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Cosmic Powers Unlimited #4

Feb 1996
on-sale: Dec 28, 1995
Greg Wright | Scot Eaton

Cosmic Powers Unlimited #4 cover

Story Name:

The plague war

Synopsis

Cosmic Powers Unlimited #4 synopsis by Rob Johnson
Rating: 4 stars
The main story stars the Star Masters and continues directly from the end of their 3-issue mini-series.

It begins with the Rigellian High Command reviewing a report sent by robot Recorder 901-E who they sent with the now-missing Tana Nile to investigate what happened to the Hub, the mobile base of the intergalactic Charter Federation. The report starts with a belligerent message, apparently from Quasar, saying that Earth has destroyed the Charter and bans all extraterrestrials from the Solar System. It continues to summarise that the Charter had contacted Earth about joining but was slaughtered in an unknown manner by Quasar. A Cosmic Commando unit was dispatched to capture him but he escaped and joined Beta Ray Bill and Silver Surfer in stopping a planetoid hitting Earth. Quasar denies all charges and Tana Nile's team were attacked by some Axi-Tun who took them aboard their starship. This Recorder has also detected an unidentifiable compound in the Hub's ventilation system which may have something to do with the massacre. The Rigellians will investigate the Axi-Tun involvement to see if they are in league with Quasar. Also it seems that 2 of the Commandos have joined him.

We see those 2 Commandos, Captain Morfex and Xenith, with Quasar and Surfer where Starmasters #3 left them, having escaped from inside the Cauldron Of Purification/Conversion which was full of toxic goo. Quasar got them out and also used his Quantum-Aura to protect them from the goo. Beta Ray Bill disappeared just before that and SS detects that he's gone to Asgard. Some goo got out with them and is still trying to get at them but Surfer discovers that it's alive and trying to communicate with him. However it can't talk to any of them but could have talked to the Korbinite Bill. SS also detects some living prisoners including a telepathic Rigellian. He tells his allies to save *them* while he flies his Cosmic Surfboard to find Beta Ray, carrying a forcebubble of goo.

The cyborg Axi-Tun Sidereus gloats because he thinks the heroes are dead. The hulking Throkk reminds him that Beta Ray Bill vanished, but Dampyre reminds *him* that they already a sample of Korbinite DNA so they don't need him for the hybrid cosmic plague. Sidereus makes it plain that every race they add to the cauldron allows the plague to mutate to affect *them* as well all the others, and now they've added an Earthling (Quasar), a Strontian (Xenith) and the cosmic Silver Surfer. Aldebron interrupts their celebration by pointing out that they've also added an Axi-Tun Morfex, so now they themselves are vulnerable. But then she lets them off the hook by telling them that Morfex was really a Skrull pretending to be an Axi-Tun (as revealed in Starmasters #2). She says she wants another fake message like the 1 that implicated Quasar, but this 1 will be Tana Nile telling the Charter members that the A-T have killed Q and that it's safe for them to come and collect their dead. Which will of course spread the plague to all their homeworlds. Soon only Axi-Tun will be left to inherit the cosmos.

We see the dead M'Ndavian ambassador returning home, his body rupturing and his people starting to die around him. Aldebron reports by hologram to the Axi-Tun supreme ruler Lord Votan that the M'Ndavi have been eliminated and their death blamed on their enemies the Pheragots. Votan goes out to address the masses. He tells them that the time of putting up with contact with unclean inferior species is almost over. His strategy of joining the Charter enabled the superior Axi-Tun warriors to lead their militia. Soon the cosmos will be theirs. But in the crowd his brother Landar knows that their father Lord Trantor would have disapproved of removing the inferior species against which the A-T's superiority could be measured, and he doesn't understand how Votan has swayed the crowd.

On the Axi-Tun starship the 3 Star Masters are figuring out tactics. Quasar doesn't want an open fight because they'd lose the element of surprise. So he suggests Skrull Morfex shapechanges to Sidereus, and his quantum energy can create the cyborg's floating platform and can even amplify his voice. 'Sidereus' then persuades a group of guards who've come to take prisoners including Tana Nile to the Cauldron to instead open the cell and let *him* have them. He then orders them away and the 3 enter the cell. But Nile has a breakout organised and immediately hits the 'villain' Quasar with a telepathic blast to lay his thoughts bare. Xenith lays into others while Morfex belatedly drops his Sidereus guise which had increased Q's obvious guilt. But now the Rigellian tells everyone she's discovered Quasar's innocence. Morfex orders Xenith to stand down.

