Hello and welcome to another great installment of Ye Olde School Café! This time around, we’ll be taking a look at a book that showcases a young group of mutants that is not only just learning to use their powers, but learning how to be adults, as well! In New Mutants #6 (1983), Chris Claremont and Sal Buscema bring us a story of trials, tempers, love, and loss! Enough banter, let us get right to this great story!
Our story begins, as the New Mutants bust into the penthouse of one Nguyen Ngoc Coy, a former Vietnamese General who now is a crime boss in the San Francisco bay area. He is also the uncle of Karma. He’s hanging out with two whores, and he quickly instructs them to shoot Karma and her friends. Karma instantly grabs their minds and enthralls them before they can do any harm. She then turns her attention to her Uncle, forces him to walk out onto the balcony, and then creep to the ledge. She tells him that he must give them information about a criminal named Viper, or else she’ll command him to walk, but he knows she won’t do it. Sunspot tries to step in, but Rahne and Cannonball stop him. Karma’s uncle then makes her a deal. He agrees to help them, but for a price. Karma must be in his employ for one year. She understands that this means he’ll use her to expand his empire, but she needs the information to help find Dani Moonstar. She agrees, and bows her head in shame.
Meanwhile, Team America (The Thunderiders) is out in the barren deserts of New Mexico, and Wolfie and Red are at each others throats. As they argue, Professor Xavier uses his vast mental powers to reach into their minds to tell them to calm down, and stop this nonsense. He’s getting close to his breaking point, but Lilandra comes to his side and comforts him. Over in California, Dani is being held prisoner by Viper and the Silver Samurai. The Samurai remarks that they should kill her, but Viper tells him all in good time. He then gets irate about the situation back in Japan, where his father, who recently passed away, left all of his inheritance to his sister, Mariko. And as we know, she has made her intentions clear to be with Wolverine.
Team America finally reaches their destination, and now must penetrate a fortress that is occupied by A.I.M. As two of the members knock out a couple of guards, they grab their uniforms and get inside. Professor Xavier mentally guides them to a vault, and then they must break in and obtain a crystal. They do just that, but then an alarm sounds, and laser blasts follow quickly. Outside, the rest of the team watches as the fortress explodes into rubble! There is some psychic backlash from the blast, and Professor Xavier and Lilandra get hit hard.
At the grounds of Viper’s estate, the New Mutants are making their way quietly around the bushes, trying to find the path of least resistance. As they do, Karma is mentally attacked by some unknown foe, and screams out loud. This lets the guards know that someone is out there, so they sound the alarm. Cannonball smashes his way through the defenses, and this helps free Dani. She uses her powers to catch the guards unready for an attack, and puts them down. As she’s escaping, she notices Rahne, lying on the floor, bleeding. As she attends to her, she notices a shadow. The Silver Samurai is standing over her, ready to strike.
As the Thunderiders are making their getaway, they still can’t believe that they made it out alive after the explosion. Suddenly, they get attacked by some of the A.I.M. goons that followed them in a hovercraft. They eventually take out the goons, and all is well. Back at Viper’s estate, though, the Silver Samurai is about to slice Dani in half, but then Cannonball interjects and smashes him. Karma is mentally attacking Viper, and is just about to take over her mind, but then the Samurai knocks her out, stopping the hostile takeover.
The Thunderiders are back with Xavier, and think that two of their members are unaccounted for, but Charles tells them to relax, because they’re just around the corner. As Viper and Samurai make their escape, Dani and Karma have a bit of an argument over Karma’s deal with her uncle. As they’re chilling out, Karma is once again mentally attacked by some unknown force, but just as this happens, Viper commands the Samurai to activate a self-destruct mechanism at the estate. Xavier can mentally feel that something has gone terribly wrong.
Well, that’s it for now, but be back next time, as we travel down the road of comic book excellence once more!
Billy Dunleavy
billy@comicattack.net
