GUNFIRE #13 - June 1995

This is the Way the World Ends!

Credits: Len Wein (writer), Ed Benes (penciler), Brian Garvey, Charles Barnett, Denis Gulbey, and Ande Parks (inkers), Clem Robins (letterer), Lee Loughridge (colorist)

Summary: After Ragnarok teleports away, Gunfire summons Justice League America to help him stop the chain reaction that’s destroying the Earth’s core. With the JLA’s help, the excess magma is released from the inner core. During their mission, Ragnarok teleports in to taunt Gunfire, who eventually blasts him into a pit of magma. When the Earth is saved, the JLA leave as Gunfire ponders his possible future without Van Horn Industries.

Irrelevant Continuity: The JLA of this era consists of Diana (who’s in her post-Wonder Woman bicycle pants stage), Hawkman, Aquaman (the harpoon-hand version), Crimson Fox, Blue Devil, Fire, Ice (apparently called “Icemadien” in this era), Obsidian, and someone named Nuklon, whose haircut is fantastic. According to a footnote, this story crosses over with Aquaman #9.

We Get Letters: A reader wants to know why Gunfire isn’t Comics Code Authority approved. The editorial response is that the title is CCA approved; the seal disappeared a few issues ago due to “gremlins.” The editor then acknowledges that “we’re all adults here” anyway, which is a pretty shocking admission in 1995 that the Code was essentially pointless. (Or at least that DC perceived it to be; it’s possible that kids were reading this book since comics were still sold on newsstands in 1995).

Review: In the face of overwhelming apathy, DC finally relents and cancels Gunfire with this issue. Someone somewhere still seemed to have faith in the character, though, because the issue’s final page and letter column pretty much confirm that Gunfire will soon be joining the JLA. I don’t think this happened, even if Gunfire would’ve been a perfect fit for this largely forgettable (and somewhat laughable) cast. Unfortunately, the reading public never got to experience Gunfire’s rivalry with Nuklon, his close connection to Blue Devil, his unrequited love for Fire, and that drunken night in Bangkok with Hawkman.

Aside from setting Gunfire up as a future member and providing a “big” finale for the series, it’s hard to understand what the JLA are doing here. Gunfire’s the one who’s stupidly responsible for this problem, and of course he’s the one who provides the final push needed to save the Earth, so it’s hard to see what the point of dragging the JLA into this was. You could argue that the series needed the sales boost, but 1) it was already cancelled and 2) it’s hard to imagine this version of the JLA attracting readers to anything.

So, what isn’t resolved by the final issue? Well, we never learned the secret of Monika, Gunfire’s horny chauffeur with no doubt sinister motives. And, the secret of Yvette’s money troubles was never revealed, nor was the subplot that had her moving in with Gunfire’s aunt Lacey resolved. There are also the mysterious earthquakes that kept striking Hong Kong a few issues ago. And we never learn why Ragnarok has changed his motivation from learning the secret of eternal life to simply destroying the Earth (although I guess his name is a clue.) I’m sure I missed a few other dangling plotlines, but it’s hard to get too worked up about any of this. Gunfire settled into a lull early on and only seemed to invigorate when Chris Wozniak turned in some unexpectedly good fill-ins. The early concept of a young political activist granted lethal powers and an arms company he didn’t want was quickly abandoned in favor of subpar Amazing Spider-Man plots from the early ‘70s. The book never developed much of a personality and its only appeal seemed to be its willingness to be extremely traditional in a period that wouldn’t even allow Superman to have short hair. The old school storytelling didn’t mesh with the basic concept, or the art of Ed Benes, leaving this a title without much of an audience at all.

And even judged as a straightforward superhero comic, Gunfire became too dumb to be taken seriously. Take this issue for instance, which presents a lead character that’s responsible for potentially destroying the planet and killing his father in the course of a handful of pages. At no point in the story does Gunfire have anything that resembles a legitimate emotional reaction to the events. Instead, he’s too busy swooning over the Justice League to even contemplate the ramifications of any of his actions (and, mind you, this is a really crappy incarnation of the Justice League). The guy’s too cardboard to be taken seriously, and I have to say it’s kind of surprising he even got a thirteen issue run.