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  1. #1
    Uncanny Member MajorHoy's Avatar
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    Default Diamondback (Rachel Leighton) Appreciation (2019)

    First Appearance: Captain America #310 (October 1985)
    as a member of the Serpent Society:




    from The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe Deluxe Edition Vol. 2 No. 3 (February 1986)


    from The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe Master Edition No. 3 (February, 1991)

  2. #2
    Extraordinary Member Witchfan's Avatar
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    Another fan of Diamondback here. She is my fifth favorite character in the Marvel Universe. I have collected all of her appearances. I enjoy her presence in the Domino series.

  3. #3
    Kinky Lil' Canine Snoop Dogg's Avatar
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    I have a laser blaster. With it, we shall delete Sharon from the timestream and let Rachel take her rightful place.
    I don't blind date I make the direct market vibrate

  4. #4
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    Rachel has always been my favourite of Steve Rogers' love interests (although I do enjoy both Carter women, and Bernie Rosenthal), but the great thing is that she functions just fine as a character independent of her connection to Cap. Her storyline in THE INITIATIVE and the relationship that she developed with Constrictor there was fantastic, and I am loving her role in DOMINO as well.

    I just wonder where the notion of Rachel as "a bit of a snob" in DOMINO came from though. Looking back at Rachel's background, she doesn't really strike me as the type to be snobby, given the rough neighbourhood she came from.

  5. #5
    Mighty Member capandkirby's Avatar
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    Oh, I love Rachel. Always have. I started reading Cap with Gruenwald, so I admit I'm nostalgic for her over Steve's other girlfriends (though I do love all of them - Steve's got great taste). I got irritated at Brubaker, then Spencer, for treating her so shabbily. Loved Domino though. Thank god for Gail Simone. Although I agree the 'bit of a snob' thing is off-putting. And did she need to mention it every other issue? We get it. We got it the first time.

  6. #6
    Extraordinary Member Witchfan's Avatar
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    I hope that Rachel discovers that she has a mutant power and then joins the X-Men.

  7. #7
    Astonishing Member Thirteen's Avatar
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    My appreciation of Diamondback started back in the Gruenwald/Dwyer run in Captain America where she developed from a bad girl ( later to become a B.A.D.Girl!) into Cap’s action gal girlfriend. That leg of her story took a lot of melodramatic twists that hurt Rachel As a viable character.

    (Gotta love the corner box with the cartoony broken hearts)


    I’m curious about Gail Simone’s take on her for the new Domino and the Gals title. From Simone’s post on Twitter - characterizing her as “thinking herself the adult of the group”and then the limited exposure I’ve had to the current version .... she seems a bit Emma Frosty which is a voice that I’m not used to for the usually salt of the earth gal. But I’m still watching...

    https://mobile.twitter.com/gailsimon...34663934464005

    Last edited by Thirteen; 01-31-2019 at 08:12 AM.

  8. #8
    Kinky Lil' Canine Snoop Dogg's Avatar
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    The Domino take is a pretty natural evolution from where Nick left her in Captain America. Instead of going back to the usual acrobat superhero role, she picks herself up in a different way and becomes super successful. Don't know if it's intentional since Spencer left it pretty open for any kind of take, but it works well.
    I don't blind date I make the direct market vibrate

  9. #9
    Mighty Member capandkirby's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Snoop Dogg View Post
    The Domino take is a pretty natural evolution from where Nick left her in Captain America. Instead of going back to the usual acrobat superhero role, she picks herself up in a different way and becomes super successful. Don't know if it's intentional since Spencer left it pretty open for any kind of take, but it works well.
    I am still angry at Spencer for what he did to her. ANY take would have been an improvement over his.

  10. #10
    Moderator Nyssane's Avatar
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    Gail Simone's characterization of Diamondback seemed kind of off to me, personally. I never took her as someone being haughty, but here she is, ending her sentences with "darling" and whatnot.

