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Thunderbolts #143

Aug 2010
on-sale: Jun 1, 2010
Jeff Parker, Miguel Sepulveda

Thunderbolts #143 cover

Story Name:

(no title given)


Synopsis

Thunderbolts #143 synopsis by Rob Johnson
Rating: 4 stars
Last issue the Thunderbolts sneaked into Asgard, ignoring the ongoing battle, to find the Spear Of Odin for Norman Osborn. The ex-Mighty Avengers Amadeus Cho, Stature, U.S. Agent and Vision tried to stop them but team leader Scourge, now openly the cyborg Nuke, got hold of it. In Siege #3 the battle turned against Osborn, as Iron Patriot, when US Government forces attacked his side and Tony Stark appeared in an old Iron Man armour to shut down his Stark-Tech suit. So he sent Sentry to reduce Asgard to ruins (which complicated the TBolts/MAv fight).

Now helpless IP faces IM, and Norman desperately calls for the Spear. Nuke tells him he's got it and he's on his way. He tells Mr X and Grizzly to keep the heroes off his back, and Paladin to clear the way ahead. But last issue Paladin decided that his boss Osborn was *too* crazily villainous, so now he shoots Nuke in the face.

Last issue Vision's AI system was damaged by the Spear. Amadeus tried to help him but Ghost materialised. Cho tells the TBolt to keep off Vizh, but Ghost reveals that it was *he* who contacted him (TBolts#141 and MAv#35) to warn him about the TBolts' plan. He asks where Hercules and Quicksilver are - Herc is dead but Cho has been unable to reach Pietro Maximoff. So Ghost boosts the power of his phone and suddenly Amadeus is talking to Pietro in his homeland - Transia in Eastern Europe. And seconds later Quicksilver is zooming on his way.

Paladin continues blasting at Nuke until his blaster runs out of juice, and Grizzly grabs the Spear and starts to throttle him with it. Ant-Man, who also 'came to his senses' last issue, attracts Grizzly's attention and then goes ant-size to run up his foe's arm and into his ear - where he kicks the eardrum. With Grizzly down Mr X takes up the maguffin. Vision, fully revived possibly thanks to Ghost, flies to the attack. But X is able to read even the synthezoid's brain and predict his moves. And with the power of the Spear he soon has the robot, Cho and Stature at his mercy. But a wind announces the arrival of Quicksilver, whose moves are so fast that Mr X's 'precognition' doesn't help. Pietro's repeated blows wear the man down, including smashing his limbs with an iron bar. And Ant-Man slips away with the miniaturised Spear.

All that's left is for the MAv 4 to polish off Grizzly and Ghost (Vision does that, so maybe Ghost *didn't* revive him). Amadeus belatedly tells Jonas he should have gone easy on the villain because he helped them. Vision replies that he picked that info up from the villain's cyber-suit, but also that he recently tried to kill Tony Stark (Iron Man (2008) #20-24).

Quicksilver has found U.S. Agent, whose arm and leg Nuke chopped off with the Spear last issue. They decide to take him for medical attention before returning to the fight. They'll head to wherever Norman Osborn is, assuming that the 2 missing TBolts (Ant-Man and Paladin) have the Spear and will take it there. Those 2 watch them leave. Paladin didn't want to give the Avengers the Spear in case Osborn *still* won the day, and then they'd be in big trouble. He says he'll take it away and keep it hidden.

Later we see Amadeus Cho, Quicksilver, Stature and Vision watching a later part of the battle - heroes vs the Void. And we see Grizzly and Ghost being carted away by US troops. And Paladin on the road with the Spear.

2 weeks later Eric O'Grady visits Cleavon Twain's brother Cody to explain some of what happened to him (he died in #140). He gives Cody the Headsman suit and weapon, and hopes the brother can become a hero with it.

Our last scene sets the stage for the next iteration of Thunderbolts. Luke Cage and his wife Jessica Jones and their baby Danielle Cage watch from a distance the refitting of the Raft, the island prison in New York's East River. We learn that he has been given a job there rehabilitating supervillains. Ie he's going to run the next version of the Thunderbolts.


 

Review / Commentaries


Thunderbolts #143 Review by (November 27, 2018)
This issue is the last as part of the Siege event, and hence the last in Dark
Reign. It is also a crossover with Mighty Avengers #36, which shows some scenes
here from a different perspective. Most of the action occurs within Siege #3,
but the heroes vs Void fight mentioned is part of Siege #4, as is the fate of
Grizzly, Ghost and Paladin. And the epilogues with Ant-Man and Luke Cage occur
after it's all over.

This is obviously the end of Norman Osborn's Thunderbolts which have been running
since #110, but had a complete overhaul for Dark Reign in #128. As hinted at
the end there will be a new team led by Luke Cage from next issue, despite Cage also heading the New Avengers.

I'll describe the future of the injured US Agent and the rest of the Mighty
Avengers in their #36. I'll deal with Iron Man in Initiative #35. And Norman Osborn in Dark Avengers #16.

Ghost is the only member of this team to continue into Luke Cage's team, after a cameo in the Raft in a tale in Enter The Heroic Age.

Nuke will be seen in a coma in the Raft in #145, and won't return to action until Captain America (2013) #11-15, working for Iron Nail.

Somehow Grizzly will escape to be involved in Deadpool (2008) #23-25. But he will be taken to the Raft at the end of that episode to be seen as a prisoner in the same Enter The Heroic Age tale and Avengers Academy #3-4.

Mr X presumably avoids capture here, but he has made only 1 more appearance so far in Deadpool Team-Up #891 where an old enemy called Mr Y hires DP to kill him (unsuccessfully).

Paladin will show up next in the Shadowland: Blood On The Streets mini-series
without the Spear. Presumably he returned it to the Asgardians (willingly or not) because the returned Odin will have it in Mighty Thor #3.

Ant-Man will join Steve Rogers' Secret Avengers.

Cody Twain doesn't become a hero, and is never heard from again.

The bit with the Cage family is much later. Luke, Jessica and Danielle are there after New Avengers v2 #1-7, and other stuff such as Chaos War happens before that. Luke Cage also fits in that Enter The Heroic Age story after NAv.

After this app Luke goes straight into his TBolts gig starting next issue. Jessica and Danielle are also both next seen in TBolts issues.



> Thunderbolts comic book info and issue index

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Main/1st Story Full Credits

Miguel Sepulveda
Miguel Sepulveda
Frank Martin
Adi Granov (Cover Penciler)
Adi Granov (Cover Inker)
Adi Granov (Cover Colorist)
Additional Credits
Letterer: Albert Deschesne.
Editor: Bill Rosemann. Editor-in-chief: Joe Quesada.

Characters

All stories. Listed in alphabetical order.

Ant-Man
Ant-Man

(Eric O'Grady)
Iron Man
Iron Man

(Anthony Stark)
Iron Patriot
Iron Patriot

(Norman Osborn)
Luke Cage
Luke Cage

(Power Man)
Quicksilver
Quicksilver

(Pietro Maximoff)
U.S. Agent
U.S. Agent

(John Walker)
Plus: Danielle Cage, Grizzly, Mastermind Excello (Amadeus Cho), Mr X, Nuke, Paladin, Vision (Jonas).

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