Deadline (Marvel Comics)

2002 Marvel Comics mini series

Deadline is a four issue mini series that was printed by Marvel Comics in 2002, chronicling the first appearance of Kat Farrell as a newspaper reporter in New York City, stumbling onto a murder case. Kat works at the Daily Bugle, and dealt with major Bugle employees Betty Brant, Ben Urich, Robbie Robertson and J. Jonah Jameson. The series was written by Bill Rosemann, with art by Guy Davis. A precursor to The Pulse (a series which also featured Kat as a character), the story focuses on a journalist whose career is centered on superpowered beings (much to Kat's chagrin).

A reporter at the Bugle named Katherine Farrell covering "Capes"as she comes to call all superpowers individuals hates interviewing super heroes and wants to move to covering the crime dept. Betty Brant, another worker at the daily bugle, tips her off about a position opening up. She has one week to show them she can land a big story. She investigates a man referred to as Judge "No Hart" who our a suspect in the murdering of several costumed criminals and his own wife. The Tinkerer claims that he found a nearly lifeless Hart about three months previously and took him back to his lab to try and save his life. He was successful, but claims that he is not responsible for what can back with the judge. He claims that he wants Farrell to tell the world Michael Hart's story and to tell everyone that he is still seeking justice. Farrell later recounts the entire conversation to her friend and mentor Betty Brant, believing that the Tinkerer is using Hart to find and kill the super criminal murderer of his son, Rick Mason. While walking home, Farrell realizes that she is being followed by Tombstone and runs into St. Xavier's Church to avoid him. He finds her, however, and relays a message from his employer, the Kingpin, to leave Hart's case alone before something unfortunate happens to her. After Tombstone leaves, Hart again appears before Farrell and asks her to go with him.

The police investigate Farrell's apartment after she was sent a package containing her dead goldfish which had been stolen days earlier. Later that day, she questions the doorman at Michael Hart's apartment building and discovers that Hart had been helped out of the building by a "friend" on the night he went missing. The doorman was told that he was drunk and was being taken to sleep it off. Back at her apartment, Farrell speaks to her nosy neighbor and discovers that the perpetrator in her apartment was actually a reporter from the Bugle. After she identified Paul Swanson, he is arrested and fired from his job at the Bugle. Afterwards, Farrell goes for a walk with Ben Urich, and he tells her that she reminds him of himself as a young reporter. The next day, Farrell puts some facts together and visits the tinkerer. she promptly accuses the Tinkerer of attacking Hart and killing his wife in retaliation for a super criminal that Hart had defended as a lawyer who had killed his son. As the Tinkerer our ready to attack farrel the judge stops the conflict saving her in the process. The Tinkerer then after a brief period confesses to having accidentally killed Hart's wife and injuring him before taking him back to his lab to save his life. The Judge enraged attempts to kill the tinkerer but ultimately decided agent this. figuring they could do more good working together. Farrell ultimately decides not to publish her story to prevent the tinkerer from ending up in prison. then the final panels are of farrell explaining her choice to not publish the story to Urich and Mrs. Brant With Urich explaining a similar time he ultimately decided against running a story to protect the identity of a superpower individual.