Thunderbolts #69
Thunderbolts #69
Title: "Becoming Heroes 3: Green With Envy”
Writer: Fabian Nicieza
Penciller: Jean Jacques Dzialowski
Inker: Al Vey
Colors: Hi-Fi Designs
Editors: Brevoort/Lis
Crimson Cowl says that she expected more of a fight out of them. She says that one day she will stop being disappointed in the failures of others, but that for now they can savor their easy triumph and begin working on Plantman. Man-Killer/Amazon, Cyclone, Plantman/Blackheath, Cardinal/Harrier, and Songbird are trussed up or unconscious on the ground. Machinesmith says that he will prepare the lab. Plantman tells Hydroman, Black Mamba, and Machinesmith that Crimson Cowl is playing them for pawns. Hydroman tells Plantman that right now he has forty percent of the water in his body drained and asks him if he wants to make it eighty. Plantman says that his name is Blackheath now. Machinesmith says that Plantman has bought into Hawkeye’s redemption scam and to look at where it has gotten them. He says that he overrode Harrier and Songbird equipment. Black Mamba says that the best way to distract a Frenchman like Cyclone is with sex and that is just what her Darkforce powers are doing. Cowl says that as soon as she threatened to trigger the biological agent in Man-Killer’s body that she surrendered. Plantman says that is a lie and that Cowl can’t do that. Cowl says that Man-Killer didn’t know that. She says that only Plantman can do it alone, but that they can do it together. Plantman asks her what that will gain her. He asks if she will raise a superhuman army to steal money and conquer the world. Blackheath says that he isn’t interested in that anymore. He asks her why she needs that since she is already wealthy. Cowl says that her father was Justin Hammer, but that it wasn’t the luxury that he might think it would be. She says that he demanded more from her, to earn her keep, and prove she deserved to be among the elite. She says that is why she became the Cowl and formed the Masters of Evil to succeed where he failed… by using superhumans to accumulate wealth and influence the world. She says that when he died that she inherited the wealth that he denied her, but that she still plans to fulfill his lofty expectations. She says that he is going to help her do it. Blackheath passes out. She asks if he rotting and says that is “utterly disgusted”. She asks if anyone knows what is happening to Mr. Smithers.
Blackheath is currently on another plane of existence. He was there once before briefly when he first started to change, but at the time he was overwhelmed and unable to comprehend what he had become. He retreated then to the safety of reality, but now under severe trauma he has returned. Sam Smithers feels the pool of life calling out to him as he swims through it as if welcoming him to the verdant fields. Suddenly Smithers see how this all came about. He sees scientists experimenting on his brother and sister vegetation. He sees Justin Hammer overseeing it all. One by one the toxin was spread to each and every supervillain that Hammer hired, but the plan was flawed since Hammer had no way to activate the toxin. Hammer proceeded anyway since he knew he would find one eventually. Plantman became that trigger. The verdant fields show Smithers how to activate the toxin. Right now, Smithers could wipe out all of mankind and make the world the paradise that it was meant to be.
Cowl asks what happened to Plantman, but Hydroman doesn’t know. She says that he is catatonic. Cowl tells them to take Smithers to the lab where Machinesmith can begin his work. Black Mamba asks about the Thunderbolts. Cowl tells her to inform her when they awaken and perhaps they can convince them to change their minds. The door closes and Songbird asks if they are all gone. Amazon mumbles something and Songbird says that she was faking it. She says that she woke up while Cowl was disappointed with them. She says that Hawkeye’s motto is that it is “easier to bust heads from the inside”. Songbird asks where Skein is as she takes off Amazon’s gag. Amazon says that she saw her running away. Songbird says that she guesses that not everyone can handle the pressure. Amazon says that maybe she was the smart one. She says that with all of them having the poison in their bodies that maybe they should just go along with Cowl. Songbird just looks at her and then goes to check on Harrier and Cyclone. Man-Killer says that the self-righteous idiot is going to get them all killed. Cyclone asks about Hawkeye and Harrier says that Machinesmith made him drop Hawkeye into the river before ramming him into the ground. Harrier says that they can’t beat them. Songbird says that they have to get out of there quietly. Cyclone says that she and Harrier are out of commission, and that he and Amazon aren’t designed for subtlety. Songbird says that they need surprise and that Cowl doesn’t know that she can use her harmonics in higher octave range’s again.
Hydroman and Black Mamba’s ears begin to itch.
Machinesmith says that Plantman’s body has drastically evolved. He says that he is more vegetative matter than human organics. Machinesmith begins to theorize that it was the people that Plantman was mutating when he last fought Spider-Man that did it when Cowl cuts him off and says that she doesn’t care. She tells him to just find the way to activate the toxins even if it means he is performing an autopsy.
In the verdant fields, Blackheath knows what they are doing to him. He thinks that it doesn’t matter. He already knows what to do… he just isn’t sure if he should do it. He looks down at the graves of his mother and father. He thinks about how he was a gardener, but that he was never educated enough to be a botanist. He thinks about how he always wanted to part of something bigger, better, and to be able to make things grow. He thinks about what a fool he was. Ridiculous costume after ridiculous costume and beating after beating. He wonders why he wasted so much potential. “Plantman” appears to Sam Smithers in the worst costume of them all and says that it was because he didn’t know how to do anything else. Smithers asks if the Verdant Fields are playing a mind game with him now. It says that it is no game, but that it is what he needs to open his eyes. It holds up two strains. One strain will activate the toxin and destroy humanity, and the other will activate the antidote… save mankind, but with the knowledge that the meat in their arrogance will eventually destroy the Verdant Green. Plantman reaches out and activates the antidote. The Verdant Green says, “Congratulations, you just made the hard choice… you’ll spend every day of your life paying for it…”
Plantman starts emitting a strange pollen.
Machinesmith says that his sensors are detecting a bioelectric
surge outside. He says that the hyacinth bloom along the River
Ryork is spreading the pollen through the whole region. He says
that he pollen will negate the toxin inside anyone that was
infected with it. Suddenly the bursts in with a load of water
carrying Black Mamba. 
Amazon, Harrier,
and Cyclone stand beside Songbird as she says, “You did want
to know when we woke up, right?” She tells them to get away
from Blackheath. Cyclone says that she thinks that it is too
late. Songbird grabs Cowl and says, “You killed him?”
Cowl stammers that she thinks that he did it to himself.
Machinesmith asks what they are going to do about it. Suddenly
Justine’s cowl fills up Machinesmith’s mouth and wraps
around his entire body. Justine is standing there naked as the
day she was born. Skein says that she was running away when she
wondered what she was so afraid of. She says that she controls
fabric and that “her stupid name is the Crimson Cowl!”
Songbird compliments Skein, but says that they have to help
Blackheath. Cyclone suggests watering him, but suddenly the
agents of SHIELD, including Dum Dum Dugan show up and tell them
to back away. Dum Dum says that Plantman is coming with them.
On the River Ryork, along the Latveria border, a little girl with a bucket comes across an unconscious Hawkeye. She says, “Oh $#!^-- not again!”
Traitor’s rating: 6.5 out of 10
Cowl’s identity is still disappointing, but it doesn’t detract from the issue. Plantman’s realizations of his foolish path makes his redemption seem like a good solid idea. He makes himself the hero, whereas I’m hoping that Man-Killer will revert to form now that the toxin is out of her body. One has to wonder what will be going on, on our Earth, until the storyline wraps up sown the line. Dzialowski does an okay job with the book. The appearance makes me wonder how responsible Al Vey is for Zircher’s look. It’s a good appearance, but some of Dzialowski’s human forms are a little out there.