Derf's Picks of the Week (July 9, 2025)

 

Greetings fellow Comic lovers.

How has the first week of July been for you?

Mine was okay, but now it's time to take the stress away!

How? You ask.

Well, it's New Comic Book Day!

Take two of these and call me in the morning, lol.

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DC COMICS

Absolute Superman #9

Action Comics #1088

Aquaman #7

Batman: Dark Patterns #8

Batman: Gotham by Gaslight – A League for Justice #1

Green Lantern Corps #6

Supergirl #3

Superman Treasury 2025: Hero for All #1

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IDW

Godzilla: Here There Be Aliens #2

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Nation #8

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IMAGE

Transformers #22

The UnChosen #1

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MARVEL

Doctor Strange of Asgard #5

Fantastic Four #1

Fantastic Four: First Steps #1

Magik #7

Predator: Black, White & Blood #1

Red Hulk #6

Star Wars: Legacy of Vader #6

Superior Avengers #4

Uncanny X-Men #17

Wolverine and Kitty Pryde #4

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Well, that is all I have for this week.

I hope you found something that will entertain you.

Until next time, get your READ on!

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Comic Cover of the Week

Magik #7

MARVEL

Cover Art by Pablo Villalobos

Saturday Showcase: S.U.R.F.

 

Sticking with the Atlantis Attacks theme, I decided to Showcase the team of Atlantean Mutants known as S.U.R.F.  I have to give Dr. Jay his props because the idea popped into my head after he gave me an issue of the New Mutants Annual #5 while we were volunteering at the hospital for their annual Christmas gathering for the youth.

SURF is a team of three mutant Atlanteans. They first appeared during the largest Atlantean invasion yet attempted, the so-called "Atlantis Attacks" affair. However, instead of joining their brethren, the Surf acted as outlaws, saving several surface dwellers from harm. They remained together as Atlantean outlaws ever since.

The three members are Eel, Sharkskin, and Undertow.

Sharkskin is a powerful Atlantean born with a physical mutation. Sharkskin has superhuman strength and durability, even more so than the normal Atlantean.

Eel is the "shapeshifter" of the group.  His powers include the ability to flatten his body and turn himself semi-rubbery, although he does not appear to be capable of elongating his flattened body.

Undertow is capable of manipulating water for various effects, including water blasts, grappling attacks, creating air pockets underwater, and pedestals of water to carry himself and his teammates.

The team was introduced as part of the Atlantis Attacks storyline of the '90s but they have made a resurgence in the Major X series during 2019.  To be honest, they may have been used briefly in the Marvel Universe,  but I would buy a Marvel Legends set of this trio.

Publication Information

Created by Louise Simonson & Rob Liefeld

First Appearance: New Mutants Annual #5 (June, 1989)

Aliases:  Namor, Namorita

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I think next week my showcase may feature someone from another GALAXY.  That's your hint, lol.

Until next time, get your READ on!

Saturday Showcase: Impossible Man

the Impossible Man

    It's a my first showcase of 2020 and I wanted to make it spectacular.  So, I put some thought into who I was going to showcase and I couldn't pick just one.  So, I went to the movies with some friends to clear my head.  Before the movies, we went to a local bookstore and I came across a Marvel trade that was on sale and the light bulb in my head went off and my heart exploded with delight.  This was the answer I was looking for.  The trade was a collection of the one and only Impossible Man.  The Impossible Man is one of my favorite characters every to grace the pages of the Fantastic Four and X-Men.  So, without further rambling, here is my Saturday Showcase of Impossible Man.

the many talents of the Impossible Man

    The Impossible Man is a Poppupian from the planet Poppup and has shape-shifting abilities. The Impossible Man character is mainly used for comedy, portrayed as a lonely, attention seeking alien that often annoys those around him, especially the Fantastic Four. The Impossible Man first appeared in Fantastic Four #11 (February 1963), and was created by writer Stan Lee and writer/artist Jack Kirby. 

1st Appearance: Fantastic Four #11 ('63)

   The Impossible Man's alien physiology gives the character the ability to take on virtually any form via molecular rearrangement, an effect commonly accompanied by a "Pop!" sound effect. He can mirror the properties of objects or super-powered beings he shape-shifts into.   The nickname, the Impossible Man, actually came from the fact that the Thing once called him "impossible".  He also has the ability to teleport across vast interstellar distances and even dimensions.

