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shadedrose01 · 4 years

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Young God

Relationships: Harley Keener/Peter Parker

Tags: idek how to tag this one, uhh, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, kind of?, more like, Enemies to Lovers, Enemies with benefits?, Rivalry, Rivals with benefits?, Its hard to explain aodjsk, Harley Keener as Iron Lad, Peter Parker Needs a Hug, Peter Parker Needs a Break, Peter Parker Has a Bad Day, Hurt/Comfort, Implied Sexual Content, Nothing shown tho, Fluff and Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, parkner week 2020, Day 2, Arguing

Prompts: “And i said ‘no,’ you know, like a liar” / identity shenanigans / iron lad

Notes: Day 2, everybody! Hope you enjoy! 💞💞

Read on ao3 Here!

He says "oo, baby girl, you know we're gonna be legends,

I'm the king and you're the queen, and we will stumble through heaven,"

Peter sucks in a quick breath just before he crashes onto the rooftop, sliding across the sandpaper like tiles and feeling as it rips up his suit, the backs of his arms and legs, his hands as he claws and slows himself down until he finally stops, just at the edge of the house.

He stays still for a second, pants as he hears the mechanical whirrs and clicks of the robotic arms coming closer and closer to him, before he feels his hair stand up, and jumps backwards off of one rooftop to the other, just as Doc Ock crashes through the house below him, leaving only destruction in his wake. Peter listens sharply, for a scream or a cry but hears nothing, and feels a wave of relief knowing the family must not of been home, before its quickly wiped away as he instinctive jumps out of the way again, a claw crunching the stone he was stood on just moments before.

"Come on, Spider-Man," the man taunts, his bluish purple goggles gleaming in the setting sunlight. "Stop running away, and fight!"

Another claw, and another jump, except this time, Peter bounces off of the next rooftop he lands on, circling around and kicking the man right in the jawbone. "You asked for it!" He spits out as the kick throws him back, off kilter for a second, a moment that Peter tries to take to get out of distance again, out of range, but he's too slow, a third claw reaching for him, about to grab him-

Before its blasted to pieces by a bright purple light, and Peter cant help but to stifle the annoyed sigh that threatens to escape, the simmering anger that's been inside him all day starting to boil, to bubble up as he hears the familiar, way way too familiar Southern drawl call out, in all its mocking glory, "Hey squid boy, watch where you're throwing those things, someone could get hurt!"

Peter lands onto the brick wall, sticking into place and turns just to see Doc let out an irritated yell, and lunge for the bright red and gray suit, purple lights attached like lazor pointers to a cat, an easy target that never seems to faze the man no matter how many times Peter told him to tone them down. For once, Peter understands Docs anger, annoyance, as the suit weaves through his claws and shoots them apart with ease, laughing and mocking him the entire time. It makes his insides twist, and his blood boil, his heart racing and his teeth gritting together.

Peter throws himself off the wall just in time to kick Doc to the ground, all of his claws and weapons destroyed, and an affronted, almost insulted noise comes from the robotic suit flying beside him. "You can't just come in and steal the kill, that's not cool, dude!"

Peter doesn't even spare him a glance, webbing the villians hand, feet and then body to the ground. "What, like you did?"

"I did not," The robotizied voice cries out, like a child. "I was just helping you out, Spidey! You should be thanking me!"

Now, Peter can hear the smug grin on the man's face, and this time he can't help the bitter sigh that escapes, as he turns to send a heated glare. "Fuck off, Iron Lad."

He can practically see his eyebrows raise, even through the emotionless mask and the man laughs, loudly, his voice higher pitched with pure amusement as he says, "Oh ho ho, Man! What's got you in a piss poor mood, huh? Having a bad Spidey day, Spider-Man?"

Peter's nostrils flare, and he has to physically hold back the words that long to spill from his mouth, tasting bitter on his tongue, flames licking at his lungs. "Police?" He asks instead, glancing away to glare at the stones below him, his hands clenched hard into fists.

"On the way, eta maaybe two minutes?"

"Then let's go." Peter doesn't wait for an answer, shooting a web off into the distance and yanking himself away, huffing out a breath when he hears the very clear, "Sir, yes sir!" And the echo of replusors sound from behind him, following him like they always do.

"If there's a light at the end, it's just the sun in your eyes,

I know you wanna go to heaven but you're human tonight,"

Peter swings for a while, trying to ignore, pretend that the metallic sounds of blasters aren't following him, hoping that eventually, the man, that Harley would get the hint and leave him the fuck alone today, but after a while, he realizes that won't happen and lands on the top of a building, crashing to the ground a little rougher than necessary, feeling his bubbling anger, annoyance rising higher and higher in his chest.

"Finally," The suit groans out, landing right beside Peter on the rooftop before flailing his arms out dramatically. "I thought you were never gonna stop, jeez."

"I'm on patrol." Peter growls out, going to the edge of the rooftop to look down and focus his hearing, to make sure he doesn't miss any moments, any crime that he needs to stop, almost wishing, itching that there was some so he could get away from the man encased in metal. He doesn't know why his presence is bugging him so much today- he's normally annoying, sure but not this much, never this bad- but it is and Peter just longs to get away (even as a part of him begs to get closer).

The man just huffs, his neon purple eyes seeming stare into Peter's soul incredulously. "Thats never stopped you before." When Peter just ignores him, the man takes a step forward and his helmet retracts, the face of the one and only Harley Stark- son to Tony Stark, heir to Stark industeies and the main pain in Peters ass for the last eight months- scrunched up with a weird mix of childish annoyance and worry that makes him look constipated. "Seriously, Spidey. What's going on? Are you okay?"

The real concern that slips into the mans tone makes Peter's insides twist, but he ignores it as he spits out, "Why do you care? Thought you only cared about yourself?"

Its intentionally rude, and he knows it hits its mark when a pang of hurt runs across Harley's features before it disappears back into a blank slate so similar to the one his father wears for the same reason, to hide the pain. "You know that's not true." Even his voice has gone back to painfully neutral, and any satisfaction Peter anticipated to feel is overwhelmed by a sickening guilt that poisons him from the inside out, twists his stomach and makes him feel nauseous.

He should apologize, he knows, but he's still- he still feels the burning, the fire under his skin, in his bloodstream, charring his lungs, molten lava in his veins, and he can't stop the sour words from slipping past his lips, with a faint mocking laugh. "Do I?"

"I thought you did." He mutters, his usually bright, summer day skies eyes darkening as a storm cloud passes by, rumbling with a thunder that makes Peter's heart thump heavily in his chest. "I know you do. I know you don't really like me, I get that, but you normally aren't this much of a dick about it. This isn't you."

Peter just laughs again, bitter and twisted and wrong sounding, even to himself. "You don't know me. You don't know anything about me."

He says, "oo baby girl, don't get caught on my edges,

I'm the king of everything, you know my tongue is a weapon,"

Harley's eyes just narrow more, his jaw clenching, and Peter can see his words are started to get to him, his fingers twitching and his shoulders raising. Good. "I think I know more about you than you think."

"Do you?" Peter snorts, shaking his head in exasperation as he glances over to the man, glaring, the fire burning brighter, flames licking at his throat. "Say, what do you know about me?"

"I know your kind," He starts, scowling, counting on his fingers as if Peter is a child that he's lecuring. "I know you're considerate. I know you put everyone else before yourself, because you think somehow, subconsciously that your life is worth less than others. I know you feel guilty for something that happened in the past, and try to better yourself because of it. I know you care, much more than you let on." Peter snorts, trying to ignore the emotions and raw feelings bubbling in his throat, and Harley just continues, ignoring it. "I may not know your name, or your face, or your- your identity but I know you, Spidey. And this," He makes a waving motion at Peter's body, "whatever this is, it isn't you. So Explain. What's going on?"

He's almost pleading, now, begging for Peter to tell him and the masked man almost longs to tell him, but honestly, he doesn't even know what's wrong. He's felt this burning, this itch for something since he woke up, and as the day went on, he grew more and more irritated, irate, a chemical reaction gone wrong, Harley acting as a catalyst and speeding up the reaction until now, its starting to explode, bubbling over the glass and creating a mess of emotions.

Peter can't tell him that, though, can't tell him that he's being a dick for nothing, so he just shrugs him off, looking away again and muttering a quick, "Nothing."

He can almost feel the tension in the air rise, turning thick as Harley bristles and flares, "Let me help you, for fucks sake!"

"Maybe I don't want you to help me!" Peter sparks back, whipping his head back around to glare at the man, the energy high, electric around them.

"There's a light in the crack, that separates your thighs,

And if you wanna go to heaven, you should fuck me tonight,"

"Oh, no. You do." Harley sneers, stepping forward, closer to Peter. "You do, you're just too much of a coward to admit it."

Peter rolls up his mask to his nose, and glares heavily at the man, taking a step towards him in retaliation. "Middle school insults, really?"

"Only telling the truth." Another step forward. "You're a coward who tries to hide his true feelings and pretend they don't even, even though you know they do."

"Oh yeah?" Another step, and suddenly, they're face to face, their noses millimeters apart, almost brushing in their proximity. "Say that again, I dare you."

Harley takes the bait, leaning in closer until Peter can feel his air on his lips, their breath mixing. "You're a coward, Spider-Man."

And Peter thinks he's going to punch him. His fists are clenched, his body is tense, he's bracing himself to do it. But instead, he finds himself grabbing his shoulders tightly and pushing their lips together, his mind whirling as the reaction bubbles over and the flame in his chest ignites into a wildfire, bright and untamable as Harley kisses back just as heavily, just as intensely, pressing him back back back until his back is pushed against a brick wall. Their lips don't disconnect, their heads turning and tongue swirling as Harley's hands roam up and down Peter's suit, over his arms, chest and abs, Peter's moan being swallowed into Harley's mouth, only to be reciprocated moments later.

The kiss breaks only to allow Peter to jump into Harleys arms, his legs wrapped around and sticking to the waist of the metal suit and his arms around his neck before theyre reconnected again, sucking face and groaning into each others mouths.

"My place?" The blond asks, voice muddled by lips and tongue and teeth, and Peter only nods instead of answering, pressing his face into his neck to leave marks, bites and bruises as the other man wraps his arms around his waist and under his ass, before the repulsors start back up and they fly away, towards the giant looming tower in the distance.

And I've been sitting at the bottom of a swimming pool, for a while now,

Drowning my thoughts out with the sounds,

Peter blinks awake slowly, hearing the faint whisper of a fan and a steady mechanical hum and feeling the satin, silk sheets beneath his fingertips. He turns his head slowly, his brain still groggy as he sees the other man, Harley beside him, his ryestalk hair askew and his face lax, more youthful than Peter's ever seen it, the sheet only covering to halfway up his chest, the rest out in the open, bare outside of the bright red marks still covering his skin. He flushes slightly as the memory's return from the night before, or, evening? He looks to the large, floor to ceiling windows beside the bed to see that it's still nighttime, the bright moonlight shining in through the clear glass, the pale blinds and illumating the room, casting shadows onto Harley's features and making him look... softer, ethereal, such a contrast to his sharp words and his even sharper personality. He finds he likes it, the softer, gentler look, and finds himself staring for a few moments, taking the moment in before he sits up slowly, making sure not to awaken the other man, and stands.

