Writer: Fabian Nicieza
The Black Widow sneaks into the Thunderbolts headquarters. She ends up in a duct that leads to Moonstone's quarters and discovers a small camera, wondering if Hawkeye knows that his base is bugged. Ogre detects that something has happened to his camera but doesn't want to stop his experiments to check on it so he decides on a full internal sweep instead. While wandering through the base the Black Widow runs across Songbird and Charcoal who she hides from. Next the Black Widow feels like she is being watched, as Scourge is just a few steps from her. Black Widow finally makes it to her destination of the main lab that was her goal only to find that Ogre, Hawkeye and Mach-2 occupy it.
She realizes that they don't know that Wonder-man was manipulated into attacking Atlas.
Elsewhere Moonstone now in her old costume looks down on the Fantastic Four's headquarters at Pier 4.
Back at the Thunderbolts Headquarters the Black Widow reconsiders her plan of sneaking in and sneaking out without anyone noticing as she jumps down from the ceiling to help them. Ogre's concerned about how she got past the security systems but Charcoal tells him she's the Black Widow to answer Ogre's question.
Then Black Widow recounts a tale about Madame Masque and a coin Benedict gave her. The Coin was a data disc that contained information on Maggia organized crime families. She turned the coin over to Shield but when the Grim Reaper became involved and the Maggia situation turned into a war between rival factions she became involved again along with the Avengers. She told the Avengers about Madame Masque's involvement while she was attacked by Cyclone part of the European faction of the Maggia when she was looking for information. She got what she was looking for but Cyclone escaped.
BlackWidow found information on what the Maggia families are looking for, that was information on the original Ion experiments of Baron Heinrich Zemo.
The Thunderbolts as former partners of Helmut Zemo was most likely to have information on something like that. While trying not to reveal he is abe as Mach-2 he explains any information like that was lost when Zemo blew up Four Freedoms Plaza.
Ogre says he has a good idea where Zemo's Central American Castle is and the information would be kept there. He comes up with an excuse of why he would have a good idea where to find it while thinking that's because he built it as Techno.
Mach-2 goes to tell Charcoal what they are going to do next and he gets upset thinking this is just something else that will stop them from finding Jolt's killer.
Scourge watches Ogre thinking that killing Ogre would kill the people in the containment chambers as well, which conflicts with his mission parameters. Scourge was supposed to kill the Thunderbolts in a specific order and now he can't without killing others.
Hawkeye changes into his revised costume with lighting bolt insignia on it among other minor changes while the Black Widow finds out that Hawkeye has fallen in love with Moonstone much to her shock.
At Pier 4, inside the Fantastic Four's headquarters Moonstone watches over the Invisible Woman for a moment. Moonstone goes to the computers while Mr. Fantastic and the Invisible Woman notice her intrusion. Moonstone has conflicting thoughts if she is going to ask for their help or kill both of them.
In London Andrea Sterman is researching material for her next book which brought her to a curio store owned by a former super hero called Windshear who has the mutant ability to create hard air molecules. Andrea discovers he makes things out of hard air that become visible when coloured light hits them or when you touch them. Andrea asks about Windshear's involvement with Roxxon. Roxxon helped train Windshear and provided the equipment used to channel the hard air projections. Eventually Andrea finds out that Windshear made invisible bullets for them but that they would dissipate in thirty seconds or on physical contact. Roxxon had a way to store the bullets in vacuum-sealed containers but they were useless outside of the containers. Roxxon would have to have a process that would keep it in a sold state. Back then it wasn't very solid at all but Windshear has improved the ability to create things. The hard air that Roxxon could have kept would be weaker and would dissipate on contact with anything.
In Latveria a girl sees Dallas' unconscious body and runs away.
In Central America the Thunderbolts have arrived at Baron Zemo's base to find it has been damaged. Hawkeye tells the Black Widow about Ogre having hacked into NORAD systems to get the exact location of Zemo's base. Ogre also found out that there was a recent order for a satellite array to wash the area in tachyon pulses that would disable the cloaking fields around Zemo's base. Black Widow wonders if the Maggia would have access to fire power like that to get into Zemo's base.
Mach-2 says he's picking up heat signatures that are fresh and someone could possibility still be inside. The Thunderbolts head inside while the Black Widow is suspicious of Ogre who has also come along with them. They find that things have been removed from the place and Mach-2 takes a sample of the dried blood on the floor. Ogre discovers dried gelatinous residue on the floor in the form of footprints that he doesn't tell anyone about. The Thunderbolts try to get into what they think might be a secondary lab while it explodes. Protoids that are real people changed by Arnim Zola and Cyclone come out and attack the Thunderbolts. Ogre fights off some of the protoids sure no one saw him change his hand into a sonic scrambler. Cyclone escapes with two scientists and Mach-2 puts a tracer on the ship that flies away. Ogre gets fed up saying he can talk himself out of creating a device out of thin air and designs something to turn the Protoids back into humans ending the battle. Ogre makes up a reason for having created the device and the Black Widow thinks it's rather convenient that Ogre came up with the device. The Thunderbolts look into the lab that the Maggia were in and they find it's an Ion generator. Mach-2 is patched into Ogre's alert scanner back at the base and picks up an emergency broadcast and says:
"Now we know why they wanted Ion info...geez...It has to do with a revived and Ionically-reimpowered Count Nefaria -- who's in Las Vegas at the moment with Atlas and Wonder Man, and they're more than a little busy -- killing the Avengers!"
