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Down But Not Out

by Drew Clements westofmiskatonic@gmail.com

Okay, so I'm definitely doing something a bit different for this week's column. When I first started writing Down But Not Out, I said I'd only be covering books released previous to the year 2000. I lied. Just a little. I figure that the name Down But Not Out just begs to include books that aren't garnering enough attention in the world of comic books, not just those that we've forgotten. You know, those hidden gems; the books that suffer in the shadow of this year's big gimme-all-your-money event. So, what book am I talking about? Son of Vulcan #1 - "Line of Fire" Original Release Date: August 2005 Writer: Scott Beatty Artist: Keron Grant Colors: Danimation Letters: Nick J. Napolitano Assistant Editor: Jeanine Schaefer Editor: Tom Palmer, Jr. Jason Woodrue, the Floronic Man, has struck again. The thing is though; he's not supposed to be striking again. He's a reformed "super"-criminal, out on a work-release rehabilitation program. The Greenery, a plant shop, hired Woodrue on, obviously sure his talents could be put to good use. All was going well until someone brought back a plant he had sold him, demanding his money back. Woodrue took care of the man, making sure he'd have no use for money or plants again. In his lair, a hero is briefed via his A.I. partner Praetor. The man's name is Vulcan and he's just one in a long line of heroes to take up the name "Vulcan." He asks Praetor to open a "hotspot" to Charlton's Point, the area where Woodrue was last seen. A fiery portal appears and the dramatic figure enters. At a restaurant in Charlton's Point we meet up with Miguel Devante, who is preparing for a job interview with the help of a friend, Sienna. After finishing up with the practice questions, the two friends open up their menus, but before they can order a ranting and raving man enters, proclaiming the place a slaughterhouse! Standing atop the salad bar, the Floronic Man shouts wildly about the horror he sees in the salad bar! Miguel and Sienna quickly hide under their table. Miguel mumbles something about waiting long enough for a super hero to arrive. Hearing this, the Floronic Man grabs up Sienna, who is recording everything via a handheld camera, and proclaims her his videographer for his "crusade." Suddenly, the air crackles, splits apart, and Vulcan exits his "hot spot" into the restaurant. Using his sword, Vulcan slashes through the unusually large and vicious man-eating plants the Floronic Man has created. Within seconds, the hero has the mumbling villain in his hands. Miguel is ordered to evacuate the patrons of the restaurant. The tables turn a bit as Woodrue gains the upper hand by releasing a plant gas into the face of Vulcan. Taking advantage of his change in luck, the Floronic Man pounds on the helpless hero. Watching it all from outside, Miguel makes decides to help. Back on the inside, the fifth-rate villain gloats over his seeming victory. Holding Vulcan up against a wall with one hand, he figures nothing in the world can stop him now. His unfortunate cockiness backfires when Miguel chops his arm off with Vulcan's sword. Quickly recovering, Vulcan regains his sword and turns to the villain, who admits he's much more man than plant and that he can't grow his arm back as the hero had suggested. In a short amount of time, the Floronic Man passes out and our hero cauterizes the wound. With that taken care of, Vulcan turns to his young savior and thanks him. Before long, the police and various other authorities arrive to take care of the cleanup. Sienna tries to get over to Miguel, who is having a chat with Vulcan, but is stopped by an official who asks if she has been decontaminated. She gets something of a lecture from the man, as well as having her camera taken away, before being whisked off to a decon shower. The two eventually meet up later, with Sienna sporting a paper dress. After a walk and some witty banter, Sienna leaves Miguel at his home: the Derby Youth Home. Up above, Vulcan watches Miguel enter and then leaves. Re-entering his lair via a "hot spot", Vulcan is greeted by Praetor, who demands Vulcan confirm his identity. After three short questions and Vulcan's answers, Praetor leaves Vulcan, who has entered a viewing room, alone. From behind, a rather curvaceous female figure enters. Her name is Pandora and she asks if Vulcan has asked him. The hero responds, "When is anyone ever asked to do this?" Pandora suggest he wait, but Vulcan suggests that Miguel, or "Mikey" as he is occasionally called, is just the right age to "join the cause" and that he has "no family to speak of." A perfect candidate... but for what? Back at the Derby Youth Home, Miguel is meeting with administrator Pete Kipling. News of the afternoon's events have reached the man and he's not quite happy with our young hero. Mikey apologizes and explains that he just wanted to get a job so that he could have a college fund. Mr. Kipling explains that he's just here to help Miguel try to be the type of kid a family would want to adopt. Miguel responds that he's not the type of person most families want; he's too old for that. Mr. Kipling, who is holding a paddle with the words "The Message" engraved in it, asks Miguel why this specific paddle has holes in it and Mikey recites what has obviously been heard a lot, "So that nothing... not even air... gets in the way of The Message." A D.E.O. (Department of Extranormal Operations) containment van speeds down the highway. Inside the back of it, Jason Woodrue, a.k.a. the Floronic Man, is being transported back to his "terrarium" prison cell. The two guards in the back feel a sudden shake as something lands on the roof of the vehicle. With a horrible churn, the roof of the van is torn open and an invisible being violently takes care of the guards before grabbing hold of the villain. At the Derby Youth Home, Vulcan tosses a smoke grenade into the dorm where Miguel sleeps. The teen wakes up just in time to see the hero towering above him. Before long, he blacks out, with the last words he hears being, "I came back for you..." A while later, Miguel wakes up in a strange bed, dressed in even stranger clothing. At the door, Vulcan stands waiting. Vulcan explains that he was very impressed with Mikey's ability to handle the situation the other day. The hero believes the teen to be just the right person for the job. Praetor interrupts the conversation to explain that Woodrue has escaped the D.E.O. and is back at large. Vulcan asks Miguel if he's up for the job, but Miguel doesn't quite understand, "What job?" "As my sidekick, Mikey. I want you to be Vulcan's partner." Not much later, Miguel, dressed in full armor, along with Vulcan, emerge from a "hot spot" to confront the Foloronic Man. Vulcan explains that Miguel's sword is merely a practice weapon and that it won't slash or burn. He nods and puts his attention toward the villain, but notices something Vulcan doesn't: Jason Woodrue has two arms! Vulcan looks over to the villain and proclaims him not to be Jason Woodrue. Before Vulcan can act, the villain unleashes a powerful beam. Mikey watches as it cuts a hole through Vulcan's mid-section. It all happens in such a short amount of time that our teenage sidekick doesn't know how to react, all he can say is, "What just happened?" as Vulcan's lifeless body falls to the concrete in front of him. Honestly, my summary just doesn't do the story justice. I left out a lot of the fantastic dialogue, most of which occurs between Mikey and Sienna, because as much as I'd like to run through every detail of the issue, I want to leave you with a reason to pick up this book without it being completely spoiled. Sure, I spoil the fact that Vulcan gets his ass handed to him at the end, but the lead-up to that is worth your money. Scott Beatty, who is not new to the comic book world, writes does an excellent job here. It's just nice to see a book that doesn't revolve around the main heroes of the DC Universe. This book has no ties to this summer's "Infinite Crisis" and that's refreshing. You don't have to know anything (except how to read!) prior to grabbing up this first issue. This is brand new GOOD stuff right here. The art is equally fantastic. Keron Grant, who has done some excellent work on the previous volume of Iron Man, has that manga-inspired style that's pretty popular these days. His work is like a toned down version of Humberto Ramos', who I freaking love. Three issues have been released and chances are good that your comic shop didn't order very many of 'em. If you can find these, then by all means pick them up. If you can't find them, then please ask your comic shop to order ‘em for you. As it is right now, you're missing out on a great book.