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Last Updated on
Monday, July 01, 2002
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Underworld Unleashed
Synopsis | Review
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"Everyone is selfish. Everyone wants something for
himself. So long as that's the case -- and it always is -- deals go down
sweetly." |
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ISSUES: |
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3 issues, monthly, Nov. 1995-Jan. 1996. |
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WRITER(S): |
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Mark Waid. |
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ARTIST(S): |
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Howard Porter, Dennis Janke, Dan Green. |
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MAJOR HEROES: |
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Superman, Captain Marvel, most major DC heroes. |
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MAJOR VILLAINS: |
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Neron, plus his inner circle: Circe, Joker, Lex
Luthor, Dr. Polaris, and Abra Kadabra. |
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SUPPORTING CAST: |
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Satanus and Blaze, two hellish beings with their
own taste for souls; James Jesse, a.k.a. the Trickster, one of
Flash's old foes |
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THE PLOT: |
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Neron, an evil being of great power, tempts DC's
super-villains with a simple deal: their souls in exchange for
their hearts' desires. Most of them choose power, making life
difficult for the heroes who've fought them before. |
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RECOMMENDED READING: |
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None, although the Blue Devil series might
help explain his presence in this crossover. |
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WHAT IF A BEING of immense power offered you
anything your heart desired? And what if all he asked in return was your
soul?
That's the question facing DC's super-villains, who have all been
contacted by Neron, a mysterious being with the power to give them
everything they ever wanted: power, wealth, revenge.
The story begins with five of Flash's old foes -- Heat Wave, Captain
Boomerang, the Weather Wizard, Mirror Master, and Captain Cold --
setting off conflagrations in five separate areas, killing themselves in
the process. It's an event that allows Neron's plan to begin. Meanwhile,
another old Flash foe, the Trickster, is thinking about how low his life
has sunk, when he chances upon a candle that, when lit at midnight,
whisks him away to the place where Neron holds court.
Neron's offer to the assembled super-villains is simple: their
heart's desire in exchange for their souls. After some bow out, the ones
who stay aren't disappointed; their new powers are almost beyond their
wildest dreams. They head off in search of the heroes who have
humiliated them so many times before.
Meanwhile, the Trickster wonders if Neron is after more than a few
souls. He soon learns that Neron is out to torch the world and claim
every human soul possible, and if he manages to secure one perfect and
pure soul, then he will be unstoppable. Meanwhile, the heroes meet to
discuss their own encounters with the mysterious bargainer, and decide
that something must be done -- not only are super-villains getting more
powerful, but Neron's activities are encouraging riots, violence and
acts of war around the world.
While one team of heroes stay on Earth to contain the chaos created
by their super powered adversaries, another group marches into hell
itself to fight Neron on his own turf. When they get there, they
discover that only one hero, the one with the purest soul, can defeat
him... but only at a great price.
I ALWAYS GET A LITTLE UNCOMFORTABLE dealing
with stories about devils and hell. I'm not necessarily religious, it's
just that we've already seen several incarnations of "hell" in
the DC Universe. Satanus and Blaze, both supporting players in this
crossover, sit in infernal pits and deal in souls; Etrigan the Demon is
one of the major players in hell; even Neil Gaiman's Sandman has
Dream traveling to hell to confront Lucifer. All of which makes you
wonder: just exactly who the hell is in charge of hell in the DC
Universe?
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"Mark Waid has actually produced a clever story that,
though contrived, at least makes better use of a large number of
heroes than most of these crossovers."
- The Slings and Arrows Comic Guide
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All right, so let's assume than Neron is in fact the real deal, and
not, say, a clever alien, as the atheistic Luthor eventually reasons him
to be. Neron is a well-written villain, and his actions are completely
keeping in character with what we might expect from the Supreme
Bargainer. For instance, Barbara Gordon (formerly known as Batgirl)
learns that Neron cannot force anyone to do his bidding; the tempted
must willingly agree to become his thrall. He is not a physical foe,
either; his main power is his ability to give someone their heart's
desire.
