SpaceKnights #1 Annotations
by Lee K. Seitz
Version 1.4 - 13 Sep 2000
Copyright 2000 Lee K. Seitz
May be freely reproduced and distributed on the Internet as long as no charges
(membership fees, etc.) are required to access it and it is not altered in any
way. All other rights reserved.
Please send corrections and additions to lkseitz@hiwaay.net. And while
you're at it, visit Rom, Spaceknight Revisited at http://home.hiwaay.net/~lkseitz/comics/Rom/.
*** Spoilers ho! ***
All character listings are from left to right, top to bottom unless otherwise
indicated. Characters listed as [unknown] will be filled in as soon as the
needed issue is released. Identities of characters listed as [?] are
uncertain. (Help is welcome.) For brevity, all members of the new
generation of Spaceknights are *not* designated with their appropriate Roman
numeral.
A Guide to Spaceknights' Real Names:
------------------------------------
Firefall Tarn
Hammerhand Bron
Javelin Darin
Liberator Tristan
Pulsar
Lan
Scanner Rhanla
Sentry Val
Starshine Anarra
Terminator Balin
==========
Cover: Liberator is shown in full figure. The flying figures are
Hammerhand, Lightningbolt (miscolored as blue where he should be green),
Firefall, Scanner, Sentry, and [?]. The bust views at the bottom are
Terminator, Starshine, Pulsar, and Javelin.
General: This series was conceived of and proposed by Batista.
Starlin was brought in because Batista has no official previous plotting or
scripting experience. Batista did uncredited rescripting of some portions
of this issue after Starlin submitted his script. Not all of Batista's
revisions made the final cut.
Pages 1-3: Due to licensing restrictions, Rom's armored form cannot be
shown, so he is shown as an iconic figure with glowing red eyes and a halo.
His name is also taboo, so the Galadorian meaning of "first" (or in this case,
"first one") is used.
Page 1, panel 1: From front to back we have male Dire Wraiths, female Dire
Wraiths, a mysterious hooded figure, Hellhounds, and Deathwings.
Page 1, panel 2: From top to bottom: Terminator I, Rom, [?],
Rainbow, Starshine I, Javelin I, Trapper, Firefall I, Pulsar I, Gloriole, [?].
Page 2, panel 3: The renegade second generation Spaceknights shown in the
foreground are Heatwave, Dominor, and Lightningbolt. The renegade
Spaceknights were not tainted by the evil they fought, but by their greater lack
of humanity (compared to Rom's generation), power, and lack of foes to fight.
Page 3, panel 1: The capital of Galador, Galadoria, has never been named
before now. It was not just the city that was destroyed, but the entire
planet was devastated.
Page 3, panel 1: The first half of the third caption seems to be missing.
It was supposed to read "Once again he was forced to take up the cause...."
Page 3, panel 2: The three Spaceknights accompanying Rom (Seeker I,
Trapper, and Scanner) sacrificed themselves in the fight against the renegade
Spaceknights.
Page 3, panel 3: The man is Rom in human form. It's the first time
he's ever been depicted with beard and mustache. This is most likely to
both help avoid licensing issues and invoke the image of King Arthur.
Page 3, panel 3: Galador had many colony worlds, so contact must have been
re-established with them to help rebuild. Not just Galadoria, but the
entire world has been restored. Rom became Prime Director at the will of
the people, not of his own desire.
Page 4: The Angel Elite are a genetical engineered race designed to serve
as Galador's "home guard." To date, only male Angels have been shown.
Page 4: I'm not sure what GMV stands for. Perhaps "Galadorian
Military Vehicle"?
Page 5: No doubt we'll find out more about this as the series continues.
Page 6: Balin and Tristan are the sons of Rom and Brandy Clark, but
Batista did not intend for them to be princes. Both are named for knights
in King Arthur's court. In Arthurian legend, Balin unknowingly fought his
brother, Balan, killing him while also being mortally wounded in that fight.