He finds a pair of pants on the floor, and a shirt he isn't sure is clean or dirty, throwing them both on before noticing a glass door, leading out into a balcony on the other side of the room. He had remembered landing somewhere early, hazily, though he obviously wasnt focused on it. It must've been there. He finds himself drawn to it, tiptoeing quietly over to the door and sliding it open before stepping outside, and taking a large inhale of the chilled air. He moves to the railing of the balcony, listening to the faint breeze of the late August winds, the car horns and honks in the distance, stares down at the still busseling, still alive city below them, not really focusing on anything, not really thinking, just breathing, feeling, living.

That must be why he doesn't hear the other man stirring, or hear him approch until the door behind him clicks open again. Peter doesn't turn around, doesn't have to, just continuing to watch the cars drive by until two arms wrap around his waist, gently, warily, until a, now clothed, chest is pressed against his back, and a chin rests on his shoulder. Peter just exhales, leaning back into the other mans grip, feeling more relaxed, more at ease than he has in a while, longer than he can remember.

Do you feel like a young god?

You know the two of us are just young gods,

"Do you ever..." Peter doesn't know when, or why, he starts to speak, doesn't think of what he says as he murmurs, hushed, low, a whisper, "feel like a young god? With these powers, the suits, the- the responsibility..." Harley just hums, faintly, and they start to sway, subtle, gentle back and forth motions, back and forth, like waves cascading onto a beach. "They all look up to me. The people, the city. They all-" Peter shakes his head, sighing lightly, airy. "And sometimes I just... sometimes I just don't know if I'm enough, you know? Sometimes I just..."

"Need a break." The other man finishes, murmurs, his lips brushing against Peter's cheek and sends tingles down his back.

"I-I guess so, yeah." There's a few moments, a few seconds where they just sit in the comfortable silence, where Peter glances up at the smog filled sky, seeing a few stars shining through, the almost full moon gleaming brightly down at them.

Before, "Let me help, baby." Harley whispers, pleads, and Peter goes to protest but the blond beats him to it. "You're burnt out, constantly saving the city, saving the world, constantly being the punching bag for everyone else, let me help. Please, Peter," And that was something new, too, Harley knowing his name, knowing his face, knowing him through and through, though he knows the other man won't tell, won't share, turning his head with easy fingers to look him in the eye, his ocean blues almost neon in the glow of the moon. "Let me help you."

They stare at each other, flickering from eye to eye for a few beats, a few thumps in Peter's chest, and he doesn't answer, not really, just lowers his head and places it onto Harley's chest, into the crook of his neck, but his lack of an answer is answer enough. The older man just presses a drawn out kiss onto the top of his head, and holds him closer, a non spoken thank you that sends Peter reeling, unused to the feeling of care, of concern, of love.

And yet, surrounded by strong arms and held closely to a firm chest, Peter feels at his strongest, feels comforted, known, feels safe. He closes his eyes, and just breathes, let's himself have this moment of calm and quiet in the arms of his love.

And we'll be flying through the streets, with the people underneath,

And they're running, running, running...

#parkner week 2020 #parkner #harley keener/peter parker #harley keener #peter parker #fanfic #marvel fanfiction #marvel #mcu #marvel mcu

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speckledbears · 4 years

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Thoughts on “Far From Home”

SPOILERS FOR “Spider-Man: Far From Home”!!!!

this is for you anon

ok so basically i thought that it would have been good if it wasn’t a Spider-Man (“children’s”) movie.

Like, I think Quentin (Jake G) was such an interesting character, and an amazing villain but, I hated that his entire reason was because he wanted to be the New Iron Man. It bugs me to NO END that THATS the reason. Tony stole the projector tech he made, made fun of him (even if the audience didn’t know), and fired him. I think that’s a much better reason than wanting to be the next Annoying, Mean, Rich Rich Rich So Fucking Rich Metal Guy. The tech was so fucking cool? Like, projectors that seemed so lifelike,,, that’s so cool (also i kinda feel like you could relate it to how disney is only using GCI now but the russos are dumbasses). And like, the story Quentin and his team put together for Mysterio, and all the planning and the production value (if you can call it that lol) was so interesting and I was so intrigued. If there was a movie for him, and he didn’t fucking suck, I would pay to see it. His issue is that he’s so hellbent on killing Peter, MJ and Ned that I was put-off from like, half the movie. It’s kinda terrifying that someone can say, “I’ll just have to kill the kids myself,” and NO ONE IS CONCERNED??? And the fact that he was willing to kill innocent civilians just to make headlines, that’s fucked (and modern). Also, I think the directors missed out on a big opportunity for Peter to have a new father figure. Peter looked up to Quentin, trusted him, seeked him out for advice, like he would a father. I don’t remember him ever doing that with Tony. Peter was always too worried he was bothering him, and Tony seemed to brush him off a lot. Sure, Tony picked him and placed so much faith in him but, in the end? I feel Peter became more of a toy for the Avengers than an actual team member. If Quentin had been a good guy, doing this shit for the “right reasons” (idk like, taking the burden of becoming Iron Man off Peter, and maybe mentoring him) he could’ve been AMAZING. I still love him (except his dumb reasons) but, y’all missed out!!!!

Next: The whole deal with Peter being chosen by Tony to be the next Iron Man. Fucking hate that shit!!!!! Peter is a CHILD, he’s 16, and obviously he’s not ready for that responsibility!!!! In the movie, he’s manipulated by Quentin (which i lowkey also hate and explained above) and he just!!! gave EDITH to him!!!!! He’s a good kid, but not mature or responsible enough to handle having access to that kind of tech. I mean, dude almost killed a classmate?? Literally called a drone strike on the kid, couldn’t figure out how to cancel it, and destroyed the drone himself. Let’s not forget that this responsibility was FORCED ON HIM BY TONY???? Like, there was this scene where Peter literally told Quentin that he didn’t want EDITH!!! He didn’t want that kind of responsibility that came with being Iron Man!!! All he wanted for the summer was to hang out with his friends and kiss the girl he likes!!! Peter just wanted to be a normal child for one summer and, apparently, that was too much to ask for. Also, in the scene where Happy and Peter are in the jet talking about Tony, Peter says that he doesn’t know if he can be the new Iron Man. Happy doesn’t even hesitate when he says, “No, you can’t. No one can replace him.” Like hello!!!! And then they immediately forget that little nugget of wisdom, and Peter starts playing with Tony’s tech and literally everyone with eyes can draw the parallels between Peter and Tony. It’s frustrating. I hated how Tony was treated after his death. I completely understand mourning a character, especially one as important as Tony Stark, but it didn’t feel like mourning. It felt like worshipping. Tony had become a martyr, and he fucking knew it (EDITH = Even Dead, I’m The Hero 🙄) and people are still licking his boots. It’s just so weird that, even though he’s supposed to be dead, he’s still a main character and RDJ isn’t even in the movie!!!!!!!! When a character dies, that’s it, they can’t directly influence the story anymore, and yet Tony is still the reason for everything Peter does? He doesn’t have his own initiative. He lived and breathed in Tony’s shadow, and he’ll live in it forever. He’s being forced to become the next Iron Man. And believe me, I love Tony. I grew up watching the “Iron Man” movies with my parents and brother, and I remember watching one in the theatre and laughing till I cried. Guys! He’s dead! He’s done more than enough! It’s Spider-Man’s turn now.

I really hated Nick Fury in this movie. I grew up watching the OG Marvel movies and I loved Nick, but holy fuck. This dude hounded Peter, a CHILD, for help against those Elementals when he could’ve literally asked anyone else (side note: he shot Ned with a tranquilizer dart like? dude he’s a child calm down-). He gave a shit ton of excuses for why he couldn’t get in contact with the other Avengers but, I call bullshit. This dude is like, one of the most powerful men in the world (Quentin’s words, but it’s also been proven in other movies). He managed to track down Peter, how is it THAT HARD for him to find an adult??? Then he hijacked the school trip so that Peter would be in Prague, and he KNEW that once Peter was there he would help. It’s manipulation. Never mind the scene like, 5 mins later where Peter says he’s worried about his friends getting hurt (and having EDITH but not really understanding her), and Nick exploded on him. LIKE DUDE??? he’s a child. I’m also super pissed off at the fact that Nick manipulated Peter using his Avenger status. OOOOHHHH you whore!!! Literally everyone knows that Peter loved Tony (🙄🙄) and he used him against Peter! ASK AN ADULT FOR HELP YOU HAVE AN ENTIRE TEAM OF THEM????? Oh also, the bitch KNEW Quentin was evil. There’s a scene that proves it. It’s right after their first meeting where Peter says no, and leaves. Nick and Maria (the brunette lady hes always with, im surprised i remembered her name) share a knowing glance. They fucking KNOW. And yet?? They let Quentin do whatever the hell he wants?? He literally tried to kill 3 teenagers, and planned to kill hundreds of civilians in London (and i’m not sure if anyone did get hurt or died but, i wouldn’t be surprised). But the most powerful man in the world can’t stop him, apparently. He wants a 16-year-old CHILD to do it for him. It’s ridiculous!

The romance was also a bit hit-or-miss for me. Like, Ned and Betty?? It felt so forced and contrived? It literally only existed so that MJ could take Ned’s place. Y’all notice that Ned basically ditched his best friend for the entire movie for some girl he barely knows? Also, the fact that they “fell in love” on an eight hour flight. Hate that. It’s such a trope and it’s ugly. The romance with Happy and May was kinda weird, too? I mean, I don’t know their past together. I didn’t watch “Infinty War” or “Endgame” but, it also felt forced. Especially at the end, when Peter asked if they were dating!! May said no and Happy said yes!! I’m assuming that’s supposed to be comedy?? ig??? Anyway, I didn’t really like the romantic rivalry between Brad and Peter? (btw no shit i almost called peter “tony” i’m telling y’all they’re synonymous now). Like, Brad’s logic in using the photo of Peter stripping to “expose the truth” about Peter to MJ was so weird and awkward? The entire scene felt forced and I was so uncomfortable watching it. Also, MJ would’ve stuck up for Peter anyway, so it didn’t even matter, and the rivalry was dropped so easily after the opera in Prague. I did actually like the romance between Peter and MJ, even though I wasn’t expecting to. It’s a bit weird how quickly he got over Liz, but whatever; he’s a teenager. (I was going to comment on the necklace thing but, that’s actually kind of in character for him so, y’all get ONE (1) pass). I thought their hug and kiss at the end of the battle with Quentin was super fucking sweet and innocent, and it was refreshing compared to most teen romance movies where they act like adults instead. I was in LOVE with that scene, and it was one of the only scenes I honestly loved.

Ok, I wanna go back to Quentin for a bit. This dude absolutely destroyed the Peter Parker we were given in HOCO, and at the beginning of the movie. Yeah, Tony already had him as a puppet, but Quentin took his innocence. Y’all saw how easily Peter trusted people before him!! Like?? When he found out Quentin manipulated him, he lost almost all his faith in other people, except for MJ and Ned. For example, the scene where Peter calls Happy to pick him up because he’s in a holding cell in the Netherlands? Love that scene BUT! As he’s limping over to Happy, so obviously fucked up and hurting, he makes Happy prove it’s really him. THAT FUCKING HURT LMAO!!!!! I hated that. And that last battle with Quentin on the bridge? He maneuvered so easily through the drones, it was impressive, and he’d only fought against them once before (seems impossible but whatever). And watching the projections dissolve away into just pixels and a scared little bitch in a fish bowl helmet? Classic Theatre. But, he was traumatized by previous experiences fighting Quentin. Peter’s growth made the movie good but, his loss of innocence really made this movie kinda suck. Sure, his innocence still there—the scenes later with MJ prove that—but he’s still lost his easy trust in other people. It hurt to see. And, like, I’m not saying he can’t be more mature but, he didn’t even trust Happy!! He’s so paranoid that he’ll find his loved ones replaced by Quentin’s illusions!! It sucks!!!! Peter isn’t Peter without that sense of childlike wonder, curiosity, and helpless faith in others.

