Bill Sienkiewicz(!) comes on board for a truly different T-Bolts story, and the best one in a very long time. His art tells two stories: A panel-style news show discussing the emergence of this new team by interviewing the author of a new book, Modern Marvels, that tells the group’s story.
The author of the book, Dennis Schoolcroft, is an obvious stand-in for Kurt Busiek. Al Roker is another real-life person who makes an appearance…
Cute. Side note: A character with a heavy innuendo name like Joystick absolutely should be super-flirty.
Sidewinder is one of the guests on the panel discussion, providing some first-hand knowledge of the new team.
Regular series artist Tom Grummet provides inset portraits of each character that represent pages from the book that feature single characters and serve as entry points for new readers.
The second Sienkiewicz-drawn story (or more accurately, the parallel narrative) shows the team working through some issues. Genis Vell has to contain his power, and Abe “Mach-IV” Jenkins works on the tech side to support. Genis is in a containment room until the end, when Abe successfully helps him emerge…
And Photon (that’s what he calls himself now) comes out as brash and uninhibited as ever.
Throughout, Abe and his off/on romantic partner Songbird work through their relationship issues, which conclude with her leaving both Abe and the team…
There is also a sequence setting up Swordsman’s (who is really Andreas Strucker) subsequent audition for the team, and showing that he is under the control of Purple Man.
Fantastic.