Origins and Outcasts
Infinity Inc #4
Cover Date: July 1984
Released: 19th April 1984
This is still set up, this time Jade, Obsidian and Northwind, so apart from the cover Kara only get’s one panel near the end. Oh, and out of interest I checked and Generations basically lasts a full year (12 issues) so I’ll stop babbling on about how everything is just set up. That’s 1/4 of the run of the comic, which is an impressive show of confidence from Roy. It’s also most of the appearances Kara, so we’re be leaving the book more or less when Kara does. The others are around Crisis which is a different kettle of fish that we’ll get to when we get to it!
So enough stalling onto the story!
We start with Jade, Obsidian and Northwind taking Solomon Grundy somewhere in the protective bubble Jade formed the last issue. To pass the time they basically start to tell each other their backstories.
Jade start off with her being a regular kid growing up in suburbia, apart from the green star-shaped birthmark on the palm of her hand. When as a teen she starts turning green, which obviously freaks her out a little. At that point, her parent’s confess that she’s adopted, which she’s pretty cool with and is a cute moment. She travels to school to pick up something, after hours and learns that she has phasing powers and with flight. It’s amusing that the school has a Nuclear Shelter sign above the door, this isn’t a call out to anything (Watchmen is still a couple of years away) just one of those weird real-world things that most people wouldn’t even think about so many decades from that point in history.
She feels drawn to someone and following the draw meet’s up with Obsidian, battling with him briefly in his shadow form before the two figure out the truth about each other. Thinking Alan Scott is probably their real Father they make costumes and train together planning to meet up and confront their absent father. Which is obviously where we came into the story.
We then arrive at their destination, Feithera, home to the bird-people and where Northwind originates from. We’ve already seen that Northwind is half-human and hatched from an egg, so instead, we get a flashback to the original appearance of his race itself. This is a bit of a cheat as the story was originally in a Hawkman backup strip published in Flash Comics #71 (from May 1946). It’s a pretty standard story of an advanced hidden society, this time from birds (which makes them dino-people!), who are threatened by hunters who discover their land only to be saved by Hawkman. A little back and forward with the inhabitants and the three leave to rejoin the others.
The find that Infinity Inc has recovered the bodies of the JSA, then having been drowned in the previous issue. As one of those that have been killed was Wonder Woman obviously Lyta is more than a little upset and decide to live up to her code name as the story ends.
I’ve got to admit when I looked at this issue I didn’t think I’d have a lot to say about it, it has almost no Power Girl and it’s just two origins stories thrown together. It’s all “filler” just setting up more of the new characters, but it’s really solid and well told.
⋅ Writers: Roy Thomas / Dann Thomas / Gardner Fox ⋅ Pencilers: Jerry Ordway / Joe Kubert ⋅ Inkers: Mike Machlan / Joe Kubert ⋅
⋅ Colourists: Adrienne Roy ⋅ Letterers: David Cody Weiss ⋅ Editors: Roy Thomas ⋅
⋅ Writers: Roy Thomas / Dann Thomas / Gardner Fox ⋅ Pencilers: Jerry Ordway / Joe Kubert ⋅ Inkers: Mike Machlan / Joe Kubert ⋅
⋅ Colourists: Adrienne Roy ⋅ Letterers: David Cody Weiss ⋅ Editors: Roy Thomas ⋅