Anyway, I wanna talk about that Netherlands scene again because, holy shit, I loved it. After Peter was hit by that train (i actually screamed but the cinematography inside the train? *kiss*), he wakes up in some holding cell in the Netherlands with a band of friendly locals, and the guard, who’s talking on the phone with his pregnant wife. I don’t know why but, that scene was one of the first to make me smile? Like, it was so sweet how the other men were so happy for the guard and his wife, how they gave Peter a spare shirt because he looked cold, how Peter just broke the lock and left? How the guard was wearing Peter’s mask???? I’m in love. The next scene I liked was literally right after, of Peter limping through the tulip field, and Happy landing the jet nearby. Without dialogue, that scene is so pretty?? The petals stirring in the wave the jet left as it landed?? The HUG???? UGH! I fell in love. Another scene I loved was the scene when Peter went to Berlin to meet with Nick Fury and Quentin manipulated it with the projection technology. Even though I knew it was fake, I was worried about what was going on outside the projection (he got hit by a fucking train so,,,,,, iwas right to be worried-). Watching Peter so helpless and trying to stay vigilant was so heartbreaking, yet I was lowkey impressed. Like? How many other mean ass men could pull that off? None, next question. I can’t even think about how to explain it. I watched that scene at least 3 times, and was amazed every time, my only thoughts anxiety for Peter.

Okay, lastly, I wanna talk about the tech. I thought it was so interesting and unique. Like, I’ve played with the idea of projection in stories, or with characters as magic but, never considered applying it through technology, especially tech as capable as it is. And every scene where the projections were being used were amazing. I mean, obviously it’s CGI, but in the context of the MCU, it’s so interesting and cool to see tech like that used in a very public way. And no one knew!!! The whole system (along with Quentin and his team) was so good at camouflaging that I was fooled at the beginning of the movie. I seriously believed in the Elementals and Mysterio’s ruined Earth. It’s part of the reason I really enjoyed his character. And, like I said earlier, Peter was fooled by it too; everyone was. He learned it, eventually. But not before Quentin could manipulate the situation one last time and claim Peter called the drone attacks on London, and revealed his identity.

All in all, I didn’t have fun watching “Far From Home,” and it’s mainly because it didn’t feel like a Spider-Man movie. I enjoyed “Homecoming,” so much more. The villain was far more relatable (even though you could see it as demonizing the poor), Ned and Peter’s friendship was so wholesome and sweet, the entire cast was fun, and it was more enjoyable than watching some angry rich white man trying to kill children so he can get richer.

#long post #spiderman #spiderman: ffh #peter parker #mysterio #mj spiderman #ned spiderman #im angry haha

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daresplaining · 5 years

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Who are your favourite DD villains? Fisk, Bullseye and Mr Fear all sound brilliant from what I know of them, but are there any others with similarly iconic influence on Matt?

There are! Daredevil comics aren’t known for their well-crafted villains to the extent that, say, Spider-Man or Batman comics are, but I really enjoy a lot of Matt’s rogues gallery. Fisk and Bullseye are probably the two biggest names, but there are many others who have had major impacts on his life, and the Marvel Universe in general, over the years. Here are some of the most notable DD villains, in my opinion:

Gladiator (Melvin Potter) is a major antagonist who, over the years has become arguably one of the most nuanced and interesting Daredevil characters. I wrote a longer post about him, way back when we thought we might actually get a Gladiator origin story in the Netflix show, but in general, a lot of his lasting appeal comes from the complexity of his character. When he was first introduced in Daredevil vol. 1 #18 he was a pretty standard Silver Age villain: a guy with semi-logical origin story, a funky costume, and a penchant for monologuing. Specifically, Melvin Potter was the owner of a costume store who was sick of being disrespected by his customers, and so decided to make a name for himself by attacking people with spinning blades.

[ID: A panel from Lee’s Daredevil run. Daredevil is battling the Gladiator. Daredevil hoists himself up on a big crate to dodge one of the Gladiator’s spinning wrist blades.]

Matt: “He’s not fooling with those wrist blades… he’s fighting for real! But, why? I’m certain I’ve never met him before!”

Melvin: “You can’t keep dodging me forever! And the moment you slip, you shall have the honor of being my first victim!”

Daredevil vol. 1 #18 by Stan Lee, John Romita, and Sam Rosen

Over the years, various writers have worked hard to add nuance to his character. Despite his fearsome appearance and goal of gaining respect, most early Gladiator stories involve Melvin being manipulated by stronger, smarter supervillains. Later, he becomes even more sympathetic: a dangerous killer who, at heart, is gentle and naive and hates when he loses control and hurts people. This creates an inherent discord in his character that adds an emotional hook to all of his stories. Matt tries to help him, and Melvin is grateful for Matt’s friendship and returns that favor when he can, but sometimes they end up having to fight each other. Essentially, Melvin’s story is the relentless tragedy of a man who wants to live a peaceful life but keeps falling victim to his own demons and the cruelty of the world around him.

[ID: A page from Miller’s Daredevil run. Matt Murdock, in civvies (a tan suit and blue tie) confronts Melvin Potter, who is in a prison uniform and holding his Gladiator helmet.]

Matt: “Melvin, we’ve come so far. I know how much you want to be well… to go straight. We can help you, Betsy and I.”

Melvin: “I been trying, Matt. I been sitting in that courtroom, listening to them say those things about me, feeling my guts churn up, wanting to rip them all to pieces… They hate me. They all hate me… so I’m gonna hate them back!”

Matt: “I’m not letting you off that easy. If you want to become the Gladiator again, you’ll have to get past me.”

Melvin: “Past you?! Look at you– you’re just a skinny little blind guy! I’d break you in half! It’d be easy…”

Matt: “Is that what you want?”

Melvin: “Why not? I’m the Gladiator! The Gladiator! When I’m wearing my armor, I’m unbeatable, I’m…”

[ID: Melvin throws the helmet and falls to his knees.]

Melvin: “I’m all alone. Help me… please…”

Daredevil vol. 1 #173 by Frank Miller, Klaus Janson, and Glynis Wein

This complicated and heartwrenching characterization has helped Melvin to remain a fresh and popular antagonist (anti-hero, even) and a regular guest in Daredevil. He is one of several characters who complicates the hero/villain dichotomy, and thereby both emphasizes and challenges Matt’s own heroism.

Typhoid Mary/Mary Walker is another one of the more famous Daredevil villains, and someone who has had a significant impact on Matt’s story over the years. I wrote a longer post on her as well. Female antagonists in particular seem to suffer from a variety of weaknesses in their depictions, and Typhoid– as a sexual character by nature, as well as someone who plays upon “crazy” villain tropes– has had her share of not great depictions over the years. However, at her core, she is a wonderfully compelling character and a dangerous villain who is literally multifaceted by design. Even moreso than Melvin Potter, Mary plays upon the concept of a good person who is powerless to prevent themself from doing violent things– in Mary’s case, through genuinely having multiple psyches inhabiting one body. She is in constant conflict with herself, as gentle Mary and bloodthirsty Typhoid battle for dominance. As much as she is an antagonist to Matt and the other heroes whose paths she crosses, she is her own arch-enemy.

[ID: An excerpt from Nocenti’s Daredevil run. Typhoid Mary and Daredevil are both underwater, in the East River. Mary looked panicked partway through strangling Daredevil, and flees out of the water.]

Mary/Typhoid: “Don’t kill him! You! Shut up! I love him! Stop! Get out of my head! You can’t kill him! Get out of my head! Oh, god! Where am I? Why am I dressed like this? What have I done?!”

Matt: “Curious. That’s a completely different woman running away! What came over her?”

Daredevil vol. 1 #256 by Ann Nocenti, John Romita Jr., and Christie Scheele

Matt’s dealings with Mary have brought about some of the more unheroic moments in his career. In Joe Kelly’s attempt to integrate the Man Without Fear-verse origin story into the 616 universe, he proposed that Matt nearly killed Mary on his first superhero outing. When Typhoid, in her introductory arc, is hired to seduce Matt, it works– he cheats on Karen with her. Later, when attempting to bring down the Kingpin’s empire, Matt removes Mary from the equation by sleeping with her to get her guard down and then forging documents to have her locked away in a psychiatric hospital. She hits all of his weak points: as Mary, she is a victim who needs rescuing… and an attractive one at that. As Typhoid, she is a dangerous enemy who must be stopped. In addition to her skill with weapons, she has all kinds of awesome psychic powers– including, most notably, pyrokinesis– and something about her physiology messes with Matt’s senses and makes her difficult to fight. She is a challenge on every level, and in many ways, Matt serves the same purpose for her– Mary (and, arguably, Typhoid as well) accidentally falls in love with him, representing a loss of power and control that she can’t stand.

[ID: Excerpt from Nocenti’s Daredevil run. A series of panels alternating between Daredevil falling off a bridge and a tear sliding down Typhoid Mary’s cheek.]

Daredevil vol. 1 #260 by Ann Nocenti, John Romita Jr., and Christie Scheele

The Hand I love the Hand– which is to say, I love the Chaste, and part of why I love the Chaste is because I love their rivalry with the Hand. On some levels, the Hand are your standard Big Bad Secret Organization, but I also find them to be a lot of fun, and they have been a significant force in Daredevil comics since they were introduced. The Hand are key players in Miller’s updated version of Matt’s origin, which introduced Stick and gave him a purpose for training Matt. They also had a huge role in Elektra’s origin, since her attempt to singlehandedly bring them down from the inside led to her becoming an assassin. And of course, Matt’s role as leader of the Hand and temporary vessel for their patron demon, the Beast, was a defining moment in recent DD comics and a low point of Matt’s career. The Hand are dangerous because they are vast, and their high-ranking members have all kinds of cool powers, which I love. And there’s also a certain amount of weakness and dysfunction to the Hand that makes them appealing. They are a once-great organization relegated to being mercenaries-for-hire. Their low-ranking members are fairly weak– as Matt quips in Volume 1 #380, “a little harsh language and [they’re] up in smoke!” They were led by a Skrull (disguised as Elektra) for a while, and didn’t even notice. Arguably their most dangerous enemy, Master Izo, mostly just bothers them with Hand puns.

[ID: A panel from Diggle’s Daredevil run. Daredevil, seen from the back, is standing in an empty room. The light from the sunset streams in through the windows. Izo is sitting behind him on the floor, drinking tea.]

Matt: “Look, you wanted me leading the Hand, you got it… but I never agreed to be your puppet.”

Izo: “‘Hand puppet.’ Heh.”

