Hi everyone,
Today, I'll be writing about Marvel's 23rd issue of ROM: Spaceknight. The Al Milgrom-drawn cover shows the titular character alongside Power Man and Iron Fist right outside of the Baxter Building, headquarters for the superheroes known as the Fantastic Four. The story was called "The Thing From Outer Space!" The issue had a cover date of October 1981.
We soon see the Bugle's publisher, J. Jonah Jameson, along with Spider-Man, Daredevil, Moon Knight, Captain America, and Iron Man sharing their concerns about the possible alien invader. Meanwhile, the mayor of New York is doing what he can to address the citizens' concerns and prevent widespread panic. Unbeknownst to him, two of the members of the media that he just met with are actually Dire Wraiths, who planned this on purpose so that their hated enemy would become a pariah wherever he went.
In the alleyway, ROM postulates that wraiths were responsible for the heightened military presence and general unease in the community, which Iron Fist attributed to them. Fist's fellow hero for hire, Luke Cage, then recalls the video message that they received from Fantastic Four leader Reed Richards (in issue #73 of their own mag), their initial meeting with the Spaceknight, and witnessing a couple of human beings transform into small birds who flew away. Fist wasn't convinced that the message they saw was actually from the real Fantastic Four. Cage was less doubtful (having been a temporary member of the quartet, filling in for Benjamin J. Grimm in issues #168 to 170 of the FF's comic), but knew that they couldn't stay in one place for very long.
Fist, then hopped a fence, and returned a few moments later with a hat and coat that he'd hoped might serve as a disguise for their tall Galadorian friend. After ROM put on the clothing, the heroes then made their way quietly toward the Baxter Building. Meanwhile, back in Clairton, West Virginia, the Spaceknight's friends Steve Jackson and Brandy Clark were spending some quality time together for the first time since ROM's departure. Clark was distracted by a flash in the sky, thinking that it might be the silver Spaceknight. Jackson reminded her that it was the Torpedo who was guarding the town while ROM was away. He was disappointed by his fiancée's devotion to the Galadorian.
The streak the couple saw in the night sky was indeed the Torpedo (Brock Jones). The superhero was out on patrol and made his rounds until he heard a scream from the street below. A mugger had accosted an elderly woman, and things seemed like they would take a turn for the worse, until a white fog enveloped the pair. It dissipated just before the Torpedo arrived on the scene, where he knocked the gun out of the mugger's hand. Strangely, the would-be criminal and his alleged victim claimed that she had merely fallen, and that he was helping her up. Back at Jones' home, his wife Lorrain longed for her husband's safe return. She silently wished that Brock wasn't a costumed superhero. The couple's youngest child began to cry in their room, just as a fog tendril entered the room through an open window. By the time Lorrain arrived to comfort the infant, the fog had once again departed, although the child was now strangely silent, with a bit of a stunned look in its eyes, similar to the people that the Torpedo had encountered earlier.
Back in New York City, a military garrison was alerted to three people walking by in the shadows. A commander ordered a light to shine on the newcomers, who were revealed to be Power Man, Iron Fist, and ROM. The soldiers opened fire on the Spaceknight, who shielded his companions from the bullets with his armor. The gunfire shredded ROM's disguise, and he quickly tossed a nearby truck at the soldiers. Some of the military members then shot at the truck, which exploded. The soldiers then learned that the strangers had fled down a manhole into the city's sewer system.
While they continued on in the sewers, Fist asked ROM what his home planet of Galador, was like. The Spaceknight described it as a paradise, one that he feared had been destroyed by the Dire Wraiths. Before long, the trio came up to a wall that Cage presumed to be part of the Baxter Building's subbasement. He knocked his way through with a mighty punch, and the heroes soon found themselves inside the Fantastic Four's headquarters. Cage thought that, as a former FF member, his belt beam would open the elevator doors, but he was unsuccessful. ROM then decided to rip open the elevator doors and climb his way up the elevator shaft, while Cage and Fist shimmied up the elevator cable.
30 stories up, a barrage of laser blasts criss-crossed the elevator shaft. Fist soon made his way to the elevator car overhead and burst through its floor. The heroes were safe inside, but only for a few moments. A sonic assault soon ensued, one that ROM's neutralizer was able to effectively eliminate. When the Spaceknight and his friends reached the top floor, they were greeted by H.E.R.B.I.E. robots. Power Man and Iron Fist battled them, while ROM continued on down the hallway. A cannon fired at ROM, but its blast and automated warning were no match for the armored Galadorian. Not even the transparent cage or battering ram that followed could deter ROM from his mission.
The silver Spaceknight finally reached the end of the corridor and drained off the energy from the computer system that was powering the defensive safeguards. By that time, Fist and Cage were finally able to catch up with ROM inside the Fantastic Four's vehicle hangar. They were unsure just which vehicle could take the Spaceknight to Galador until the Fantastic Four arrived in their pogo plane. To determine whether or not the super team was human or wraith, Cage asked Reed Richards to name the dollar amount that he paid Luke for his services when he was temporarily employed as a substitute for the then-powerless Thing. Reed named the amount, which Cage confirmed, knowing that they were indeed talking with the real Fantastic Four.
Cage then explained the situation, and before long, Richards had programmed a saucer-shaped ship in the hangar with the coordinates that ROM supplied him to reach his home planet of Galador. The Spaceknight said his goodbyes and took off toward home for the first time in 200 years. Back in the Baxter Buildings, the superheroes wished him well. Richards then asked Luke what he would have done if aliens knew everything that the real Fantastic Four did, including how much he was paid to work for the quartet. Before Cage could provide an answer, his partner Iron Fist suggested a hasty retreat.
This was one of the first issues of ROM: Spaceknight that I ever read. I've always been impressed with Sal Buscema's pencil work, and while he's a fine inker in his own right, I remember thinking how Joe Sinnott's inking really helped the finer details shine through. I even tried imitating some of the artwork myself, not long after reading this issue for the first time. It was another great issue that moved the storyline along toward the events in issue #25 and beyond.
Well, that's all for now. Next time, I'll write about the twenty-fourth issue of Marvel Comics' ROM: Spaceknight. In that issue, we'll learn more about that creepy fog that invaded Clairton and the silver Spacenight's meeting with several other characters that you might remember from another late, lamented title. Until then, have a great week and don't forget to be kind to one another.
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