Torpedo

Like many other Defenders for a Day, the hero Torpedo was still relatively unknown during his stint with the non-team. Torpedo later found a niche as the recurring ally to Rom the Spaceknight. After their first encounter in Rom #21, Torpedo made frequent appearances in the series until his death in #50.

Fantastic Finances

Power Man and Iron Fist were two of the first superheroes to befriend Rom the Spaceknight, who came to Earth to defeat the shapechanging Dire Wraiths. Seeking further assistance, the trio journeyed to the Baxter Building, headquarters of the Fantastic Four. But how could they be certain that the Fantastic Four weren't Dire Wraiths in disguise?

As a test, Mr. Fantastic would have to recall how much Power Man was paid during his time filling in as a member of the Fantastic Four. A text box within the issue confirmed that Mr. Fantastic answered correctly but didn't print the dollar amount for readers to see (Rom #23). As much as I would have liked to have learned the answer, that information was apparently too sensitive to publish.

Rom. Vol. 1. No. 23. October 1981. "The Thing From Outer Space!" Bill Mantlo & Sal Buscema (writer - storytellers - artist), Joe Sinnott (finisher), Rosen & Zalme (letters), Ben Sean (colors), Al Milgrom (editor), Jim Shooter (prime editor).

Neutral Good: Rick Jones

On a bet, young Rick Jones snuck past guards to drive into an off-limits military test area (Incredible Hulk #1). From this first impression, Rick's disregard for authority would seem Chaotic Neutral under the nine-alignment system of Dungeons & Dragons. But after Dr. Bruce Banner risked his life to shield Rick from a gamma bomb, the teenager had a change of heart. Rick would befriend Dr. Banner during his initial transformations into the Hulk.

In the years that followed, Rick would become a serial sidekick, training with Captain America and assisting the Avengers, teaming up with Captain Mar-vell, and then becoming an ally to Rom the Spacekight. Through this heroic adaptability, Rick Jones' true character would prove to be Neutral Good.

Lawful Good	Neutral Good	Chaotic Good
Lawful Neutral	True Neutral	Chaotic Neutral
Lawful Evil	Neutral Evil	Chaotic Evil

This panel of Bruce Banner warning Rick Jones comes from The Incredible Hulk #1 (May 1962).

Dire Consequences

The New Defenders joined forces with several other super teams to stop the extraterrestrial Dire Wraiths from conquering the Earth in Rom #65.

In the aftermath, Valkyrie was the first to ask how the captured Dire Wraiths should be punished. While other heroes hemmed and hawed, Rom the Spaceknight ultimately followed his modus operandi by using his Neutralizer Beam to banish the Dire Wraiths to Limbo (#66).

ROM. Vol. 1. No. 66. May 1985. "The Day After!" Bill Mantlo (story), Steve Ditko & Steve Leialoha (art), Janice Chiang (letters), Petra Scotese (colors), Mike Carlin (editor), Jim Shooter (editor in chief).

Missing in Action

At a time when the extraterrestrial Dire Wraiths became a matter of international concern, most costumed super-teams headquartered in the United States could not be reached for help. At the bottom of an image of the missing heroes (Rom #53), a footnote asked readers to turn to the Secret Wars limited series for details.

But not all of the heroes pictured as missing actually participated in the Secret Wars. The New Defenders, rather, were in the clutches of the Secret Empire while numerous other heroes were away during Secret Wars.

The same issue the New Defenders escaped from the Secret Empire, interestingly enough, they received official government clearance as a super-team (New Defenders #130). One can only imagine how the inability to reach the Fantastic Four, the Avengers, and the X-Men during a crisis time of might have factored into this decision.

New Defenders #130 and Rom #53 both had a cover date of April 1984. It's worth noting that Kitty Pryde (lower right) also was not involved in Secret Wars.