Daredevil vol. 2 #503 by Andy Diggle, Roberto De La Torre, Marco Checchetto, and Matt Hollingsworth

I also enjoy the way the Hand and the Chaste operate and Matt’s relationship with them. Matt isn’t an official member of the Chaste (like Elektra, he was rejected for being too emotional– which, in his case at least, is a fair assessment) but he still teams up with them on occasion, and the experience almost always puts him out of his depth in really entertaining ways. Matt is one of the Hand’s biggest enemies and one of the Chaste’s most useful allies, so he gets dragged into their business even when he doesn’t want to be involved.

[ID: Excerpt from Daredevil: Ninja. A conversation between Daredevil and Stone in a series of face close-ups.]

Stone: “We need your help.”

Matt: “You should have asked me to come.”

Stone: “Would you have?”

Matt: “I hate this ninja crap. I hate it. Every single time it’s nothing but lies, half-truths, and misguided loyalties. Stay away from me and my life.”

Daredevil: Ninja #2 by Brian Michael Bendis, Rob Haynes, and David Self

There are also two excellent (and, I’d say, influential) alternate universes in which Matt joins the Hand and thrives in their presence: What If? Daredevil vs. Elektra and Earth-65 (Spider-Gwen-verse).

Lady Bullseye (Maki Matsumoto) And if we’re discussing the Hand and the Chaste, I have to mention Maki– undisputed head of the Bullseye Fan Club and another of my favorite Daredevil villains. She’s relatively new (she was introduced during Brubaker’s run) and so hasn’t had a particularly big long-term influence on Matt, but she is a great character with extensive connections to Daredevil history. One thing I love about her is the fact that while she modeled her look and identity on Bullseye, she isn’t treated as just female version of him, as her name might suggest. They actually have very little in common; she just chose to honor Bullseye because he played a role in her origin story by indirectly rescuing her from a human trafficking ring.

[ID: Panels from Brubaker’s Daredevil run. Bullseye is single-handedly beating up a bunch of gun-toting mobsters in a warehouse building. Maki Matsumoto watches him between the bars of a large cage.]

Caption: “She remembers that so vividly. Remembers the joy she beheld that day from her cage. She had never seen anything so beautiful, she thought. Of course, she was nearly insane already by then. But then, like a miracle… freedom.”

[ID: Maki reaches between the bars of the cage and grabs a key from a dead mobster’s pocket. As she tries to escape, another mobster runs toward her.]

Man: “You– back in your cage, girl!”

Maki: “I think not.”

[ID: Without looking at him, she slices his throat with the key.]

Daredevil vol. 2 #111 by Ed Brubaker, Clay Mann, and Matt Hollingsworth

Since then, Maki has teamed up with Bullseye– mostly notably, resurrecting and caring for him after his death in “Shadowland”– but more often, she operates on her own as an assassin. Like both Elektra and Matt, she was trained by the Hand and the Chaste without forming an official allegiance with either, and it seems her primary teacher was Master Izo– thus making her Matt and Elektra’s ninja aunt and/or sister in the Chaste Family Tree that definitely exists in my head and nowhere else.

[ID: Excerpt from Brubaker’s Daredevil run. Lady Bullseye and Izo are standing on a Manhattan rooftop as the sky brightens behind them. Pigeons are flocking around them; Izo has one perched on his hand.]

Maki: “You said I would lead the Hand.”

Izo: “I said a lot of things when I was training you, girl… Said whatever I needed to say.”

Maki: “You’re as bad as them.”

Izo: “No. I didn’t put you in a cage and sell you to the Yakuza.”

Maki: “You still used me.”

Izo: “Yes, I did… but I’m not going to apologize.”

Maki: “Someday I’ll kill you for this. You know that, right?”

[ID: Izo leaps off the roof.]

Izo: “Yeah, well… get in line.”

Daredevil vol. 2 #500 by Ed Brubaker, Michael Lark, Stefano Gaudiano, Matt Hollingsworth, et al.

Maki masterminds the destruction of Matt’s life that leads him to join the Hand. She is extremely smart (she passes herself off as a lawyer during Brubaker’s run and fools both Matt and Foggy; as far as anyone knows, she might actually have a law degree…?), an excellent fighter (arguably better than Matt, not quite as good as Elektra), an absolute badass, and an all-around great antagonist who deserves her own solo series (hint, hint, Marvel).

Death-Stalker I’m not sure Death-Stalker counts as a major Daredevil villain, but he was used about once a week in late 70s Daredevil so he’s certainly been a recurring presence. I also just find him really cool, conceptually. One of the interesting things about Death-Stalker is that he started his existence as a completely different supervillain: the Exterminator, who is best known for “killing” Mike Murdock! The Exterminator had a weapon that could shift its victims out of sync with the time-stream. When Matt blows it up to fake Mike’s death, the Exterminator is caught in the blast, with shocking consequences:

[ID: Excerpt from McKenzie’s Daredevil run. A series of flashback panels: the Exterminator (a kind of goofy-looking villain with a purple and white costume and blue antennae on the side of his mask) watching Daredevil pull a lever, then the Exterminator getting caught in an explosion and falling into a void.]

Death-Stalker: “How many long and empty years has it been, Murdock? How many… since you so callously destroyed my awesome Time-Displacement Ray… catching me fully in the time-shattering explosion?! How long has it been since I was hurled through the fabric of time? But what you believed to be my death proved instead a macabre rebirth! I found myself in a timeless limbo! Unobserved, I could go anywhere! Do anything!”

Daredevil vol. 1 #158 by Roger McKenzie, Frank Miller, and George Roussos

Thus, the Exterminator returns years later as Death-Stalker– a villain who can move freely through time and space, become intangible at will, and whose mere touch is lethal. This, combined with his new appearance (glowing eyes, bony hands, huge billowy cape…) makes for an excellent creepy character concept, and some of the Death Stalker issues feel more like horror stories than the typical Daredevil comic.

[ID: Excerpt from Gerber’s Daredevil run. A tired Daredevil is making his way through a swamp. Death-Stalker appears behind him out of the fog and puts a skeletal white hand on his shoulder. Daredevil collapses.]

Matt: “H-he’s gone! Nothing but an empty cape! It’s not possible! It– where did he go?!”

Death-Stalker: “Here, Daredevil. I am here. Death is at your back.”

Matt: “Huh? Wha– No!! My… shoulder… your fingers… like ice–!”

Death-Stalker: “Like death, Daredevil. Like the grim, glacial embrace of the North Wind. No use to flee… you can’t outrun the wind.”

Caption: “For Daredevil, for this sightless adventurer, all the world is blackness, all the time. But now, a different kind of darkness envelopes him, a sort of oblivion he has never known before. He hears his heartbeat slow… feels his mind empty of all thought… feel his every nerve tingle, then go numb… and he knows that he is… dying. And that is all he knows when the darkness claims him and the Death-Stalker relaxes his grip.”

Daredevil vol. 1 #114 by Steve Gerber, Bob Brown, and Stan G.

Sadly, though, I don’t feel he was ever used to his full skin-crawling potential, particularly considering how dangerous his power-set was. He was mostly just a nuisance who rarely got the upper hand, and he was killed in Daredevil #158 when he accidentally materialized through a tombstone during a fight with Matt. One of my favorite details about Death-Stalker isn’t Death-Stalker himself– it’s that his mother lived in a booby-trapped mansion and owned an army of exploding robotic children that she sicced on Matt to avenge her son’s death. But that’s a story for another post…

Jester (Jonathan Powers) The Jester gets no respect, and it’s a shame because he’s both genuinely a great villain when he’s used well and highly entertaining when his 1960s goofiness is played up, and he manages to embody both of those characterizations with absolute panache. He has played a role in some fairly major Daredevil stories over the years and I’d consider him a staple DD villain. His origin story is pure Silver Age silliness: he was an actor who received bad reviews for his first major starring role, found his career heading downhill, and so decided to become a supervillain instead. This is pretty typical of motivations for villains of this time period (see the Gladiator’s origin story above, and Stilt-Man below), but even this aspect of his character has been put to good use. Daredevil #218 features a surprisingly touching story of the Jester stealing the chance to reprise that first starring role– and of Matt keeping the cops distracted (by pretending to be the Jester!) so that his enemy can finally live his dream.

[ID: Excerpt from O’Neil’s Daredevil run. The Jester is dressed as Cyrano de Bergerac. He pulls off his false nose and bows dramatically to Daredevil and the cops who have come to take him in.]

Jester: “A moment ago you unmasked. Now I shall perform a similar gesture… I am your humble and obedient servant… the Jester! At your service!”

Matt: “You deserve the bow. You were magnificent.”

Jester: “Indeed! I trust the critics will change their tune.”

Daredevil vol. 1 #218 by Denny O’Neil, Sal Buscema, and Christie Scheele

Throughout the issue, Matt draws comparisons between himself and the Jester: their shared mask-wearing and the experiences of disillusionment that shaped their lives– and while it certainly doesn’t give the Jester the emotional depth of certain other Daredevil villains, it’s a memorable connection.

But where the Jester is at his most dangerous is not as an actor looking for attention– it’s as a creator of chaos. The Jester is a master of illusions and media manipulation. In his introductory arc, he frames Daredevil for his murder and turns Matt into a wanted criminal. Later, he uses a campaign of false news reports and misinformation to sabotage Foggy’s run for District Attorney, turn the superhero community into targets, and throw the whole country into an uproar. Most recently, in Waid’s run, he manipulated TV footage to cause rioting in NYC in the wake of an unpopular and highly publicized court ruling. His plans don’t always succeed, but even then, the scope and effectiveness of the damage he causes makes him a truly formidable villain.

[ID: Excerpt from Waid’s Daredevil run. The Jester is sitting in front of computer monitors in a dark room, yelling into a microphone. In the next panel, we see random civilians in a cafe, watching “Mayor Jameson” (played by the Jester) on TV.]

Jester: “Listen to him. God, he’s so smug. No matter. This is a minor setback. Daredevil’s not the ultimate target, after all. The city’s the target, and it’ll burn. Voice synthesizer on… People of New York… this is Mayor Jameson! Effective immediately, I am rescinding all handgun regulations in Manhattan! Take up arms– for your own protection– and await further instructions!”

Daredevil vol. 3 #32 by Mark Waid, Chris Samnee, and Javier Rodriguez

The Owl (Leland Owlsley) The Owl has, unfortunately, been overshadowed by the Kingpin for most of his existence, and as such, hasn’t been given anywhere near the same amount of character development or nuance. They were created based on the same character concept: a high-powered mobster with a shadowy network of pawns who controls the city’s criminal underworld.

[ID: A series of panels from Lee’s Daredevil run, showing a man in a long green coat and brimmed hat walking into an office building. His face is not shown; the people he passes looked at him with fear.]

Caption: “This is Wall Street, heart of New York’s Financial District, where fortunes are made and lost by the world’s greatest financial wizards! And, within the canyons of this street, we are about to find one certain man… a merciless man… a man with no friends… no loved ones… nothing to connect him with the human race, save the fact of his birth! Let us follow this man… let us study him as he walks into a towering office building, his heavy footsteps reverberating through the huge marble lobby! For we shall see much of this man on the pages that follow… He walks slowly, but with a sure, steady tread… looking neither to the right nor the left… ignoring those he passes and those who pass him! But he himself cannot readily be ignored by others! His very presence seems so fraught with evil, with menace, that his fellow humans shrink back from the mere sight of him! There are some who recognize him… who speak his name in whispers… for his wealth is said to be legendary, and his power almost beyond measure!”