    The Impossible Man once battled the New Mutants' Warlock to determine whose shape-shifting ability was superior, a contest Warlock won when he showed he was able to change his colors to match those of the forms he mimics, while the Impossible Man could not.  This was not the case when he first appeared, he was able to change his colors but for some reason Marvel thought it would be best if he could not.  Besides shape-shifting, he has an encyclopedic knowledge of Earth's popular culture. Which he uses to "bore" is adversaries at times.

Impossible Man Vs Warlock

VITALS:
Publisher: Marvel Comics
First appearance: Fantastic Four #11 (Feb, 1963)
Created by: Stan Lee (writer) & Jack Kirby (artist)
Species: Poppupian
Team affiliations: Lethal Legion
Abilities:  Shape-shifting and super-power mimicry
                 Teleportation

                 Possesses encyclopedic knowledge of Earth's culture

Round 1

    Well, I hope you enjoyed this showcase about the "villain" known as the Impossible Man.  He was one of my childhood favorites and I would love to see him make some kind of appearance in a future Marvel Studios project.

Until next time, get your READ on!

Saturday Showcase: Zero (Mutant Liberation Front)

Can't touch this

    Not much is known about the character named Zero from the MLF (Mutant Liberation Front).  What we do know is Zero was created 2000 years in the future by the Askani as a prototype for the Ambient-energy Damping Automated peacekeeping Mechanisms (ADAMs). Zero was damaged and found by the mutant tyrant, Stryfe, who opposed the Askani. Stryfe reactivated Zero, leaving it mute and obedient. Zero would become Stryfe's most trusted ally. When Stryfe's armies were defeated, Stryfe and Zero fled, travelling back in time to the late 20th century.

Saved by Zero

    It is in the 20th century where Stryfe gathered a group of mutants and formed the terrorist organisation known as the Mutant Liberation Front. Stryfe's new team fought against Cable and the New Mutants and X-Force. During the X-Cutioner's Song, Stryfe was defeated on the Moon and Zero disappeared and was deactivated.  Leaving the secrets of Stryfe unknown to the world...but would those secrets remain hidden?

    This wouldn't be the end of Zero.  He would be reactivated later by a group of Mercs (including Deadpool) looking for the ultimate weapon.  This weapon was Zero.  Zero was now capable of speech and following his original programming: peace-keeping. It scanned its surroundings for any object and person who were a threat to peace on Earth and eliminated Slayback. He was about to eliminate Deadpool as well, but Deadpool convinced Zero that he had potential for good. Zero gave Deadpool the benefit and left.

Allies til the End?

    Zero went on to try to become more human.   His new goal was to achieve full sentience and become "alive". It sensed the potential to be alive in the techno-organic being known as Douglock and gave it independence from the Phalanx. Zero set out to teach Douglock about his new existence, but Zero was now hunted by killer androids, programmed by Stryfe to destroy Zero in case of his death. Zero and Douglock were assisted by Excalibur and together they tried to deactivate the androids from Stryfe's secret base below the Pentagon. Here, Zero realized that he had become sentient and also the reason why Stryfe wanted him killed: locked within his data banks, Zero had all the secrets of the Legacy Virus, Stryfe's final "gift" to the world. This revelation activated Zero's self-destruct sequence and the killer androids in Stryfe's base. 

    Shadowcat managed to remove the self-destruction device, but Zero realized that his sentience was a cruel joke and that Stryfe had programmed him to think it was alive. Zero sacrificed itself to protect Excalibur, Douglock, and a family of innocents from the base's self-destruction.   In Zero's last few moments on Earth, Zero transferred all of its memories to Douglock. So while its body is destroyed, the data that made up Zero's mind is still contained within the mind of Douglock.

the MLF

Powers:

• Teleportation: Zero is capable of opening gateways linking to places spatially without having to traverse the space between.
• Tracking: Zero can find a needle in a haystack so if you are trying to get away, you got no chance
• Intellect: Zero is a highly sophisticated android with an intelligence to match.  His data banks make it almost impossible to out think or out maneuver him.  

