"The Deviant Ones"
Writer: Grant Morrison
Artist: Frazer Irving
Publisher: DC
Now this is more like it. In a lesser writer's hands, this plotline could have and would have gone on forever. It's pretty damn obvious that Mr. Melmouth is evil. The man looks evil. He acts evil. He dresses evil. If he were any more evil, he'd have a flashing sign on his head that read evil over here.
Klarion's way, way too intelligent to be misled by this dandified evil, evil man--if he is a man. Add his powers to his intelligence, and there's simply no logical way for this story to continue in the traditional, decompressionist way of nothing at all happening.
Morrison does not disappoint. This is a self-contained story with a kick off ending. Klarion does dope out that Mr. Melmouth is up to no good, and because of his ambivalent characterization, he does not have to do anything more about it. He only came along for the ride. Ride's over. Time to get off.
In addition to a respect for reader intellect, Morrison creates a whole cabful of interesting characters--subtracting the annoying one who is wisely due to the plotlines of the story whisked off stage. The characters are cute, provide humor--some of it deliciously politically incorrect--and despite their originality nostalgic, as a kind of updated form of the Little Rascals.
Unlike the previous Klarion's familiar, Teekl gains a stronger role in Seven Soldiers. More than mere unintelligible protector or feline abettor of the Witch-Boy, Teekl voices independent opinions. Frazer Irving's choreography of the last act symbolizes the cat's role in the tale. The cat's stillness and seriousness in the final panels contrasts the natural motion of the falling rain and Klarion's animated, somewhat humorous poses.
Easter Egg Hunt
Mouse is dressed like Emma Peel of The Avengers. Her hair while blonde also has an early Mrs. Peel look. It also bears a resemblance to the hairstyle worn by Jason Blood's former girlfriend Glenda in the original Kirby series.
The Hall of Heroes contains the uniforms of the Star-Spangled Kid, Stripesy and the original uniform of the Crimson Avenger; all three were original members of the Seven Soldiers of Victory. The uniform of the Golden Age Marvel heroine Miss America, DC heroes Liberty Belle and Wonder Woman are also on display.
Batgirl's Batcycle and Blue Beetle's Bug can be seen in the room housing the Super Machines of the Golden Age and Beyond.
The origin of the Sapper Drill is more difficult to discern. Sapper wrote the Bulldog Dummond stories, which would explain the British symbol on the display dais. The drill though appears though to be the Jules Verne device used in Journey to the Center of the Earth.
Mr. Melmouth and his band of ruffians of course take a few pages from the beggar-lord Fagin and his ragamuffins in Charles Dickens' Oliver Twist.
The Erdel Gate is named after Professor Erdel who accidentally brought J'onn J'onzz to earth.
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