Daredevil vol. 1 #3 by Stan Lee, Joe Orlando, and Sam Rosen

Unfortunately, the Kingpin just ended up doing it better, and while there are a few Owl story arcs that I really like, I’ve never found him that interesting. However, he is hugely significant because he was the very first Daredevil supervillain, introduced all the way back in Daredevil #3! (In #1 Matt fights the mobsters who killed his father, and in #2 he fights Electro, who is a Spider-Man rogue.) Thus, he has had an impact on Matt’s life simply from having been around for so long. This also means there’s a huge range in his stories, verging from extremely ridiculous (he sometimes eats rats, and used to own an owl-shaped airplane. How cool is that?) to slightly more grounded. There is a great Owl story arc in which his bird-like body modifications start killing him, which gives his law-breaking more nuance, because he is doing it to look for a cure. Matt, upon discovering this, tries to help him.

[ID: Excerpt from Chichester’s Daredevil run. Daredevil and the Owl are on a fire escape together. The Owl has metal cybernetic legs and has collapsed. Daredevil is comforting him.]

Matt: “You’re going to make it, hear me? You’re gonna–”

Owlsley: “You should’ve let me…”

Matt: “Unh-uh. You take my hand– you’re willing to take my hand– I don’t let go. You’ve got some long ways to go, mister… but you can count on me…”

Daredevil vol. 1 #303 by D.G. Chichester, M.C. Wyman, and Christie Scheele

There’s also great point in Bendis’s run when the Owl, in a surprising demonstration of cleverness, hires a lawyer to sue Daredevil for breaking and entering. It doesn’t work, but it throws Matt off and is absolutely priceless.

The Owl has also had several children– two unnamed young kids who were introduced in Alias, and Jubula Pride, who was introduced in Daredevil Volume 4 and worked alongside Matt to rescue her father. Jubula’s brief-but-memorable appearance added a bit more depth to the Owl– allowing us to see him in the role of a parent as well as a villain. But mostly, over the years the Owl has remained one of the more insidious of New York’s mob bosses, always scheming to stay in power and fight his way out of the Kingpin’s shadow. And he’s been doing it for so long that he feels like an integral part of Daredevil comics.

Turk Barrett He’s not a costumed supervillain or even much of a threat, but Turk has become an iconic Daredevil antagonist for both his sheer ineptitude and his plucky ability to stay alive. Of all of the recurring low-level mobster characters, he has the most engaging personality, and his dynamic with Matt is one of long-held friendly animosity. Daredevil isn’t the most dangerous person in Turk’s life, Turk isn’t the most dangerous person in Matt’s life, so they mostly just annoy each other. They’ve even been known to team up, when Turk thinks the odds of survival are in his favor.

[ID: Excerpt from Daredevil: Love and War. Turk Barrett (dressed in a white shirt and blue pants) is mopping the inside of an elevator. The doors open, and Daredevil walks in. They ride the elevator together.]

Matt: “Turk! You got the job!”

Turk: “No, man… this… I mean, I’m working undercover, man… I’m your backup!”

Matt: “I believe you, Turk.”

Turk: “Even know what level the doc’s on, man… So how’d you get in, Devil?”

Matt: “I flew in, Turk.”

Turk: “…Course. I knew that. ‘Spose the window locks weren’t much trouble…”

Matt: “Melted them with my heat vision.”

Daredevil: Love and War by Frank Miller and Bill Sienkiewicz

Turk is an underdog. He’s kind of a goof and he’s certainly a criminal, but he’s also a small fish in a big and dangerous pond, working in a career where most people eventually end up at the bottom of the East River in concrete shoes (or a taxi, as the case may be). He’s slippery and resourceful, he stays just harmless enough to keep himself out of danger, and you can’t help but root for him, even when he does dumb things like stealing Stilt-Man’s stilts or trying to kill Daredevil for the hundredth unsuccessful time.

Stilt-Man (Wilbur Day), of course, requires no introduction. He is another personal favorite of mine, and a rare case of a goofy Silver Age villain surviving into the modern era while remaining exactly as goofy as he was when first introduced. The great appeal of Stilt-Man is, in fact, that he’s a bit of a joke, while at the same time being quite dangerous, in a comic book physics-kind of way.

[ID: Excerpt from Lee’s run. Daredevil is battling Stilt-Man on a daytime city street.]

Wilbur: “Hah! You missed!! Have you forgotten so soon how easily I can change my height, thanks to my magnificent hydraulically-operated stilts?!!”

Matt: “Mebbe so! But I haven’t forgotten that I’m the gent who whumped you good last time fought! (Man! It sure is lucky I was here! If Stilt-Man ever managed to get the Leap-Frog safely away, what a team those two would make! But, I hear the boys in blue hauling that human jumping jack right now! Which means Stilty and I can go it alone!) Heads up, dad! It’s time for fun ‘n games again!”

Wilbur: “Hah! Didn’t expect me to seize your cable, did you? I should have warned you, little man– I’ve modified my protective armor in such a way as to double my strength! Which means I’m more than a match for your limited talents!!”

Daredevil vol. 1 #26 by Stan Lee, Gene Colan, and Artie Simek

Part of the charm of this characterization is the fact that he’s a joke in-universe as well; most of his appearances in modern comics consist of Stilt-Man being made fun of and/or of the audience being reminded that he’s actually a threat. This creates a great balance in his depictions; the jokes are fun, the sight of various superheroes being beaten up (at least a little) by Stilt-Man is fun, and he remains an enjoyable, mostly lighthearted presence in a landscape that has become dominated by Dark, Serious, and Disturbing villains.

[ID: Excerpt from Bendis’s Daredevil run. Matt is sitting at his desk in his darkened office, talking to Wilbur Day– a short, bald guy in a black jacket, with his arm in a sling.]

Wilbur: “Wilbur Day– I’m Stilt-Man. We’ve met four hundred times.”

Matt: “Stilt-Man– Huh. Oh, you mean that burglar guy Stilt-Man? Who wears the stilts and robs things?”

Wilbur: “Can we please just–”

Matt: “We’ve met when?”

Wilbur: “I–”

Matt: “Are you in some kind of legal trouble? Is that why you’re here?”

Wilbur: “Okay, fine.”

Daredevil vol. 2 #41 by Brian Michael Bendis, Alex Maleev, and Matt Hollingsworth

Stilt-Man is just a short guy in a ridiculous outfit who wants to commit some crimes and get a little respect– and really, who can’t relate to that?

Ikari (???) I’m mentioning Ikari not because he’s a long-established Daredevil villain– he’s not– but because I am fascinated by his potential. He’s a favorite of mine as much for what we don’t know as for what we do. In his introductory arc, we learn this: He was engineered/commissioned by Bullseye to kill Matt, his fighting abilities equal Matt’s, he has hypersenses, and (as a horrified Matt discovers later) he can also see.

Ikari: “Someone has, in fact, managed to re-create the toxic chemicals that blinded you, gave you enhanced senses. Someone whose hate for you keeps him alive. But he didn’t waste the process on weak, malnourished vagrants. He used it to baptize a warrior. A fighter trained to be every bit your equal in skill– and now, in power.”

Daredevil vol. 3 #25 by Mark Waid, Chris Samnee, and Javier Rodriguez

And that’s it. We don’t know who he is or where he came from, or what the consequences are of having that degree of sensory perception (presumably his vision is heightened too?). We don’t know what his personal goals or motivations are, since we’ve only ever seen him as a pawn– first of Bullseye and then, later, of the Kingpin. But the concept of his character as someone who shares Matt’s powers plus some– who is essentially, skills-wise, a criminal version of Matt– and all the mystery that surrounds him, is hugely compelling to me.

[ID: Excerpt from Waid’s Daredevil run. Both Ikari and Daredevil are out on the street, being shot at by cops. As Daredevil hides behind a parked car, Ikari attacks the cops and cuts their guns in half with his blades.]

Matt: “The cops are hunting me under an open-fire command. Presuming they’ve been advised of Ikari’s prison break, I’m sure the same order applies to him. I wish it scared him. I wish anything did.”

Daredevil vol. 4 #17 by Mark Waid, Chris Samnee, and Matt Wilson

In his last appearance he was killed by the Shroud, but his body was stolen, leaving the door open for him to maybe return sometime in the future and receive more development. I hope he does.

#soulfireinc #Gladiator #Typhoid Mary #The Hand #Lady Bullseye #Death Stalker #Jester #Owl #Turk Barrett #Stilt Man #Ikari #Asks #Adventures in Continuity

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sassycassie-s-writing · 6 years

Text

Interview and Mission

By: SassyShoulderAngel319

Fandom/Character(s): Avengers - Peter Parker/Spider-Man

Rating: PG

Original Idea: I did one with Peter getting interviewed about Brown Recluse. Switched it around to show off their different personalities.

Notes: (Masterlist)(By Character)(About Me) Teehee. Don’t really have much to say about this one.

^^^^^

“Recluse!” one of the reporters shouted, waving to get my attention. I turned curiously and looked over. “Is it alright if I ask you a couple questions?” There was a cameraman standing next to him.

I pointed vaguely off towards the rest of the city. “I got work to do,” I replied.

“Please? It’ll only take a couple minutes,” he pleaded.

I bit the inside of my cheek and walked over cautiously, making sure my mask was securely on my face.

The camera started recording, if hadn’t been already. “What’s the scariest thing about being an Enhanced individual?” he asked. I blinked in thought—not that he could see that under my pretty opaque goggles.

“The government trying to impose on my freedom,” I answered.

“So you did not side with Iron Man when the Accords were proposed?”

“I didn’t have my powers when the Accords were proposed. But apparently that doesn’t stop Congress from trying to impose on me.”

“Had you had your powers, would you have sided with Iron Man?”

“Maybe. Not sure. But the second Spider-Man showed up on his side in Germany, I would instantly switch sides.”

“I was going to ask you about that. Your rivalry with Spider-Man mostly seems playful and friendly, but sometimes very serious. Where does it come from?”

I snickered. “Look, Spider-Man and I are the same age. In fact, he’s a couple months older than me. Yet the entire team coddles and babies him because he’s ‘small and cute.’ Which frustrates me because I'm smaller than him and—arguably—cuter than he is, and I'm fine. No one needs to coddle or baby me so why do they feel the need to with him?”

The reporter chuckled. “So you're mad because they spoil him?”

“If you want to simplify it like that. It really is mostly for fun. It makes us laugh. But the serious part of the rivalry stems from the fact that we basically have the same powers and I'm determined to prove to him that I'm just as good with them as he is. It’s more of an equality thing.”

“Who thinks you're not as good with your powers?”

“Most of the other Avengers. But he’s had them longer so I have to work harder to catch up.”

“How did you get your powers?”

“That’s classified, sorry.” I winced as an alert went off in the Heads-Up Display—or HUD—in my mask. It was loud and hurt my ear. “Sorry. Gotta go.” I pressed my finger to my ear with one hand as the other one lashed out and shot a web, successfully flinging myself back into the rest of the city. I hated doing interviews. Why had I agreed?

But Peter would see that I dragged him on TV and then the prank war would probably resume afresh. That’d be okay. The Avengers facility could use a little day-to-day spice.

Actually he’d probably just laugh and tell me I was right—the others did tend to coddle him.

