GLA #2

Background

Just in case you haven't gotten it by now, the GLA has never really been associated with the Avengers (even though Hawkeye and Mockingbird did briefly serve with the team), they are more a group of Mystery Men-style second banana Marvel Universe screw-up heroes whose Warhol-style 15 minutes are long over and have largely been forgotten.

As with the previous issue it opens up with Squirrel Girl directly addressing the audience (and things go downhill from there). Mr. Immortal (the team leader) has been despondent since the death of his girlfriend (and fellow team member) Dinah Soar.

Story 'Dismembership Drive'

This issue opens up with her funeral. During the middle of the funeral Mr. Immortal spies Deathurge (who is the one who keeps taking array all the loved ones from Mr. Immortal). Meanwhile, Malestorm, the villain of the piece, contacts his lackeys, (Batroc, Swordsman, and Zaran) about his ongoing plans, and Flatman and Dorman go on a road trip to the Big Apple and to go on a membership drive. The group has determined that they should approach all the non-aligned NY heroes and solicit them to join. From here we are treated to a couple of pages where numerous heroes flat-out turn them down (these include, but atre not limited to Moon Knight, Spider-Man, Wolverine, Daredevil, one of the Power Pack kids, Living Lightning, Punisher, Arana, and a whole bunch of others (three, four pages worth of rejections). Dejected, Flatman and Doorman have retired to a park bench in Central Park where they mull over their lot in life.

Just as they are about to be jumped by a pair of thugs Squirrel Girl comes to their rescue and pummels the thugs and calls for the park police. Impressed by her pluck, they extend to her the offer to join them, which she gladly does. Across town the Grasshopper ( a part-time Roxxon security guard with an exo- skeleton) is taking on Batroc and his brigade, and doing a fine job of it when he is joined by the GLA (who offer him a gig, which he accepts). When Zaran throws his sai at Doorman he phases his body and allows the sai to pass through him, only Grasshopper is standing behind him, and catches the sai in his face, killing him. As the team mourns the loss of its newest member, Batroc's Brigade makes good their escape.

The story winds up with some sort of explosion that segues into the next issue.

General Comments

As with last issue the driving force behind this story is that these guys are losers and we are supposed to take delight in the fact that, while they have superpowers and all, they are in fact screw-ups and losers, and we should be glad that we are not them.

Overall Rating

Spidey appears on the cover and in a few panels as he wanders through this train wreck and is happy that even his life is not as bad as these guys.

Footnote

Again, I was singularly unimpressed with this issue.