Thunderbolts 0 NM Kurt Busiek Mark Bagley Hawkeye Songbird 1st print Marvel

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Thunderbolts Volume 1 # 0 “A Rare Night Off” by Writer Kurt Busiek and Penciler and Cover artist Mark Bagley. Hawkeye had demanded Mach 1 turn himself in which he does in Thunderbolts #23, this is the Thunderbolts last night before Mach 1 Turns himself in. So this zero issue fits in between Thunderbolts 22 and 23. In the Royalton Hotel in Colorado, Karla Sofen soaks in a hot bathtub. She says that she is glad she decided to suggest this. She says that she knows that they will have to find cheaper lodgings soon, but until then she says that she might not get out of the bathtub at all. Outside the bathroom, Erik is checking out the mini-bar. Jolt is rolling around on the bed enjoying the fact that it isn’t a smelly rolled up mattress. Jolt says “no offense” to Songbird’s cabin. Songbird is sitting in front of the television saying that she is going to watch every movie they offer here. Songbird tells Jolt that no offense is taken, and that even though it’s her cabin that Hercules can bust it up anytime he wants. Abe stands alone at the window looking out. Abe is thinking about prison and says that he never thought that he would be going there voluntarily for an old murder charge. Melissa comes up behind Abe and apologizes. She says that they were so busy clowning around that she didn’t think about how he was feeling. She says that if he has changed his mind that they can still run. Abe says that he wants to do what’s best for the team. Atlas says that he still isn’t so sure about this, but Jolt assures him that this is the right thing to do. Jolt suggests that they all go out for a good dinner, and have one last night out together and not worry about the future. Abe says that sounds good to him. Erik knocks on the bathroom door and tells Karla to put some clothes on. He says that they are going out. Karla is washing her hair and says, “We’re… we’re what?” Later in the Mountainview Grill of the Royalton, the Bolts are eating a meal together and having a good time. Karla proposes a toast to the delicious meal they are eating since it will be the last of its kind since they can’t rob banks anymore when the kitty gets low. Abe says that as long as it isn’t Erik’s cooking. Erik says that he is one to talk getting squeamish about killing and dressing a rabbit. Erik asks where you grow up to not know about hunting and fishing. Abe says that he lived in Baltimore and Brooklyn, and all he learned how to do was hotwire cars. Karla thinks to herself that she is going to have to decide soon if she is going to stay with the team since she isn’t sure how things will work out as second in command to Hawkeye. Elsewhere in the restaurant, Clint Barton is meeting with Gayle Rogers. Gayle says that she has never seen Hawkeye without his mask on before. Clint says that masks tend to draw attention in a place like this, and that he will just not use his real name and trust her not to use her camera on his face. Gayle asks Hawkeye why he is taking this chance for the Thunderbolts. Hawkeye reminds her that he used to be a super-villain, and that if the Avengers hadn’t given him a chance that he might still be one today. Gayle says that the Bolts aren’t really in the same position as he was. She says that most of them have been hardened criminals for years. Suddenly the top of the restaurant breaks apart and Hydra drops in looking to kill the Thunderbolts. The Hydra agents are wearing power-vests to help them match up against the Bolts. Hawkeye starts to run to change and tells Gayle to get to safety. Gayle says that she will as soon as the action is over. Gayle picks up her camera. Moonstone, Atlas, and Jolt rush to fight Hydra while Songbird and MACH-1 rush to get changed. Atlas says that Crimson Cowl must have made god on her promise to tell their enemies where to find them. Hawkeye says that it was stupid to leave his arrow and quiver with the coat check, but he wasn’t expecting trouble. The Hydra leader there, Horst Eisele, punches Atlas in the face with fist-rams. Moonstone spots Horst’s scar and recalls who he is from conversations with Fixer. Jolt is managing to dodge, but she is being boxed in. She is almost in trouble when Songbird and MACH-1 arrive ready to fight. The Bolts hold their own for a little bit, but the Hydra agents start dividing them and keeping them from working as a team. Horst says that it is just like their research told them. He says that without Zemo to lead them that they are easy to overcome. Hawkeye says that Hydra might want to fire their researchers because he is the Thunderbolts’ leader. Hawkeye fires screamer arrows that disorients the Hydra agents. Atlas starts swatting them out of the air. Hawkeye tells them all to pair up and watch each other’s backs. Hawkeye and Jolt pair up. Erik and Moonstone, and Songbird and MACH-1 pair up respectively. Before long Hydra is defeated. Police sirens start to surround the restaurant. Hawkeye says that this is what he was afraid of. He says that getting attacked by Hydra is part of the job, but that they can’t fight the police. Hawkeye thinks to himself that he can’t let the Bolts get captured. Karla says that they also have longer range problems as well since Hydra isn’t going to stop sending squads after them until they’re dead. Karla whispers a suggestion to Hawkeye. Hawkeye tells Karla to give it a try. He then goes to Gayle and says that if she is willing that they need her to go talk to the police. Hawkeye asks her to point out that if they try to capture them that it will take a while, and the unconscious Hydra group might wake up. He says that if they just let them go that at least they’ll be sure to get the Hydra guys. Gayle says that she’ll give it a try, and says that she needs to go get a real cameraman anyway. Karla goes over to the Hydra commander and phases her hand into his forehead as Atlas holds him by the neck. She tells him to hold still and it won’t hurt as she absorbs all his knowledge about Hydra. Moonstone says that when he gets a lawyer to send a message to Hydra to back off the Thunderbolts or she is going to tell the Avengers and SHIELD what she now knows about Hydra. The commander says that they aren’t aware of her having any mental powers. He thinks that she is bluffing, but Moonstone asks if he wants to take that chance and makes sure to call him Horst. Horst is stunned that she knows his name. Moonstone tells Horst to be very convincing because his superiors would be very upset if she used what she now knows. The police agree to the Bolts go, and the team flies off together. Moonstone decides that she is going to stay with the team because Hawkeye is confidant and good in a fight, but he seems pliable and easy to control. Outside, Gayle Rogers films her report. She says that lead by the Avenger Hawkeye that the Thunderbolts defeated Hydra and kept the property damage to a minimum. Baron Zemo watches the report from South America. He says that once again the Bolts escape retribution, but that it will just make it all the sweeter when they fall at the hands of Baron Zemo. Crimson Cowl watches the report and thinks how with Hawkeye leading the Thunderbolts that they will be more formidable than ever, but that it won’t matter if they interfere with the Masters of Evil. Citizen V watches the report and says that this won’t stop her. She thinks that she adopted this guise to see justice done on Zemo and all those that followed him. She says that if Hawkeye gets in the way that it will be his problem. The Avengers watch the report. Vision asks Captain America if he thinks this is mind control on Hawkeye. Captain America says that it is possible, and that they are going to have to do something about this soon. Featured Characters: Thunderbolts: Hawkeye (Clint Barton), Moonstone (Karla Sofen), Songbird Next, Jolt, Atlas (Erik Josten), Mach-1, Horst Eisele, Baron Zemo (Helmut Zemo), Crimson Cowl (Justine Hammer), and Citizen V. Supporting Characters: Avengers:Hawkeye, Vision, Thor, Captain America (Steve Rogers), Scarlet Witch and Iron Man (Tony Stark). The Thunderbolts are a Marvel Comics superhero team, which consists mostly of reformed supervillains. The group first appeared in The Incredible Hulk #449 (January 1997), and was created by Kurt Busiek and Mark Bagley. The Thunderbolts were first presented as a group of superheroes like the Avengers, both to readers and to the Marvel Universe, who became heroes to help protect the world when the Avengers were declared dead after the events of the 1996 “Onslaught” crossover. However the final page of the first issue of their comic book revealed that the Thunderbolts were the Masters of Evil in disguise, a surprise twist carefully guarded by Marvel. 16 page Thunderbolts comic leading into the Avengers vs Thunderbolts storyline in Avengers 12! This story features Hawkeye and is written by Kurt Busiek with art by Mark Bagley! 4 pages of this story recaps all the previous issues of Thunderbolts which makes it a great introduction to this series!