Page 7: The woman sparring with the cadet is Starshine. The statue
in the background is of Rom (sans beard), as mentioned in caption 2 on page 6.
Page 8, panel 1: Director Artour refers to Rom. Apparently Artour,
meant to invoke "King Arthur", is Rom's previously undisclosed last name.
(This was Starlin's idea, not Batista's.) Prime Director is the title of
Galador's ruler.
Page 8, panel 2: Balin summons the entire Terminator armor from subspace,
much as Rom used to do with his weapons and tools. All of the new
Spaceknights have this ability.
Page 8, panel 3: Balin interrupted Tristan before he could finish his
"platitude," but I think the Terran word "Dad" in the previous panel is what set
Balin off.
Page 9, panel 3: I think Tristan meant "Lady Prime Brandy."
Page 9, panel 6: The woman is Brandy Clark, Rom's love from Earth who was
his main supporting character in his series. She is now his wife.
Page 10: Trion and the Trionians are, to the best of my knowledge, a
previously unknown alien race. The blue being is a male while the white is
a female.
Page 11: No doubt this evil "Spaceknight" is part of some plan to
discredit the real ones.
Page 15, panel 1: It was the force of the explosion that damaged Sentry
enough that he had to enter hyper-sleep and await rescue rather than returning
to Galador on his own power.
Page 15, panel 7: Batista's revision names him Regent Daithon, not
President Itoes. Note Brandy addresses him as Regent in subsequent panels.
Page 16: Trionian President Itoes incorrectly calls the _Praxis Six_the
_Excalibur_. Excalibur was the name of King Arthur's sword.
Page 16: Aside from Mentus and the renegade Spaceknights, Galador was
never shown as a divided people. They always seemed to live in peace.
Perhaps this was Rom's romantic image of it after being away for 200 years.
Page 16: Spaceknights visible here are Firefall (extreme left),
Terminator, Starshine, Scanner, and Liberator.
Page 17, panel 3: Where it originally said "Mister President," revisions
now give us the odd combination of "Mister Regent."
Page 17, panel 6: Spaceknights visible here, from top to bottom, are
Scanner, Liberator, Terminator, Firefall, and Starshine.
Page 18, panel 5: Spaceknights visible here are [?], Scanner, Liberator,
and [?].
Page 19: Axadar is a new name for Rom's neutralizer. According to
Batista, "It [has] been dismantled and rebuilt into into something so advanced
it achieved a form of sentience. An awareness nothing more." Also,
it now looks nothing like Rom's original weapon, probably due to licensing
issues. Acceptance by the Axadar is obviously meant to parallel pulling
Excalibur from its stone, by which Arthur became king of England.
Page 19: Many of those in attendance are presumably Spaceknights in dress
uniform, but none are identifiable.
General: Balin's Spaceknight armor, Terminator, is named after one of the
two Spaceknights Rom originally traveled with after defeating the Dire Wraiths
at Galador. The original Terminator had no humanity, as it had been
destroyed by a plague released by the Wraiths. Only his brain patterns
were grafted into his armor. He eventually killed an innocent being and
was to be put to death, but was secretly saved by an evil being called Mentus.
Two hundred years later, Terminator finally turned against his evil master.
Shortly thereafter he was killed helping Rom and the other Spaceknights attempt
to stop Galactus from consuming Galador.
General: There is no known original Spaceknight named after Tristan's
armor, Liberator, but the design is based in part on Rom's armor.
Originally it more closely resembled Rom's, but Marvel's lawyers had Batista
redesign the helmet (he also added some markings on the chest) to make it less
like Rom's.
General: It is unknown, what, if anything the difference between the white
and black Spaceknights uniforms are. It does appear, however, that their
collar pips denote rank.
==========
THANKS
Much thanks to Chris Batista for the previews of things to come and inside
information he provided both before the series began and after the first issue
was released.
Also, thanks to:
Jack Bohn (Suggested note on Angel Elite.)
