Saturday, June 06, 2009

The Story Behind One of Marvel's Most Powerful Super-Villians: Dark Reign: The Hood #1


Back when Parker Robbins first appeared in his own series, he was just a small-time thug. Parker wasn't really evil, he just grew up on the wrong side of the tracks, and didn't really know what to do with his life. He tried to take care of his family the only way he knew how-by stealing stuff! He was a complete nobody until the day that one of his criminal escapades landed him with the hooded cape that would give him supernatural powers and a new name: The Hood!

If you've been reading any of Marvel's Avengers titles, you already know that The Hood has come a long way since his humble beginnings. He's built the largest, most successful super-human criminal cartel the Marvel U has ever seen! Usually, any group of super-villains falls apart as soon as their massive egos collide, but The Hood has been able to show them another way. By working together, these super-baddies get equipment, support, and intelligence that they could never maintain on their own. If they get caught, they are quickly busted out. Evidence of their crimes is cleaned up by experts. Best of all, when some nosy super-hero tries to ruin their fun, The Hood's people have a whole lot of muscle backing them up!

Dark Reign: The Hood #1,by Jeff Parker and Kyle Hotz, offers another look at the man under the hood. In front of his men, Parker presents himself as calm, assured, and always in control. Whenever he shows up to thwart the Avengers, he seems to be a terrifying and unstoppable force. In this limited series, we see that the powerful crime boss is not that far removed from the hesitant, conflicted, thug he used to be. Has he become too cavalier about killing? Is he really in control of the demonic forces that give him his powers?

The Hood occupies a precarious position in the "We love Norman Osborn" Marvel Universe. The true heroes, many of whom have been driven underground by Osborn, oppose him in his bid for power. Osborn, with his Dark Avengers and H.A.M.M.E.R., is certainly not happy about some "freelance" villain building a power base without his permission. Not only is Parker stuck between these two powerful enemies, he also has to worry about keeping the demonic powers of the underworld, like his "buddy" Dormammu, happy.

If you want to know the story behind one of Marvel's most powerful super-villains, check out Dark Reign: The Hood #1! It's a steal at $3.99, but you can try it risk free all week because it is Four Color Fantasies' guaranteed Book of the Week! If we all work together, everybody benefits. I think The Hood is onto something here.

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