Marvel’s Thunderbolts Movie Adds Jake Schreier as Director

The Marvel Cinematic Universe’s long-gestating Thunderbolts project is finally on its way to becoming a reality. On Thursday, reports indicated that Jake Schreier has been tapped to direct an upcoming Thunderbolts movie, with Black Widow’s Eric Pearson set to write the script and Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige set to produce. Reports are indicating that the film could begin production next summer, and that Marvel Studios has been “in touch with certain individuals” who are already a part of the franchise to make sure their schedules are clear for the shoot.

Schreier is best known for directing the 2012 indie darling Robot & Frank, as well as the 2015 adaptation of John Green’s novel Paper Towns. He has also helmed episodes of Beef and Dave, as well as music videos for Kanye West and Kendrick Lamar. It had previously been rumored that a Thunderbolts movie could be in the works to begin production sometime in 2023.

It is unclear at this point who could make up the cast of Thunderbolts, a team that traditionally consists of supervillains and antiheroes going on missions, initially to convince the general public that they are operating as heroes. The first comic incarnation of the team was led by Baron Zemo, with other members including Songbird, Moonstone, Taskmaster, U.S. Agent, Crossbones, Abomination, Ghost, and more. The team gets its namesake from General Thunderbolt Ross (William Hurt), but following Hurt’s passing earlier this year, it’s anyone’s guess as to how that aspect of the storyline could be handled.