Though, we’d probably have a laughable argument over who was cuter between the two of us. I imagined it’d be funny. Tony would probably sit off to the side and record the whole thing on his phone, trying hard not to laugh.

The rivalry was all for show. Peter and I were pretty good friends. We teased merciless and ruthlessly, but we actually liked hanging out with each other. We trained together a lot and, yeah, I did constantly try to be as good as he was. I was nowhere near as good. But I was learning. And one day, he and I might even be on the same level. My dream was to be marginally better than him and beat him in the future. I doubted it would ever happen, but it was my goal to win of my own merit.

I knew every time I'd won recently it was because Peter let me. He was just sweet like that.

And that was another cause of the rivalry. He was just too nice to me and I insisted so many times that he treat me like a superhero instead of a schoolgirl, but nothing ever changed.

Turned out it was because he literally just treated everyone kindly. I felt better when I learned that. He was just being nice to me because I was a confused but feisty girl who, really, was in way over her head in this world of Enhanced people.

The alert finally stopped going off in my ear when I reached the point on map that showed up on my HUD.

“Hey kid,” Tony’s voice greeted through the metal suit.

“Mr. Stark,” I replied, as though surprised to see him. “Are you actually here or am I talking to an empty can?”

The mask lifted, revealing a lot of mechanics but no organics. “No I'm not here.”

“Where are you?”

“India.”

“Again?”

“Yup.”

“Fantastic,” I muttered under my breath. “Okay. So what do you want, Can Man? Why’d you bring me here?” I was perched on the edge of a building with one knee bent under my torso and the other straightened out along the side of the wall, both hands on the ground to support my stance. My ponytail had fallen over one shoulder. I had too much hair to comfortably tuck into a cowl so it hung out.

“Hang on, eager beaver. We’re still waiting on one other person.”

At that moment, another costumed kid swung around a building and landed lightly on the wall right below me, sticky fingers and toes clinging to the brick. “Hey guys,” Peter greeted through his mask. “What’d I miss?” He glanced between me and the empty Iron Man suit—whose mask was still open to reveal it didn’t have an occupant.

“Not much,” Tony’s voice said from somewhere in the helmet. “She just got here too.”

“So, what are we doing here?” Peter asked.

“Well, kiddos,” Tony began, voice sounding awkward. “It is the belief of the other team members that the two of you could do with some hard, boots-on-the ground experience with something other than petty, everyday criminals.”

Peter and I exchanged a look. “What do you mean?” I asked.

“We’re sending you two on a solo mission. Just the two of you,” Tony answered.

“So you mean a duo mission,” I corrected.

“Yeah. Point is, the team isn’t going to be with you. It’ll be up to the two of you.”

“Really? You're going to trust us with something like that?”

“Well, quite frankly, it’s not a world-ending mission, but it’s important.”

“Where?”

“London. How are your British accents?”

I glanced over at Peter and he looked over at me. In sync we looked at Tony. “Pretty sure everyone on the planet knows Brown Recluse and Spider-Man are American, Tony,” I remarked.

“Yeah, but no one knows about Peter Parker and you,” he retorted to me.

I grunted. “Sure okay. Whatever. My accent’s not great but not bad.”

“Well mine is fantastic,” Peter added in his British accent. I snorted.

“Good. Well, you two are on the next flight to London so you better get moving.”

Peter and I glanced at each other. “Okay. See you back at the building,” I told Peter, jumping off a building and swinging back toward home.

#Interview and Mission #Peter Parker #Peter Parker Imagine #Peter Parker FanFiction #Spider-Man #Spider-Man Imagine #Spider-Man FanFiction #SpiderMan #SpiderMan Imagine #SpiderMan FanFiction #Spider Man #Spider Man Imagine #Spider Man FanFiction #Avengers #Avengers Imagine #Avengers FanFiction #Marvel #Marvel Imagine #Marvel FanFiction

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eddycurrents · 5 years

Photo

For the week of 8 July 2019

Quick Bits:

Amazing Spider-Man #25 is an extra-sized issue that centres largely around MJ and Carlie Cooper stopping a kidnapping of their own as they visit a theatre performance. It’s very nice to see MJ with some agency of her own again. There are also some great back-ups.

| Published by Marvel

Avengers #21 is a bit of a downtime issue from Jason Aaron, Jason Masters, Jason Keith, and Joe Caramagna. The teams takes a moment to collect themselves after the War of the Realms, while Black Panther follows up on the problems with Phil Coulson and the Squadron Supreme of America. Some very nice humour in this one.

| Published by Marvel

Batman #74 concludes “The Fall and The Fallen” with an emphasis on a book that Thomas used to read Bruce when he was a kid. Interesting that this was common across the two alternate realities, but eh. This has been a weird arc.

| Published by DC Comics

Batman Universe #1 is another collection of previously Walmart-exclusive stories, this one from Brian Michael Bendis, Nick Derington, Dave Stewart, and Josh Reed. It’s damn good. Nice bits of humour from Bendis, but Derington and Stewart really excel with the artwork.

| Published by DC Comics

Bettie Page: Unbound #2 takes us off to Vampirella’s homeworld, with Bettie taking on an aspect of Vampirella. I’m really liking what David Avallone, Julius Ohta, Ellie Wright, Sheelagh D, and Taylor Esposito are doing with this series, jumping through the various Dynamite properties, while Bettie continues to gather the keys to stop the old ones.

| Published by Dynamite

Black Cat #2 launches a heist on Doctor Strange’s sanctum. It’s fun and funny. Nice bits of humour and an interesting voice that Jed MacKay uses for Felicia’s narration. Gorgeous artwork from Travel Foreman and Brian Reber.

| Published by Marvel

Black Hammer/Justice League: Hammer of Justice #1 is an entertaining hook of a first issue from Jeff Lemire, Michael Walsh, and Nate Piekos. We’re thrust into incarnations of both teams in the recent past, and set up with a stranger who wants to buy the farm and populate with his “friends” for reasons left unsaid this issue. There’s some nice humour as the teams bicker amongst themselves. Great art from Michael Walsh.

| Published by Dark Horse & DC Comics

Catwoman #13 is kind of a weird one. Joëlle Jones, Fernando Blanco, Hugo Petrus, John Kalisz, Laura Allred, and Saida Temofonte close up a couple loose threads in a rather abrupt manner, it’s kind of interesting and messy, while setting up the next stage for Selina’s rivalry with Raina Creel. And there’s an offer from Luthor.

| Published by DC Comics

Champions #7 takes us back out to Sam and Kaldera’s quest to recover Sam’s helmet so she can kill him. Yeah. Anyway, it’s entertaining, with some wonderfully funny lines and Adsit’s disbelief that his luck can possibly get any worse. Wonderful art from Steven Cummings and Marcio Menyz.

| Published by Marvel

The Crescent is a self-published digital comic on Comixology from Jonathan Luna. It’s a very interesting one-shot, telling the tale of a woman confronting a pack of werewolves. It’s certainly not your usual werewolf story, with some very interesting twists. Luna’s art throughout is gorgeous.

| Published by Jonathan Luna

Criminal #6 dives into how Teeg met Jane before looping back around to the concluding events of last issue from Teeg’s perspective. It’s interesting how Ed Brubaker, Sean Phillips, and Jacob Phillips are approaching this story, the differing perspectives, and how it still manages to progress an ongoing plot.

| Published by Image

Elephantmen 2261: The Pentalion Job #3 kicks the action up a notch as Richard Starkings and Alex Medellin give us Flask vs. Burba in these giant mechs. Also an interesting moral quandary as we go into the finale next issue.

| Published by Comicraft

Event Leviathan #2 continues to unfold very slowly as Batman and Red Hood have a chat about much of what’s gone down so far. Great art from Alex Maleev.

| Published by DC Comics

Fallen World #3 nicely raises the tension as Father brings more himself fully online and Rai is waylaid by the Kor’tunga. Wonderful artwork from Adam Pollina and Ulises Arreola that continues to be highly inventive.

| Published by Valiant

Ghosted in LA #1 is off to a good start from Sina Grace, Siobhan Keenan, Cathy Le, and DC Hopkins. It starts off as a fairly straight-forward case of a new university student moving to a new city and finding out that the world seemingly hates her, but it develops into something different when she winds up at a haunted mansion. Great art from Keenan, Grace, and Le.

| Published by Boom Entertainment / BOOM! Box

Giant Size X-Statix #1 is a welcome return from Peter Milligan, Mike Allred, Laura Allred, and Nate Piekos of one of the stranger entries into the X-canon. It’s the gathering of a new team through the perspective of U-Go Girl’s “sister”, rife with mining much of the pop culture zeitgeist that fuelled the original incarnation.

| Published by Marvel

Hawkman #14 begins a new era for Carter Hall as Pat Olliffe and Tom Palmer join the regular team of Robert Venditti, Jeremiah Skipper, and Richard Starkings & Comicraft, kicking off a new arc with a face from the past. This “Year of the Villain” tie-in probably most reminds me of the previous “Underworld Unleashed” event where the Shadow Thief’s powers were enhanced, but it’s still entertaining. Olliffe and Palmer give the story a much different feel than the bombast of Bryan Hitch’s work and I’m quite enjoying this more measured result.

| Published by DC Comics

Invisible Woman #1 is worth it for Mattia De Iulis’ artwork alone. It’s gorgeous. Like his work on Jessica Jones, his grasp of action, light, and beauty are practically unparalleled. This is just amazing art. The story, though, is a bit weird and whether you enjoy it will take on how much you can accept that Sue had an entire secret life as a spy that you never knew about and the oddity of the shifting timeline, weird fashions, and a kind of espionage that doesn’t seem to quite fit any more. That said, it’s not a bad start from De Iulis, Mark Waid, and Joe Caramagna.

| Published by Marvel

Justice League Odyssey #11 is an interesting reversal for the “Year of the Villain” tie-in portion. It occurs at the beginning and doesn’t ultimately happen. It does, however, give us a better look at Luthor’s new form and his current partnership with Brainiac. Also, great advancement with Sepulkore in the Ghost Sector and a potentially horrifying revelation for Cyborg. Very nice art from Will Conrad as he joins the creative team.

| Published by DC Comics

Miles Morales: Spider-Man #8 continues Miles’ strange “assessment” for unknown reasons by an unknown party. The art from Javier Garrón and David Curiel is incredible, portraying the strange and unnerving nature of these trials very well.

| Published by Marvel

Naomi #6 concludes what has been an excellent series from Brian Michael Bendis, David F. Walker, Jamal Campbell, and Wes Abbott. This gives us the end of Naomi’s origins, a return to her home Earth, and a confrontation with the monster that killed her parents. This has been a wonderful origin story and Jamal Campbell’s artwork is simply astounding.

| Published by DC Comics / Wonder Comics

Reaver #1 is a brutal new sword and sorcery fantasy series from Justin Jordan, Rebekah Isaacs, Alex Guimarães, and Clayton Cowles. Interesting set up for the gathering of misfits and criminals for this quest.

| Published by Image / Skybound

Savage Sword of Conan #7 is the first part of “Conan the Gambler” from Jim Zub, Patch Zircher, Java Tartaglia, and Travis Lanham. It’s an entertaining look into a different side of Conan, setting up another story where those around him grossly underestimate his intelligence alongside a mystery as to who murdered the man who hired him.

