They can’t even get a card game adaptation right.
Solitaire #1
Malibu Comics/Ultraverse (November, 1993)
“The Pleasure Principle”
WRITER: Gerald Jones
PENCILER: Jeff Johnson
INKER: Barb Kaalberg
COLORING: Keith Conroy & Foodhammer!
LETTERER: Tim Eldred
EDITOR: Hank Kanalz
A group of thugs try to bring a woman back to the “Pleasure Dome” to resume being a torture slave for King Pleasure, a Caligula wanna-be, but they’re stopped by Solitaire. The woman is aided by some of his colleagues, while Solitaire tracks down Pleasure’s base of operations, and takes out his whole goon squad, frees three more slaves, and then finishes off King Pleasure, who recognizes him as Nicolas Lone, believed dead. Apparently Solitaire has issues with his father and it sounds like nanites repairing his wounds. With King Pleasure gone (and good riddance), our heroes vanishes into the night.
What they got right: While not answering everything it doesn’t have time to answer, the important details of Solitaire come into play. His father was a rich man who delved into debauchery and apparently had access to nanites to save his son’s life after a crash, making him virtually immortal. He’s believed dead. He has a secret support network who doesn’t know who he is but still helps him. We learn his abilities, with a minor hint of where they came from. And I’m rooting for a hero who kills, which is not unusual for the 1990s but is for me.
What they got wrong: Why is he called Solitaire if he has allies? There’s still more story to tell, but this isn’t an origin issue, it’s an introductory issue. Hopefully the next one will fill in gaps.
What I think overall: I honestly enjoyed this one. I wouldn’t let a kid read it given the subject matter and body count, but the violence isn’t graphic, the story is well told, I do like how it uses the narration to set the atmosphere (a lost art in comics), and it was just an enjoyable read. Looking forward to the next issue and hopefully learning this hero’s backstory.
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