A Solider, A Man, and a Monster: Damage Appreciation Thread

[GreenScar1990]

A soldier...

A man...

A monster...


Ethan “Elvis” Avery just wanted to serve his country. Instead, he’s been changed into a monster!

Tasked as the government’s own living, breathing, ticking time bomb, Ethan retains no control when the monster takes over. Cheaper than a nuclear warhead and twice as effective, Ethan fights to rein in the damage he unleashes when the beast inside him springs free for one hour a day. With everyone around him in danger, Ethan struggles to contain the DAMAGE he inflicts on the DC Universe.

[GreenScar1990]

Damage #1 - First Look


http://www.comicosity.com/first-look...ampaign=buffer

[GreenScar1990]

Damage #2 - February 2018 Solicitation



Damage can smash his way through a warzone, but can he smash his way through the Suicide Squad? Colonel Jonas takes on Amanda Waller in a race to see who can get to Damage first. And while Waller sends Harley Quinn, Deadshot, Parasite and Giganta to capture Damage by any means necessary, Colonel Jonas has her own wicked plan in play…

[GreenScar1990]

Damage #3 - March 2018 Solicitation


Even the unstoppable power of Wonder Woman herself is tested by the destructive might of the monster unleashed from Ethan Avery’s transformation into Damage! But when the Amazon Princess wraps the brutal beast in her Lasso of Truth, it reveals more than either expected to find!

[Robotman]

I’m really looking forward to this book. Marvel hasn’t produced a good Hulk book in years so hopefully this can fill the void. Actually the last great “Hulk” book was OMAC. That comic brilliantly captured the fun Silver Age Lee-Kirby vibe. I’m fascinated by Damage as it’s kind of a “What If” the super soldier serum turned Steve Rogers into the Hulk. Plus it looks like they’re gonna pit Damage against some of the heavy hitters of the DCU right away. Damage vs Grundy is worthy the price of admission. If that wasn’t good enough he goes head to head with Wonder Woman after that. There probably won’t be another Marvel/DC crossover in our lifetime as Disney and WB wouldn’t let their properties interact with one another. So this will have to do for now.

This also kind of reminds me of the Scott Snyder Superman story Unchained. Where the US military had a crazy powerful alien that they would unleash as a weapon of mass destruction.

[GreenScar1990]

I’m really looking forward to this book. Marvel hasn’t produced a good Hulk book in years so hopefully this can fill the void. Actually the last great “Hulk” book was OMAC. That comic brilliantly captured the fun Silver Age Lee-Kirby vibe. I’m fascinated by Damage as it’s kind of a “What If” the super soldier serum turned Steve Rogers into the Hulk. Plus it looks like they’re gonna pit Damage against some of the heavy hitters of the DCU right away. Damage vs Grundy is worthy the price of admission. If that wasn’t good enough he goes head to head with Wonder Woman after that. There probably won’t be another Marvel/DC crossover in our lifetime as Disney and WB wouldn’t let their properties interact with one another. So this will have to do for now.

This also kind of reminds me of the Scott Snyder Superman story Unchained. Where the US military had a crazy powerful alien that they would unleash as a weapon of mass destruction.

The last, true Hulk comic I enjoyed was Greg Pak's Heart of the Monster arch and the brief Savage Hulk mini-series. So, yeah, it's been a very rough 7 years for us Hulk fans, as we've been given some pretty mediocre Hulk comics that haven't lived up to the potential. Good thing we'll be getting Damage until Hulk makes his return in March and hopefully into a new ongoing.

Also, Damage isn't just fighting Grundy, he's fighting the whole Suicide Squad. And not only will be be fighting Wonder Woman, but Damage is so powerful he'll be taking on the entire Justice League single-handily as revealed by Tony Daniel and Geoff Johns. I'm really looking forward to this series, especially where it will go with the duality of Ethan Avery and Damage. And I cannot help but wonder if what will happen if Damage is able to remain longer than a mere hour and actually take control?

And the character you're referring to from Superman: Unchained is Wraith. He was a cool, powerful new character that I really liked. I hope he gets brought back sometime in the future.

[Robotman]

Well, he’ll take on the Justice League until Superman swoops in and flattens him.

[GreenScar1990]

Well, he’ll take on the Justice League until Superman swoops in and flattens him.

