Issue Description

From the visionary minds of writers Grant Morrison and Mark Millar comes a new DC Universe ongoing series with a new kind of hero--one with truly fantastic powers, a limitless sense of wonder, and a refreshing nobility of heart that will fire your imagination and renew your love of comics. Readers weary of psychotic vigilantes and angst-driven executioner "heroes" will find Aztek an invigorating change of pace--a fast-moving, action-packed, intelligent adventure that will challenge your preconceptions and delight you, month after month.

The issue opens in Vanity City, where Piper, a small-time super-villain, engages in a clandestine meeting. Worried about his daughter, Piper is forced to meet with her kidnappers and Synth, a former member of a super-hero team known as the Vat-Men. Synth’s mind is in constant flux, and it is Synth that is “guarding” Piper’ daughter.

Meanwhile, the new hero, Aztek, has arrived in Vanity City. His mission is to get the lay of the land, and to create a secret identity for himself. However, he has no idea how to do that. With no social security number and no money, Aztek has a hard time finding a place to live. He goes to a local bank, trying to figure out a way to get money, when the bank I robbed by Piper and his army of small self-functioning pipes.

Before anyone can do anything, Vanity City’ hero, the ruthless gun-toting Bloodtype arrives on the scene. Bloodtype drops Piper with a couple of fists to the face, and is about to shoot him in the head when Aztek interrupts him. While Bloodtype thinks Aztek is a super-villain, Aztek makes it clear that he is only here to make sure Bloodtype does not go over the top with Piper. Piper tries to run, and Bloodtype guns him down before Aztek can stop him.

Bloodtype finds Aztek is much more capable than Piper, and the two fight. Bloodtype pulls out every weapon he has in his arsenal, but none of them stop Aztek. Aztek uses an electrical jolt to fryBloodtype’s synapses, knocking him unconscious. Aztek approaches Piper, who is barely alive. Piper tells Aztek his real name, Dr. Curt Falconer, and that he was doing this to save his daughter Mindy being held hostage. Just as Aztek is trying to make sense of everything, one of Piper’s pipes runs up. Piper says that this pipe is not one of his, and the pipe explodes, destroying the building.

At the local E.R., the survivors of the explosion are being triaged. Bloodtype is barely alive, having lost both his right leg and arm. Aztek arrives at the hospital in normal clothes, and tries to help. While Bloodtype dies on the gurney, Aztek uses his touch to heal one of the victims. When one of the nurses asks what is going on, Aztek states that he is Dr. Curt Falconer, the new doctor here.

With Bloodtype dead, there is no super-hero watching over Vanity City. Aztek decides to take that role, and reports back to his mysterious bosses, who now have nothing to do but wait for the “shadow god” to show his hand.

Aztek: The Ultimate Man (1996)

Publisher

DC Comics

Volume Description

Aztek: The Ultimate Man was the brainchild of writers Mark Millar and Grant Morrison and artist N. Steven Harris. The ongoing series was designed to debut a new hero of the DC universe. The series followed the anti-hero Aztek; a hero whose big picture mission meant he took unusual solutions to solving the small problems. Aztek: The Ultimate Man featured an unusual city, unusual villains, and the supporting cast of St. Bartholomew’s Hospital.
 
Throughout its run, Aztek: The Ultimate Man had counted Millar and Morrison as its writers, and Harris and Keith Champagne as its artists. Famous DC cover artist Steve Lightle lent his pen to the majority of covers of the series.
 
While Aztek: The Ultimate Man was a critical success (it was rated one of the top 10 books of 1996 by Wizard Magazine), it was not a commercial one, and Aztek: The Ultimate Man was cancelled after ten issues. With its cancellation imminent, Aztek creator Morrison brought Aztek into one of the other comics he penned at the time: JLA. The final issue of Aztek has the titular hero joining the Justice League.
 
Over the years, we would never go back to get a glimpse of Vanity City, and Aztek would eventually die at the end of Grant Morrison’s run on JLA, in issue #41. 
  Collections and Reprints The entire series is collected in the JLA Presents: Aztek: The Ultimate Man trade paperback (2008)

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