SpaceKnights #2 Annotations
by Lee K. Seitz
Version 1.1 - 12 Oct 2000
Copyright 2000 Lee K. Seitz
May be freely reproduced and distributed on the Internet as long as no charges
(membership fees, etc.) are required to access it and it is not altered in any
way. All other rights reserved.
Please send corrections and additions to lkseitz@hiwaay.net. And while
you're at it, visit Rom, Spaceknight Revisited at http://home.hiwaay.net/~lkseitz/comics/Rom/.
Annotations for the other issues of SPACEKNIGHTS can be found there, amongst
other things.
*** Spoilers ho! ***
All character listings are from left to right, top to bottom unless otherwise
indicated. Characters listed as [unknown] will be filled in as soon as the
needed issue is released. Identities of characters listed as [?] are
uncertain. (Help is welcome.) For brevity, all members of the new
generation of Spaceknights are *not* designated with their appropriate Roman
numeral.
A Guide to Spaceknights' Real Names:
------------------------------------
Firefall Tarn
Hammerhand Bron
Javelin Darin
Liberator Tristan
Lightningbolt Rand
Pulsar
Lan
Scanner Rhanla
Sentry
Val
Starshine Anarra
Terminator Balin
==========
Cover: Firefall, Terminator, Javelin, Pulsar, Lightningbolt, Hammerhand,
Scanner, Liberator, Starshine, Sentry.
General: Batista did uncredited script revisions.
Page 1: Notice the Angel Elite patrolling in the background.
Page 3, panel 1: Tristan says this is *another* vision, but readers have
not seen him have one before.
Page 3, panel 1: The "Mystical Dire Wraith" does not look like any Dire
Wraith readers have seen before. Since Tristan recognizes it, apparently
the Galadorians know more than we do. (In Batista's unused script
revision, he does not recognize the image, it simply projects hatred.)
Page 3, panel 2: And now Lord Gaspar appears. Apparently he's been
replaced by a Dire Wraith. Dire Wraiths are shape-changers with the
ability to absorb the memories of other creatures, killing them in the process.
(But they do not *have* to absorb the memories of another being to imitate its
appearance.)
Page 4, panel 1: Axadar rejected Balin in the previous issue.
Page 5, panel 1: Batista's unused script revision states many of the
Spaceknights in his squad are children of the originals. You might wonder
how this is possible, considering all the Spaceknights' unused tissue stored on
Galador was destroyed in ROM #75. I can't say for sure, but I imagine with
the proper cloning techniques new body parts could be created from the humanity
still in use in their armor.
Page 5, panel 2: Terminator, Sentry, Javelin, Hammerhand, Lightningbolt,
Firefall, Starshine, Pulsar, Scanner, and Liberator.
Pages 6-7: There are no known first generation Spaceknights bearing the
names of Sentry and Liberator. Except for Starshine, none of the current
Spaceknights' armor resembles their predecessors.
* The first Hammerhand, who may be Bron's father, had mace-like fists.
He was last seen in ROM #27.
* The first Scanner had no offensive powers, only greatly enhanced senses.
She was killed in ROM #75.
* The original Terminator was discussed in last issue's annotations.
* The original Firefall, Karas, was wielder of the Living Flame of Galador
and Rom's best friend. He was captured during the Dire Wraith attack on
Galador and last seen inhabiting Limbo in ROM #19.
* The original Pulsar, Plor, was able to generate force fields for both
offensive and defensive purposes. He was mortally wounded by a Deathwing
during a solo encounter with some Dire Wraiths and ultimately perished in ROM
ANNUAL #4.
* The original Starshine, Landra, could emit light beams from her eyes for
various effects. These seem to be the powers the current Starshine has as
well. Starshine threw herself in front of Rom to protect him from a
surprise Dire Wraith attack and died shortly thereafter (ROM #28). (Lady
Prime) Brandy Clark was later magically merged with the armor. She later
used her powers to completely redesign the look of the armor. It is this
design that the current Starshine's armor resembles.