Comments: Another subplot ridden issue with the Thunderbolts uncovering things that happened in previous issues and the Black Widow shows up for another fun issue.
The Black Widow's appearance was good the way she sneaks into the Thunderbolts HQ, Ogre's concern over her getting past the security systems and her talking with Hawkeye. Bagley also does a great job with drawing her too.
It appears there was some concern on Scourge's part with killing Techno just like he showed last issue but due to what Scourge is supposed to do. His agenda of killing the Thunderbolts in specific order seems to be disrupted. Perhaps while Ogre is gone with the Thunderbolts he can find a way to remove the containment chambers without anything happening to them if he's that concerned. Maybe he will start a collection if Scourge kept the containers with the clones from Zemo's Central American base. Whatever target Scourge goes after next the Thunderbolts will be aware of someone is really after them. If he removes the containment chambers Techno will know. If he kills Techno the Thunderbolts will not see Ogre around unless Scourge releases the real Ogre but then things will still seem different to the Thunderbolts. If Scourge goes for a new target he will still have to take down Techno sometime and that's probably his biggest threat.
I hope Techno doesn't get discovered as Ogre anytime soon, it keeps on getting hinted that he will and the Black Widow seems to think there's something odd about him. I could watch Techno do all his secret things and mess up trying to pass himself off as Ogre for a long time yet. There's an element of mystery about it that would be nice to keep in the title, plus Techno is one of the original Thunderbolts. Eventually all the things that Techno has done are going to add up though and he will have to come up with a good scheme to stay as Ogre with team unsuspecting once again perhaps.
Moonstone confused about her identity now in her old costume looks good. The costume looks better than ever here and going to the Fantastic Four wasn't something I expected. I don't know how trusting the Mr. Fantastic and the Invisible Woman will be of her but will probably reluctantly help if she asks them instead of killing them.
Charcoal is really starting to lose it about them trying to find Jolt's killer. He's ready to really explode one of these days. Hawkeye's solution to Atlas missing and finding Jolt's killer if kind of funny too in an odd way, if your indestructible, dead, or anything else where you probably won't dead your not going to helped by him right away since nothing is likely to happen. Your indestructible you probably won't die and if your dead well your not going anywhere either.
Hawkeye's revised costume is good and the addition of the Thunderbolts insignia is a good sign of him being with the team after he's been leading it for awhile instead of himself just being considered an Avenger.
The sub-plot with Andrea Sterman received the focus I hoped it would with this issue. Windshear shows up someone that I wondered if they would show up sometime since they create hard air molecules. Roxxon having the hard air molecules as bullets in a weaker form seems to have been advantageous since they would disappear after someone is shot. Now if Roxxon has the bullets and possibly Justin Hammer they could be showing up all over. If Scourge's boss is with Roxxon or some governmental official it would seem easier for them to get there hands on what was needed for Scourge to do his killing or they ordered some from Roxxon for a special price. Having a satellite array wash an area with Tachyon pulses wouldn't seem to be that big of a problem either.
The scene in Latveria looks nice too and Dallas washes up on shore. Could the current have washed her body to Latveria or was the Crimson Cowl's base nearby.
The Thunderbolts discovered that Baron Zemo's base has been damaged and seeing their reactions to what happened was good that they found out since the readers already knew what happened in #39.
If Scourge removed all the stuff from Zemo's base I guess he took along the containers with the clones or disposed of them. Seeing that he didn't want to kill the others in Techno's containment chambers maybe his boss has them in storage or a use for them.
Maybe the Maggia cleared out some of the stuff but I think Scourge is likely to have taken out most of the stuff I don't see the Maggia have much need for the statues they are more concerned with the Ion generator.
Techno discovers dried gelatinous residue but whose footsteps are those? Either Scourge is leaving a trail behind with the feet that doesn't seem that likely and it looks like it's a bare footprint. Maggia henchmen running around barefoot leaving dried gelatinous residue doesn't seem right. The residue could be from the protoids and the experiments that Arim Zola did or the containers that held the clones. One of the clones could have been walking around inside that Scourge didn't know of and could be still alive. Being weird footprints and containers around Baron Zemo's base bodes well for his return sometime.
Mach-2 took a sample of the dried blood on the floor but what will they do if find out that it is Baron Zemo's blood? Will they just be glad that he is dead or realize that someone is coming after all of them with Jolt dead too.
In some scenes Ogre really looks like the Fixer with that big pack of technology and stuff around himself. Then the Black Widow's comment "A regular mister Fix-it, isn't he?" she was so close to the truth.
So far this crossover has turned out well even though the Avengers haven't met up with the Thunderbolts yet things are being set up separately in a good way and everything with Madame Masque, the Maggia and Nefaria look like this is going to continue to be exciting.
Thunderbolts and all associated characters are the property of MARVEL COMICS TM&©2003.