from being blown into the vacuum of space.

As Moonstone tries to flee, she is stopped by Hawkeye who tells her to stand down. When she tries to explain that he cannot understand the changes she is going through, Clint points out that it is the same thing all of the Thunderbolts went through — the thing that convinced Clint to want to become a leader and mentor of the team — that they all have the capacity for good. This convinces Sofen to stand down and help the others get free. As she does so, the other Thunderbolts confirm exactly what Clint told her. Still, Karla has many more questions about Ajes’ha and her past and wonders where she might find the answers. That’s when Captain Marvel arrives and tells them that if they will consider him a friend, he may have the answers that they seek.

Back on Earth, Techno has resumed his Ogre disguise to contact Goliath (Henry Pym) of the Avengers to see if there is any insight he can provide on fixing Atlas’ conditions. Hank theorizes that Wonder Man (Simon Williams) was able to bounce back from Count Nefaria’s recent attack on them is because he has more experience with his ionic powers than Erik does.[12] Pym promises to follow up with Ogre once he collects more data. With this done, Techno drops his disguise and goes back to focusing on his other projects. However, he is shocked when he suddenly belches, something that should be impossible now that he is a robot. That’s when Scourge (who had been hiding inside Techno this whole time) enlarges himself with Pym Particles and rips Techno apart. Looking at the robot’s shattered remains on the ground, he proclaims that justice has been served.

… While this story continues next issue, Maximum Security continues in Marvel Knights #6.

Primary Characters

Thunderbolts (Hawkeye, Atlas, Moonstone, Songbird, Mach-2, Charcoal, “Ogre”), Captain Marvel, Goliath, Citizen V (Watkins/Zemo), Scourge, Supreme Intelligence, Jolt, Andrea Sterman, Captain Britain, (flashback) A’jesha

Continuity Notes

This is the main plot to the Maximum Security event. The Kree had managed to trick the Galactic Council into making Earth a prison planet and quarantining the Sol system. This is all part of a much larger scheme to turn Earth into a new host for Ego the Living Planet so the Kree can harness his cosmic energies and use them to re-establish their empire. See Maximum Security: Deadly Planet #1 and Maximum Security #1-3 as well as the various cross-over issues listed below.
The identities of the three people that Techno has in stasis are mostly unknown. They are:
- The Ogre, who has been in stasis ever since Techno stole his identity in Thunderbolts #33.
- The second is Jolt, who Techno has been restoring since she was seemingly killed by an assassin’s bullet in Thunderbolts #34. She will be restored to life next issue.
- The last entity is a powerful mutant named Humus Sapiens who has been keep in stasis by the Ogre for years in order to prevent his powers from raging out of control. See Thunderbolts #54-55.
Scourge has been targeting members of the Thunderbolts (past and present) since issue #34, and is Jolt’s assassin. He attacked Techno last issue. He has been sent after the team by CSA agent Henry Gyrich as part of a greater scheme to eliminate Earth’s superheroes. Gyrich is being used as a puppet by the terrorist organization called Hydra. See Thunderbolts #49-50 for the dirty details.
Moonstone has been haunted by the memories of Kree warrior named Ajes’ha which have been altering her personality to boot since Thunderbolts #28. Eventually she could no longer take it and went AWOL to find answers back in issue #41.
Atlas was just recently used as a pawn by Count Nefaria — an ionic energy vampire, for lack of a better term — as part of a plot to set off an ionic bomb that would turn every living thing on Earth into power batteries for the villain. See Thunderbolts #42-44 and Avengers (vol. 3) #32-35.
The Kree Supreme Intelligence has been a prisoner on the moon since the Live Kree or Die! event, see Iron Man (vol. 3) #7, Captain America (vol. 3) #8, Quicksilver #10, and Avengers (vol. 3) #7.
The Thunderbolts had only just recently claimed the facility inside Mount Charteris only recently in issue #24, after taking it from the Masters of Evil. In issue #33 it was revealed that it was once home to the mutant terrorists known as Factor Three (X-Men #37-39), the Sons of the Serpent (Defenders #22-25), Hydra (Team America #1-12), and August Masters (Captain America #268/Defenders #106).
Andrea Sterman has been investigating Omega-32 on behalf of the family of a Roxxon employee who was murdered with it starting in Thunderbolts #41. Omega-32 is being used by Scourge to create hard air bullets for his guns so that his killings cannot be traced back to him. This is all part of the whole Gyrich/Hydra thing I mentioned above.
The man in the coma is John Watkins III, the heir of the Citizen V legacy. As will be revealed next issue. What’s not immediately apparent is that John’s sudden awakening is because his body has been taken over by the mind of Baron Zemo whose mind was transmitted into this body by a bio-modem following his physical death at the hands of Scourge back in Thunderbolts #49.This won’t be revealed until Citizen V and the V-Battalion #3 and will remain the status quo until issue #58.
The Supreme Intelligence makes vague references to the various other gems that are similar to Karla’s Moon Stone. Allow me to fill in the blanks:
- The Alpha Stone was first seen in Marvel Team-Up #16, it was what gave the villain known as Basilisk his powers. The Omega Stone was seen in the same issue and it was used to imprison both Captain Marvel (Mar-Vell) and Basilisk.
- The Bloodstone, which originally granted Ulysses Bloodstone with immortality, as seen in Marvel Feature #1.
- The God-Stone, aka the Star Stone, which was first seen in Amazing Spider-Man #124. It transformed John Jameson into the Man-Wolf.
- Unmentioned here are the Blue Diamond which empowered Elton Morrow to become a hero of the same name (Daring Mystery Comics #7), the Ka Stone worn by the villain known as the Sphinx (Nova #6), and the Power Prism used by the various people who have used the Doctor Spectrum identity (Avengers #69).
Mach-2 mentions how Karla recently attacked the Fantastic Four. She had broken into their headquarters to try and find the answers she has been seeking, as seen in issues #43-44.
Simon Williams got his ionic powers back in Avengers #9, while Josten got his powers through the same process in Avengers #21. That may not seem like much lead time until you consider that Josten has only appeared in about 100 comics at this time, versus Simon who has had a lot more hands on experience as he has made about 5 times as many appearances than Josten has.

Topical References

Mach-2 two refers to his moment of introspection as his “Oprah moment”, this is reference to Ophrah Winfrey, a famous day time talk show host at the time this comic book was published. This should be considered a topical reference as Oprah’s popular TV series ended its run in 2011. The reference to Oprah can be slotted with a more contemporary example, thus making it topical.