NEMESIS 5: B&B #170

Brave and the Bold #170 (Jan 1981)

cover: Jim Aparo (signed)

title: "If Justice Be Blind!"

writer: Cary Burkett

art & letters: Jim Aparo

colorist: Adrienne Roy

editor: Paul Levitz

Synopsis: 

Ted Lucas is killed on the steps of Gotham City's police head-quarters....the fourth victim in a series of brazen murders, all shot in the brain with a .38 caliber revolver. Batman thinks that the killer is Danny Krebs, underworld assassin, known for that mode of operation. Commissioner Gordon tells Batman about the huge price that is on the head of a stanger fighting the underworld known only as "Nemesis." Batman says he'll look into it.

Batman has a tipster who sends him to a building where, after a few hours wait, Batman spies Krebs entering. Batman is too late to stop Krebs from killing victim number five, but he bursts into the apartment quick enough to find Nemesis, who tries to stop Batman from apprehending him. Batman of course knows Nemesis isn't the assassin, if only because Nemesis is holding a .45 caliber gun, not a .38.

As Krebs has escaped, Batman and Nemesis compare notes. Nemesis tells Batman that "the Head" is the head of the biggest crime combines in the world, "the Council." Nemesis is working to catch him and shut him down. The murder victims were all carriers who the Head had used to communicate with the Council, so clearly the Head is threatened by Nemesis and has ordered them all killed to clear that loose link between them and him.

Nemesis insists on working alone, but Batman hops onto Nemesis' helicopter as it flies away, insisting on helping him out. Batman is able to convince Nemesis that they should work together. Batman guides Nemesis to Gotham City's most dangerous neighborhood, where they find Krebs. But now that his job has been completed, he has been targeted, too. Although both heroes try to save him he is killed by the Head's men. Batman and Nemesis must be satisfied with taking down these goons.

Batman takes Nemesis to the Bat-Cave, where he pushes Nemesis for more information. Nemesis admits that he is working to get justice for Ben Marshall, who was murdered by an agent who was brainwashed by a former Nazi scientist named Otto Von Riebling on the Head's orders. What Nemesis doesn't tell Batman is that the agent who killed Marshall was his own brother, Craig.

Batman suggests that Von Riebling is their weak link, and that he is who they should try to find. Batman as Bruce Wayne sets up an auction of World War II memorabilia, which attracts a man named Krispen, the leader of a large network of Nazi sympathizers. Batman believes that if anyone can get them in touch with Von Riebling, it is Krispen.

Nemesis disguises himself as Von Riebling's older brother, who disappeared during the war. In disguise Nemesis sits next to Krispen at the auction, making sure that Krispen sees his fake Gestapo tattoo. Krispen trails Nemesis and confronts him, telling him that they are Nazis, too. Nemesis "admits" that he is Von Riebling, so Krispen goes away to confer with Otto.

A few days later, Nemesis gets picked up by Krispen and taken to the Waverly Medical Center to meet Otto. Batman trails them. Unfortunately, the real Von Riebling brother was missing a finger, so Otto knows immediately that Nemesis is a fake. Batman breaks into the lab to help Nemesis, but Von Riebling tosses a grenade at them and destroys it.

The Head decides to strike back at what he correctly assumes is Nemesis getting closer to him. Figuring also that Nemesis might be on a personal vendetta, he arranges for the kidnapping of Marjorie Marshall. Batman and Nemesis find fliers scattered around town demanding that Nemesis give himself up, so he does, followed by Batman in his noise-deafened whirly-bat.

Nemesis comes face-to-face with the Head, who is actually an old man in an iron lung. Nemesis is grabbed and strapped down to be brain-washed as the Head admits that it was Marshall who shot and paralyzed him many years ago.

Batman arrives and goes through all of the high security measures to get into the Head's laboratory. As Nemesis is strapped down, the Head verifies how easy it will be for Von Riebling to brainwash him. When the Nazi scientist tells the crime boss that everything is ready to go, the Head has his lackey shoot Von Riebling, as the last "loose end" from "the Tresser Case."

While this is happening, Nemesis breaks free via a hidden razor under a false patch of skin on his arm. He is about to slice the oxygen tube to the Head when Batman and Marjorie burst in. Batman admits that he figured out who Nemesis really is, and tells him not to stoop to murder. Marjorie begs him to reconsider his choices, crying for Nemesis (Tom) to uphold what Ben Marshall always loved---the law! Batman tells her he won't stop him; Tom has to decide on his own.

On the next page, Nemesis drops the scalpel. Suddenly, the dying Von Riebling picks it up off the floor and slices the oxygen tube neatly in half, killing the Head just as he, too, dies.

Commentary: 

Cary Burkett has plotted himself one pretty good yarn here. I can imagine that even if you had picked up this issue without ANY knowledge of who or what Nemesis was, you would have been entertained. Basically, it's a mob boss killing the killers, with Batman and guest-star Nemesis stuck in the middle. After that pans out (in a rare situation where the heroes are not able to save the targeted victims) we get a plot switch; instead of being re-active, the heroes decide to be pro-active. It seems like Nemesis learns a lot about force of personality from Batman here, but maybe I'm just imagining that.

I also like the bit where Batman admits he has guessed who Nemesis really is, and asks Tom Tresser to stand WITH Ben Marshall, not against him. I'm a sucker for heroes having to face tough moral questions like these, even if they are pretty straight-forward in the grand scheme of things. Still, it's easy to imagine that Nemesis could have cut that tube and tried to kill the Head, making him a new arch-villain against Batman. Sure, we all know that isn't what was going to happen, but I like the situation and the page layout where you had to actually wait a page-turn to see if Tom would turn bad or not....!

Speaking of page layout, the art this time is by the incomparable Jim Aparo, making him only the second artist to ever illustrate Nemesis (after co-creator Dan Spiegle). He does a great job, of course, although a few times I'm pulled out of the story by the need to not show men with their brains blown out!  I wonder why Burkett's ultra-violent MO was allowed to stand, instead of getting replaced by something equally unique but not quite so gruesome....

This story put an end to Nemesis' over-arching search for vengeance in the death of his brother and Ben Marshall. From here on in, he would be facing down the specific members of the Council. Be here next time as we head to Las Vegas and his first foray against them....

Nemesis Fact File:  

• This is the first time the Nemesis back-up gets the "upfront" spotlight in a full-length 25-page epic team-up with Batman. This makes Nemesis one of the few B&B co-stars to never have his own strip but have the honor of being co-starred with Batman. I can think of two others: The Guardians of the Universe and the Riddler. 
• Because Nemesis appeared in the lead story in this issue, all but one of the letters in The Brave & The Bold #175 mentioned Nemesis. Every commentator seemed to enjoy this story.   

NEMESIS created by Cary Burkett and Dan Spiegle