THE DEFENDERS (2017) ISSUE #4
Writer: Brian Michael Bendis
Artist: David Marquez
Color Artist: Justin Ponsor
Letterer: VC’s Cory Petit
Publisher: Marvel Comics
The Punisher’s motives for shooting the Defenders is still unknown and Diamondback is far more super powered than our heroes previously thought.
What You Need To Know:
The Punisher shot up the Defenders as they were chasing Diamondback, allowing him to escape. The bullets he used were non-lethal paralyzing rounds, leaving them unharmed, but his motives for stopping the pursuit is still a mystery.
The Black Cat admitted to Diamondback that she saved Luke Cage’s life the night he was poisoned. The Black cat’s position in this is still not quite clear but, after fighting Diamondback’s henchmen in front of him, it’s safe to say that she’s at least not on his side.
Luke Cage and Daredevil fought and captured the Punisher but failed to get him to talk. Jessica Jones and Iron Fist performed a stakeout which turned into a fight with Diamondback. Diamondback blocked Iron Fist’s glowing punch with ease then proceeded to crack his back over his knee, proving himself to be a far greater threat than anticipated.
What You’ll Find Out:
We finally get a look at the mystery drug that helped Diamondback rise to power. The new drug “Diamond” is a small blue pill being sold in pairs. The Black Cat gets her hands on some and asks the character Hammerhead to find out what it is these pills do. Hammerhead gives them to another character, Roman, as a “gift”. With instructions to report on their effects. Just then, Spiderman shows up to confront Hammerhead about putting his friend in the hospital. We see a fight break out between the two but not the outcome. Whether or not we’ll see more of Spiderman and this conflict remains to be seen.
Roman takes the drug to a… female friend to test it out. Both take the drug and we suddenly see blue light shine from their eyes and mouth. The next day, the female is found dead from an overdose. Ben Urich, a reporter for the daily bugle, is on the scene with the police and takes the story of the drug to his boss. His boss has a story in mind relating the drug to the Defenders.
Diamondback holds up Iron Fist’s limp body after cracking his back over his knee. Jessica Jones attacks him and we see Diamondback demonstrate his super strength as he throws her through a store window. Iron Fist, who wasn’t out for the count, after all, takes advantage of the distracted Diamondback with a glowing fisted punch to the back, throwing him into Jessica Jones’ car. Iron Fist proceeds to annihilate Diamondback in combat just before the police arrive.
Jessica Jones explains to the police the situation and tells them to get a recording from any of the many people who had their phones out during the fight. Diamondback is taken into custody as our heroes leave the scene in Jones’ badly damaged vehicle.
What Just Happened:
So the pieces are starting to fill in somewhat. We finally got a look at the mystery drug although, admittedly, it brought up more questions than it answered. We got a pretty good look at Diamondback’s powers and limitations in this issue but there is certainly more to be seen.
The Spiderman visit, much like the Blade visit, leaves me wondering if either one of them will be returning later or if they were just stopping by. Regardless, it is pretty cool to be reminded that there are other heroes doing things in the world.
The Daily Bugle may be playing a role in the chaos soon, Urich’s boss made it clear that he intends to up the paper’s popularity using this unfolding story. But why did I get a sense of mischief when I read his dialogue?
Rating: 10/10
Final Thoughts: This issue had it all! It has some important exposition along with a great fight scene. This series keeps getting better!