Writer: Fabian Nicieza
The Thunderbolts leave the empty Beetle armor behind so the media can frenzy over it and so it will help publicity clear Abe. At the Thunderbolts HQ Ogre concludes Abe had to be controlling the Beetle armor from far away while Atlas and Moonstone have caught one of Justin Hammer's goons, Blizzard. Moonstone received some interesting information from Blizzard about the prison riot that Abe stopped in #26 and how the used Abe for him to go after Justin Hammer.
In the Burton Canyon police department Gyrich and Val Cooper from the Commission are trying to get the Beetle armor back into their possession from the police. A couple of antennas appear from the Beetle's helmet on a table removed from the body of the armor as it receives a signal that brings the body of the armor to it. Both pieces of the armor attached the Armor escapes by itself.
Back at Thunderbolts HQ Hawkeye talks about the information Moonstone received. Justin Hammer had a contact inside Seagate prison that was the Telepath Mentallo. Hammer communicated with many of the inmates through him gathering information on them, finding out about their paroles and setting them up with assignments. The Commission found out about this and used Abe in the Beetle armor to steal Omega-32 from Roxxon. The commission couldn't work through legal means to get Omega-32 and since Hammer wanted it the Commission Abe to retrieve it as the Beetle though the Commission would never come through for Abe in the bargain. The Commission didn't want the fact they were doing this to become public so Abe double-crossed them and they couldn't do much about it.
A call comes in for Hawkeye from Abe that he thinks they need to talk. Everything brought up to date the scene is near Seagate prison where Songbird is reunited with Abe.
In Paris Dallas Riordan ponders on her life about once being New York City's mayorial liaison and now all alone she wonders who she can turn to for help.
Somewhere in Central America a man arrives off an airplane saying he's there for personal and business reasons. He also carries a small bag that he says contains collector figurines and dollhouses. He's handed his passport and addressed as Sr.Davis as he walks away.
Back at Mt.Charteris Techno is disturbed from his work in his lab by the activity coming from the second hibernation chamber. There's a bioelectric build up beyond any previously displayed capacities. Techno wonders if its an emission of any residual energy remaining in the body and thinks that's not possible but the Chamber starts registering life signs.
At the Rocky Mountain field operations centre for the commission on superhuman activities two days later Henry Gyrich is still mad and has seen no sign of the Beetle or Abe. A flat air that has two arrows in it stops Gyrich's car. Hawkeye uses one of his arrows to tie Gyrich up so he can't do anything. Hawkeye talks with Gyrich while Techno spies on them from his lab. Techno finds out about Hawkeye's lie about the Thunderbolts getting an official pardon when Gyrich mentions it to Hawkeye. Hawkeye grabs Gyrich's fallen classes from the ground and snaps them while saying that Abe's sentence has been served and will need protection from every prisoner at Seagate and that's what the Thunderbolts are going to do. A little program was put into the prison computers now all the inmates at Seagate know what Abe did.
Since Abe is the model prisoner he will keep quiet about the Commission's illegal activities and hand over any information on Omega-32 to the Commission so unofficially Abe isn't going back to jail. Gyrich asks about the Beetle Armor and Hawkeye says he won't be seeing it just yet it has one more task to complete.
That task if apprehending Justin Hammer when he comes outside to observe a motionless Beetle armor uttering the phrase "A gift for Mr.Hammer." On voice recognition of Hammer's voice the Beetle armor captures Justin Hammer and delivers him to Henry Gyrich. Hammer says his lawyers will have him free within a few hours while Gyrich thinks that maybe true but those are going to be interesting hours.
Back at Mt. Charteris on the dawn of a new day Ogre is about to reveal to everyone the new Mach-2 armor that he's been working on all night because of some problems that he had to fix.
Abe inside the new Mach-2 armor demonstrates its capabilities. When finished he comments on how he had Ogre make him a new face since the one Techno gave him before will be recognisable. Ogre studied the available information on Dermaplasty to give Abe a new look on Hawkeye's request.
Abe removes his helmet to show everyone his new face as Songbird faints and everyone looks shocked. Ogre darkened Abe's skin more than he expected and now Abe is black.
Comments: And the ride continues. This title has certainly picked up with a few answers (finally) and the usual mysteries and a great stock ending.
Another story that opens with a scene that you don't know what's really going on and you have to read the events leading up to that point in time which is nicely done here again giving that great feeling that the book delivers on in its stories.
So abe really was the beetle, I just can't seem to get many guesses right sometimes. I'm still waiting to be beaten over the head with Citizen V being Dallas Riordan but I'm too stubborn to believe it and from what have appeared previously in the title.
Techno/Ogre is one of the most interesting parts in this book with him spying on the team, learning Hawkeye's secret that the Thunderbolts won't get an official pardon, and one of the bodies in Techno's hibernation chambers coming alive. I can't wait to see where this is going. Having Techno in the background like this posing as someone really brings back a little of what made the first 12 issues great. Just what does he have planned? He seems to have his hands in everything and is keeping track of everything that is going on. He could try to control Hawkeye now that he knows that Hawkeye lied to the Thunderbolts. Also what is inside the hibernation chamber that is now registering life signs? A bioelectric build up in the chamber sounds like Jolt with increased powers somehow due to what happened to her. Maybe another to fall under Techno's control assuming it is Jolt. I hope it isn't and its something else that will be surprising but so far I'm not against what's happening.
The Mach-2 armor does look great, I think I prefer the old one but this one looks fine. The first time I looked at the helmet I thought of Dark Hawk for some reason, maybe it's my faint hope that some time Dark Hawk will show up somewhere.
Techno messed up on the dermaplasty procedure and now Abe is black? Wow, what a shock ending! I doubt that Techno really would mess up that badly though maybe he's falling in line with his Ogre impersonation in not being as good as Techno would be in the procedure, this will be interesting to watch though. Seeing the reactions next issue and what songbird thinks now that Abe is different. Something is odd though that Abe's whole face was changed. Wouldn't just the colour of his face change? Techno gave him a whole new face to match? I like the look of the other face better, and the hair. Small gripes that didn't take away from the issue though, this will present plenty of interesting things I'm sure for future issues that I'll enjoy reading about. Anyway I'm happy to see Abe back on the team. Finally something was done about the Commission using Abe for their operations Gyrich got what he deserved but not nearly enough for all the sneaky things he tries to pull off he's definitely a great adversary to see.
Neat to see Justin Hammer arrested and in custody even if it's just for a little while. I guess that's the last of seeing that Beetle armor unless another villain or someone steals it from the commission I could see that happening down the road in the title some time.
As for the two pages that contained developing subplots I'm not sure what to think. One involves Dallas Riordan in Paris not too far from where Citizen V was last issue. Maybe Dallas will track down the Thunderbolts for help or get help from the real Citizen V. According to the next issue box the identity of Citizen V will be revealed next issue so that will lay to rest that identity question only to replace it with something else.
The other page that had a developing plot with someone called Davis arriving in Central America with a small bag of stuff. I assume this is the mysterious sniper arriving in Central America under an alais and once again the face of the person is not shown. This looks like its leading up to the discovery of Baron Zemo in the same area somehow.
Except for one page being riddled with typos due to a mix up, not that it distracted from the entire issue but sometimes I like to see everything that's supposed to be said to understand it more clearly this was quite the issue.
Thunderbolts and all associated characters are the property of MARVEL COMICS TM&©2003.