Synopsis / Summary / Plot
We haven't seen Doorman since #3 because he's been busy as the new Deathurge ushering the souls of the deceased into the endless void for Oblivion. Now he turns up to collect another 1 at a Florida retirement home. But Greg Garlick's soul refuses to go until he says goodbye to the lost love of his life Irene, whose picture is beside his bed. DeMarr Davis decides to grant this wish, but figures that the previous Deathurge wouldn't have been so soft.
In his Detroit lab last issue Dr Nod forcibly extracted a sample from Big Bertha's body and mixed it with Mutant Growth Hormone to create pills which grant the user control over their body size for 24 hours. (Bertha's superpower was to be able to switch between slim supermodel Ashley Crawford and a female version of the mutant Blob. Now she prefers to remain as (Big) Bertha Crawford.) When she objected he revealed that he and his 3 minions (1 of whom was Bertha's agent Jen) had already taken the pills, and they bulked up as Dr Nod and the Bod Squad.
As the men who were the photographer and lighting tech at last issue's fake photoshoot restrain her, Dr N says they'll let her go if she promises to behave herself and be a spokeswoman for his Good Bod Supplements. She promises but then smashes his face on the floor. Then she fires Jen before using her to ram through a wall and bringing the rest of the wall down to stop the Bod-guys following them. As the 2 minions start to dig through the rubble Dr Nod, his face bloody, has a better idea - he swallows loads more of the pills.
Doorman and Greg Garlick are still trying to find Irene. Greg claims he's sure this is the right house, but as has already happened several times he's wrong. Judging by the mail this house belongs to someone else. Greg finally admits that he lied because he wasn't ready to go. The picture by the bed is of his cousin's wife Irene. Mind you they did have an affair in the 70's. DM says he has a quota of souls to fill or Oblivion won't be very happy. Then the houseowner gets home and drops dead of a heart attack after seeing Deathurge (and maybe the ghost). Greg says that'll fill the quota.
Big Bertha is outside alerting the GLA that she has a problem when a super-enlarged Dr Nod crashes through a wall spouting ad slogans for his product but sounding like the classic Hulk, and scattering bottles of pills in his wake. He continues in this vein as he ploughs through her and heads off to spread the word to the citizens of Detroit.
Outside Great Lakes Avengers HQ Flatman and Mr Immortal are trying to get the Flatmobile to work, without seeming to know at all what they're doing. 2 guys turn up out of the blue and offer to buy the camper van. They say they are Doug and his live-in graphic designer and life coach Geoff, and they're buying the Baphomet Club across the way that used to be owned by Nain Rouge (Dick Snerd now in a coma in hospital). Then FM gets BB's alert.
Lucky and Good Silva are escaping from Detroit when Good gets the alert. She tells her brother to stop the car at the nearest service station because she needs to use the bathroom. She scans local news on her phone and sees Dr Nod on his rampage. So she slips out the bathroom window to avoid Lucky and heads back to the city.
The Flatmobile is miraculously working and FM & MrI are satnaving their way to where Bertha's phone is. As they see mega-Dr Nod in front of them DM and the ghost materialise in the van. The other 2 can definitely see Greg Garlick who claims to be Doorman's sidekick. Flatman demands to know what the monster has done to Bertha. And when he claims to have killed her Mr Immortal loses his temper and attacks. But he gets squashed by a giant foot. But then even-Bigger Bertha arrives, having also consumed a bottle of DrN's pills.