The idea of the Thunderbolts being formed in the MCU has been popping up for several years now, particularly as more antiheroic characters have begun to be established. The inklings of that storyline might have already been put in place with The Falcon and the Winter Soldier and Black Widow, both of which featured scenes of Countess Valentina Allegra de Fontaine (Julie Louis-Dreyfuss) recruiting people for a shady team she was forming. So far, Val got John Walker / U.S. Agent (Wyatt Russell) and Yelena Belova (Florence Pugh) to work for her, with the latter’s adventures playing out in the recent Hawkeye Disney+ series.

“That would be fun!” Ghost actress Hannah John-Kamen explained in a 2018 interview. “That would be fun. I think, you know, as well, in the original comics Ghost was with Iron Man, it was actually originally Iron Man (villain), you know, and I actually went when I was in Atlanta, went and actually bought the Thunderbolts comic books. With any Marvel character whatever happens to them, you always go the possibility is endless. And with me, it would be an honor to work with any of the heroes, and any of the antagonist, and any of the things in the Marvel Universe. I mean, yeah, that would be amazing!?”.

Marvel’s MCU Dark Avengers Movie Cast (As We Know It)
If the Contessa is secretly building a Dark Avengers team for the MCU’s Avengers 5’s arc she has lots of Marvel candidates already in the franchise.

A Dark Avengers movie would be the perfect answer to the Avengers 5 mystery. Even with Civil War over, the MCU has a superhero identity issue. Spider-Man was implicated as a supervillain at the end of Far From Home, John Walker’s Captain America was stripped of his status and name for a very public murder and the Scarlet Witch caused a publicity nightmare by victimizing an entire town in New Jersey.

In the comics, the Dark Avengers were an imposter group of sorts, brought together by a reformed Norman Osborn in the wake of the Secret Invasion storyline and the aftermath of the government’s disbanding of the Avengers. Among other missions, he leads an attack on Asgard (now located on Earth), and the team is ultimately undone when Osborn defers to his villainous instincts and ends up on the Raft. While some details wouldn’t be possible in the MCU, there are a lot of story elements coming into play in Phase 4 that could well be the perfect backdrop for an adaptation for Avengers 5. The Avengers are effectively disbanded, the government is trying to introduce new replacement heroes and Asgard is now on Earth, potentially threatening fearful natives Osborn could whip into outright hatred.

Add to that the setup for the Secret Invasion event later in Phase 4 and the issues of hidden identities therein, there’s a major opportunity for Marvel to bring one of the most controversial Marvel events of all time to the MCU. But who could the roster be? Looking back at the projects already released and those yet to come, there’s already an intriguing team that could bring together a group of powerful imposter Avengers to challenge the real superhero team.

Madame Hydra As The Nick Fury Stand-In
Madame Hydra Julia Louis-Dreyfus falcon and the winter soldier
Julia Louis-Dreyfus was a surprise inclusion in The Falcon & The Winter Soldier as Contessa Valentina Allegra de Fontaine, AKA Val AKA Marvel’s second Madame Hydra, but she could play a key role in the MCU. Already, she’s been seen handing an ominous-looking business card to John Walker in the wake of his demotion from the Captain America role. Considering she was initially intended to debut in Black Widow and there’s some suggestion of her appearing in other MCU projects, the manner of that appearance does seem to point to a dark mirror to Nick Fury’s role in Phase 1. The idea of her working either for an organization or a mysterious benefactor to bring together a team of “alternative heroes” would be perfect in the wake of the first phase of the Avengers seemingly coming to an end. Particularly if that benefactor were revealed to be Norman Osborn as an over-arching MCU villain.

John Walker/US Agent As “Captain America”
If the MCU is headed towards a Dark Avengers event, it could already have seen its first recruit thanks to Val’s encounter with John Walker in the penultimate episode of The Falcon & The Winter Soldier. While there are other possibilities for her employer – like Leviathan or even a rejuvenated Hydra – it was clear that she was seeking to recruit Walker for something. And there’s something about a blank black business card that fits with the idea of a Dark Avengers set up. Walker, or US Agent as he was known at the time, was a late addition to the Dark Avengers line-up when the team found themselves transported to an alternate reality, but in the MCU, he could be a leader for a rejigged version. Even if he’s now stripped of his superhero title, Walker has objectives to remain in the game, and following the Contessa (and her possible wealth or backer) to a new initiative would be a great way to keep him in the MCU.

