OriSin8

By Steve Morris

Okay, let’s go. So far we’ve learned that Nick Fury and The Orb stole Uatu’s eyes, and that Fury’s infinity formula has run out so he’s dying. Nick Fury recruited a team of secret Avengers to investigate a string of murders which he’d committed himself through his long career, and now? Now we need to find out who killed the Watcher. Given that the answer to every other mystery in the series has been “Nick Fury”, I feel we may all know what’s coming.

We start with, you guessed it, Nick Fury and Uatu. Fury wants to know who just robbed the Watcher, because the weapons in his vault are powerful enough to destroy Earth. Um, Nick, if you’re meant to be the proactive saviour of Earth, maybe you could have dealt with this earlier? Uatu just stares at him, as they have a one-eyed glaring contest which ends when Uatu goads Fury by showing visions of the various murders he’s committed in his life.

In the present, Dr Midas – who looks like an electric blue Ben Grimm right now – is in Uatu’s house, where his big plan is to, um, eat Uatu. Apparently that’ll grant him great power of some kind, although I don’t really know how. He’s the final boss of this whole exercise, anyway, it sounds like. Also, Exterminatrix seems perfectly happy to watch on as her dad straight-up eats a dead body.

Fury blows off Midas’s hand, though, making it harder for him to hold any cutlery, and perhaps foiling his bizarre plan. He sets the Mindless Ones on Fury, which isn’t even a fight, let alone a fair one.

A more even battle is the battle of wills being fought between Fury and Uatu. Fury argues against the pacifism of the Watcher, whilst Uatu quietly stands his ground and refuses to give away the identity of the people who attacked him. Possibly because he’s embarrassed it was the Orb.

In the present, Exterminatrix runs off, as her father’s plan to eat a dead body and become all-powerful has been foiled by a hundred-year old man in a robot suit. Smart woman. He’s started calling her “Oubliette” now, and I don’t know why. As I foresaw with my magic eyes, Fury easily beats up the Mindless Ones, only to then be faced by the Orb, who blasts him with more of that purple energy he’s now developed. Orb says that Fury missed what really happened here – they didn’t freely kill Uatu, but in fact Uatu allowed himself to be killed by them both so they could take his eyes and call all this.

If that’s true, it makes Uatu the villain of this entire story I’m getting tired of reading. Boooo, Uatu, how dare you.

In the past, we see Fury continue to rail against Uatu, aware that the Watcher sees all but never documents any of it anywhere except in his own head. Fury blatantly wants that other eye, probably more than he wants to know who stole from the Watcher. Uatu, fully aware, forces Fury’s hand. He says that he’s seen “too much”, suggesting he wants Fury to kill him. He starts raising his power signature, perhaps forcing Fury to shoot first, Solo-style.

Things are getting weirder in the present, as the Orb retrieves Uatu’s eyes only for them to turn on him (twist!) and start choking him out. Was this how you thought Nick Fury’s last story would go?

Luckily for him, the Secret Avengers show up to fend off the monsters attacking him. He watches them fight, admiring their strength as he tries to decide which of them (it’ll be Bucky) is going to be his replacement (Bucky). Strange breaks that illusion though, and finally forces Fury to admit that he killed the Watcher. Killed the Watcher and then stole his remaining eye! Ugh, Nick. Bucky (who’ll probably be Fury’s replacement) tells him that it’s over, but Fury says no, Midas still needs to be defeated. Midas hasn’t been defeated yet??

Apparently not, because he’s stood by Uatu’s body, gloating and demanding the eye from Nick. The other eye isn’t… available at the moment, because it’s busy burrowing itself into Orb’s chest, which is absolutely vile. The council of Watchers stand alongside as it happens, as disgusted as we are but refusing to get involved. Glad you could make it, guys. Fury, inspired, takes the other eye and forces it into Midas’s chest, triggering some kind of implosion of energy inside Uatu’s house.

The Secret Avengers say they’ll take out whoever walks out the building, a sentiment which is rendered null when the whole place explodes, taking out Midas – and possibly Nick – with it. His last thought is about cigars, which is at least on brand at last. Bucky is sad for Fury’s loss, whilst some random female Watcher is sad for Uatu’s death. Did Uatu have a girlfriend??

Later on, Cap rounds on Black Panther and Dr Strange, who I believe he now knows were part of the Illuminati? He asks them for answers and describes Fury’s corpse as “a sack of bloody stew”, which is another unpleasant image, thanks Jason. They refuse to tell him anything, and he storms off stormily. As they watch him leave, a figure walks off in the background, undetected.

On Earth, Exterminatrix/Oubliette now refers to herself as the new Midas, I think, and sits with her dad’s severed hand. Oubliette, you didn’t really do anything this whole time, and your costume is silly, and I have no idea if any of this was followed up on at any point. Adios.

Orb, meanwhile, now has an eye implanted in his chest, and seems to have become the new Watcher. Only… he just goes over to places where violent acts are taking place, barges down the door, and watches them. Ew.

On the Moon, Thor is still trying to pick up his hammer. I think he’s crying. Aww.

In space, Bucky has become the new Nick Fury. WHAT A SHOCKER!!

And finally, on the Moon, a figure walks through the ruins of Uatu’s house. He’s chained to the ground, it appears, and unable to leave. All he can do now is watch. who is he? Who is the “unseen”, as the narrative calls him?

…. Who do you think it is, dummy?

Original Sin #8
Written by Jason Aaron
Pencilled by Mike Deodato Jr
Coloured by Frank Martin
Lettered by Chris Eliopoulos

 

Steve Morris runs this site! Having previously written for sites including The Beat, ComicsAlliance, CBR and The MNT, he can be found on Twitter here. He’s a bunny.