Outside the Hub Silver Surfer has returned from Asgard with the bottle of goo and Beta Ray Bill who now has a much-changed costume and Stormbringer weapon. Meanwhile on the Axi-Tun spaceship the other 3 Star Masters are leading the prisoners to a docking bay. Tana Nile telepathically extracts security codes from some guards and leaves them unconscious with recent memory wiped. And she tells them that she also learned about the plan to use the plague to kill all non-Axi-Tun. They fly to the Hub leaving Sidereus very angry with the confused troops who were supposed to bring the prisoners.

On the Hub they meet up with SS and Bill. Bill has been able to communicate with the protoplasm and they have learned that every type of being thrown into the cauldron allows it to infect their whole race. The Axi-Tun have already killed the last of Bill's people, and only his enhanced bionic form allows him to survive. Tana Nile's mental scan indicates that only the M'Ndavian ambassador has so far been sent home. Quasar says they must destroy all the dead bodies here, but Tana says that many races would consider that sacrilege. So Silver Surfer exerts extreme effort to use his Power Cosmic to delicately destroy all the toxin molecules in the dead bodies.

In the Axi-Tun spaceship guards have found Recorder 901-E attempting to transmit their position to Rigel. They claim to have stopped him in time and Sidereus starts to examine the robot's data. Then our heroes arrive in the Commandos' spaceship. The baddies fire at the goodies but Quasar has sneaked up behind them and englobed them with a quantum energy shield so that their fire rebounds on them. Our 5 break in and Aldebron sends Dampyre and Throkk to deal with them. Normal troops are easily defeated, especially when Beta Ray throws his weapon. But then Dampyre exudes tendrils from his mouth which latch on to Quasar and start to drain his energy, while Throkk attacks Bill. Surfer leaves them to find the Plague Cauldron. Q's energy is too much for Dampyre and he has to let go, at which point Xenith leaps on him but is easily shrugged off. Even while Throkk has BRB pinned down his Stormbringer still smashes into Dampyre and then returns to its master. However Throkk grabs it but it refuses to be used against Bill. So Beta Ray pummels his foe until Throkk tries to use the hammer to call down lightning ... which incinerates him.

Surfer has found the Cauldron where the plague is mutating at incredible speed. The other 2 superheroes join him and the 3 combine their powers above it while Morfex and Xenith watch. The battle lasts a very long millisecond and the plague is destroyed. Now they have to take the ship from the Axi-Tun. Lord Votan appears by hologram to Alderon and Sidereus. Sidereus tries to pretend everything's under control but Alderon admits their failure. So Votan tells them to self-destruct the ship and themselves. Quasar detects what's happening and gets the 5 Star Masters out in a quantum bubble as the ship explodes.

Days later a newly-elected Charter council led by Tana Nile expel the Axi-Tun and label Votan a war criminal. Quasar is exonerated and the SM thanked. And for some reason Q is disguising BRB's new look until he's ready to reveal it to everybody. But we learn that Alderon, Sidereus and Throkk sneaked away in a small spacecraft before the explosion.


Characters
Good (or All)
BRBILL
QUASAR
SILVERSURFER
Plus: Morfex, Tana Nile, Xenith.

Enemies
Lord Votan.

Story #2

Mind body soul

Writer: Barry Dutter. Penciler/Inker: Dave Hoover. Colorist: Ian Laughlin. Letterer: Jack Morelli.

Synopsis

By Rob Johnson
Rating: 4 stars
Drax The Destroyer and Pip The Troll are on Titan watching over the comatose body of Moondragon who sustained injuries in Warlock & Infinity Watch #39 before they all lost their Infinity Gems in the final #42. Drax is still getting flashes of memory about being Heather Douglas' father, which worries Pip as he steps out for some air. He reminds us that Moonie killed Drax in Avengers #221, until Kronos resurrected him in Silver Surfer #35 after Thanos returned to life. Luckily his memory (and intellect) were damaged.

