Synopsis / Summary / Plot
After discovering what Roxxon had been doing in the teen re-education camps, Senator Patrick stopped the heavy-handed implementation of Kamala's Law for a rethink. But the Law banning teen super-heroes is still in force, so the Champions have to be careful.
A team are breaking into a bank in New York. They include Fizzle (the leader), Naut, Py-Rite, Sneko and an unnamed swordsman. But the Champions (Ironheart, Ms. Marvel, Nova (Sam Alexander), Spider-Man (Miles Morales) and Viv Vision) interrupt them. The heroes beat them fairly easily, apart from when Py-Rite takes over Ironheart's armour and she doesn't like being saved by Viv. Then the Champs scarper before the police arrive.
However they watch from a rooftop and see the bank manager turn up to explain that he'd hired the 'gang' to test the bank's security, and he'd contacted the local precinct to warn any super-heroes off (like that's what they do!). But the Champions are not currently a legitimate team so they didn't get the message.
Our team aren't happy but Riri Williams is angry. She's angry with Kamala Khan about 'her' law that stops them acting openly. She's angry that they have to rely on synthezoid Viv for intel, but really she's still angry with Viv for 'betraying' them to the authorities in earlier issues. She stopped being Ironheart when the Law was passed but she rejoined the team to deal with Roxxon. Now she quits again.
Miles leaves to follow her and calm her down. Sam leaves to finish his homework. Kamala and Viv stay to console each other. Leader Ms Marvel as usual blames herself. She expected that exposing Roxxon and CRADLE would solve everything but the Law still hangs over them. Viv still thinks *she*'s at fault, but also worries that even if the Law was repealed it wouldn't heal the harm she did to the team.
Meanwhile Roxxon is taking a new tack. Miriam Blakemoore, head of Publicity and Marketing, announces Roxx On a new social media and self-care app for teens. However Snowguard leads a teen protest against it. An old-style male Roxxon assistant Jacobson wants to set the armed security troops on them but Mrs Blakemoore stops him - at least while the TV cameras are there. Instead she apologises for their previous mistaken attempt to shield teens from the dangers of super-heroing (and, she doesn't say, activism) but claims the new app provides free helplines for teen problems. And anyone who joins tonight will get a month's free access to everything else.
We see some of the crowd taking the bait. But privately Blakemoore orders a media campaign in Roxx On against Snowguard. If a Roxx On user suffered such abuse then the company would be liable. But their Terms Of Service specifically exclude responsibility for none account holders. And she also tells Jacobson to find someone who can win difficult teens over.
Spider-Man catches up with Ironheart. Riri assures him she hasn't really quit the team, but she's conflicted. They discuss another reason for her anger. When she was out of the team in the early issues they assumed it was *she* who was alerting CRADLE to their moves, until Viv 'fessed up. And she still finds it difficult to forgive them. They agree that Riri will continue to keep them on the right lines by pointing our where they're going wrong.
Kamala Khan and her friend Bruno Carelli go to a Roxx On pop-up store in Jersey City Mall. (Presumably they don't have the app so don't get in free.) It's full of Roxx On branded stuff for teens, and Kamala has to stop Bruno buying some sneakers. They see an announcement that Jacobson has hired André Sims as Youth Outreach Coordinator. He apologises to the public for the mistakes he made as a Stark Unlimited intern (in the Ironheart 2020 mini-series) and is grateful for the 2nd chance.
But at Roxx On HQ Blakemoore isn't happy with Jacobson and fires him because twenty-something science genius Sims is *not* her idea of someone who can connect with teens. She promotes Paige Graeme, the youngest member of her team, to replace him and find a better spokesperson. She also fires Sims but he says she can't. After a scathing list of all the reasons why he's useless she finally listens to him say he's got an R&D project she'll be interested in.
At the next Champions meeting Riri and her suit's NATALIE AI are also incensed that Roxx On have hired Sims. In IH 2020 he corrupted AI's programming, including NATALIE's. They don't know what Roxxon are doing with him or the app but it's bound to be evil and something to do with keeping Kamala's Law going. Riri and Viv do know that the app has *no* security on its users' data. Ms Marvel proposes to fight dirty.
The issue ends with Sims showing Blakemoore a giant robot. (Not something which I think would impress her.)