Writer: Joe Casey
This is a story about a small group of villains called the masters of evil in the heroes reborn world that have carved out a place for themselves in Chicago. The adventures of each member are followed which are those of Whirlwind, Black Knight, Radioactive Man, and Melter.
The Black knight is constantly at the bed of the Melter as he's hooked up to some medical equipment and keeps mumbling things about Ashema. The Black knight thinks there's some worth to his ramblings and talks of how of how valuable a resource the Melter is and about destiny.
The Black knight has another meeting with Krang one of ones from Atlantis and receives an instrument that calls the Doomsday weapon the great whale Giganto. The Black knight not knowing that Giganto is dead and this is just a ploy to kill the surface dwellers when it will instead summon forth an army of giant seas creatures that will displace enough water to send a massive tidal wave across the continent.
WhirlWind talks to a speechless Radioactive Man in a restaurant while others watch on from far away. Then they attend to their job of finding and then killing Krang and his men in their underwater transport. The Radioactive Man comes up with the solution of killing everything in the lake with his powers along with Krang and his men.
The next thing WhirlWind attends to is hiring bodyguards for the Black knight's trip to New York City where he's going meet with Dr. Doom and plans to discuss dividing the world between them. WhirlWind ends up hiring the Titanium Man and the Crimson Dynamo after their display of power when they pointlessly fight each other.
The Black knight before leaving Chicago sets the Radioactive Man on another mission to kill WhirlWind since he's thinking of getting out of the masters of evil and leaving that kind of life.
In New York City the Black knight arrives with the Titanium Man and the Crimson Dynamo at his side. The Black knight thinks that this day was meant to be and its his destiny to take his place in the world as each door opens to him in the Baxter Building of where Dr. Doom resides. The Black knight enters the room were Doom stands and watches the outside world from the window and makes a long speech to him about his plans and intentions.
WhirlWind encounters the Radioactive Man back at his place while gathers up stuff to leave town and maybe head out west. Whirlwind rambles on about stuff while the Radioactive Man prepares to kill him.
Back in New York City the Black knight finishes what he has been saying to Doom even showing the doomsday instrument that can supposedly call forth Giganto as a offering to commemorate there impending alliance. The Black knight bows before doom mention "Ashema." Doom then kills the Black knights body guards the Titanium Man and the Crimson Dynamo that were standing just outside the doors of the room and then kills the Black knight as well.
A screen then flickers on in the room and its revealed the one who killed the Black knight and his body guards was only a Robot of Dr.Doom. Doom speaks on the screen to the robot and how foolish the Black knight was thinking himself worthy enough to stand alongside him and the he spoke of Ashema the caretaker of this world and he should have feared retribution.
The one page Epilogue shows Whirlwind on a bus headed out of the city. He was a smooth talker and the Radioactive Man let him go. He reflects on how he wasn't with that bad a group since he made some money for awhile he but nothing lasts forever.
"And where I'll end up? In this crazy world, who knows...? Wherever the winds take me...."
Comments: A nice little story that ties into the Heroes Reborn: Doomsday event. I have a particular liking for the Whirlwind so it was nice to see him have quite a bit of the story even if it's from the Heroes Reborn world. Since this was only a one issue tie in with the Masters of Evil it was done well everything is tied up, and it actually has Dr. Doom in it since it is him whose the main focus of the event. The scenes with Whirlwind and the radioactive man were great and it was nice seeing more characters from this alternate world like the Titanium Man and The Crimson Dynamo. This story is almost as if it could be the last issue of a series called the masters of evil killing off the Black knight and disbanding the team and ending on odd note. Definitely one of the better titles among all the one-shots in this event.
Thunderbolts and all associated characters are the property of MARVEL COMICS TM&©2003.