Warlock and the Infinity Watch #5: Review

Jun 1992

Jim Starlin, Angel Medina

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Story Name:

Old foes

Review & Comments

Rating:

Warlock and the Infinity Watch #5 Review by Rob Johnson (July 24, 2021)

The Man-Beast has been mentioned often enough in the past 3 issues that it shouldn't have been much of a surprise at the time when he turned out to be the villain here. (And now I've been telling you so in the past 2 Comments.) High Evolutionary created Man-Beast from a wolf in their double 1st appearance in Thor #134. After #135 Man-Beast went straight to his role in Warlock's story in Marvel Premiere #1-2, (Power Of) Warlock #1-8 and Hulk #176-178. His apps after that have been on Earth and nothing to do with HE or Warlock. But in his last app Thor #317 he was trying to get back to Counter-Earth (which he didn't know had already been taken away) and wound up drifting in space.

Before this series Triax the evolved warthog only appeared in Warlock #3-4, initially in the guise of Apollo.

In #7 we'll finally learn that the 6th member of the Infinity Watch is Thanos. As lots of fans in the letter col have guessed.

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Synopsis / Summary / Plot

Warlock and the Infinity Watch #5 Synopsis by Rob Johnson

The 2 armoured beings who captured Drax The Destroyer, Gamora, Moondragon and Pip The Troll in the past 2 issues have them floating sedated in a liquid containment unit. Omega does want to risk handling their 4 Infinity Gems directly like Thanos did, but he will use technology to control their power in order to destroy his old foe Adam Warlock.

Last issue Adam realised that he may not have made the wisest choice entrusting the Gems to them. He's now returned to where he left them and found them gone. But he's even more concerned about the 5th person he gave the Reality Gem to. They are currently in telepathic contact and that person tells him he was keeping tabs on the others and saw them taken by someone called Omega who currently has them in a large starship orbiting Earth. Warlock heads off to the rescue.

Omega watches him approach. His minion wants to attack him directly but Omega sends security automatons to test AW's current abilities. 1 squad of automatons reports back but their report is cut short. Another squad finds them all smashed. Warlock feels his old combat skills returning to him, and he stealthily takes out the 2nd squad and others 1 by 1 (in a panel by panel replay of a page in Strange Tales #179). Omega's armoured flunky turns out to be a much tougher proposition and has Warlock on the ropes (and deprived of his staff).

Meanwhile Omega is using the 4 Gems' powers to create an energy being. But Pip starts to wake up. Warlock rallies against his opponent as he recognises the fighting style as belonging to someone he thought dead. But he also learns that it isn't Omega he faces, just a servant. After a lot more biffing and bashing he is at last triumphant. And he unmasks his for as Triax The Terrible from Counter-Earth. And so Omega must be his master the Man-Beast. Who now reveals himself with the energy beast behind him which he calls his Infinity Thrall.

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