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Thursday, 5 September 2019

DARK GUARD (1993-1994)

Having witnessed the costumed heroes of the United Kingdom saving reality from Mys-tech (during MYS-TECH WARS), the Time Guardian decides to gather a group of them to form his own Dark Guard to oppose Mys-Tech at a higher level. The Guardian selects Death's Head (the Minion cyborg), Dark Angel, Albion (of the Knights of Pendragon), Colonel Tigon Liger & Stacy Arnheim (both of the hi-tech Warheads), Motormouth and Killpower and adds a new hero, Ultra Marine, to lead them. Of course, these guys don't tend to play by the rules and can barely be considered 'heroes' at all!

It seems there were bigger plans for the Dark Guard, but the Marvel UK titles were cancelled soon after the mini-series ended. Dark Guard Gold #1 would have picked up their story, but it was never to be. Instead, many of these characters would be united in a very different way in the REVOLUTIONARY WAR event twenty years later.
Previous stories directly impacting this one:
Minor Crossover: The lead-in story is optional as Dark Guard works just fine without it.
  • Motormouth & Killpower #12[1/2]
  • Dark Guard #1-4
Motormouth & Killpower #12[1/2]
Motormouth, Killpower and Death's Head find themselves allied against AIM's Metamorph, a cyber construction that mimics other lifeforms. Motormouth destroys the Metamorph, ruining Death's Head's chances to taking it back to Dr Evelyn Necker in return for payment. They all teleport away from the scene, unaware that they're being observed by a man who claims to know all about time...

Dark Guard #1
The Time Guardian transports Death's Head, Albion, Colonel Tigon Liger, Stacy Arnheim and Dark Angel to his bizarre home where Motormouth and Killpower are already waiting. When they're done fighting each other, the Time Guardian reveals himself and his intentions to send them on missions to permanently end Mys-Tech's threat as his Dark Guard. Despite explaining his home exists in No-Space, Stacy decides not to join and makes for the nearest exit, only to get sucked out into nothingness. The rest of the team suddenly find themselves on an alien world, surrounded by a hi-tech army...
Dark Guard #2
Dark Angel overrides Ultra Marine who was intended by the Time Guardian to be the team leader. The team mow their way through the legions of warriors of Eopia until they're faced with the huge cyborg Collapsar who beats them back through the portal, trapping Killpower and Liger on Eopia. Time Guardian's robotic agent, Superconductor, explains to the team that Mys-Tech provided the Technarchy Eopians with Collapsar and a number of other weapons, in an effort to aid them in their war against the peaceful Egaliterns. The Dark Guard return to Eopia and approach the Egaliterns, only to face their warriors, Sunder and Permafrost...

Dark Guard #3
The Time Guardian begins to regret forming the Dark Guard and ends up discovering Stacy Arnheim alive in his home, with no memory of who she is. Dark Angel, Albion and Ultra Marine defeat the two super-warriors and approach the Egaliterns and learn they're being given weapons by Gudrun Tyburn of Mys-Tech in the hopes that a full-scale war will erupt, destroying their world and giving them them enough sould to end their debt with Mephisto. Death's Head and Motormouth free Liger and Killpower from the Technarchy, only for it to be seen as an act of war which instigates a war that will tear their world apart...
Dark Guard #4
Death's Head kills Collapsar. 'Tyburn' is revealed to be a genetic duplicate sent on the real Tyburn's behalf to escalate the war. Dark Angel kills the Tyburn duplicate and brings about an end to the conflict. The Technarchy leader, Tansteele, refuses to accept peace and launches a nuclear strike which is seen off by Albion and Ultra Marine. With peace restored, the Dark Guard return to the Time Guardian's home and meet Stacy who has no idea who they are.
Die-Cut vs G-Force #1-2 (1993)
Albion next appears when he's caught up in the battle between the alien warrior Die-Cut and the Mys-Tech agent G-Force.

Death³ #2-4 (1993-1994)
Death's Head next appears, joining forces with his prototype (Death Wreck) against the third Minion cyborg, Death Metal during DEATH³.

Civil War: Battle Damage Report #1 (2007)
Ultra Marine is considered as a potential Initiative recruit during CIVIL WAR.

Captain Britain and MI13 #14-16 (2009)
Dark Angel and Killpower next appear; Dark Angel is revealed to be working alongside Death's Head (Minion) as part of the SAS while Killpower is an agent of MI13 during VAMPIRE STATE.

Revolutionary War: Alpha #1 (2014)
Stacy Arnheim and Colonel Tigon Liger next appear, having returned to the Warheads; it's revealed that Killpower fell through a portal to hell while on a mission, causing Motormouth to retire from adventuring during REVOLUTIONARY WAR.

Revolutionary War: Knights of Pendragon #1 (2014)
Albion is revealed to have remained with the Knights of Pendragon as part of MI13 during REVOLUTIONARY WAR.

Revolutionary War: Motormouth #1 (2014)
Motormouth focuses on raising her two children during REVOLUTIONARY WAR.

Revolutionary War: Warheads #1 (2014)
In one last conflict with Mys-Tech, Killpower is revealed to have been transformed into a Hell-Lord and opens a gateway to Earth to bring his army through to Earth; Stacy Arnheim's memory appears to have been restored (though it's never mentioned) during REVOLUTIONARY WAR.

Revolutionary War: Omega #1 (2014)
Motormouth refuses to kill Killpower, so Colonel Liger, Death's Head and others do it for her; Dark Angel sacrifices her own powers to close the gateway and end the invasion from Hell during REVOLUTIONARY WAR.
Knights of Pendragon Omnibus 
Includes... 
Dark Guard #1-4

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