Okay, so there’s another one in volume 2. This isn’t an easy numbering system to follow.
“I already had eggs for breakfast.”
Radioactive Man vol 2 #2 #222
Bongo Comics (no fake year given on this one, just the month of November; book came out in 2001)
“No One Gets Over The Underground!”
WRITER/LAYOUTS: Batton Lash
PENCILER: Abel Lazamana
INKER: Bob Smith
COLORIST: The Teen Color Brigade
LETTERER: Chris Ungar
EDITOR: Bill Morrison
As the currently de-powered Rod visits a local college he is kidnapped by the Undergrounders, a bunch of would-be hippies. Radioactive Man seeks Plasmo’s help, but due to events in a comic that isn’t actually published in our reality he’s unavailable. Advice from Plasmo’s assistant, Cheech, convinces Radioactive Man he can tap into the cosmic oneness or however that works, which he does to find the Undergrounders. This leads to a battle with Hyper-Hedgehog and that’s about as much sense as the fight makes. He does free (and of course accidentally injures) Rod. Meanwhile, Gloria is looking for someone to play Radioactive Man in dramatic recreations of fights they didn’t get a chance to record for evening news.
What they got right: I can tell you that the comic takes place in the 1970s, and the idea of bad hippie stereotypes showing up as an antagonist isn’t that far-fetched. The comedy is good, as is the fight itself with the Hyper-Hedgehog.
What they got wrong: The ending however, doesn’t make a whole lot of sense. Hyper-Hedgehog is some Radioactive Man knockoff caused by the cosmic whatever and the drug fumes down there? What? That makes no sense at all, as we’re at the Bronze Age parody at this point.
Recommendation: It’s still a good issue, as the fight is probably just padding and otherwise ignorable. Worth looking into.
