Synopsis / Summary / Plot
Last issue the team rescued Count Ophidian from Birgit in Svartalfheim and then returned to Monster Island. But they still had 2 problems. They still needed to find somewhere for Ophidian's fungus-people the Vridai to live. And Deadpool was angry at the mess they made of his Island in #7. But then Spider-Woman pulled out Don Buggini's business card from that issue when he offered her a job as a professional fighter.
Now DP is off to a gaming retreat (maybe), with his 'house-elf' as part of his luggage, and Spider-Woman has got Strikeforce on the fight circuit for Buggini (in matching costumes). She apparently got Wade Wilson to agree to all this by threatening to set a horde of spiders on him (which of course she can't actually do). The team are fighting some monsters in the ring and Jessica Drew assures them she has a plan and it's going to solve Ophidian's problem. Things aren't going too well, except for Wiccan who's up against a snowman (complete with carrot nose). Then SW punches her opponent through a hole in his stomach and her venom blast explodes gas inside, but she gets benched for the rest of the game because the rules only allow external injuries.
Blade doesn't like all this, and Jessica won't tell them what her plan is. Angela guesses that's to do with information about the Vridai being dangerously contagious, and she reminds their usual leader that *he* himself persuaded his fellow Avengers not to ask what he was doing for the same reason. And we see hooded Ophidian hiding in the crowd. Then the Ref tells them that they can get Spider-Woman back in the game if they win a 1-on-1 face-off. They huddle and Winter Soldier convinces the others they need Jessica because they don't know what her plan is. Spectrum passes on their decision and the Ref assumes she's their chosen champion.
Monica Rambeau has to fight an electrical alien named Shzzzllzzzthzz but called the Blip. She doesn't know if she can beat him but figures she can remove both of them from the contest. In her energy form they crash fists and then disappear. The crowd's mood is ugly so Don Buggini orders a free-for-all. Loads of monsters leap into the ring to attack the Strikeforce team, who take the gloves off to fight back (including Blade slicing and dicing with his swords). Spider-Woman's plan is all going wrong and she begs Buggini to let her back in the game and she promises him a great show. He agrees, and calls a temporary intermission.
Jessica sneaks into the team's dugout and assures them that everything will be OK. Blade demands a full explanation but Jess says the place is bugged, and she leaves. Meanwhile in the audience Ophidian is getting worried too and sets out to find Jess.
The team are back in the ring but a large cage is lowered over them all, and SW just manages to dive in to join them. And then Buggini announces that they must fight each other to the death until only 1 is left. Blade is seriously considering taking Spider-Woman down when Spectrum and Blip crash through the ceiling and into the cage. Blade tells Wiccan to stop SW gently or he'll do it forcefully. Billy Kaplan tries a Bind Jessica Drew spell but it doesn't work. Spectrum is stunned by the fall and electrical discharges from Blip KO the other team members. SW grabs a chunk of ceiling to knock Wiccan down and declares herself the winner. But then she also morphs into Ophidian.
Later Buggini awards the prize to Ophidian, a job on the Island. There's a hooded person by the Vridai's side who uncloaks as Jessica. She tells the team they switched before the last match, and her plan has worked.
Later still Ophidian has invited the team to a housewarming party. Deadpool is there too and he's made lasagne. Ophidian reveals that this is now home for the Vridai because he can create others from spores. He releases some which cause the team to experience a shared vision of the past. We see the original 5 team members arriving at the location of the start of #1, each answering a call for help from Avengers. They enter the building and the next thing Angela knows is that she awakes to see their Vridai duplicates. There's lots of Vridai bits scattered about the place, and an Avengers communicator sending out it's call for help alongside the remains of Vridai versions of Captain America and Black Panther.
When they return from the vision there are lots of Vridai fungi in the room. Ophidian tells them he thought the team deserved to know what happened to them before #1. Angela is happy because it means they were never mistrusted by the Avengers, they were proactive. Blade gets the Count to promise his family will stay on Monster Island. Then he decides it's time to let the Avengers know what they were doing.
They meet with Blade's other team in their Avengers Mountain HQ. Cap and BP are there with Captain Marvel, Ghost Rider, Iron Man, She-Hulk and Thor. Leader T'Challa says they trusted Blade and didn't try to discover what Strikeforce were doing. He's impressed with their solution to the Vridai problem, except for the involvement of a loose cannon like Deadpool. Blade counters that it's in DP's best interests to make it work. Thor asks his sister Angela if she's really happy for a hostile species from Svartalfheim to be living on Midgard. Then Carol Danvers offers them a job as a backup team for the Avengers. But they all decline.
Later they also agree that the team is over. Jessica Drew will return to her baby, and Wiccan will return to his man Hulkling. Angela and Blade are off to sort out Svartalfheim. But they'll all keep in touch.