Although her bandage-swathed body is in a coma Moondragon's mind is still active and she contacts Drax to let her in to his mind to heal it. Appearing with him as an astral projection in her regualr costume they contact the ascended Eternal Kronos (who originally created Drax from the dead Arthur Douglas). She complains to the god that when he birthed Drax the 2nd time he left his mind damaged and she begs him to make him whole. Kronos reminds her that the Destroyer was reborn to combat Thanos who is currently not a threat (I don't know why he thinks that), so he has no reason to do what she asks. She gets angry and swears to force him to heal her father, but Kronos shows why he's a god and she's just a mortal.

Drax is alternating between calling her Moon Lady and Heather and asks Kronos not to hurt her anymore. Weeping MD apologises for not succeeding, which distresses her father further. Kronos says he's going but now *Drax* is angry and threatens him. Kronos blasts him repeatedly but unstoppable Drax keeps attacking him. He threatens to uncreate his creation but Drax says he doesn't care as long as the god helps his daughter.

Kronos is impressed by how they're both willing to sacrifice themselves for each other. It reminds him of the mortal (Eternal) he once was. So he's willing to help them both, but unfortunately all that blasting has drained him for now. However if they're each willing to give a portion of their power to him then he'll be able to do it. They both agree and Kronos starts the process. While it's happening Heather admits to Drax that she killed him (while under the influence of the Dragon Of The Moon), and he forgives her because her conscience has tortured her enough.

They come back to reality in the hospital room, and Drax has his memories and intellect, and Moondragon is awake (and miraculously without her 'mummy' bandages and in her costume). They embrace. And Pip returns to think Drax is killing her, but they soon set his mind to rest.


Characters
Good (or All)
DRAXTD
MOONDRAGON
PIPT
Plus: Kronos (Chronos).




> Cosmic Powers Unlimited comic book info and issue index


Cosmic Powers Unlimited #4 cover

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Main/1st Story Full Credits

Scot Eaton
Pam Eklund
Paul Becton
Claudio Castellini (Cover Penciler)
Claudio Castellini (Cover Inker)
Additional Credits
Letterer: Janice Chiang.
Editor: Mark Gruenwald. Editor-in-chief: Bob Harras.



Review / Commentaries

Cosmic Powers Unlimited #4 Review by (February 8, 2025)
Greg Wright has taken over the scripting of Star Masters from Mark Gruenwald, but Scot Eaton remains on pencils. Pam Eklund joins Don Hudson as inker. Except that Dave Hoover pencils and inks some of the story. Paul Becton continues as colourist but is helped by Mike Rockwitz and Chia-Chi Wang (of Malibu Colour Separations?).

When BRB disappears between Star Masters #3 and this issue he pops up in Asgard in Thor #492 where he loses his Asgardian power because of the World Engine storyline there. He goes into a coma, and a flashback next issue tells how Silver Surfer and Odin combined to give him new powers (and costume and hammer). I don't know why Quasar disguises his new look near the end because he's got it in his next apps.

The Star Masters story continues in the main tale next issue where they take the battle to Lord Votan, and his brother Landar is involved as is Tana Nile. But Alderon, Sidereus and Throkk don't join them and are never seen again. And neither are Landar and Votan.
After the Star Masters affair Morfex will appear in Skrull Warbook Files in the Skrulls! 1-shot.
Xenith will play more active roles in the X-Men: Kingbreaker mini-series and issues of Nova (2007).

Tana Nile is in the Star Master stories between Thor's #211-221 (where she hangs out with him during his Search For Odin and other stuff) and Generation X #23&25 (where she crashlands on Earth and joins the Daydreamers before they have their own mini-series).

For Silver Surfer it all happens between his #110 and #111.
But for Beta Ray Bill and Quasar their apps in #111 happen before the Star Masters event (for BRB explicily so). This is possible because their apps there happen (much) earlier than Surfer's own.
They are both next seen in his #121-122.

In the 2nd story Drax and Pip haven't been seen since Warlock & Infinity Watch #42. But comatose Moondragon has been in the Titanian hospital in Captain Marvel (Genis Vell) (1995) #2&5. (She was taken to Titan because she was raised there after Arthur Douglas died.)
Drax and Pip's next apps are in the 1998 Warlock mini-series.
Moondragon will return to the superhero life in the post-Heroes Reborn Avengers vol 3.

Kronos was last in the Infinity Gauntlet series. His only apps after this are set in the past.

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