The Omega Effect is a three issue crossover in Marvel Comics. It brought Spider-Man, Punisher, and Daredevil together in a team up.
Credits:
Avenging Spider-Man -Issue # 6, Punisher #10, Daredevil #11 -Marvel Comics
Writer: Greg Rucka and Mark Waid
Artist: Marco Checchetto
Colorist: Matt Hollingsworth
Letters: VC’s Joe Caramagna
Price: $3.99, $2.99, $2.99
Plot: (Major Plot Spoilers)
Previously in Daredevil, Daredevil gain possession of the Omega Drive, a memory drive made of unstable molecules. It was created from a piece of an old Fantastic Four Uniform (the 4 on the chest of the uniform). It contains secret information about the 5 Major crime organizations known as Megacrime: A.I.M., Hydra, Black Spectre, Agence Byzantine, and the Secret Empire. Everyone criminal wants the drive to get the upper hand on the competition. Punisher wants it to make it easier to punish (kill) the criminals.
The Punisher and his associate, Cole-Aleves, shows up to talk to Matt Murdock (Daredevil’s not so secret identity) at his office about the drive. Frank Castle, aka the Punisher, and Cole-Aleves attempts to take the drive away from Matt. Spider-Man shows up as the Hand (evil dead ninjas controlled by the Kingpin and for a short period of time lead by the Daredevil during Shadowland) attacks Murdock’s office.
Spider-Man convinces the Punisher not to kill anyone, which is minor miracle. The action ensues. The Punisher and Cole-Aleves take non critical shots at the enemy. The group of four fights off the Hand with punches, webbing, billyclubs, and shots to the knees.
They agree to work together with a plan the Daredevil dreams up. This is an uncomfortable alliance for Spider-Man to work with Castle.
Spider-Man creates a device to destroy the Unstable drive. The plan is to destroy the Omega Drive in front of the the Crime Syndicates. This way none can have the information to use against the other group and it will from Daredevil from having to watch his back and those of his friends.
On the way to the meeting, Daredevil and Spider-Man deliver a baby. Daredevil gets all the credit and the father verbally assaults Spider-Man.
At the meeting sight, they split into two groups. Punisher and Spider-Man team up so Spidey can keep an eye on Castle. Daredevil uses the opportunity in an attempt to convince Cole-Aleves not to go down the path of the Punisher. Cole-Aleves lost her husband on the wedding day and many members of her Police Precinct at the hands of criminals. Years ago, Matt attempted to persuade Frank not to go down this path and he unable save him.
As members of each Crime Syndicate shows up, Daredevil prepares to go through with the plan. Cole-Aleves attacks Daredevil taking the Omega Drive and forcing him down into the group of criminals.
Spidey and Punisher rescue the Daredevil from possible death. The device to destroy the drive was destroyed during the scuffle. They fled the meeting site and narrowly escape. They split up in an attempt to find Cole-Aleves.
Daredevil talks to himself about where she could go. He rules out the Baxter Building (Mr. Fantastic previous helped Matt decode it for some information). He states that he knows the one place she could go to read the drive. Cole-Aleves is using a electronic microphone buster to listen in. She follows him.
He tricked Cole-Aleves into meeting him at this site. The building has no special equipment. Daredevil had heard the hum of the mic with his enhanced hearing. She pulls a gun and threatens to kill Matt but he calls her bluff. He talks her down and into giving up the drive.
Cole-Aleves is shot in the back by Hydra’s goons. Punisher and Spider-Man show up and they help Daredevil wipe the floor with Hydra. When they finish, they find that Cole-Aleves has disappeared.
The Punisher parts ways from them stating that he accomplished his goal of reminding the Megacrime groups why they need to fear the Punisher. This leaves Spidey and Daredevil to sort things out. They can not break the drive in front of the intended audience so the plan has fallen apart. Daredevil states that he is right back to where he back at the beginning of the night with Megacrime hunting him. He has a plan and agrees to tell Spider-Man about it sometime later as they part ways.
Review:
Art:
The art was beautiful in all three issues. It does help that Checchetto, Hollingsworth, and Caramagna were used consistently through all three issues. It is crisp art with good details. The main characters looked great. The art and story flowed to tell one good story.
Story/Plot:
The plot was not complex but was consistent and without holes. It moved with a good flow through every issue. Often in crossover stories, the story will drag in parts but it did not. It can be a bit disheartening when the story takes you right back to where you started three issues ago. But the story was not about finding answers but rather the journey and it did a great job of showing the journey.
My REVIEW:
I enjoyed this crossover. I am already reading Daredevil and Avenging Spider-Man so I only had to add the one issue of the Punisher.
As I stated above, the art is really good in this crossover. It was enjoyable to read/look at to pull in the story.
This was not the greatest story I have read this year but it was fun and enjoyable story over all. I have read review where people feel ripped off because the story did not conclude the problem. How often do we find the solution to a problem on our first attempt? Not very often so this is more realistic that most comic stories that solve the problem in an issue or two.
There are some fun and comical lines in these comics. The interaction between Spider-Man and the Punisher is fun. I love that Spider-Man refers to Matt Murdock/Daredevil as “Magoo”.
Grade: B+
