DOMINO #3 Discussion/Spoiler Thread: Celebrating Being a Rotten Friend
...y'know what, I don't have a clever, snarky intro like I usually aim for. I'm just...too happy this book exists to be a dick about everything.
Is this how joy feels? It's unusual.
[B]Spoiler Summary:[/b]
[spoil]From the preview pages: left reeling by the bomb blast that might've just killed her friends, Domino's buried memories float to the surface again. She's a child, locked up in a lab in Florida, confronted by scientists with phoney smiles and false generosity. They want her to demonstrate her powers; she can't. She wants to know what happened to the other kids here; they won't say. One of the techs - Dr. Rossini - applies a taser to Neena, but she grits her teeth and does nothing, so they leave, but not before the other tech - Dr. Corando - opens the box that's been provoking his allergies, and leaves behind a cat. Neena calls it 'Christmas' despite not knowing what that is.
Back in the present, Domino forces herself up, takes another look at what used to be a boat, and gets very, very angry. Topaz and her elderly companion are still on the cruise ship, and Domino chases them down, forgoing her guns in favour of hand-to-hand. This actually works at first, and in a moment to breathe Topaz half-explains why she hates Domino so much, before she uses her power-warping, uh...powers, and the sudden agony of her mutation exceeding her body's limits paralyzes Neena. Topaz toys with her more, wondering who or what she can tear out of Neena's life next, before she and her partner teleport away. Domino sits in shock for a moment...then Outlaw, Diamondback, Cho and Adelbert reappear, soaked but unhurt. Professionalism be damned, Domino hugs them.
Later: Cho explains what happened. Just before the bomb went off, Diamondback...noticed it and warned everyone, giving Cho enough time to Hulk up and pull everyone down underwater. The timing struck Cho as suspicious, though, and argues with Domino about her possibly being a traitor. Domino explains the first time she met Rachel, where she was hired as extra security for some old fart's antique collection. Diamondback snuck in that night, and Domino was so impressed (and so bored of her actual job) she offered a team-up instead of a fight. Shifting topics, Cho says he can't find a technological work-around for Topaz screwing with Neena's powers, and the best option would be for Domino to get a better handle on them and how she controls them - and he might know someone who could help. That means a trip to Hong Kong, alone. Domino lies to Outlaw and Diamondback rather than explain why she has to go alone. It's not very convincing.
More flashback! Kid Neena (and Christmas) gets dragged away from an ominous vault marked 'Prototype' for another session with the doctors. This time they threaten to tase the cat, insisting that Neena can only save Christmas by forcing the taser to malfunction. Instead, Dr. Corando sneezes, drops the cat, and accidentally plants his forehead on the taser, getting knocked right out. Dr. Rossini demands Neena be taken in for branding, and insists it goes on her face, so she'll never forget what happened here.
Hong Kong, Lantau Island: Domino follows a long dirt road to a solitary wooden house, surrounded by rejects from various fighting games. They insist she must wait to see 'the master', and get violent when Domino tries to queue-jump. They regret this decision, painfully. The noise brings out 'the master', and Neena makes a suddenly ham-fisted explanation, but Shang-Chi (for it is of course he) reluctantly agrees, sensing the spiritual trauma within Neena. She's delighted, meanwhile, 'cause nobody ever drew Shang-Chi this hot before.[/spoil]
Initial Thoughts:
- Yes, that was...a very long 'summary'. Couldn't be helped, this was a busy issue.
- While David Baldéon remains the main artist for the series, Anthony Piper handled the periodic flashbacks with Kid Neena. His is a much less busy style, with simpler, 'cleaner' lines, which does make those events almost seem to be happening in slow motion by comparison, although some of the faces seem more stretched than I've seen from Piper's work before - maybe an effort to hew closer to Baldéon's work?
- Oh hey there, Domino's costume from the 2003 miniseries. AND a mention of [b][MILD SPOILER FOR CHARACTER THAT HASN'T BEEN ACKNOWLEDGED IN LIKE 15 YEARS][/b]? My cup runneth over.
- The early Dom/Topaz throwdown is vicious in a way that feels far more real than most rival battles in comics. There's no posturing, no witticisms, no heavy-handed attempt at symmetry or illustrative opposites; it's just bitterness boiled over, carried by ugly threats and Baldéon's unsurpassed ability to draw pissed-off faces.
- The letters page has a photo of someone's guinea pig that has a Domino spot. So you're also getting that, which is just good value for money.
Continue with your nonsense.
