Cover: Arthur Adams

Longshot #3

Nov 1985 · Marvel · 0.75 USD; 1.00 CAD; 0.50 GBP

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“Just Let Me Die”

★ 1st appearance — Mojo

About this Issue

Longshot #3 (November 1985) is the issue where Mojo — who would go on to become one of the X-Men line's most distinctive and enduring antagonists — makes his first appearance anywhere in the Marvel Universe, albeit during a recovered-memory flashback sequence that also constitutes the first full look at the grotesque alien race known as the Spineless Ones. The issue deepens Nocenti's media-satire allegory by rooting the Mojoverse's horror in televised exploitation and slave labor, giving the entire miniseries its thematic backbone. The self-aware touch of writer Nocenti and artist Adams inserting themselves as civilian bystanders discussing the events at issue's end is a playful, proto-postmodern flourish rare in mainstream superhero comics of the era. Together with the blackout-of-Manhattan set piece and the morally complex departure of Quark, the issue marks the mid-series pivot where Longshot's amnesiac mystery shifts from atmosphere to mythology.

In "Just Let Me Die," Longshot faces a pivotal moment when a desperate man’s final act forces him to confront his own past and make a reckless choice. Written by Ann Nocenti and brought to life with dynamic art by Arthur Adams—whose cover captures the issue’s raw intensity—this story sees Longshot dive into Con Edison’s heart, where flickering lights spark forgotten memories and a city plunges into darkness. As allies turn to enemies and a portal opens to another world, Longshot stands alone, the weight of choices he can’t undo pressing down.

writer Ann Nocenti · artist Arthur Adams · inker Whilce Portacio · inker Scott Williams · colorist Christie Scheele · letterer Joe Rosen · cover Arthur Adams

ComicBooks.com Value

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Raw (VF) $4

CGC 9.8 · 219 in census $193

CGC 9.6 · 221 in census $89

CGC 9.4 · 122 in census $62

CGC 9.2 · 43 in census $62*

CGC 9.0 · 41 in census $56*

CGC 8.5 · 25 in census $51*

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CGC 8.0 · 16 in census $50*

CGC 7.5 · 8 in census $24*

CGC 7.0 · 7 in census $22*

CGC 6.5 · 5 in census $21*

CGC 6.0 · 3 in census $20*

CGC 5.5 · 1 in census $20*

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More listings for this title

VERY FINE $9.99 VG $10 Newsstand $12 VF/NM $13.51 VF+ $14.99 FN $17 MINT $19.99 NM $19.99

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History

The issue was produced by the same core team responsible for the entire six-issue run: written by Ann Nocenti, penciled by Arthur Adams (his first professional comics work), inked by Whilce Portacio with Scott Williams as assistant inker, colored by Christie Scheele, lettered by Joe Rosen, and edited by Louise Jones under editor-in-chief Jim Shooter. Nocenti conceived Mojo specifically out of her engagement with media critics such as Marshall McLuhan, Noam Chomsky, and Walter Lippmann — making the villain a pointed satirical stand-in for network executives who profit from spectacle and control. The project had come to Adams only after most established Marvel artists passed on it; editor Carl Potts and Nocenti were introduced to Adams's samples by editor Al Milgrom, and the series became the commercial debut that launched Adams's celebrated career.

Trivia · 8 facts

First appearance of Mojo (in flashback): the tyrannical, media-obsessed ruler of the Mojoverse, created by Ann Nocenti and Arthur Adams, makes his debut in a recovered-memory sequence triggered when Longshot touches electrical machinery inside a Con Edison facility.
First full appearance of the Spineless Ones (in flashback): the obese, immobile alien race that rules the Mojoverse and whose addiction to televised gladiatorial entertainment underpins the series' media-satire premise is depicted clearly for the first time.
First appearance of Theo 'Jinx': the issue's civilian co-protagonist, a despondent New Yorker who leaps from a bridge only to land on Longshot, making his debut and driving the street-level plot of the issue.
Quark departs: the issue concludes with Quark going unnamed but choosing to leave Longshot's side, a character beat with consequences for the remainder of the miniseries.
Manhattan blackout: Longshot and Jinx's diamond heist from Con Edison inadvertently destroys power plant equipment, blacking out all of New York City — an escalation that turns Longshot into a wanted public enemy and sets up the next issue's plot.
Spiral opens a dimensional portal using the stolen experimental diamonds, allowing Gog and the demon hunters to return to the Mojoverse while deliberately leaving Longshot stranded and ignorant of his own past.
Self-referential cameo: Nocenti and Adams appear as fictional versions of themselves in a diner scene at the issue's close, perusing a Daily Bugle article about the Con Ed robbery — one of the series' signature postmodern touches.
Full creative team credited: Ann Nocenti (writer), Arthur Adams (penciler), Whilce Portacio with Scott Williams (inkers), Christie Scheele (colorist), Joe Rosen (letterer), Louise Jones (editor), Jim Shooter (editor-in-chief); the entire miniseries was later collected in the X-Men: Longshot trade paperback (first published 1988), reprinting all six issues.