IT CAME FROM THE QUARTER BIN: SPITFIRE AND THE TROUBLESHOOTERS #4

**MattBrady** · 08-10-2006, 10:31 AM

by Ryan McLelland

Spitfire and the Troubleshooters! #4
Marvel Comics
January 1987

Written by: Gerry Conway
Pencils by: Todd MacFarlane
Inks by: Bob McLeod

Iron Man. X-O Manowar. Zoom Suit. PANSIES! What makes them so great other then cool armored suits that let them beat up bad guys? NOTHING! What the drunk, the barbarian, and the little kid don’t have is a hottie red head behind the wheel of her own flying suit. That’s how Spitfire helped buck the status quo back in 1986 – just one of the eight New Universe titles launched with not-so-great success. This fanboy has always loved the New Universe and with the new stories recently released along with Warren Ellis’s new take on the horizon maybe its time for you, like me, to pick up some old books like Spitfire #4 to find out what the whole Marvel experiment was all about.

Look up in the sky. It’s not a bird, not a plane, it’s the red armored M.A.X. II armor flown by super hottie Jenny Swanson! ‘Spitfire’ soars through the sky towards Washington D.C. where the robot is addressing a congressional committee on engineering. Wow, this sounds like a really fun comic already! As Spitfire lands on the steps I half expected the comic to perk up with a ‘I'm just a bill, yes I am only a bill and I am sitting here on Capitol Hill’ song but the only excitement are some stupid cops who point their pistols at Spitfire talking it to “HALT!” The robot throws its arms up in disgust and says, “Are you kidding me?” Are you kidding me indeed! I sat through all those boring Star Wars senate scenes, do I really have to sit through another one in a comic book?

The congressional hearing is full underway when Spitfire is walked into the courtroom to testify on what really happened that dark stormy night at Krotze International. The congressional delegation scoffs at the machine because how the heck do you swear in a robot? Of course Spitfire is not just a robot and, as the head tilts back, out pops mega-luscious Jenny in a black skintight outfit that is very appropriate for testifying. While Jenny testifies on stealing the suit of armor she’s currently flying a madman walks around his apartment shirtless with camouflage pants and a lead pipe watches the proceedings on the television.

It seems this man, the evil Steel Hawk, has kidnapped Krotze himself and his holding the man hostage in his crappy apartment. Having grown excited with the prospect of taking the redhead and her robot down the man decides he no longer needs his captive and goes all Robert DeNiro/Al Capone on him, whacking him until the red blood on the wall looks like a lovely Jackson Pollock.

Two nights later Spitfire is back at MIT where her and her Troubleshooters reside. They are attending a function that is about to be ruined by Steel Hawk and his homemade bomb. Luckily one of the Troubleshooters finds the device and Spitfire flies off with it, destroying it before it goes off. Steel Hawk then jumps into action and the fight is on with the well armed baddie firing everything he can at Jenny’s suit-o-armor. The fight is actually very well balanced and actually has Steel Hawk winning and decimating the robot. It’s a near fight to the death for five pages until Steel Hawk gets clumsy allowing Jenny to get the upper hand. Even with a broken leg Steel Hawk escapes, knowing he’s beaten and Jenny, with her destroyed suit of armor, is heralded as a hero until the cops show up to arrest her for the death of one Fritz Krotze, who just happened to wash up in the river two days after Jenny said she’d love to kill him right on national television.

Though I poke fun at this book I have nothing but love for this book written by the legendary Gerry Conway, a man who has written some of the best comics of all time and created some little known comic character called The Punisher. The man who killed off Gwen Stacy is paired here with a very young Todd McFarlane who instantly showed back in 1986 that his art style was going to take him places. This, however, is the only issue Todd penciled of the series, this during a time when he was doing some great fill-in work left and right (remember his G.I. Joe issue?) This issue, as did the series, showed some very great promise but was cancelled a little less than a year later and Spitfire went from being a super redheaded hottie to some ugly steel skinned girl. How? Well dig into the bins to find all the New Universe comics you can to find out, especially when you can find them for one shiny quarter.

rroch · 08-10-2006, 10:48 AM

Some of these New Universe Comics had great potential, the best title for me was Justice.

BradyKiller · 08-10-2006, 12:05 PM

What was the issue number of GI Joe that McFarlane drew?

