Nemesis 16: B&B #182

#16

Brave and the Bold #182 (January 1982)

Synopsis: 

As Tom continues to train Valerie on how to shoot, the three remaining members of the Council get together to discuss what they can do about Nemesis, who they blame for the arrests of three of their members. Miss Scarfield, the head of the Chicago branch, has taken it upon herself to hire Renard Traquer, aka Greyfox, one of the most feared and respected international assassins in the world. 

He tells the Council that he intends to start his search for Nemesis by tracking down Valerie. She is well-known for her attempt to kill Curtis in Las Vegas, and was later seen in London when Nemesis took down Chesterton. Greyfox has learned that Valerie has a brother, Chris, who still lives in Vegas, and Chris is where Greyfox intends to begin. 

So several days later, Chris is beaten up and left for dead when he can't tell Greyfox's men where Valerie is. He then calls her emergency contact number, but Greyfox has tapped his phone-line, and now knows that she is in New York and Chris is flying to join her! 

Nemesis suspects trouble, so meets Chris' flight in disguise. He sees Greyfox and his men attempt to follow Chris, and stops them. However, Greyfox guesses that the blind man had to have been behind the dart in their taxi's tire, so they attack. Thinking fast, Nemesis sprays the area with smoke pellets. Under cover of smoke he loses his disguise and switches his overcoat inside out. He manages to escape from Greyfox this time, but knows that he is definitely the assassin's target! 

 

Commentary: 

This is the beginning of a new saga, as the Council now sets out to get rid of Nemesis before he can get rid of any more of them. Siccing an assassin after Nemesis is a good idea, and chasing after Valerie and her brother is a stroke of genius. One of the great things about this series is that Cary Burkett assumes that the readers are intelligent. The loop-hole of Valerie's brother was there and it's totally logical for him to be taken advantage of in this way. Greyfox is clearly a real threat. 

The art is still gorgeous. I am in awe of Dan Spiegle's ability to make each character look unique. His blind man disguise for Nemesis is wonderful, and the switcheroo at the end is illustrated well, too. I can't wait to re-read the next installment!  

Nemesis Fact File:  

• The team-up in this issue is between Batman and the Earth-Two Robin "the Ex-Boy Wonder."  "Interlude on Earth-Two" is the second issue in a row by Alan Brennert and Jim Aparo. If you are fan of Earth-Two characters, you owe it to yourself to read this story.   
• Due to the reaction to this lead story, there were no letters printed in The Brave & The Bold #187 mentioning the Nemesis series.   

This story has not yet been reprinted. Therefore, I gladly reproduce the eight-page story here in its entirety, exactly as it appeared in its comic-book form.
Please do not allow it to fall into the hand of The Council!

NEMESIS 

created by Cary Burkett and Dan Spiegle