CAGE #1

****

The first book of the Cage series was published by Marvel Comics in April of 1992. Written by Marc McLaurin and illustrated by Dwayne Turner, "Cage" is the story of Lucas Cage, who used to be Power Man, who used to team with Iron Fist to form the "Heroes for Hire." Cage, to me, is a fascinating character. He started out a criminal, and when he was actually imprisoned, it was for a crime that he did not commit. He volunteered himself for the Power Man Project, under the condition that he would get early release from prison. The Power Man Project is what transformed Cage into Power Man, the man with incredible super-human strength, healing factor and steel-hard, impenetrable skin.

"Cage #1" begins by telling the background of this character in a way that quickly establishes the plot of the magazine, a news team discussing Cage (we'll find out why in a little bit.) Next they blast into the action as we find Cage battling four men at one time. We find that he has been hired by a Chicago union to protect those on strike from the violence of the corporations strike breakers. During this sequence we meet a man that is sure to become a huge nemesis for Cage, a Caribbean killer by the name of Hardcore.

Hardcore is a master of martial arts and has an arsenal of modernized ancient weapon that can keep Cage at bay. These weapons include Manrikisas (chains with blades at the end) which Hardcore has outfitted with electric tazers, or explosives. The other unfortunate feature that these weapons have is their ability to pierce steel (as in steel-hard skin). Hardcore is a loud mouth and constantly is verbally badgering Cage as they fight, calling him a relic who needs to learn how to stay down. Cage is bested in the first encounter he has with Hardcore in this issue.

Cage then makes a deal with a Chicago newspaper to allow them exclusive access to photos and stories of him in action, if they put up for the expenses of his new Heroes For Hire company. Now Cage seems to have a partner in the form of Micky, a photographer who is now to go anywhere that Cage goes. Straight from the deal with the newspaper comes news of the corporations CEO (Angel) who was having issues with the union that needed Cage's protection. Cage and Micky are off to stop Angel from leaving the country. We find out more about Hardcore's involvement in the whole ordeal. He is supposedly protecting Angel's assets.

Now we have another showdown between Cage and Hardcore. Even though Cage has to stop occasionally to protect Micky, he does manage to use his raw power to defeat Hardcore, despite his massive arsenal of fancy weapons. Thinking that Hardcore is dead, as the result of an airplane explosion (masterfully drawn by Turner by the way), everyone goes home, end of story. Or is it?

I do like this story. Cage is a man who is truely trying to find out who he is. The man he was before the Power Man Project is dead, along with most of his memory of that time, so he really is trying to find out who he is. A hero of pure instinct, his style is very forceful and blunt. The contrast between him and Hardcore was very good. The over all look of the book was awesome as well, with the exception of a couple of panels that looked odd, like the News editor's monsterous hand being held up for a handshake on the bottom of page 14. Also, Mike Thomas did a wonderful job with the full, rich colors in this one. I'm going to have to give "Cage #1" four out of five stars. I look forward to reviewing the others that I have of this series!