Miles Morales: Spider-Man #3

[cyberghostface]

Comments

[lordultimus]

It's rare these days that you get a portrayal of the Rhino that remembers exactly how dangerous he is while keeping him relatable. Kudos.

[crinos]

One of the very first comics I ever owned was the Hulk Christmas issue where Rhino, lonely on the Holiday, dresses like Santa and gets a gig as a Mall Santa, and when he begins freaking out (Since he's a Manic Depressive, and he switches from Depressed to Manic during the Santa gig) he ends up fighting Grey Hulk, and almost bearing him.... until he and Hulk notice they've upset a little girl whose come to see Santa, so the pair call off the fight and make nice for her sake.

It really went a long way to humanize Rhino and make him a lovable loser, and also shows how much of a threat he can be by having him fight the Hulk.

[beyondthefringe]

Done right, the Rhino is both a terrifying, destructive force of nature, and a tragic figure.

This feeds into my desire to see a comic featuring a group of super-villains who are genuinely trying to go straight as heroes and make amends for their past misdeeds... a new Thunderbolts would be the most obvious way to brand this.

Ideally, this would be bankrolled by Tony or T'Challa--someone with enough money and reputation to back such a venture. Prospective members could include the Rhino, Absorbing Man and Titania, Sandman, Kraven, and so forth--characters who have shown the willingness and capacity for change. Throw in a few villains-turned-heroes-for-real like Songbird and Mach-X as role models of how it can be done. They're like the best "graduates" of the Thunderbolts program.

For an actual leader, you'd need someone who everyone knows and respects on both sides of the law--someone who's known for keeping their word but taking no shit from people. Sadly, I doubt we could get Captain America for this, especially since he's a little tarnished himself at the moment. Hawkeye and Luke Cage, as former leaders of previous iterations of the Thunderbolts, would be nice but to me, they've already had their turn. I'd honestly suggest Scott Lang, after wiping off some of the most recent "loser" vibe from his persona, since he proved pretty good at trying to rehab villains in his own recent series.

Of course at least one of the members would try to use the program to enrich themselves as a con... maybe two would enter with that intention, only for one to genuinely enjoy the feeling of redemption, and the other to get caught and sacked. There's no shortage of characters to fill that role, as Nick Spencer seems an expert in writing. BUT lest it be said, we're not letting Moonstone get within 100 miles of this. Ever.

Marvel, call me. I could so make this happen. :)

[lbd_nytetrayn]

If mutants are allowed, Rogue might be a good leader.

[zachbeacon]

She does work in Hawkeye's "former villain turned hero" role.

[mastermahan]

Make it a mutant-heavy book, and you can call them the X-Cons!

[bradygirl_12]

I love that panel in which Cap encourages Rhino to continue on his path and Rhino doesn't quite know what to say. Having Cap believe in you must be pretty special. :)

[mastermahan]

Taking the time to shake Rhino's hand and offer some encouraging words is such a perfect Cap moment.

[bradygirl_12]

*nods*

That's something Superman would do over at DC. :)