* The only previously known Spaceknight by the name of Lightningbolt was a
member of the rogue Spaceknights who destroyed Galador. He threw
lightning-shaped bolts of energy, rather than projecting electricity directly
from his armor. He was killed by Galador's remaining humans in ROM #73.
It's possible there was an unknown Spaceknight from the original generation that
the second (and current) one was named for.
* The original Javelin, who was also named Darin and may be the current
Javelin's father, used a Plandanium javelin as a weapon. Before the senior Darin
became a Spaceknight, he was already well known for his spear-throwing ability.
Page 9, panel 5: The sub-space batteries don't appear form nowhere, but
from sub-space (hence their name). This is the same method used by some of
the original Spaceknights, including Rom, to summon their weapons and the
current Spaceknights to summon their armor.
Page 9, panel 5: Note that in Batista's unused script revision, these are
*not* Galadorian batteries, but remote Trion sentries (called Sentinels).
This makes much more sense, considering their design (it doesn't look Galadorian)
and the explosions around Terminator in panel 6.
Page 11, panel 1: Liberator must have summoned his weapon from sub-space
between panels. Its powers are unknown.
Page 12, panel 1: The caption would seem to indicate that Tristan is
narrating this story sometime after it took place and has since acquired
additional knowledge about the goings-on.
Page 13, panel 4: This is the second time this issue Sentry has been
witness to Terminator's rash behavior. (See page 4, panel 6.) How
much more will he take?
Page 16, panel 2: The Wraiths' long-range scanning unit is of Galadorian
design. Previously, the Wraiths have been unable to duplicate Galadorian
technology. (The same goes for Spaceknight armor, in particular.)
Page 16, panel 4: Notice that unlike the Galadorian Spaceknights, the
Wraithknights all seem to wear the same armor.
Page 16, panel 5: Batista's script says "masking spells", not "masking
projectors." This indicates these Wraiths are using a combination of
science and sorcery, not just one or the other.
Page 16, panel 5: The Wraithknights' eyes appear to be on the sides of
their heads instead of the front. It would appear they do not use any of
their usual forms while wearing their armor.
Page 17, panel 4: Tristan didn't duck to avoid the shot, but from the pain
his visions cause.
Page 19, panel 2: Teleportation is a science previously unknown to both
the Galadorians and Dire Wraiths. (Although summoning inanimate objects
from sub-space might be seen as some form of it.) Dire Wraith witches have
been shown to use spells to transport themselves in the past, however.
Page 20, panel 4: Apparently the rest of the squad finished searching
their sectors already.
Page 21, panel 5: Val's cast is missing. Apparently searching the
sectors took some time.
-- END --
SpaceKnights #3 Annotations
by Lee K. Seitz
Version 1.0 - 12 Oct 2000
Copyright 2000 Lee K. Seitz
May be freely reproduced and distributed on the Internet as long as no charges
(membership fees, etc.) are required to access it and it is not altered in any
way. All other rights reserved.
Please send corrections and additions to lkseitz@hiwaay.net. And while
you're at it, visit Rom, Spaceknight Revisited at http://home.hiwaay.net/~lkseitz/comics/Rom/.
Annotations for the other issues of SPACEKNIGHTS can be found there, amongst
other things.
*** Spoilers ho! ***
All character listings are from left to right, top to bottom unless otherwise
indicated. Characters listed as [unknown] will be filled in as soon as the
needed issue is released. Identities of characters listed as [?] are
uncertain. (Help is welcome.) For brevity, all members of the new
generation of Spaceknights are *not* designated with their appropriate Roman
numeral.
A Guide to Spaceknights' Real Names:
------------------------------------
Firefall Tarn
Hammerhand Bron
Javelin Darin
Liberator Tristan
Lightningbolt Rand
Pulsar
Lan
Scanner Rhanla
Sentry
Val
Starshine Anarra
Terminator Balin
Vanium
[Unknown]
==========
Page 1: The Spaceknights undergoing "treatment" are Pulsar, Starshine, and
Vanium (his first appearance).
