“Storm” Comic Book Issue 9 “Chapter 9: Sinister Schemes of the Stars and Stripes” Part Two – Review

From writer Murewa Ayodele, Storm issue 9 ‘Sinister Schemes of the Stars and Stripes’ featured a bunch of unexpected twists and turns as the FBI’s real goal came to light.

With Storm being arrested by the FBI in the previous issue, the latest chapter opened with Ororo calling She-Hulk. Of course, She-Hulk’s unable to answer the call due to being busy in Maggott’s battle royale occurring in the Storm Sanctuary. On her own, the FBI continued to interrogate Ororo about her role in aiding Xavier leave Earth as well as the whereabouts of the young mutant kid she saved back during the debut issue.

I liked how Ayodele allowed the FBI to find a device to bypass Storm’s “immunity” to telepathy. However, because the parasite-ran gadget read Ororo’s heart rate, blood pressure, neurological activity, and other signals associated with lying, I do feel she can find a way to manipulate the device given enough time. I say this because Storm’s power over electricity also includes control over neurological pathways and bioelectricity. She can shut down a person’s brain if she ever wanted to be incredibly brutal when facing a threat.

But yeah, regardless, the interrogation scene featuring Storm and Agent Fabiyi did make for a cool back-and-forth sequence in a packed issue.

The art continued to be engrossing through Lucas Werneck’s pencils and colors by Alex Guimaraes. Ororo’s supposed to be the most beautiful woman in comics, and Werneck knows how to do her justice. He’s no doubt one of the best Storm artists out there.

Coming back to the story, I have to say I had no clue about the FBI’s real intentions with trying to keep Storm occupied. The way three agents teleported to freaking Limbo to bribe a demon named Zolel Et Kolam to attack the Storm Sanctuary was… just wow! Ayodele left me gagged!

With the current story arc having a sociopolitical angle, the FBI taking drastic measures to infiltrate the Storm Sanctuary did make sense. Leave it to the States to invade places under the guise of wanting to protect humanity from foreign entities. In the current scenario, even though Storm was an American citizen, she’s still considered an “other” due to being a mutant as well as an immigrant. The panel with rain flowing down the eyes of the Statue of Liberty to depict her crying was so good! 

Another major surprise involved Ororo anticipating the FBI trying to pull something under her nose. Even though Ororo’s a formidable tactician, we don’t usually see much of that in stories. So, kudos to Ayodele for showcasing Storm’s smart side. Sure, Ororo’s not Black Panther or Reed Richards-level of genius where she can whip up a doohickey to solve a problem, but she sure as heck has impressive battle IQ. So, whether it’s a physical fight or a verbal one (similar to the current situation between her and the FBI), don’t underestimate Ororo Munroe.

She had anticipated the FBI breaking into the Storm Sanctuary, including the attack from Limbo, and she was ready for them. The panel showing the good guy’s victory made me so happy. I hope to see more Arakki appearances down the line. And yeah, while not yet made official by Marvel Comics, Storm Sanctuary is a mini-Krakoa. And I’m here for it.

Having gone over the promotional blurb for issue 10, the FBI isn’t done with finding the location of the mutant kid from the first chapter. So, I’m looking forward to seeing how Ororo will continue to deal with the FBI while keeping the kid safe from authorities.

With She-Hulk stepping in to help Ororo return to the Storm Sanctuary, another thing issue 9 delivered on was highlighting Ororo’s emotional state. I’ve been waiting to read more about what she’s going through due to being overtaken by Eternity against her will.

Ayodele handled Storm’s thought process well. He linked Ororo’s present loss of control over her body with the assault a younger Ororo faced decades ago, an assault that led to her first kill. Even though Storm doesn’t know it’s Eternity taking over her and using her abilities to hurt others, she’s determined to kill the “parasite” by any means necessary.

I would have liked for Ororo to have said conversation with Jean Grey, but replacing Jean with Eden made sense considering the circumstances. I think that an Omega-level Cosmic being like Jean would have figured out that it was Eternity playing puppet master with Ororo’s body.

Also, it’s clear Ayodele is building towards an intense confrontation between Ororo and Eternity when the Omega-Level Cosmic Goddess finally realizes she’s been forcibly selected to be Eternity’s host in his ongoing rivalry with Oblivion.

Not only does Ororo have to keep the mutant kid safe from the FBI, she also has to figure out what to do with Eternity kidnapping and stashing Abraxas (the Bomb Entity) inside Storm Sanctuary.

Sigh! I think Ororo could have been persuaded to aid in the battle against Oblivion and Hadad if Eternity had just talked to her first. But nopes, Eternity’s clearly into theatrics and doesn’t believe in living beings (that he basically birthed) having any autonomy. Eternity made the universe and everything inside it. So, according to him, he can do with them as he pleases. And the one thing Storm hates is losing her free will.

Storm issue 9 concluded with a bunch of visually stunning panels explaining Eternity’s reasoning for kidnapping Abraxas. Through Ororo’s eyes, Eternity saw how shape-shifters like She-Hulk and more could tap into energy reserves. So, Eternal Storm used Abraxas as a cosmic battery to boost her already infinite power, allowing her to easily disintegrate a bunch of Black Winters (an incredible feat! I loved it!).   

The callback to Ororo Munroe being “Unbound”, “Unchained”, and “Limitless”… ufff!! Ayodele knows his Storm history!

Even though Eternity thinks he’s surely winning against Oblivion by using Eternal Storm, Ayodele keeps dropping hints that Eternity’s in for a rude awakening soon. Eternal Storm won’t have to defeat Oblivion because Oblivion’s already been defeated by Hadad, the First Storm God.

While I’m enjoying the glimpses into the near future, I’m unsure about what will or won’t come to be. With Storm hating losing control and the Thunder War knocking at her door, I think certain upcoming events will alter the possible future Ayodele has been sharing.

Whatever will come to pass, one this is for sure, the current Storm solo series will continue to feed Storm fans as well as fans of action-packed and emotionally-charged storytelling.

What did you think of Storm issue 9? Are you excited about the upcoming Thunder War?

Let us know. 

Author: Farid-ul-Haq

Farid has a Double Masters in Psychology and Biotechnology as well as an M.Phil in Molecular Genetics. He is the author of numerous books including Missing in Somerville, and The Game Master of Somerville. He gives us insight into comics, books, TV shows, anime/manga, video games, and movies.

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