Warning: potential spoilers ahead for The Union #4
Marvel's The Union introduces new British supervillains in the latest preview. The Union has provided plenty of conflict for the United Kingdom's heroes already, but more still lies ahead. Now these heroes will be seen fighting actual villains and not just themselves.
The Union's leader died very early on in this series and the team hasn't taken to its new leader. The team broke up before ever facing a true supervillain. Britain's super-team – consisting of Union Jack, Snakes, Kelpie, the Choir, and Bulldog - is basically in shambles, but The Union #3 may have provided an opportunity for them to come together. That is unless new information coming in the fourth issue prevents them from ever doing so.
A new preview from Marvel for The Union #4 has provided more info on the current - and potential - threats The Union is coming up against. Written by Paul Grist with art by Andrea Di Vito, this series has introduced new heroes and a new villain: Doc Croc, who has kidnapped The Choir. This preview reveals some of the foes Britannia faced that may still pose threats to The Union:
- THE UNION #4 (of 5)
- PAUL GRIST (W)
- ANDREA DI VITO (A)
- COVER BY R.B. SILVA
- Design Variant Cover by R.B. SILVA
- VARIANT COVER BY TBA
- Caught in the cries of the Choir!With their sonic-powered teammate in trouble, Union Jack and the team must rescue the Choir before it’s too late!But what the Union finds out about the Choir may be too much even for them!Plus, meet the team’s newest recruit…Bulldog!
- 32 PGS./Rated T+ …$3.99
One new British villain is introduced, while two others - Doc Croc and The Sponge - are shown in greater detail after being revealed in the previous issue. Volcanna has yet to make an appearance against Union Jack and his compatriots, but readers shouldn't count out potentially seeing her since two of her former foes are still around. Volcanna has abilities that make her more explosive than the Hulk - literally. Making her angry makes her combust, which definitely seems to be an exploitable weakness. An unknown super-powered being floats in the background, but the main draws here are Doc Croc and the Sponge.
Doc Croc is a sharp-dressed rogue who at one point amassed a group of powered individuals to fight for him. If that is his usual method of doing things, he may not be done. Selwyn, the man that has been giving the Union information, is none other than the Sponge. If he still has associations with Doc, then he is under a deep cover. Now working with the government, he has been part of putting together this super team. Unless their partnership went sour, the Sponge may just be a corrupt puppet under Doc Croc's strings. If this were the case, then The Union would tackle yet another political and social issue - corruption within the British government. This theme would definitely fit in with the themes that have already been set in place in the past few issues. As if those threats aren't enough, the Choir seems to have some secrets still stashed away that will threaten the future of the team and their ability to come together.
This series has a lot of conflicts and so far, no solutions in sight. Every chance the team is having to come together seems to come with a caveat or an additional threat. The team has secrets that are being revealed, their government connections have villainous histories, and old enemies are still around even though Britannia - the hero that originally stopped them - is not. The Union has their hands full and they may face more tragedy if they don't figure out a way to be a true team soon.