Armpits Of Death!

Can YOU

Name This Marvel Villain??

When Monica Rambeau at last recovered from the near-fatal drain on her power while helping her fellowing Avengers to subdue the monstrous form of Marrina, she believed that her life as Captain Marvel was over, since she had discovered that her powers had apparently vanished. And so, picking herself up and dusting herself off, she decided to move on and take a job as the captain of a cargo ship, on its first voyage from New Orleans to Rio de Janeiro hauling a shipment of wheat--leaving her life as a policewoman, and as a super-hero, well behind her.

Yet when her ship is boarded by men who kill her crew and begin searching the ship for a smuggled crate of Stark International circuitry, she bluffs them into surrendering to her old Captain Marvel identity, but turns to face their boss--a super-powered mercenary named Powderkeg. And the first thing she learns about Powderkeg is that he isn't interested in surrendering.

You have to give it up for Powderkeg--it's not often you hear a villain brag about his power being generated in a way that elicits grimacing from those you're describing it to.  Consider how many people think he's pulling their leg.

Fortunately for Monica, her powers return in time to stave off Powderkeg's attack--yet they appear to have been radically altered. She can no longer turn into the various forms of energy she once could--but what can she do against this bruiser? Thus far, she's learned that her abilities include flight, and in solid form; but since she's currently fighting for her life, whatever else she discovers about her new powers will have to be on the job.

With Powderkeg taken care of, Monica begins an investigation into who these men are and why they were determined to seize the Stark circuitry. In the meantime, she makes a stop at the Baxter Building to seek the help of Reed Richards in assessing the scope and details of her new powers. Will the abilities of this "new" Captain Marvel be as impressive as Monica's previous powers? Well, that depends on how well you're able to follow Reed's explanation, assuming your eyes don't glaze over as he gives the facts:

So far it sounds like Monica can forget about accessing her power the way she used to. (Frankly I had no idea she did so via an "energy dimension.")

Maybe now we'll find out what she can do:

So basically she's strong, she can hold her own in a fight (to a point), and she can fly. Aside from the new optics we see from her, that doesn't make her much different from a lot of other super-characters out there--so Reed's right, her power isn't nearly what it once was. She's not so much the unique "Captain Marvel" anymore--more like "Captain Nothing-Special."

But Reed has more wonderful news:

Well, she previously had to "will" herself to utilize her energy forms, so that hasn't really changed. Of course, I'd hate to see her have a "lapse in concentration" while flying over the Atlantic.

As for Powderkeg, he essentially becomes one of those villains who's plugged into a story depending on the Marvel writer who's going down the list of available characters. He did score one feather in his cap, when he became part of a new incarnation of the Masters of Evil--though given their turnover in both leadership and membership, the Masters of Evil are on their way to being as watered down as the Avengers and the X-Men, who seem to form a new lineup even more often than their motion picture counterparts.

Aside from that, Powderkeg hung around a lot at the Bar With No Name. At last report, he'd become involved with a plot hatched by the Thinker to escape their miniature prison with the unknowing aid of the She-Hulk--but it was in part due to Powderkeg's, er, unique abilities which allowed She-Hulk to clean their clocks.