Wednesday, March 10, 2021

READING THE CLASSICS: THE WEST COAST AVENGERS #45



Published on June 1st, 1989

     WandaVision, on Disney+, just ended on Friday. It was 9 episodes. It was wildly popular, so I'm assuming a second season or movie will eventually show up. Right now, the only plans with the characters include Scarlett Witch starring in the next Dr. Strange movie (Vision died again in the TV show). So far, I'm not exactly sure why some have noted that WandaVision was based on the "Vision Quest" storyline in The West Coast Avengers. In WandaVision, Wanda is so upset at Vision's death that she creates a fake, perfect suburban life where she's married to Vision and has two kids. Their life is also like a sitcom, so most of the episodes mimic classic sitcoms like Malcolm in the Middle and The Dick Van Dyke Show. Eventually Angela Harkness, a witch, shows up to steal Wanda's power and by the last episode it just turns into a typical Marvel action movie spectacle. It was a really good show, though. And while "Vision Quest" isn't anything like it so far, it's at least intriguing. It's also, as I've noted before, convoluted. In this issue we get the backstory of Wonder Man. His backstory is so convoluted that it sounds like it's been going on in various comic book issues for thirty years (and it probably was). Wonder Man was a rich inventor type like Tony Stark...but hated Tony Stark so he decided to get turned into a superhero by Baron Zemo. Zemo said this transformation would kill him in a week without an antidote that only Zemo had. So Wonder Man was Zemo's slave. He eventually died then was brought back to life by Ant Man. It gets even more confusing. When he was brought back to life, the lab used his brainwave patterns. Those patterns were then used by Ultron to create Vision. Oh, yes, it gets even more complicated. Wonder Man's "mad brother Eric called upon the power of the voodoo houngan known as The Black Talon" to restore him back to life but turned him into a mindless zombie. Jesus Christ. This is really fucking complicated, right? And do we really even need to know all of this? Well he's not a mindless zombie anymore. And The Vision is back, albeit when The West Coast Avengers finally brought him back to life as a non-killing terminator like he was last issue, he's not 100% like he was and Wanda is all pissed off. Also...her and Vision's twins are missing again. And the new member of the team, the U.S. Agent, ends the issue talking to pictures of his parents. I guess this means he's batshit crazy? I can't really imagine a kid reading/enjoying this issue. I guess if that kid was like a prodigy or something. The mystery behind everything is compelling, though, so I hope the big reveal is actually worth waiting for. **1/2 

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