Avengers #14 – Review

By: Jonathan Hickman, Nick Spencer (Writers), Stefano Caselli (Artist), Frank Martin (Colorist)

The Story: The Avengers check out the sites that have been altered by Ex Nihilo as they deal with the multiple repercussions of his actions.

The Review: I had said once that this run on Avengers was full of wonderful ideas, yet almost no execution for them, that there was a lot of build up for close to no payoff. For the last thirteen issues, the book was planting seeds for further stories, giving us some pretty solid visuals and some terrific actions, yet those aren’t always enough or synonymous to a great book. Jonathan Hickman needed to do better as we knew he surely could.

Well, while I cannot say that this issue really paid up for all these previous issues, it can definitely be seen that Hickman is beginning to use all those issues so far. In this issue, the whole team is seen as they try to deal with just what Ex Nihilo has unleashed on their Earth as he tried to make the planet sentient. Here, Hickman and Spencer goes in full scientific mode in a way that is close to Warren Ellis as they gives us the full explanation to what is exactly happening and what the effects of these sites has on the rest of the planet. Giving us a whole unfamiliar and catastrophic scenario, it is there that we see just why the Avengers are so large a team under their pen as the threat they are dealing with is nothing short of planetary.

Avengers #14 – Review

by Brian Michael Bendis (writer), John Romita Jr. (pencils), Klaus Janson (inks), Dean White (colors), and Cory Petit (letters)

The Story: “The Red Hulk…proved himself an Avenger.”

The Review:  As far as issue structure goes, this is a bit of a weird one.  We start out with the same talking heads format that found such success last month, then we end up with a near wordless action scene.  Bendis seems to be attempting to flirt with both of these formats, and it feels a little haphazard.

Which is a shame, because taken on their own merits, both sides are pretty solid.  The talking heads continues to bring an intimacy and humanity to the superhero community, which serve to highlight the gravity and devastation of the events of Fear Itself.  The action scenes are pretty damned awesome as well, as you’d expect a Thing-on-Steroids vs. Red Hulk battle to be.  More than that, Bendis manages to convey Red Hulk’s heroism through his actions alone and there is emotion attached to a battle that is, by and large, a regular old megapowered throwdown.

A major event of destruction happens this issue as well.  I can’t say much more than that, but suffice it to say that I have mixed feelings.  On the one hand, Romita’s grand artwork and Bendis’ tone sells this particular catastrophe well in both its scale and importance.  It again hammers home just how bad things are right now amidst the madness of Fear Itself.  On the other hand, it also feels kind of familiar.  Granted, this exact event hasn’t happened before to my knowledge, but we’ve come pretty close before and seen similar things happen.

I was also not a fan of “evil Ben’s” dialogue.  Bendis seems to, for reasons unknown, set Ben apart from most of the rest of his Worthy brethren.  He doesn’t speak that incomprehensible Asgardian monster language and, in fact, not only does he speak only English, he speaks colloquially.  In other words, he’s just evil Ben, which is a bit lame and completely at odds with what other writers have been doing, including Matt Fraction himself.

Weekly Comic Book Review’s Top Picks

DS’ Top Picks

Best From The Past Week: Warlord of Mars #7 – The best issue so far in this most excellent series. It took the weekly prize hands down. You must buy this series.

Most Anticipated: Warlord of Mars: Dejah Thoris #4 – Wow. Kirby Genesis stands to be awesome, but the Colossus of Mars 5-issue arc in Dynamite’s ongoing Warlord of Mars: Dejah Thoris series (#4 out this week) is still on the top of my pull list. Dynamite is bringing the feel and authenticity of Burroughs’ Barsoom to us.

Other Picks: Executive Assistant Iris #0, Kirby Genesis #1, Alpha Flight #1, Captain America Corps #1, X-Men #13

Alex’s Top Picks

Best From The Past Week: Journey into Mystery #624 – Truly among the very best comics being put out by the big two today, Journey into Mystery, or JIM as I like to call it, is a unique comic with gorgeous visuals and an immersive and characterful narrative experience.  If you are not reading this book and are at all interested in Marvel Comics, you are wrong and in need of correction.

Most Anticipated: Invincible Iron Man #505 – I seriously only have two comics to pick up on Wednesday.  I think that happens around twice a year.  It was either Iron Man or Avengers, so I’m going with the former.  Avengers’ current talking heads approach is a fun read, but not something I’m jumping up and down to get my hands on.  On the other hand, I was really digging the haunting, petrified Paris locale that Matt Fraction is conjuring up right now and am interested to see where it’s all going.

Other Picks: Avengers #14