Ben Grimm is a man who goes where the action is--the poker action, that is. And when it leads to Soho in Manhattan, where several of the X-Men are gathered for some serious downtime and some equally serious gambling, the Thing is right there with his stogie and his chips--and hopefully a winning streak from Lady Luck.
And you know it's going to be a good game when even Storm gets into the spirit of things:
Bobby Drake: " 'ro, got a sec?"
Ororo: "I cannot lend you another five."
Yet it's Sam Guthrie--a/k/a Cannonball--who is hogging most of the limelight at
And not in a good way.
But leave it to an old hand to make a bad situation good for Mr. Guthrie.
Well, Rome wasn't built in a day.
But how fortunes can change in less time than that, as Sam Guthrie--lanky farm boy from Cumberland County, Kentucky--proceeds to clean the clocks of nearly every single player seated at the table. One would almost think that Ben knew just when to leave the game, eh?
But luck is fleeting--and when one card shark looks another in the eye, whose expression is as determined as his own, one must eventually either call, or fold.
So just how good is our boy Sam? Well, the man he faces across the table is none other than Remy LeBeau (a/k/a Gambit), former member of the New Orleans Thieves' Guild and no slouch at deception, misdirection, or, more to the point, bluffing--and who chose playing cards charged with kinetic energy as his trademark weapon. That's either coincidence, or symbolic of his love of the game. That said, Remy is either in deep trouble here--or he's playing a game of his own with his young challenger.
Finally, though, it's time to fish or cut bait--win, or lose. And we won't know who had the better hand until the last card is laid down--or, in this case, thrown. And maybe not even then.
A good question. Why do you think Remy literally threw the game?
BONUS!
Since Ben had little more than a cameo in this game, have a look at this exquisite tribute to the splash page of Fantastic Four #51, as rendered by Mike Deodato, Jr. (with original work by Jack Kirby):
But if I had to take a guess, I'd say that Mr. Deodato was inspired by both Kirby's splash page and the issue's cover, no?
'Why do you think Remy literally threw the game?'
ReplyDeleteBecause he realised that winning a big hand of poker with a royal flush is so cliché.
When did anyone in fiction win with a hand as unexciting as tens over nines? Even Ms. Marvel went with aces over queens.
It is my guess that everything the writer knew about playing poker came from seeing the movie "Maverick". Once.
ReplyDeleteFrom the snippets provided here, I surmise Beast was cleaned out, leaving just the two finalists in a showdown. If I was McCoy, I'd employ the exact same "Kentucky Poker Etiquette" Sam introduced to the game. Namely, stand behind Sam and blabber out all the cards the punk is dealt.
(And what is with the billows of smoke? The Thing has a cigar, and is the only one smoking. It looks like the game is being invaded by a classic London peasoup fog)
(And Medusa would be envious at how Storm's hair twirls and swirls and undulates in every panel)
That Deodato Thing portrait is pure wow
You know, Murray, now that you mention it, that is a lot of smoke for just one person, even if Ben were a chain smoker; I doubt that even Wolverine added to the mix would have produced that much smoke. I wonder why Storm didn't disperse it? I can't see her being the type to tolerate cigar smoke if she doesn't have to. (Hey, maybe that's why she's swishing her hair in all directions!)
ReplyDeleteTiboldt, my take on Gambit is that he didn't want to disappoint Sam, though I don't see why--once he got situated, Sam was certainly handling himself as well as any player at that table.
They must have a rule, at these superhero poker games, that nobody with telepathy or X-ray vision is allowed.
ReplyDeleteAnd no super-smart guys like Karnak who can do 4-dimensional math in their head.
And nobody with Cosmic Awareness! Or mystical powers.
Guys like Wolverine, who ain't too smart, are okay. His super-powers end at the neck.
M.P.