Stormwatch #3
Stormwatch #3 (July 1993) is the first appearance of Backlash (Marc Slayton), the Kherubim-human hybrid warrior and Stormwatch training officer who would go on to headline his own solo series from 1994 to 1997 and become one of the more distinctive figures of the early Wildstorm universe. The issue also closes out the inaugural three-part arc of the series — the Chernobyl-set Regent storyline — delivering on-panel deaths for Stormwatch Two members Lancer and Ion, making it one of the earliest issues in the nascent Wildstorm line to demonstrate genuine, lasting character consequences. Its early establishment of the Warguard as a doomsday contingency option seeded ongoing mythology that reverberated through the series for years. Together, these elements mark the issue as a meaningful capstone to the series' debut story and a launch pad for one of the imprint's few breakout characters.
Stormwatch #3 (1993) delivers high-stakes tension as the team races against time to extract their captured teammates from the failing Chernobyl reactor, facing off against the overwhelming Regent while the core teeters toward catastrophic failure. Written by Brandon Choi and Jim Lee, with dynamic art by Scott Clark and inks by Trevor Scott, this issue blends relentless action with the weight of imminent disaster. The cover by Jim Lee and Trevor Scott captures the chaos perfectly, setting the tone for a mission where every second counts.
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We Buy Collections ▸History
The series was created by Jim Lee and Brandon Choi, published under Lee's Wildstorm Productions imprint as part of Image Comics beginning in March 1993, with interior art by Scott Clark and inks by Trevor Scott throughout the early run. Issue #3, cover-dated July 1993, concluded the opening arc that Lee and Choi had plotted across issues #1–3, with Backlash co-created by Lee and Brett Booth — an early creative collaboration that would bear fruit when Booth became a regular Wildstorm artist. The Chernobyl setting gave the young title a real-world geopolitical texture unusual for Image's debut wave, and the willingness to kill off named team members this early in the run signaled an editorial ambition to distinguish Stormwatch from the typical superhero launch.
Trivia · 7 facts
- First appearance of Backlash (Marc Slayton), Stormwatch's training officer — a half-Kherubim, half-human warrior approximately 3,000 years old, possessing psionic energy whips and the ability to transform into mist.
- Backlash was created by Jim Lee and Brett Booth, and later headlined his own solo title (Backlash #1–32, 1994–1997).
- The issue concludes the opening three-part Regent/Chernobyl arc; Stormwatch Two members Ion (Pieter van Tuig) and Lancer (Manuel Gutierrez) are confirmed dead — among the earliest character deaths in the Wildstorm line.
- Malcolm King, Battalion's younger brother, meets Marc Slayton in the Skywatch infirmary in this issue, formalizing his introduction to the Stormwatch organization and beginning his path as a recruit.
- Weatherman One (Henry Bendix) orders both a preemptive nuclear strike on the Chernobyl site and the potential release of the Warguard as contingency measures, establishing his willingness to accept mass casualties — a character thread that runs through the entire volume.
- Written and created by Brandon Choi and Jim Lee; interior pencils by Scott Clark, inks by Trevor Scott, cover by Jim Lee.
- Regent, the extradimensional villain of the arc (revealed here as having caused the original Chernobyl reactor meltdown during his first dimensional transit attempt), is defeated but escapes by teleporting away, leaving his return as an open story thread.
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