Stormwatch (comics)
| Stormwatch | |
|---|---|
| File:Wildstorm stormwathc force of nature.jpg Cover of Force of Nature graphic novel. | |
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | Wildstorm |
| First appearance | Stormwatch #1 |
| Created by | Jim Lee Brandon Choi H. K. Proger Ron Marz |
| In-story information | |
| Base(s) | SkyWatch |
Stormwatch is a fictional United Nations-sponsored superhero team in the Wildstorm Universe. Stormwatch was created by Jim Lee.
It began in the comic book Stormwatch v1, published by Image Comics but owned by Jim Lee. Among the main early writers of Stormwatch v1 were Jim Lee, Brandon Choi, H. K. Proger, and Ron Marz; among the main early artists were Scott Clark, Brett Booth, Matt Broome, and Renato Arlem.
In Stormwatch v1 #37 (July 1996), the new creative team of Warren Ellis as writer and Tom Raney as penciller was introduced, and the book took on a much more serious, darker, and less superheroic tone.
Warren Ellis continued to write the book as it transitioned into Stormwatch v2. Warren Ellis used the book as a lead-in to The Authority. The Authority was made up of members that had survived the massacre of the Stormwatch team by xenomorphs, the creatures from Alien. The story itself actually took place in a comic book entitled WildC.A.T.s/Aliens, despite its huge impact on Stormwatch. Ellis also used Stormwatch to introduce the concept of the Bleed, a space between parallel universes which features heavily in Planetary.
Ellis's work on Stormwatch is collected in the followeing trade paperbacks:
- Force of Nature - Stormwatch # 37-42 (ISBN 156389646X)
- Lightning Strikes - Stormwatch # 43-47 (ISBN 1563896508)
- Change or Die - Stormwatch # 48-50, Stormwatch Preview # 1, Stormwatch vol. 2 # 1-3 (ISBN 156389534X)
- A Finer World - Stormwatch vol. 2 # 4-9 (ISBN 1563895358)
- Final Orbit - Stormwatch vol. 2 # 10-11, WildC.A.T.s/Aliens one-shot (ISBN 1563897881)
Stormwatch: Team Achilles
The Stormwatch series was later revived, penned by Micah Ian Wright in Stormwatch: Team Achilles, which followed a mostly non-superpowered UN troubleshooting team dealing with superhero-related problems. The series became a satire of politics and comic books, with segments where the team replaced a Strom Thurmond/Jesse Helms-like Senator with a shape-shifter and a storyline where a Captain America-analog (revealed to be the reincarnation of George Washington) tried to overthrow the American government. The series ended with #23 in the middle of a storyline, with #24 never being published, when Wright was fired after it was revealed that he had lied about being a US Army Ranger.
Members of Stormwatch
Team Under Weatherman Henry Bendix prior to issue 1
- Stormwatch Prime
- Battalion (Jackson King)
- Nautika (Maya Royko)
- Flashpoint (Foster McClane)
- Backlash (Marc Slayton)
Team Under Weatherman Henry Bendix
- Stormwatch One
- Stormwatch Two
Henry Bendix was stripped of his position in issue #11; replacing him is Synergy aka Christine Trelane.
Team Under Weatherman Christine Trelane
- Stormwatch
- Stormwatch Prime
The team was rebuilt after the defeat of Despot and Henry Bendix was again Weatherman (issue #26)
Team Under Weatherman Henry Bendix prior to Fire From Heaven
Team Under Weatherman Henry Bendix following Fire From Heaven
- Stormwatch Prime
- Stormwatch Red
- Stormwatch Black
- "Secret" Stormwatch team revealed in volume two
- Apollo (equivalent to DC's Superman)
- Midnighter (equivalent to DC's Batman)
- Impetus (equivalent to DC's Flash)
- Amaze (equivalent to DC's Wonder Woman)
- Lamplight (equivalent to DC's Green Lantern)
- Stalker (equivalent to DC's Martian Manhunter)
- Crow Jane (equivalent to DC's Black Canary)
Team Under Weatherman Jackson King
- Stormwatch
- Stormwatch Black
Other Characters Appearing in Stormwatch
Union
Undertow
Awards
The trade paperback StormWatch: A Finer World was a top votegetter for the Comics Buyer's Guide Fan Award for Favorite Reprint Graphic Album for 2000.