Munson’s Milestone Mondays — Blood Syndicate #8
Storylines converge, secrets are revealed, and destinies are fulfilled in this weeks Milestone offering, Blood Syndicate #8. From the cover you can tell that Kwai makes her debut in this issue, as Nina Lam finally succumbs to the transformation her body has been undergoing over the last 3 issues. She will factor into the battle that dominates this issue as the Syndicate face odd with the Demon Fox.
This issue opens where the last left off, the Demon Fox has attacked Wise Son on Syndicate turf and the team is left leaderless as they face their attacker. The gang use teamwork to take on the Fox, but this vengeful spirit splits their numbers and takes them out one by one. The Fox does this not just by physically beating the Syndicate, but also by using her powers to make each member face their own inner demons and/or secrets they have been hiding from the each other. This seems to be the way that the Fox feeds from her victims, by causing them pain and “sucking” their inner turmoil into her, making her more powerful.
The secrets that the Fox tortures the Syndicate with are huge reveals that Ivan Velez has hinted at in previous issues. Brickhouse gets all of her memories back at once, causing another one of her seizures to take her out of the battle. Third Rail is confronted by the memory of his late father, whose death he was apparently responsible for. DMZ is crippled by the realization that “she” will never come back for him, despite his nightly ritual of signaling for “her” atop the Syndicate’s HQ. Fade provides a very large meal for the Fox as she forced him to realize that he cannot hide the one thing he wants no one else to ever know about him, that he is a closeted homosexual. Boogeyman and Flashback are taken out of the battle by their simple fear of the Fox herself. Masquerade is the final member to fall as he has what the Fox terms “the prize for biggest secret of them all…. how wonderfully perverse.” The reader is not shown this secret, as it is left for another issue’s discovery.
The Fox has fulfilled the pact she made with John Wing, as the Syndicate has been defeated and humiliated. She kills Wing once he releases her from his service, just as Kwai arrives at the Factory. Kwai was drawn there by the presence of the Fox, as their lives and appearances in the real world appear to be linked. One “sister” cannot be called forth without the other “sister” being awakened as well. The issue wraps with the Fox forcing Kwai to realize that she cannot defeat her at this time, as she has grown stronger from her battle with the Syndicate and she is newly reborn. The Fox tells Kwai that she should save her strength to save “anyone she has left alive”, and it looks like Fade could truly use her help as the last panel shows him becoming completely transparent… in effect “fading away” as Flashback cries for help.
This issue was the big payoff to the “Demon Fox” storyline, and it paid off huge. Ivan Velez really packed this issue with some big reveals and big action scenes, and the reader is left wanting more. The secrets laid bare by the Fox will be fodder for future storylines for sure, and I particularly look forward to the Masquerade’s “big reveal”. Crisscross’ artwork just makes this issue shine, as he conveys each character’s emotions in the fight so well. This is particularly apparent when the Fox reveals Fade’s sexuality against his will. The pain and anguish on Fade’s face as his secret is laid bare is so expressive, the reader truly feels just how much and how long he has fought this side of himself. This creative team took this storyline and made what could have been just another uber-violent 90’s team book into a character driven action comic that keeps the reader interested what comes next.
Next week we will take a look at Hardware #9, so join me then for more Milestone memories!