Page 2, panel 4: Tristan's right, these Wraiths are like none ever seen
before.
Page 2, panel 4: "The ebon dimension" is a previously unused name for
Limbo, the timeless realm to which the Dire Wraiths were banished.
Page 2, panel 5: Tristan's visions are no longer causing him physical pain
as many of them did in the previous issue. (See also page 5, panel 4.)
Page 5, panel 1: Tristan's mother, Brandy, occupied the original
Starshine's armor after Starshine's death, *not* Scanner's. (Bad editor;
no cookie!) I have not yet done any research, but do not immediately
recall her having much in the way of psychic abilities during that time.
Saying she surrendered her knighthood to become mistress of the realm isn't
exactly right. She was forcibly removed from it by Rom's old foe, Hybrid.
She was not pleased about it at first.
Page 5, panel 4: This is a Deathwing. Deathwings were powerful
creatures of dark energy spawned in the black sun of the Dire Wraith's Dark
Nebula home. In ROM, Deathwings appeared only as black, pterodactyl-shaped
forms with red eye. The green effects are completely new.
Page 6, panel 1: We cannot tell if the Trion destroyers are actually
manned by duped Trions or if they were commandeered by the Dire Wraiths.
Page 6, panel 3: For those coming in late, the two flying Spaceknights are
Javelin and Scanner. On the ground we have Starshine, Firefall, Hammerhand,
Pulsar, and Terminator. Liberator and Sentry look on in their human forms.
Page 6, panel 3: We finally get to see the javelin weapon for which the
Spaceknight Javelin is named.
Page 7, panel 4: The Spaceknights killed in this and all subsequent panels
are previously unseen. (In two ways. First, we haven't seen them
previously. Second, they seem to appear out of nowhere just so they can be
killed.)
Page 8, panel 1: Again, this generation of Spaceknights has the power to
summon their entire armor from sub-space.
Page 8, panel 5: It appears Sentry possesses the power to summon several
archaic-type weapons. This is the first time we've seen him use a bow and
(energy?) arrows.
Page 13, panel 2: And here Sentry is summoning yet another new weapon, a
battle axe.
Page 14, panel 2: It appears Terminator does indeed share the power of
force eyebeams with his predecessor.
Page 18, panel 2: The Deathwings were all believed destroyed with the Dark
Nebula's black sun when Rom disrupted the Worldmerge spell in ROM #65.
Page 20, panel 1: This is the first time Vanium's name has been mentioned.
There are no known predecessors with his name or powers.
Page 21, panel 1: Rom did indeed kill the queen Deathwing during the Dire
Wraiths original assault on Galador 200 years ago. It was first mentioned
way back in "The Legend of the Spaceknights" in ROM #1.
Page 21, panel 1: By the way, what happened to Terminator? He seems
to have disappeared for the rest of the issue.
Page 21, panel 2: The original Firefall, Karas, used what was called the
Living Flame of Galador (not plasmafire). He was captured and tortured as
the Dire Wraiths tried to figure out how his armor worked, but it did not last
for 200 years. After an unspecified amount of time, Karas used his powers
to send himself to Limbo, where Rom later encountered him in ROM #19.
Apparently, sometime during the rebuilding of Galador, Karas was somehow
retrieved from Limbo and now somehow shares his existence with Tarn. Note
that what Karas sent to Limbo was only a portion of his humanity, if even that.
(It may have only been his conciousness he managed to send.) The rest was
cryogenically stored on Galador and destroyed along with the rest of the
Spaceknights' in ROM #75. Sending only his conciousness might explain why
he would now share his existence with Tarn rather than being restored as the
other Spaceknights were. (See annotations for #2, page 5, panel 1.)
Page 22, panel 1: Don't ask me where the portal is. I don't see one
either. Off-panel, I guess.
-- END --