Most of the crossover tie-ins are pretty good, as heroes deal with
old threats that are suddenly a lot more dangerous, or discover what
dealing with the devil is all about. As for the mini-series, the art is
all right, but the scenes in hell weren't really that frightening, and I
kept wondering why all the smoke and hellfire was tinted green (gotta
color-coordinate with the boss, I guess).
The best part of the story was the ending, in which the heroes,
although hopelessly outclassed, managed to defeat Neron by beating him
at his own game. I won't go and ruin it for you, so I'll just say that
sometimes the best way to beat the devil is to play by his rules... and
it never hurts to have a trickster to fight a trickster. |
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Adventures of Superman #530 |
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Aquaman #14 |
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Azrael #10 |
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Batman #525 |
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Catwoman #27 |
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Damage #18, 19 |
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Deathstroke #53 |
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Detective Comics #691, 692 |
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Extreme Justice # 10, 11 |
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Fate #13, 14 |
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Flash #107 |
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Green Arrow #102, 103 |
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Green Lantern #68, 69 |
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Guy Gardner: Warrior #36, 37 |
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Hawkman #26, 27 |
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Impulse #8, 9 |
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Justice League America #105, 106 |
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Justice League Task Force #30 |
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Legionnaires #32 |
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Legion of Super-Heroes #75 |
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Lobo #22 |
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Manhunter #12 |
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The New Gods #2 |
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Primal Force #13, 14 |
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The Ray #18, 19 |
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REBELS '95 #13, 14 |
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Robin #23 |
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Showcase '95 #12 |
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Spectre #35, 36, 37 |
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Starman #13 |
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Steel #21 |
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Superboy #22 |
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Superman: The Man of Tomorrow #3 |
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| Spinoffs and Related Titles |
Apokolips: Dark Uprising
(One-shot, 1995)
Neron raises hell on Apokolips, a planet where the
residents need little encouragement to show their bad sides. Darkseid is
assumed to be dead, and so the arch-tempter sets the god's underlings at
each other's throats by assuring each of them that they're destined to
succeed Darkseid as master of Apokolips. Entertaining, but it doesn't
fit anywhere into the greater storyline, and you have to wonder what's
the point. |
Batgirl: Patterns of Fear
(One-shot, 1995)
In case you didn't know, Barbara Gordon, a.k.a. Batgirl,
was shot by the Joker. Paralyzed from the waist down, she continues her
crimefighting career as Oracle, using computers and information as her
weapons. Neron offers her the chance to walk again in exchange for her
services as an archivist; she can even keep her soul, no strings
attached. Again, this story isn't closely related to the larger
storyline, but it's an interesting read, as much of it is devoted to
showing us Barbara's "files" on the new and improved
super-villains. |
Batman: Devil's Asylum
(One-shot, 1995)
On a night when there's a feeling of evil in the air, an
Arkham Asylum inmate makes a deal with the devil. Kryppen the Poisoner
lives up to his name and poisons everyone in the asylum, challenging
Batman to come save them. The madman's terms are simple: All Batman has
to do is kill one inmate, and Kryppen will give him the antidote to save
the other 200. Of course, if Batman kills, his soul is forfeit. An
entertaining look at a part of the Batman mythos, but Neron doesn't even
make an appearance; all we hear is a voice that could easily be marked
up to Kryppen's insanity. |
Abyss: Hell's Sentinel
(One-shot, 1995)
Alan Scott, the original Green Lantern, has come back to
Earth, forty years after he first fought crime. Trouble is, he's still
25, but his wife aged normally and is now forty years older than him.
When she receives a box with a candle, she makes a deal with Neron to
get her youth back, but at a terrible cost. Alan teams up with the
supernatural heroes in the DC Universe to win back her soul. The art is
stupendous, with the hell scenes particularly disturbing, and the story
works well enough on its own. |
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