| Published by Marvel

Second Coming #1 is an entertaining debut from Mark Russell, Richard Pace, Leonard Kirk, Andy Troy, and Rob Steen. This first issue gives us a somewhat humorous depiction of Jesus’ life and reinsertion into Earth 2000 years later with the arrival of a Superman analogue. It’s only lightly irreverent, which makes the campaigns to boycott the book even more ridiculous. Still, a decent start.

| Published by Ahoy

She Could Fly: The Lost Pilot #4 is a crescendo into what may be a car crash of misunderstandings in the finale next issue. Chris Cantwell, Martín Morazzo, Miroslav Mrva, and Clem Robins makes this a taut ride as Luna tries to find out what happened with the woman who flew.

| Published by Dark Horse / Berger Books

Star Wars #68 debuts the new creative team of Greg Pak, Phil Noto, and Clayton Cowles for the part one of “Rebels and Rogues”. Great humour as the story splits the party (you never split the party) for three different missions. Naturally, nothing goes right. A great start to this new run that still feels consistent with what’s come before.

| Published by Marvel

Star Wars: Age of Resistance - Captain Phasma #1 gives us a look at Phasma’s cold calculations through the eyes of one of her underlings, from Tom Taylor, Leonard Kirk, Cory Hamscher, Guru e-FX, and Travis Lanham. This one’s pretty brutal in its depiction of Phasma’s outlook.

| Published by Marvel

Supergirl #32 continues Kara’s team-up with Jon in order to stop the final member of the Circle who destroyed Krypton, along with another confrontation with Rogol Zaar. Some nice humour here from Marc Andreyko and a very interesting implementation of Luthor’s offer.

| Published by DC Comics

Superman #13 is largely a retelling of the arguments to save Krypton from the new perspective of the Circle. It’s all right. Very interesting incorporation of Luthor’s offer here, though, with a character you wouldn’t necessarily expect.

| Published by DC Comics

Thor #15 serves as another epilogue to War of the Realms, with this one focusing on the fallout for Thor, Jane Foster, and Loki, setting up some of the threads for the next stage of all three. Great art from Mike Del Mundo.

| Published by Marvel

Unearth #1 is an unnerving debut from Cullen Bunn, Kyle Strahm, Baldemar Rivas, and Crank! mixing body horror, monsters, and an unknown ancient civilization. Rivas’ art is great, really capturing the horror of the mutations well.

| Published by Image

Venom #16 sees Donny Cates return to the title after the Cullen Bunn-penned War of the Realms tie-in guest arc. This issue serves as another bit of a prelude to Absolute Carnage, but also showcases the level of responsibility that Eddie feels towards his kid.

| Published by Marvel

War of the Realms: Omega #1 is another epilogue with the teams for the forthcoming Valkyrie, Loki, and Punisher: Kill Krew giving preview stories within a framing story closing out Daredevil’s tenure as the “God Without Fear”. It’s a good tease for what’s coming.

| Published by Marvel

Wonder Twins #6 concludes what originally would have been the series, but now just the first half as it was extended to twelve issues. Mark Russell, Stephen Byrne, and Dave Sharpe deliver a very interesting issue that raises questions about maintaining the status quo and the true villainy of the Scrambler and Polly Math.

| Published by DC Comics / Wonder Comics

Young Justice #7 begins the second arc, “Lost in the Multiverse”, from Brian Michael Bendis, John Timms, Dan Hipp, David Lafuente, Gabe Eltaeb, and Wes Abbott. It’s fun as hell. The team leaps to numerous incorrect Earths, including a visit to Captain Carrot and another to the Kingdom Come Earth, and it’s endlessly entertaining.

| Published by DC Comics / Wonder Comics

Other Highlights: Age of X-Man: Apocalypse and the X-Tracts #5, Batman & The Outsiders #3, Bitter Root: Red Summer Special #1, Critical Role: Vox Machina Origins - Series II #1, Detective Comics #1007, The Flash #74, Go Go Power Rangers #21, Gogor #3, House of Whispers #11, Ironheart #8, James Bond Origin #11, Jim Henson’s Beneath the Dark Crystal #11, Marvel Action: Black Panther #2, Morning in America #5, Noble #19, Oberon #5, Oblivion Song #17, Orphan Age #4, Outer Darkness #8, Red Sonja: Birth of the She-Devil #2, Secret Warps: Weapon Hex Annual #1, The Six Million Dollar Man #5, Strangelands #1, Symbiote Spider-Man #4, Unnatural #11, Wolverine & Captain America: Weapon Plus #1, Wolverine vs. Blade Special #1, Wonder Woman #74, Xena: Warrior Princess #4

Recommended Collections: Bad Weekend, Books of Magic - Volume 1: Moveable Type, DuckTales - Volume 5: Monsters and Mayhem, Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man - Volume 1: Secrets and Rumors, Grass Kings - Volume 1, Green Lantern - Volume 1: Intergalactic Lawman, Incursion - Volume 1, Infinity 8 - Volume 4: Symbolic Guerrilla, Ironheart - Volume 1: Those with Courage, Murder Falcon, Spider-Man/Deadpool - Volume 9: Eventpool

d. emerson eddy is preparing a banana split.

#This Week in Comics

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setepenre-set · 7 years

Audio

(setepenre-set)

Things Could Be Worse

song for a musical theatre version of Megamind

(Megamind’s parents, the Chorus, Young Megamind, and Megamind sing Things Could Be Worse after Megamind’s opening monologue begins and the flashback to his planet starts.)

lyrics:

MOTHER: We’ve only moments left until

FATHER the sun goes supernova, still—

BOTH: my son, at least you’ll have a chance to live

MOTHER: And as you go into the great unknown I promise you won’t be alone

Here is your minion. he will take care of you.

FATHER: And here is your binky

BOTH: Things could be worse Things could be so much worse Our son, at least will live Thank the mercy of the universe

We’ve only moments left, it’s true But at least we’re spending them with you

MOTHER: Oh, my love—shhh

Don’t you cry any more

FATHER: My son, you are destined for—

(explosion)

MEGAMIND: I didn’t hear that last part. But it sounded important. Destined for what?

CHORUS: Things could be worse Things could be so much worse You better remember that Say thank you to the universe

True a black hole has crushed everything you loved to dust but it could be worse Things could be worse

MEGAMIND: I set out to find my destiny!

CHORUS: Oh now darling don’t you cry Or you’ll get something to cry about Think of this as a chance to learn All the things that you can down without

It’s not the end of the world it’s just the end of the world things could be worse They’re gonna get worse

MEGAMIND: Turns out a kid from the Glaupunkt quadrant had the exact same idea as me.

(golden pod knocks Megamind’s pod around)

MEGAMIND: That was the day I met Mr. Goody-two-shoes. And our glorious rivalry was born!

(pods fly towards city, Metro Man’s is headed towards prison, Megamind’s is headed towards the Scott Mansion)

MEGAMIND: Was this what I was destined for? A dream life, filled with luxury?

(Metro Man’s pod collides with Megamind’s; they rebound and Metro Man lands in the Scott Mansion while Megamind lands in the Prison)

MEGAMIND: Apparently not! Even fate picks its favorites. No big deal.

CHORUS: It could be worse It could be so much worse Try to remember this When you feel you have been cursed

Oh now darling don’t you cry Or you’ll get something to cry about Think of this as a chance to learn All the things that you can down without

MEGAMIND: Mr. Goody-two-shoes had life handed to him on a silver platter. The power of flight, invulnerability, and great hair. But I had something far, far greater. My amazing intellect and the knack for building objects of mayhem!

(explosion offstage, young Megamind enters looking dazed, Warden looks angry.)

CHORUS: Things could be worse Things could be so much worse So just remember that And say thank you to the universe

You’ll grow up behind prison bars But you should thank your lucky stars Because things could be worse (Things are gonna get worse)

MEGAMIND: After a few years, and with some time off for good behavior, I was given an opportunity to better myself through learning at a strange place called shool. It was there that I once again ran into Mr. Goody Two-Shoes.

(Young Megamind steps into the classroom; there’s a sign; “Show And Tell”. Metro Boy is showing off his powers to the delight of the other kids.)

MEGAMIND: He had already amassed a gigantic army of soft-headed groupies. He bought their affections with showmanship and extravagant displays of his power. So I, too, would show off my special talents and win over those mindless drones!

(explosion. Metro Boy puts Young Megamind in the corner and receives a gold star.)

MEGAMIND: That’s when I learned a very hard lesson: Good receives all the praise and adulation, while evil is sent to quiet-time in the corner. So fitting in wasn’t really an option.

CHORUS: It could be worse It could be so much worse Try to remember this When you feel you have been cursed

MEGAMIND: Some days, it felt like it was just me and Minion against the world.

CHORUS: You have one friend in the world So it’s not the end of the world It could be worse It could be worse

MEGAMIND: While they were learning the Itsy Bitsy Spider, I learned how to dehydrate animate objects and rehydrate them at will!

(dehydration, rehydration)

MEGAMIND: But no matter how hard I tried, I was always the odd man out.

(dodgeball)

MEGAMIND: The last one picked, the screw-up, the black sheep…

KID 1: Freak!

KID 2: Weirdo!

METRO BOY: Get him!

MEGAMIND: The bad boy.

(The kids round on Young Megamind and go to throw their balls at him; he flinches, protecting the Minion Ball. The scene freezes.

Young Megamind pulls out the spike helmet and puts it on. The scene unfreezes and the other kids fly backwards, still holding their balls, and act as though they’re suspended in the air. Metro Boy flies forward and tears the helmet off, then throws it down and stomps on it. The other kids drop to the ground and cheer. The Teacher points to the corner and Metro Boy takes Young Megamind there.)

CHORUS: Oh now darling don’t you cry Or you’ll get something to cry about Think of this as a chance to learn All the things that you can down without

It’s not the end of the world You don’t fit in this world

MEGAMIND: Was this my destiny? Wait, maybe it was. Being bad is the one thing I'm good at. If I was the bad boy, then I was going to be the baddest boy of them all.

YOUNG MEGAMIND: I can be worse I can be so much worse I can be the baddest thing In the entire universe

MEGAMIND & YOUNG MEGAMIND: You think that I’m bad now I am gonna show you how I can be worse I’m gonna be worse

(paint bomb)

MEGAMIND: I was destined to be a supervillain and we were destined to be rivals. And so began an enduring, epic, lifelong career. And I loved it! Our battles quickly got more elaborate. He would win some. I would almost win others! He took the name Metro Man: Defender of Metrocity. I picked something a little more humble: Megamind! Incredibly handsome criminal genius and master of all villainy!

CHORUS: Things could be worse Things could be so much worse You better remember that Say thank you to the universe

Oh now darling don’t you cry Or you’ll get something to cry about Think of this as a chance to learn All the things that you can down without

You’ve finally found your place

MEGAMIND: True it’s getting punched in the face

CHORUS: but things could be worse Things could be worse.

MEGAMIND: Yes, things could certainly be a lot worse…oh, that’s right. I’m falling to my death. Guess they can’t.

#megamind #musical theatre megamind #things could be worse #songs for megamind #SoundCloud #music #setepenre-set

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falconlord5 · 6 years

Text

The Amazing Spider-Man! Chapter 3-Spider-Man vs. The Chameleon! Part 1

Here it is! The next exciting chapter in the Amazing Spider-Man saga!

