Hi everyone,
Today, I'll be writing about the twenty-ninth issue of Marvel Comics' ROM: Spaceknight monthly title. The cover shows ROM once again in a mine. This time, he comes across a humanoid, one that some readers might recognize instantly. The story was called "Even A Spaceknight Can Cry!" The issue had a cover date of April 1982.
The story began on a somber note, at a funeral procession. This time, residents of the small town of Clairton, West Virginia, were gathered to pay their respects to Starshine. The golden Spaceknight perished after being attacked by a wraith weapon in the previous tale. Among the mourners was ROM, with whom she'd traveled to Earth after battling Terrax and Galactus on their home world of Galador.
It wasn't your average funeral. ROM used his neutralizer to free Starshine's light essence from the coffin that was laid in the ground. Once it dissipated, only a hole in the earth remained. The silver Spaceknight walked away afterward to be alone with his thoughts. Steve Jackson felt sorry for being jealous of his Galadorian friend. Brock Jones felt guilty for not being able to do enough to detect the wraith threat and save the townspeople from it. Brandy Clark sympathized with ROM. Jackson came up to her and expressed his distaste for the wraith war, and the couple admitted that things were a little complicated after the Spaceknight professed his love for Brandy. Meanwhile, underneath the surface, the Mole Man and his fellow outcasts watched the proceedings from a safe distance. They would still separate themselves from the rest of humanity, at least until it became necessary to protect the planet from the Dire Wraith menace.
As ROM walked in solitude, his thoughts drifted to those he cared about the most: his late love Ray-Na, fellow Spaceknight Karas/Firefall, the Prime Director, and even Terminator, who stole half of ROM's humanity before perishing in battle with Galactus while trying to save their homeworld. The Spaceknight then turned his energy analyzer on himself, revealing that he was the same mixture of human and cybernetic organs that he had been for 200 years.
While the analyzer revealed nothing new, the pings of its warning system pointed off toward a possible threat in a nearby town. ROM then flew to find the source. He landed in the center of a small village that appeared to be abandoned. Caustic gases filled the air, almost obscuring the Spaceknight's vision for a spell, until a man walked up to him. The stranger asked ROM if he was an angel who had arrived to end their suffering. The Galadorian told the man who he was and that his energy analyzer detected a toxic radiation inside the man's body
ROM offered to assist the man, who claimed that he and his family were beyond help, thanks to the monster who caused the condition. Thinking that the monster might be a Dire Wraith, ROM followed the human to his home. There, the Spaceknight found the man's wife and their three children in bed, all of them clearly suffering. ROM summoned his energy analyzer from subspace once more to confirm the presence of fatal energy in their blood systems. He then replaced the analyzer with his neutralizer and fired its ray at the Earthlings.
Instantly, the humans were cured. Incredulous, they swarmed the silver Spaceknight, profusely thanking him for curing them. ROM explained that he merely neutralized the deadly radiation, and then asked if others in the town had been affected. The man explained that those who were had either passed away or left town. He blamed the monster once more for their affliction. His wife went on to say that the monster wasn't so bad when he first arrived in the small hamlet of Lucifer Falls. The monster was originally a human known as Bruce Banner.
Banner arrived in the village after his plane crashed nearby. Townspeople welcomed him into their community with open arms, including a tall human named Lincoln (who Marvelites might recognize as the Missing Link). One day, a young boy from the family that whom Banner was staying with fell ill. The man presumed that Banner brought the affliction with him and that Lincoln was the first to suspect that. Banner fell into a mine shaft and transformed into the incredible Hulk. The Hulk then clashed with the Missing Link deep underground, and the battle devastated the village.
The townspeople saw Lincoln later emerge from the rubble (not knowing that the Hulk also survived the skirmish from issue #179 of his own comic) and assumed that everything would be fine. However, after a few weeks, toxic fumes began spewing from beneath the surface. The man found a Geiger counter and confirmed that the fumes were indeed radioactive. Knowing that a form of radiation had initially transformed Banner into the Hulk, the citizens thought that the radiation emanating from underground might be related to that. Soon afterward, people in Lucifer Falls began getting sick.
The Bickfords chose to stay behind, since they were some of Lincoln's closest friends. The family showed ROM the entrance to the mine shaft, and the silver Spaceknight soon flew down to see if Lincoln, the Hulk, or both beings remained down there. His respirator shielded him from the toxic fumes. When he reached the bottom, ROM's energy analyzer pinged even louder as he drew closer to the source of the threat.
ROM assumed that the bright pink being in front of him was the Hulk, when it was actually the Missing Link, whom the Bickfords had known as Lincoln. Link explained his origin and his first encounter with the Hulk. The jade giant won that battle by punching Link high into the air and forcing him to break into millions of pieces. Link was eventually reassembled and was found by the residents of Lucifer Falls. They befriended him and gave him a job working in the mines.
He went by Lincoln when Banner met him. Bruce soon used a Geiger counter to discover that the source of the radiation that was affecting townspeople came from Link himself. Bruce was a friend of Link's, but that knowledge was unknown to Banner's other half. He battled the Hulk once more, and after the Hulk escaped, Link was proclaimed the winner by citizens who were unaware that the green behemoth had departed.
Link realized that he was a monster after that encounter and chose to stay in the mine's caverns to isolate himself from others and avoid radiating them. ROM pointed out Link's imminent danger by explaining that his radiation fumes were already seeping through the upper levels and into the surface of the town. He added that if Link reached critical mass, the resulting explosion could destroy the Earth. Reinforcing his will to live, Link then attacked the Spaceknight.
ROM was caught in yet another struggle he did not want. He fought defensively until the force of the battle caused part of the mine to cave in. The Galadorian still tried to explain why his foe had to stop, but Link was too enraged to listen rationally. ROM finally aimed his neutralizer's ray at his opponent, but not before the town above them had been destroyed.
The silver Spaceknight soon made his way topside, carrying Link back to the Bickfords. Link didn't remember what had just happened, and ROM went along with the belief that the Hulk was responsible for the damage to the area. The Bickfords and Link left to forge a new life somewhere else, leaving ROM behind to ponder if he would ever meet the gamma-powered creature.
This was another good example of writer Bill Mantlo's ability to use seldom-used characters. I'd read about the Hulk's battles with the Missing Link before. He was another misunderstood character, which I don't believe has been used since. My only gripe with this issue was the often unnecessary conflict between two characters who could be helping, instead of harming, each other. Link could have been a hero, and maybe assigned to a superhero team if he were properly fleshed out and given the chance to show his capabilities.
Starshine's death was sudden, but the impact of her loss will soon be felt in more detail in upcoming issues. Her death will also impact other supporting characters, including ways that loyal readers might not have even expected or anticipated. All in all, it was another solid issue by Mantlo, Sal Buscema, and company.
Next time, I'll write about the thirtieth issue of Marvel Comics' ROM: Spaceknight. In that issue, ROM doesn't meet the Hulk, but will run into another character that old Jade Jaws has encountered before. We'll also see how the wraith menace impacts several supporting characters. Until then, have a great week and don't forget to be kind to one another.
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