First Appearance:

• New Mutants #86 (Feb 1990)
• Created by Rob Liefeld and Louise Jones Simonson
• Published by MARVEL

ZERO

Until next time, get your READ on!

Saturday Showcase: Warlock

Warlock

    Marvel's Contest of Champions inspired last week's post, but it also inspired this week's post.   The arrival of Sunspot and Warlock in the game brought back memories from my childhood reading the New Mutants adventures from Marvel Comics.  
    Warlock is a member of the alien Technarchy, a race of mechanical organisms that survive by infecting living creatures with the "techno-organic" transmode virus, before draining the life energy or "lifeglow" of the infected organism. Unlike others of his race, Warlock possesses a distinctive degree of compassion, and as a result was dubbed a mutant in spirit; It was later discovered that he is in fact a mutant of his race even though he has yet to display any abilities beyond those natural to the Technarch. 
    He is the son of the Technarch ruler who has battled the New Mutants and the X-Men. Warlock served as a member of the original New Mutants for much of that group's existence, and became the best friend of his teammate Cypher aka Doug Ramsey.

New Mutants

    Cypher and Warlock fought many battles together.  He considered Doug family.  Doug's death at the hands of the Ani-Mator devastated Warlock, leading him to go so far as to steal Doug's body. With the help of the rest of the New Mutants, he came to terms with Doug's death (and returned his friend's body to the rightful place).

    Shortly after the event known as Inferno, Warlock was kidnapped from the grounds of the X-Mansion, along with his friends Rictor, Boom Boom and Wolfsbane, and ended up on the island nation of Genosha which was ruled by Cameron Hodge. Warlock was killed in an attempt by Hodge to steal his powers.  The news of his death was broadcast worldwide, a public relations disaster for Genosha since the world believed Warlock to be a "normal" human mutant. Wolfsbane asked Boom Boom to put Warlock's ashes on Doug's grave.  It is this act that eventually led to the arrival of Douglock, but that is a post for another day.

Warlock

First Appearance:

The New Mutants #18 (August 1984)

Created by:
        Chris Claremont & Bill Sienkiewicz

Team Affiliations:
        X-Men
        New Mutants
        Fallen Angels
        Excalibur
        X-Factor
        Phalanx

Abilities:
Shape-shifting
        Can turn organic objects and beings into techno-organic matter
        Can drain the life energy from techno-organic matter

Doug aka Cypher and Warlock to the Rescue

Until next time, get your READ on!

Saturday Showcase: Sunspot

Sunspot

    As my original followers know, I am a huge fan of the Contest of Champions app from Marvel and made by Kabam.  Anyway, the recent Update was for a new story line starring two of the original New Mutants, Warlock and Sunspot.  When I first saw the image of Sunspot, I liked how bad ass they designed him.  I immediately knew that I had to do a showcase on this underrated hero.

Sunspot as seen in Contest of Champions

    Sunspot was created by writer Chris Claremont and artist Bob McLeod. He first appeared in The New Mutants (Graphic Novel, September 1982).  Immediately following, he became part of the regular cast of The New Mutants, as seen in Marvel Comics.

    Sunspot, or Roberto da Costa, is Brazilian, the son of wealthy Brazilian businessman Emmanuel da Costa and an American archaeologist Nina da Costa.  Sunspot possesses the ability to absorb and channel solar power. He is idealistic and impulsive, but is considered a close friend of many of his teammates. 

Sunspot Vs a Sentinel

    Sunspot is a mutant whose cells have the ability to absorb solar energy and convert it for use as physical strength. He is also able to create thermal updrafts for flight, project heat and light, as well as concussive blasts of solar energy.  At will, he is able to take on a superhuman "powered up" form that is entirely non-reflective black, save for his eyes which turn a solid bright white. Though the color black optimizes solar absorption, he absorbs solar power at all times, not only when he is in his "powered up" form. If he has not absorbed sufficient amounts of solar energy in normal form, he will be too weak to "power up". Likewise, when not in direct sunlight, use of his superhuman strength rapidly exhausts the stores of energy within his body.