I doubt it. If Damage is the powerhouse I expect him to be, which is on par with Hulk and Doomsday, it's gonna take Superman and the entire Justice League just to try to stalemate/hold him off.

[HandofPrometheus]

This reminds me of the old time comics where each issue the new character would interact with the more polular ones. Got no problem with that though. This looks good.

[Korath]

I think that Damage is probably the only one of the new Dark matter books to benefit from early on interaction with more popular D.C. characters, save perhaps the Silencer, because his whole premise is that he is the ultimate weapon for the U.S. Government when metahumans becomes threatening. In that regard, it makes sense to pit him early on against Wonder Woman or even Superman, it'll help the reader knows where he stands in term of power-level. The one-hour limit is also great because it kind of allows the creators to run wild. Yeah, Damage may be stronger than Superman for an hour, but it's only for an hour (which remind me a little of the Gotham siblings at the beginning of King's run, where Gotham was able to beat the **** out of the whole Justice League in seconds/minutes, at the cost of his life... which makes me wonder if the siblings are related to Metal and Dark matter in some way).

[GreenScar1990]

This reminds me of the old time comics where each issue the new character would interact with the more polular ones. Got no problem with that though. This looks good.

Agreed. It looks incredible! Cannot wait to pick up the first issue of the series! I just hope that it will have a long and successful run.

I think that Damage is probably the only one of the new Dark matter books to benefit from early on interaction with more popular D.C. characters, save perhaps the Silencer, because his whole premise is that he is the ultimate weapon for the U.S. Government when metahumans becomes threatening. In that regard, it makes sense to pit him early on against Wonder Woman or even Superman, it'll help the reader knows where he stands in term of power-level. The one-hour limit is also great because it kind of allows the creators to run wild. Yeah, Damage may be stronger than Superman for an hour, but it's only for an hour (which remind me a little of the Gotham siblings at the beginning of King's run, where Gotham was able to beat the **** out of the whole Justice League in seconds/minutes, at the cost of his life... which makes me wonder if the siblings are related to Metal and Dark matter in some way).

Most definitely. It's just a matter if Superman and the Justice League can keep on fighting Damage for an entire hour before he lays waste to them and causes massive destruction. And an equally scary thought is what happens if the one-hour limit ends up being 24/7?

It'll definitely be interesting to see how so many powerful heroes will be able to contend with such a powerful, destructive, rampaging behemoth like Damage.

[Robotman]

The preview shows that the military has contingency plans if they lose control of Damage. The “Hulk-buster” armor is ready to go in case of emergency. The soldier we see in the preview could be DC’s version of War Machine.

Most definitely. It's just a matter if Superman and the Justice League can keep on fighting Damage for an entire hour before he lays waste to them and causes massive destruction. And an equally scary thought is what happens if the one-hour limit ends up being 24/7?

It'll definitely be interesting to see how so many powerful heroes will be able to contend with such a powerful, destructive, rampaging behemoth like Damage.

Even though, I’m assuming, Damage has Hulk level strength, there’s no way he should be able to beat Superman. Yes, he can match him in the strength department but Supes also has heat vision, super senses, can fly into space, and most importantly can move faster than a speeding bullet. He should be able to hit Damage (and The Hulk) a hundred times before he can blink. Or just fly him into space at super speed and toss him into the sun. The only reason the Hulk could ever stand a chance is the fact that he gets stronger the more mad he gets. So presumably he’d get stronger as the fight went on. Not sure if Damage has that ability. If strength is his only power than Superman should be able to beat him. Though writers do handicap Superman by making him forget he has all of his abilities. It will be interesting to see if the writers make it so Damage’s strength increases as the hour goes on. They could also make it so that he loses more control (or eventually gains control) every minute. Lots of fun little tweaks can be made as his story goes on.

I’m more interested in Damage’s transformation process. We know that Ethan can change into Damage one hour each day. The synopsis states that he’s a “ticking time bomb” which could indicate that he has limited control over when he transforms. Which would make his life a living hell not knowing when he’ll turn into an uncontrollable monster with the power to level a city. In the preview he clearly has changed into Damage before the military was ready to deploy him.

We also see that he’s chained up. So is he basically a soldier turned prisoner? They keep poor Ethan restrained until they need Damage? That’s a pretty horrible existence.

This reminds me of the old time comics where each issue the new character would interact with the more polular ones. Got no problem with that though. This looks good.

