Credits: Story by Johnathan Peterson, pencils by Cedric Nocon, inks by Chuck Gibson and edited by Mike Rockwitz
Cast: Gen-13 (Rainmaker, Fairchild, Grunge, Burnout, Freefall and Jack Lynch), WildC.A.T.S (Spartan, Zealot, Maul, Warblade, Void and Grifter) Wetworks (Jackson Dane, Mother-1, Jester, Grail and Dozer) Marc ‘Backlash’ Slayton, Jodi ‘Crimson’ Slayton, Taboo, Cybernary, Union, Lucius, Alex Fairchild, Flashpoint, Kaizen Gamorra, Rodox, Deathtrap, The Sword of Damocles and Damocles.
Plot: In the wake of the destruction of Kaizen Gamorra’s listening post in Shiva, the Team 7 survivors and their allies are heading for safety in order to plan their next move. They are soon spotted by StormWatch helicopters and attacked by StormWatch soldiers. They are able to escape after a brief melee, when Union is able to blast his way into a tunnel network that Cybernary knows about and he collapses the entrance behind him, buying them a degree of safety. This news gets back to Flashpoint, currently in charge of that contingent and he doesn’t berate the squad leader, but rails against the air for how things are going. On the moon, the device being built by Damocles’ forces nears completion.
In the caverns, Dane and Mother are talking, Mother is concerned about him and when he asks for a new subject, she admits she’s been experiencing feelings regarding Grail, another member of the team. When Grail arrives to bring Dane and Mother to the group, Mother pulls back, dropping the subject entirely. In a large area, Union gathers everyone and sums up the situation as things stand. He reminds everyone there (well really the readers) that Grifter, Jackson Dane and John Lynch are dying due to the extraction of their Gen-Factor. Union suggests a course of action, remove Gamorra from the throne of the nation which shares his name,. As soon as he says this, the remainder of Cybernary’s resistance movement arrive and pledge their support for this goal. They get ready to move out on snarnns (mutated horses, that are larger and much stronger) and Cybernary tells Backlash that she has enjoyed working with him and hopes to reacquaint themselves once the battle/rebellion is over. This doesn’t go well with his girlfriend Amanda/Taboo, who rides off in a huff.
At a village on the way to the capital, this rebel alliance sees the fear in the eyes of the oppression people of Gamorra and are almost immediately attacked by Attack Drones who start firing indiscriminately. They are soon outgunned and it doesn’t look good, but Mother has already called in backup, the final member of Wetworks, the immense Sgt Joseph H Mendoza, known simply as Dozer who at this point is dozens of feet tall and possesses enough firepower to turn the odds against the Drones. This battle decimates the Drones, but also the village and the damage can be seen and heard from Kaizen Gamorra’s home. Kaizen is angry and considers StormWatch unable to be of help, but is surprised when the mercenary Deathtrap arrives to take over the situation and save Gamorra from this rebellion. On the moon Damocles is informed by his Sword that the engine is ready and it will launch the moon at the Earth, destroying both and providing Damocles with the energy to recreate his original experiment and restore his home-world. The engine is started and the effects are soon felt as in the pacific ocean, the change in tides causes a tidal wave hundreds of feet high to engulf an american aircraft carrier, with all hands on board.
Notes: This is where the crossover starts towards it’s finale. The Damocles on the moon plot moves forward and all of the heroes are now in place to take the fight to Kaizen Gamorra, his forces and the mercenaries. To be honest, it’s about time as this crossover has definitely got a little flabby in the middle. The action is handled really well and we also get a bit of character development as the Grail/Mother-One subplot moves forward. But this issue really hinges on two moments, one is the ignition as Damocles moves forward, the other is the moment where the Attack Drones face the arrival of Dozer in an almost cinematic reveal. This is telling me to keep going forward with this story as there are exciting moments ahead.
Verdict: Writing 3 out of 5 – The dialogue in places is a little clunky, but with so many different characters, that’s a hard thing to manage. The moments with the individual members of Wetworks are well handled, given space to breathe and move the title’s subplots along and the arrival of Dozer is set up well and timed to perfection.
Art: 3 out of 5: It’s something of a house-style, but everyone looks on model and the facial expressions are well done, for an issue that has a lot of action work to do.
Overall: 6 out of 10 – A solid issue that is leading us towards the story’s end, while still giving us a bit of character stuff that wasn’t as prevalent in this era as it could have been.
Next Time: The loss becomes more painful in a world without a Superman.
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