    When in his solar form, Sunspot also has a corona effect, an aura that has been depicted in multiple ways.  Although Sunspot can absorb energy from stars and reflected solar energy from the moon, the amounts that reach him on Earth are too minuscule to add significantly to his power.

Sunspot's Rage as seen in War of Realms

Team Affiliations

• New Mutants
• Avengers
• A.I.M.
• Costa International
• Fallen Angels
• Hellfire Club
• Mutant Liberation Front
• New Avengers
• X-Corporation
• X-Force
• X-Men
• Young X-Men
• U.S.Avengers
• S.H.I.E.L.D.

    Well, I hope you enjoyed this Showcase on Sunspot.  Do yourself a favor and look up some old New Mutants or X-Force comics to see his back story.  Then, check out the kick ass role he plays in War of Realms.

Until next time, get your READ on!

Derf's Picks of the Week (3/14/18)

To see my picks of the week, click here.

While you are here, enjoy this week's cover.

Comic Cover of the Week

the New Mutants: Dead Souls #1 (Variant)

MARVEL

Cover Art by Mark Brooks

Saturday Showcase: Shatterstar

    Today's Showcase is about one of my favorite "mutants" of all time.  Mojoworld knows him as Gaveedra-Seven but you know him as Shatterstar.  Shatterstar was a created by Rob Liefeld and Fabian Nicieza for the New Mutants/X-force titles.  He is an expert swordsman who is willing to do what it takes to make sure his team wins. (above panel, 'nuff said)

    Shatterstar first appeared in New Mutants #99 in March of '91.  He quickly became a member of the team of X-Force and began taking names and kicking ass from the very get go.  Even though he is originally from Mojoworld, he fit in on Earth very well.  

    After a few years as a member of X-Force, he became a solo sensation in his own mini-series before joining the ranks of X-Factor.  It is during his time with X-Factor tat he learns he is related to another one of my faves, Longshot.  He then leaves X-Factor to start out on his own helping his friends from time to time.

    Shatterstar is and always will be one of my favorites.  He has changed looks through the years but I am a fan of his original look.  I know he has been the focus of major story lines as well as being ranked #29 on Comics Alliance list of Top 50 Sexiest Male Characters in Comics, but I feel Marvel could have done so much more with the character.  Hell, I would love to see a Deadpool and Shatterstar team-up in the near future.  Of course they would have to fight each other first, lol.

(Deadpool vs Shatterstar)

   So do yourself a favor, and checkout  any titles at your local comic book store that have Shatterstar in them, you will be glad you did.  

Until next time, get your READ on!

Classic Cover of the Day

Classic Cover of the Day

New Mutants Vol. 1 #14

MARVEL

Saturday Showcase: Magik

I am starting something new on my blog to showcase my favorite characters from the world of comics.  As many of you know, I am a huge comic NERD and I feel that some characters do not get there "due".  I mean, in the world of film and TV, there are some really good characters that don't get their big break.  So, I created a post I will call Saturday Showcase.  Every Saturday, I will showcase a new character from the world of comics.

Today's showcase spotlights one of my favorite mutants.  Her birth name is Illyana Rasputin but you may know her as Magik.  As many of you know, she is the sister to the X-man known as Colossus.  What you may not know is that she originally died from the mutant killing Legacy Virus.  As we know now, is that although her physical form died, the part of her that was tied to Hell lived on and became a very powerful "witch".  

In later years, Marvel brought her back from the dead (as they usually do with fan favorites) for some much needed awakenings in their comics.

Magik will always be one of my favorite "Background Players" in the world of comics and she is a kick as character in the Contest of Champions App.

First Appearance:

(As Illyana) Giant Size X-men #1 (1975)

(As Magik) New Mutants #14 (1984)

Uh-oh, its Magik!

Wonderful piece of art featuring Magik from the X-titles.

Teleporters: Magik by Meghan Hetrick

http://meghanhetrick.deviantart.com/

Uh-oh its Magik!

It is Monday, no Moon Knight today.  Just a little Magik!

 

New Mutants #28 by Jorge Molina

"But she's a Black Magic Woman and she's trying to make a devil out of me." - Santana

 

Finch Fridays

For this edition of Finch Friday, I decided to use one of his covers for the New Mutants. 

 Warlock never looked so bad ass!