Thunderbolts

KURT BUSIEK/MARK BAGLEY/MARVEL COMICS

    In THUNDERBOLTS, Busiek has created something which is certainly a rarity in the superhero medium:  a novel concept.  In short, a team of supervillains are assembled by the nefarious Baron Zemo, Jr. to masquerade as heroes.  Intending to fill the void left by the vanished Marvel heroes (from the Onslaught saga), the Thunderbolts worm their way into the hearts of the public.  Zemo’s plan is to betray this trust, exploit all the security clearances his team has been given, and, of course, conquer the world.

     Such a potentially exciting concept would be rendered mundane and predictable in the hands of a lesser scribe, but Busiek is a master.  Not only does he take the time to thoroughly acquaint us with the personalities of each team member, as we become privy to their thoughts, fears, and insecurities about their role, but he has us rooting for them as they find they prefer the newfound responsibility and respect of heroism over Zemo’s dastardly machinations.  The inevitable schism in the team is well handled, and Busiek is smart enough not to have the T-bolts become immediate objects of adoration because of their change of heart.   Distrusted by the public, hunted by the authorities and Zemo, and struggling with the temptations of their old lifestyle, the T-bolts present the most refreshingly realistic team dynamic in comics today.

     As THUNDERBOLTS approaches its fiftieth issue, now under the helm of the equally superb scripter Fabien Nicieza and the series-long dynamic art team of Mark Bagley and Scott Hanna, the addition of fan-favorite Hawkeye as team leader and the consistent emphasis on unpredictable plot developments and in-depth character study makes the book a solid PIG PICK month after month.

    T-bolts, Volume 1 featured the main characters in the first 75 issues before Marvel launched an ill-advised reboot of the title, which floundered on until issue 81.  The new, outstanding second volume features the original team (with Nicieza again at the scripting helm).

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