The Amazing Spider-Man!: Chapter 3-Spider-Man vs. The Chameleon! Part 1

In an abandoned warehouse in Brooklyn, two strange figures stared at each other across a wooden folding table.

The first figure was Sergei Utkin, a Russian businessman who was actually a long-standing spy for the Kremlin. After the disaster that had been the Donald Trump campaign, where Russia’s agent had died of a heart attack and the subsequent investigation by Maria Hill, most of Russia’s agents were either dead or shipped back home. Utkin’s cover had been a little more secure: as far as anyone in America was concerned, Utkin was an exile and a fierce critic of Putin. It was a lie, but it was a lie that that had served Utkin well over the years.

He looked over at his companion and curled his lip in disgust. Utkin was short, overweight and balding. He was dressed in a wrinkled brown long coat over a brown suit and white shirt with a black tie. You wouldn’t have looked at him twice had you passed him in the street.

Utkin’s companion, however, was another creature entirely. His face was a white featureless mask. He wore a green jumpsuit with a yellow vest over top. Utkin was sure that this agent was a mutant or gay or any one of the hundred other things that sought to erode Russia’s power and influence over the world. Unfortunately for Utkin, he was necessary. For the Chameleon could become anyone. And that allowed him to sneak into America’s most sensitive locations and disrupt them. A tactic that had become necessary since that warmonger Clinton had won the damned election. Stupid Americans!

“Relax,” the Chameleon said. He knew what Utkin thought of him and didn’t particularly care. The Chameleon himself was Russian, he was loyal to his country. Whatever some low-ranking bureaucrat or even the president himself thought didn’t matter. What mattered was that America could not be allowed to destroy Russia, at any cost.

“Relax?” Utkin snorted. “You bungled the last job!”

“No, I didn’t,” the Chameleon answered calmly. “The actual sabotage went without a hitch. If that loathsome spider hadn’t gotten involved, John Jameson would have been roadkill.”

“And now they know it was sabotage!” Utkin said. “They will suspect Mother’s involvement!”

“How?” the Chameleon said. “Ferris Air and Space is a private American company. They’ve got a lot of competitors, any of whom might be willing to do a little corporate sabotage. You worry too much.”

“And you worry too little,” Utkin countered. “Your next job is to steal missile defense plans. What if Spider-Man gets involved again?”

“Relax,” the Chameleon said. “I’ve got just the plan to take care of that spider. Don’t worry about a thing, Sergei. I’ve got it all worked out…”

***

Several hours later, Dr. Reed Richards of the Fantastic Four was waiting for an elevator at the U.N. building in Manhattan.

Richards was tall with brown hair that was going grey at the temples. He wore, not his usual blue jumpsuit, but a navy blue suit over a white shirt and dark red tie. An unlit pipe hung from his mouth. He frowned in concentration.

The elevator opened. Richards got in without looking. He finally looked up when somebody said: “Richards.”

Reed turned to face Victor von Doom, current dictator of Latveria. Doom was dressed in a suit of metallic armor covered by a green tunic and cowl. A boxy helmet with square eye and mouth holes covered his head. Richards and Doom had been rivals since college, and their mutual acquisition of superpowers had not put a dent in that rivalry one bit. Today, however, they were on the same side.

“Victor,” Reed responded. “How are you doing?”

“I am well, Richards,” Doom answered. “And yourself? I do not see your compatriots here. They are not interested in the fine art of governance?”

“Johnny probably isn’t,” Reed admitted. “But no, they’re all here. Ben has to use the service elevator, so they went on ahead.”

“Ah,” Doom said. He shook his head. “I understand you are here to give a speech against the increased military build-up?” he asked.

“I am,” Reed said. “They’re making a mistake, Victor. Russia and the States both. Russia wants to build its empire up again, and Washington thinks it can stop the Kremlin with drones. Haven’t they learned anything from the Middle East?”

“Apparently not,” Doom said dryly. “I would not have thought, given your politics, that you would have opposed opposing Russia?”

“I don’t,” Reed said. “I think what Putin’s doing is dangerous on the international scale and fascistic within his own country. But the way Washington is going about it is going to get us all killed!”

***

Hours later, Reed exited the U.N. General Assembly Room, shaking his head. He, Victor, and the ambassadors from Wakanda and Atlantis had all begged the General Assembly stop the collision course that Russia and the U.S. were on. It hadn’t worked. Russia and her allies through their weight around, bullying any and all members they could get their hands on. The U.S. and her allies, on the other hand, adopted the usual sanctimonious position of being the defenders of democracy and human rights, trying to take the moral high ground. China and her allies stayed out of it, letting the two powers tear each other apart. As long as nuclear war was avoided, China would come out the victor in any war between Russia and the U.S. A war that seemed closer with every passing hour.

“You know, I’m all for opposing Russia,” Benjamin Grimm said from behind Reed. Like Reed, Ben had been changed radically by the accident. Unlike Reed, Ben could never pass as a human again. He was forever trapped as a giant orange rock monster, the only remnants of his former humanity was his bright blue eyes. For the sake of redundant decency, he wore a pair of blue trunks with the Fantastic Four logo stamped on them. “But where does Nikki Haley get off pretendin’ that States is the land of freedom and justice? Two more black kids were whacked by cops while we were listenin’ to that noise! Plus that little shit Spencer and his crew of Neo-Nazi’s are still runnin’ around. Cops won’t do nothin’ about them.”

“The States ain’t perfect,” John Storm agreed. Johnny was the youngest of the Fantastic Four. He was tall, blond and handsome. He wore a red tee that said “Flame On!” and blue jeans over sneakers. Reed had tried to get Johnny to dress up for this meeting, but Johnny wasn’t interested. “But who else is going to stop Putin and his gang? China? They aren’t any better!”

“That’s the truth, Matchstick, that’s the truth,” Ben agreed with a sigh. “And the Chinese ain’t interested, either. They’re just going to let us whale on each other while they reap all the benefits.”

“There isn’t anything we can do about it,” Sue Storm sighed. Sue was Johnny’s older sister and Reed’s long-time business partner. She was tall and blonde like her brother. Sue wore a tight-fitting dark blue suit with a pencil skirt that showed off her long legs. She strode purposefully on high heels. “Unless we want to start using our powers to influence governments,” she added.

“We may not have a choice,” Reed said heavily, speaking up for the first time since leaving the chamber. He was about to say something else when somebody spoke up from beside him.

“Dr. Richards?” The Fantastic Four turned to see a large black woman in a black suit. Beside her was a taller woman in a charcoal grey suit with brown hair and brown eyes. Johnny immediately slicked back his hair and said:

“Well hello gorgeous. And who’s your heart stopping friend here?” The two women shot him a barely amused look. Ben grabbed Johnny and shook him.

“You flamin’ drumstick,” the orange golem said. “Can’t you see they wasn’t talkin’ to you?”

“Dr. Richards, I’m Amanda Waller,” the first woman said. “This is my colleague, Agent Iman Avesta,” she added, gesturing to the second woman.

“Peace be upon you!” Johnny said, as he was still being shaken by Ben. Naturally this caused Ben to shake Johnny harder.

“That is a terrible pickup line and you should be ashamed of yourself,” Agent Avesta said.

“Matchstick here got no shame,” Ben said as he continued to shake Johnny.

“That’s true,” Sue remarked, shaking her head. “I’m sorry. My brother is… not a jerk, really. He’s just kind of inappropriate at times.”

“It’s all right,” Avesta said. “I get that a lot. But I’m not interested, okay, Johnny?”

“Okay,” Johnny said. Ben put him down.

“Moving on from Johnny’s predilections, what can we do for the director of Cadmus?” Reed said, focusing on Waller. Waller’s face twitched at the mention of ‘Cadmus’, but Reed didn’t care. He knew all about the top-secret superhuman research project, and he opposed it with every fibre in his being.

“I’m afraid it’s something we need to discuss in private,” Waller said. “If you’ll follow me?”

***

A few minutes later, the Fantastic Four, plus Waller and Avesta, were seated in a tiny office. A video was playing on a computer. One that showed the Spider-Man ransacking a government facility.

“That facility contained highly classified information,” Waller said. “Specifically on our anti chemical and biological weapons preparations.”

“Now why would that kind of information be kept secret?” Reed asked. Waller shrugged.

“Beats me,” she said. “I’m not cleared to know what’s in those files, only that they existed.”

“Lady, your job is nuts,” Johnny said. Avesta laughed.

“You don’t know the half of it, kid,” she said.

“That’s not the point,” Sue said.

“No, the point is that that Spider character went and broke into a government facility,” Ben said. “I always knew that jerk would be trouble!”

“I don’t think it is Spider-Man, Ben,” Sue replied.

“I don’t either, Ms. Storm,” Waller agreed. “For one thing, this guy shoots his webs out of a gun. All the footage we have of Spider-Man shows him shooting webs out of his hands, not a gun.”

“Plus, this Spider-Man doesn’t seem to have any of the real one’s agility or strength,” Avesta added. “You can see him struggle with the security doors, for example.”

“So it isn’t the wall-crawler,” Ben said. “Any idea who it really is?”

“No,” Waller admitted. “That’s where you come in.”

“I hate to break this to you, Director, but we don’t know who Spider-Man is either,” Reed said.

“I was afraid of that,” Waller said. “But I still think you're our best bet to bring him in alive. The original, I mean. If I can get a chance to talk to him, I can clear him.”

“Why not call the FBI?” Reed asked. “Doesn’t this fall under their jurisdiction?”

“It does,” Waller agreed. She sighed and leaned back in her chair. “The truth is, Donald Trump won that election,” she admitted. “Oh, I don’t mean he won the vote or anything. But he took this country in his direction, and President Clinton isn’t strong enough to face what’s coming. Hate crimes are up. The police are getting more violent. Neo-Nazis and other white supremacists have been legitimized to a large degree. And it’s only going to get worse.”

“Mutants,” Reed said grimly.

“Mutants,” Waller agreed. “Aliens. Guys in power armour. Four rock heads who go up in space and come back with strange powers. The world is changing, and nobody in Washington is prepared for it. Not President Clinton, not Bernie Sanders or Elizabeth Warren or Kirsten Gillibrand. And sure as shit not the Republicans. And because they aren’t prepared, the American public will turn to what they know best. Hate and fear.”

“You’re a cynic,” Sue accused.

“You say that like it’s a bad thing,” Waller countered.

“It’s not that I doubt your analysis,” Reed said, “but I do find it strange that the director of Cadmus would care about civil rights.”

“I’ve been in the spy game a lot time, doctor,” Waller said. “And I know that a dead suspect is useless. You can’t question him, you can’t let them go and follow them to see who they lead you too, none of that. Something the police in this country seem to have forgotten.”

“I suppose I can’t argue with that,” Reed sighed. “All right, director. We will see what we can do. But I want your guarantee that Spider-Man won’t come to any harm.”

“I won’t lay a finger on him,” Waller agreed. “I just want to talk to him, that’s all.”

Author’s Note:

Whew, that took longer than it should have! Not a whole lot of Spidey in here, either. I apologize. But the chapter was getting long and so I moved some of the action to the next one. Stay tuned!

The Amazing Spider-Man created by Stan “The Man” Lee and Steve Ditko. Amanda Waller created by John Ostrander, Len Wein, and John Byrne. Agent Iman Avesta created by Telltale Games. The Fantastic Four created by Stan “The Man” Lee and Jack “The King” Kirby.

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