Again pulling a page from the Lee/Kirby Hulk. They pit Hulk against all the other powerhouses of the Marvel universe. It’s what made the book so much fun.

[GreenScar1990]

The preview shows that the military has contingency plans if they lose control of Damage. The “Hulk-buster” armor is ready to go in case of emergency. The soldier we see in the preview could be DC’s version of War Machine.



Even though, I’m assuming, Damage has Hulk level strength, there’s no way he should be able to beat Superman. Yes, he can match him in the strength department but Supes also has heat vision, super senses, can fly into space, and most importantly can move faster than a speeding bullet. He should be able to hit Damage (and The Hulk) a hundred times before he can blink. Or just fly him into space at super speed and toss him into the sun. The only reason the Hulk could ever stand a chance is the fact that he gets stronger the more mad he gets. So presumably he’d get stronger as the fight went on. Not sure if Damage has that ability. If strength is his only power than Superman should be able to beat him. Though writers do handicap Superman by making him forget he has all of his abilities. It will be interesting to see if the writers make it so Damage’s strength increases as the hour goes on. They could also make it so that he loses more control (or eventually gains control) every minute. Lots of fun little tweaks can be made as his story goes on.

I’m more interested in Damage’s transformation process. We know that Ethan can change into Damage one hour each day. The synopsis states that he’s a “ticking time bomb” which could indicate that he has limited control over when he transforms. Which would make his life a living hell not knowing when he’ll turn into an uncontrollable monster with the power to level a city. In the preview he clearly has changed into Damage before the military was ready to deploy him.

We also see that he’s chained up. So is he basically a soldier turned prisoner? They keep poor Ethan restrained until they need Damage? That’s a pretty horrible existence.

I believe you are confusing versatility/more powers for being more powerful. Having more powers/versatility can be a good thing. However, that does not make one superior or more powerful, especially if your opponent/enemy who has less versatility/powers can take everything you dish out and keeps coming at you for more and can also overwhelm you with what he's got.

Besides that, powerhouses like Hulk, Damage and Doomsday are equally fast in not only speed but also senses/reflexes, easily enabling them to match and keep up with the fastest of heroes/villains. Plus, let's not forget their nigh-invulnerability, regeneration/adaptation, and overwhelming power/strength. And if Damage is anything like Hulk or Doomsday, or shares traits that they also have, he should have no trouble being able to match or even overwhelm Superman and the Justice League in a fight.

That's my two cents in it. Feel free to agree, disagree, or agree to disagree. It matters not.

But I must agree that I am interested in the transformation process of Damage/Ethan, as well if there is anything psychological involved like Jekyll & Hyde or Banner & Hulk. Not to mention what triggers it. And I like that there may be a tragic hero story in this as well.

[Robotman]

I believe you are confusing versatility/more powers for being more powerful. Having more powers/versatility can be a good thing. However, that does not make one superior or more powerful, especially if your opponent/enemy who has less versatility/powers can take everything you dish out and keeps coming at you for more and can also overwhelm you with what he's got.

Besides that, powerhouses like Hulk, Damage and Doomsday are equally fast in not only speed but also senses/reflexes, easily enabling them to match and keep up with the fastest of heroes/villains. Plus, let's not forget their nigh-invulnerability, regeneration/adaptation, and overwhelming power/strength. And if Damage is anything like Hulk or Doomsday, or shares traits that they also have, he should have no trouble being able to match or even overwhelm Superman and the Justice League in a fight.

That's my two cents in it. Feel free to agree, disagree, or agree to disagree. It matters not.

But I must agree that I am interested in the transformation process of Damage/Ethan, as well if there is anything psychological involved like Jekyll & Hyde or Banner & Hulk. Not to mention what triggers it. And I like that there may be a tragic hero story in this as well.

I don’t think that argument will ever be resolved.

As far as the psychological aspect. In the preview there is clearly a voice in Ethan’s head telling him to let the monster out. So there does seem to be a Jekyll and Hyde situation happening. The preview states that he’s a ticking time bomb meaning that he has little control over when he changes. But it seems like it’s a control issue. As the voice in his head (Damage) was telling him to let loose.

Btw, Greenscar have you read the New 52 OMAC? It’s a brilliant take on the Silver Age Hulk.

[GreenScar1990]

Damage #1 hits the shelves next week! Who's looking forward to this series? I know I definitely am!