Yelena Belova As “Black Widow”
Black Widow back to the beginnig Yelena
The second iteration of the Dark Avengers was undone in the comics, somewhat ironically, by double agentry when Hulk’s son Skaar revealed he had been reporting to Steve Rogers all along. That suggests there’s some space in an MCU version of the team to have more complex characters like Yelena Belova involved, particularly if she’s looking for a home after the events of Black Widow. Though she’s presented as Natasha Romanov’s “sister” in that movie, Belova’s comic book origin saw her introduced as Nat’s enemy, sent to kill her and there’s no firm confirmation that she will be aligned with the morality of the Avengers simply because of her shared history with Natasha. Intriguingly, Belova was one of Norman Osborn’s Thunderbolts recruits in the team that pre-dated the Dark Avengers, though it turned out to be Natasha in disguise, manipulated into believing she was a double agent. That sort of dynamic in an MCU Dark Avengers team would be a great way to change things up.

Emil Blonsky/Abomination As “Hulk”
Tim Roth The Incredible Hulk The Abomination
In the comics, the role of the Dark Avengers’ Hulk is taken by Skaar – at least in Osborn’s New Dark Avengers – the son of Hulk and Caiera, who was introduced to Marvel Comics during Planet Hulk. While Hulk’s Sakaar past could introduce his son as a future surprise, it would make far more sense for a Dark Avengers movie to deliver on a plan for the Abomination in Phase 1 that was ultimately scrapped. Tim Roth’s maniacal Emil Blonsky had been the initially intended monster tank on the original Avengers team and his return to the MCU has already been heavily rumored for She-Hulk (after several similar false starts), so the pathway is already set for his recruitment. Intriguingly, Blonsky had something of an inferiority complex when faced with Banner’s Hulk and his jealousy drove his dangerous desire to “improve” himself. That would provide a strong narrative solution

Agatha Harkness As “Scarlet Witch”
This might be a less likely one, but Agatha Harkness is still around in the MCU, and though Wanda bewitched her to remain under her own Agnes delusion, the new Scarlet Witch also left Westview and who’s to say what Agatha’s current status is. What is established fact is that Katharyn Hahn’s performance was one of the breakout successes of WandaVision and there would be no argument against her returning from the fandom. More importantly, the Dark Avengers team has its own imposter version of Scarlet Witch – played by the disguised June Covington – and Agatha now has a strong narrative reason in the MCU for perhaps wanting to get some sort of revenge on Wanda. She also comes with ready-made magical powers to actually live up to the billing too, rather than having to get a non-magical character to pull off the deception.

Mac Gargan/Scorpion As “Spider-Man”
Scorpion is one of the MCU Spider-Man franchise’s biggest loose ends after Far From Home and while there may be some suspicion that the film will deal with him the same way other MCU projects have tied up loose ends (in the first ten minutes with little thought), giving him a true vengeance arc is far better. Gargan expresses his desire to take down Spider-Man in his Homecoming post-credits scene, but there’s already a lot going on with No Way Home’s plot and shoe-horning him alongside the new characters may be too much of a disservice to him. The MCU version of Gargan is dramatically different from the Dark Avengers one as he commits his deception using the symbiote powers to make it appear that he’s actually Spider-Man, but the idea of a villain stealing Spider-Man’s identity after the appearance of multiple Spider-Men in Phase 4 thanks to the multiverse is a very good set-up for Gargan to repurpose.

Iron Patriot
Norman Osborn and Iron Patriot
Who would play Iron Patriot at this stage is anyone’s guess, but with Armor Wars coming to the MCU, there’s already a set-up for an alternative Iron Man to come to the franchise. That could, of course, be the returning Justin Hammer (Sam Rockwell), but there’s also the opportunity to introduce Norman Osborn as one of the next MCU big bads and having him follow his comics counterpart into the fake Iron Man role would be a great decision. Like Doctor Doom, Osborn represents too big an opportunity for the MCU to bring him in for only a single movie arc now they have access to him and setting up the Dark Avengers, taking down the real Avengers and fighting against Asgard’s “invasion” of Earth is already established as a compelling roadmap. Osborn should never be just a Spider-Man concern and while Iron Patriot’s boots will be big to fill, that sort of reveal would be the right sort of fan-bait.

White Vision
Though he’s not an original Dark Avengers team member in the comics, the question of White Vision’s MCU future is a compelling one and his identity problems could be best served in this sort of narrative. White Vision doesn’t know what or who he is, but will have some affiliation with the Avengers because of his restored memories, which could be used as a tragic opportunity to lead to something of a misguided future. Should he return to the MCU, White Vision’s future is already set up as something of a clone of Adam Warlock’s comics origin, but shifting him into the Dark Avengers team for Avengers 5 instead would solve the problem of what to do with him as well as adding dramatic stakes for Val or Osborn’s new team.

Near mint, 1st printing. Check description for more pictures.