Avengers #295
… Beggars Would Ride!
In the distant future humanity is at war with robotic dinosaurs.[1] In the middle of a battle a robotic tyrannosaurus rex is snatched from this time period by Kang Nebula as part of her scheme to take control of the Avengers to capture the most powerful weapon in the omniverse.[2]
On present day Earth, Doctor Druid has called a meeting of the Avengers to discuss reactivating reserve members after the departures of both the Sub-Mariner and Captain Marvel.[3] That’s when Nebula contacts him mentally and shows him the robot dinosaur which she has unleashed on Washington, DC. She orders him to send Thor to deal with the threat alone. This does little to settle Thor’s growing doubts over Druid’s leadership.
Elsewhere in time and space, Chairman Kang meets with their latest recruit, “Fred”, who informs him of Nebula’s duplicity and her getting involved with the Avengers. Furious that Nebula has grown rogue, Chairman Kang decides to investigate how Nebula got the technology to achieve these goals.[4]
Back in the present, Doctor Druid makes mental contact with Nebula and questions her judgement over sending Thor against the threat in Washington alone. He convinces her that this was necessary as Thor was the only one to resist the Doctor’s bid for leadership. Falling deeper into Nebula’s control, Druid agrees with her judgement. By this time, Thor has reached Washington and tries to stop the rampaging robot, but it is too powerful and can automatically repair any damage inflicted on it.
At Hydrobase, She-Hulk paces the room, worrying over the Black Knight who is slowly becoming immobilized due to the blood curse on his Ebony Blade.[5] When she receives a distress call from Thor she races to a Quinjet to lend a hand. However, before she can leave she is forced to stop by Doctor Druid, who subdues her with his mental powers. When She-Hulk begins resisting his mental commands, Doctor Druid is forced to subdue her. At Nebula’s command, Druid then begins forcing his will upon her until she complies with his wishes. All this time, Thor continues to fight the robot dinosaur alone to no avail.
While at the headquarters of the Council of Cross-Time Kangs, Chairman Kang and his minions are searching Nebula’s room to figure out what her plans are. They discover that she stole technology from the other members of the Council to escape to the present day. They also discover that she is attempting to use the Avengers to obtain the weapon they are seeking to obtain.
Back on present day Earth, Doctor Druid tries to convince She-Hulk that his complete control of the Avengers is necessary to save the entire universe. While he is distracted, Black Knight gets up and makes his way to a Quinjet, a job made difficult due to his increasingly stiff body. When Druid notices this he tries to mentally force the Knight to stop but She-Hulk breaks his concentration by kicking him. This allows the Knight to get away, angering Nebula enough to appear in person and chastise Druid for his failure. At risk of losing her tenuous grip on Doctor Druid, Nebula sends him off to track the Black Knight and Thor before She-Hulk can convince him that he is being manipulated. Nebula then vows to make She-Hulk sorry for interfering in her plans.
By this time, the Black Knight arrives in Washington and uses his Ebony Blade to slice open the robot dinosaur’s head so Thor can shatter its computer brain with Mjolnir. Thor then rescues the Knight from a nearby river and is surprised when Dane’s skin cuts him life a blade. Worse, the Black Knight’s condition has gotten so bad he can no longer move. Luckily an ambulance arrives to rush Whitman to the hospital for immediate medical attention.
Seeing this with his mental powers, Doctor Druid fears that Thor will come back and interfere with his plans so he goes back to working over She-Hulk’s mind so she will defend him against the thunder god.
Recurring Characters
Avengers (Thor, Black Knight, She-Hulk, Doctor Druid), Nebula, Council of Cross-Time Kangs (Chainman Kang, Fred Kang, Cobra, Kong)
Continuity Notes
Per Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A-Z #4, this possible future has been designated Reality-88304.
Kang Nebula is actually Ravonna Renslayer who is manipulating Druid in order to get access to a powerful weapon that is trapped in a Time Bubble that exists some 20 years in the future. This is all part of a long running scheme to get revenge against Kang the Conqueror. See Avengers #294-297, Fantastic Four #337-341, Captain America Annual #11, Thor Annual #17, Fantastic Four Annual #25, and Avengers Annual #21.
The Sub-Mariner left following the death of his wife Marrina in a battle which saw Captain Marvel seriously injured. See Avengers #291-293. Druid took over as leader of the Avengers last issue.
Avengers Annual #21 and Avengers Forever #9 clarify that these are not divergent Kangs, but others who murdered the Kang of their native reality and usurped his identity for their own ends. “Fred” Kang apparent survivor of the Kang War that occurred in Avengers #267-269. At the end of that story, Kang fled into Limbo after being driven mad by a globe of knowledge. Avengers Forever #9 clarifies that this is not the Kang, but another divergent created when the Kang at the end of Avengers #269 committed suicide and created two divergent selves to break his insanity. This Kang was recruited by the Cross-Time Kangs in Avengers #291.
The sword had the curse suspended by a spell in Doctor Strange (vol. 2) #68-69, but it was broken Avengers #293 when Namor used the blade to slay Marrina. Due to the blood curse, Dane Whitman’s body is being transformed into a living sword, as stupid as that sounds. This causes Whitman to become completely immobilized eventually, but he is eventually freed from this curse thanks to the aid of Doctor Strange and the spirit of Sir Percy, his ancestor and the original Black Knight. See Thor #396-400 and Black Knight (vol. 2) #1-4.
Topical References
The present day is stated as happening in the 20th Century. This is a topical reference due to the Sliding Timescale that has pushed the Modern Age of the Marvel Universe forward so that it doesn’t begin until after the start of the 21st Century.
