Montezuma's Revenge is a single-issue story featured in issue eighteen of Dynamite Entertainment's second ongoing Army of Darkness comic series. It was written by Elliott Serrano, featured artwork by Dave Simons, and was released in April, 2009.
Synopsis[]
The place is Juarez, Mexico, and the date is November 2nd: Dia De Los Muertos, "The Day of The Dead". An elderly man sits beside a large water fountain, surrounded by a curious group of children who have gathered to hear the elder's tale of when evil spirits threatened the very land on which they now sit...
A group of American collage students have arrived at an archeological dig at the base of the strangely-shaped mountain range known as Las Nalgas De Los Dioses, "The Buttocks of The Gods". Before they can head to another excavation site within the caves inside the mountain, the foreigners are approached by a scrawny old man, ranting and warning them of the dangers of Las Nalgas, and it's purpose as a passage between the world of the living and the dead. While the group is slightly spooked by the old man, it doesn't discourage them from pressing on.
Led by a local boy named Fausto, the students navigate through the the cave until finding a wall covered in ancient Aztec writings. Fortunately for this group, they possess the cypher, which in turn allows them to hear the story inscribed upon it's surface. The story tells of Montezuma, a king who wanted to be a god, who made numerous sacrifices of the souls of virgins to The Lords of The Dead. Suddenly, the scrawny old man from earlier appears behind the group, angered that they have opened the doorway between worlds by speaking the ancient language. Once again the gang pay no heed to the old man's ramblings and continue to hike through the caves.
As they continue their journey, one member of the group, a girl named Lupita, notices an underground pool, and goes over to get a closer look. As she gazes into the calm waters, her reflection suddenly reaches up and quickly pulls her in. Another member of the group, Lupita's boyfriend J.G., leaps in to save her, and the old man says that the Dark Lords have consumed them. From the depths of the pool arises a tornado of water, and atop it stands the newly resurrected Montezuma, who then takes off deeper into the cave. Quickly thinking, the old shaman recites an incantation which summons a new Chosen One to battle against Montezuma, and out from the swirling portal steps Ash Williams.
Bringing Ash up to speed on what is happening, what remains of the group is guided towards Montezuma's sacrificial chamber by the spirit guide Oc, which bears resemblance to a giant pit bull. Before they reach the chamber, giant scorpions descend from the ceiling, but are quickly eviscerated by Ash's chainsaw and trusty Boomstick. In the midst of the chaos, Oc grabs the American collage girl and takes off towards Montezuma, bringing her to him to become a sacrifice.
When Ash arrives, he sees Montezuma and his Deadite underlings getting ready to kill the American girl, but she informs them that the sacrifice won't work because she isn't a virgin. This distraction provides Ash with the perfect opportunity for a sneak attack, sticking the barrel of his Boomstick right into Montezuma's face and pulling the trigger. The death of the evil king triggers a volcanic eruption inside the mountain, which spits Ash and the others back outside. His mission complete, Ash begins his long trek back to the United States.
The storyteller wraps up his yarn for the children around him by the fountain on Dia De Los Muertos. They begin to ask several questions about what happened to everybody involved, and elder Fausto reveals that those are stories for another day...
Gallery[]
Virgin Cover[]
Trivia[]
- For reasons unknown, the cover of this issue (along with Water, Water, Everywhere...) was not featured in Dynamite's The Art of Army of Darkness book.
Continuity Notes[]
- Army of Darkness vs. Re-Animator established that gateways into the Mirror Dimension could be opened on reflective surfaces in locations where massive amounts of supernatural activity were occurring. This is presumably what allowed Lupita's Deadite doppelganger to reach out from the water and drag her human counterpart inside.
- The Shaman implies that J.G. was a "Chosen One" like Ash Williams.
- Montezuma eventually returned in Army of Darkness Volume 3.