  11. #11
    Kinky Lil' Canine Snoop Dogg's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by capandkirby View Post
    I am still angry at Spencer for what he did to her. ANY take would have been an improvement over his.
    All he did was use her Initiative storyline to explain her time in Limbo and set her up with a fresh start for the next writer.
    I don't blind date I make the direct market vibrate

  12. #12
    Uncanny Member MajorHoy's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Witchfan View Post
    I hope that Rachel discovers that she has a mutant power and then joins the X-Men.
    No, please not that.

    Don't we have too many mutants / X-Things running around at Marvel as it is?

  13. #13
    Mighty Member capandkirby's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Snoop Dogg View Post
    All he did was use her Initiative storyline to explain her time in Limbo and set her up with a fresh start for the next writer.
    By having her stripping for a living and returning to crime? All the more harsh of a reality for Rachel, in-particular, considering her background of a) being a rape victim b) being a victim of sexual harassment (by that Avengers' pilot dude, who was harassing Steve's girlfriend behind Steve's back) and b) the great lengths and trauma it took her to escape the Serpent Society the first time, nearly costing her her life on several occasions. She actually had a death sentence over her head by them at one point.

    I mean, I know you like Spencer, and that's your prerogative, of course it is, but I can't stand the guy and for more reasons than one. And that's very unlikely to ever change.

    The way he had Sam outing Dennis Dunphy was EXTREMELY insensitive. And several members of the lgbt community spoke up about that, as well, angry over Spencer's callousness.

    Honestly if I never see Spencer near ANY Cap character ever again it will be too soon.

  14. #14

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    Quote Originally Posted by capandkirby View Post
    By having her stripping for a living and returning to crime?
    the first time that I saw Diamondback, I thought that she was a stripper. and I was wondering why Steve Rogers was with a stripper. don't pretend that Spencer stripped Rachel of her dignity. her entire story is that she doesn't feel worthy of Captain America. and she's always walked the line between hero and villain. the BAD Girls were mercenaries. her love interest used to partner with Sabretooth and work for Helmut Zemo. she's not the Madonna. if you're a diamondback fan, why not like all of her?

    and it's a new century. no one should have to pretend to be straight. I saw no problem with Spencer's treatment of Dennis. he has treated him more fairly than any of the writers who wrote him as a homeless crazy person.

  15. #15
    Mighty Member capandkirby's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Michael Watkins View Post
    the first time that I saw Diamondback, I thought that she was a stripper.
    The first appearance of Rachel had her working as an active member of the Serpent Society. She was with Asp and Black Mamba. If you thought she was a stripper that was a you thing, not a Gruenwald thing.

    ...and I was wondering why Steve Rogers was with a stripper. don't pretend that Spencer stripped Rachel of her dignity.
    I not only CAN think that Spencer robbed her of her dignity. I DO think Spencer robbed her of her dignity. And I will CONTINUE to think that Spencer robbed her of her dignity. And your say in that is zero. I don't need you telling me how I should think, thank you. I am not that easily swayed.

    ...her entire story is that she doesn't feel worthy of Captain America. and she's always walked the line between hero and villain. the BAD Girls were mercenaries. her love interest used to partner with Sabretooth and work for Helmut Zemo. she's not the Madonna.
    She was also a member of SHIELD.

    ...if you're a diamondback fan, why not like all of her?
    LOL, appeal to emotion is a fallacy of logic. Nice try, though. I admire her strength and perseverance, what Spencer did was take her journey two steps back.

    ...and it's a new century. no one should have to pretend to be straight. I saw no problem with Spencer's treatment of Dennis. he has treated him more fairly than any of the writers who wrote him as a homeless crazy person.
    And did I say that *you* had a problem with how Spencer wrote Sam outing Dennis? No I did not. I specifically said that *I* had a problem with it, and based on what I've seen around social media, members of the lgbt community did as well. *You* can feel all you want about it, but you are not the only person in the world and other people are allowed to be offended even if you are not. BTW, the issue wasn't that Dennis is gay, we all knew that since the 80's, the issue was that Dennis' sexuality was Dennis' right to announce, not Sam's. Spencer approached the subject of coming out insensitively.
    Last edited by capandkirby; 01-31-2019 at 09:28 AM.

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