I remember it being awesome...back when he was living in Vancouver, just before he took over Hulk.

jagtech13 · 08-10-2006, 12:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BradyKiller

What was the issue number of GI Joe that McFarlane drew?

I remember it being awesome...back when he was living in Vancouver, just before he took over Hulk.

I believe the GI Joe issue was #61 or 64. If you hit the bins, look for one where General Hawk is fighting the Dreadnok Zanzibar (eye patch, pony tail, dumb ass toy which was supposed to be a water skimmer...). I have the issue somewhere, but for some dumb@$$ reason I never entered it into my comic database program I wrote. Oh well, something to play with once I have free time. Now back to work for me.

kalorama · 08-10-2006, 01:03 PM

Never read this book (ar any of the New Universe other than Star Brand). But I had to note the reference to "the legendary Gerry Conway." I think Conway is really one of the underrated writers of his era. To this day he's still one of my favorite ever Batman writers.

Mercury · 08-10-2006, 03:02 PM

the artwork on that cover is actually very nice, very vibrant.

Son of Satan · 08-10-2006, 03:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BradyKiller

What was the issue number of GI Joe that McFarlane drew?

#60. Definitely #60.

~G.

Kintoun · 08-10-2006, 05:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Son of Satan

#60. Definitely #60.

~G.

That's correct but a special was also published in early 1995 two months after G.I. Joe issue 155 was available. According to the YoJoe web site, It reprints issue #60 of the regular comic, but with new artwork by Todd McFarlane. Unfortunately, I don't own a copy so I'm unsure what that claim means exactly.

Doowhaadiddy · 08-10-2006, 05:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kalorama

Never read this book (ar any of the New Universe other than Star Brand). But I had to not the reference to "the legendary Gerry Conway." I think Conway is really one of the underrated writers of his era. To this day he's still one of my favorite ever Batman writers.

AND... one of the best Spider-Man writers EVER!!!
What is he doing now? Is he considered too old school to be invited back for current work or is he too busy elsewhere. I would love to see him on Spider-Man again.

Son of Satan · 08-10-2006, 05:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Doowhaadiddy

AND... one of the best Spider-Man writers EVER!!!
What is he doing now? Is he considered too old school to be invited back for current work or is he too busy elsewhere. I would love to see him on Spider-Man again.

You can see what he's been doing at the Internet Movie Database:

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0176689/

He's producer and writer on one of the Law & Order series running, and has a lot of Hollywood credits besides.

~G.

Kolimar · 08-10-2006, 06:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MattBrady

by Ryan McLelland

Spitfire and the Troubleshooters! #4
Marvel Comics
January 1987

Written by: Gerry Conway
Pencils by: Todd MacFarlane
Inks by: Bob McLeod

Sounds like a nice bit of fun worth the quarter.

hulk-13 · 08-10-2006, 07:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mercury

the artwork on that cover is actually very nice, very vibrant.

Actually, that was a Steve Geiger cover. It looks very similar, though. Geiger did a lot of covers over McFarlane interior pencils in those days, until Todd got Amazing Spider-Man.

Brian

Kolimar · 08-10-2006, 08:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Son of Satan

You can see what he's been doing at the Internet Movie Database:

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0176689/

He's producer and writer on one of the Law & Order series running, and has a lot of Hollywood credits besides.

~G.

Comic book creators and their work in other fields. What do you think?

Alextron · 08-10-2006, 08:58 PM

This is the issue that Todd says he drew in THREE DAYS! 'he had 5 days, he did it in three.' I bought it back for a dollar, silly me. However, I like getting all of Todd's stuff. I'm a freak for his work. Now, he can't drawa comic in THREE YEARS!

Very well done for thre day book.

arthur pendragon · 08-11-2006, 03:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mercury

the artwork on that cover is actually very nice, very vibrant.

Not me! I'll take generic, indistinguishable, modern pose covers over exciting covers of yesteryear any day!

Juisarian · 08-12-2006, 10:58 AM

Loved the concept. A bunch of college science nerds in over their heads vs international industrial terrorists, but with plenty of hi-tech weapons to back them up. Great giant flying robot suit fun!

I seem to recall it all ended badly for MAX around issue 10 or something... anyone remember? I only owned a few issues. I imagine they were going to bring it (the suit) back but the series got cancelled before that could happen?