Avengers #20 – Review

by Jonathan Hickman (Writer), Leinil Francis Yu, Gerry Alanguilan (Artists), David Curiel (Colorist)

The Story: Captain America may have found a new strategy in order to deal with the Builders as Ex Nihilo goes on to see just what is going on with his people.

The Review: From what we’ve seen so far, Hickman seems to have rejuvenated this title with Infinity, his big event that ironically enough was build up from pieces introduced in this very title. With a much more focused plot and very clear stakes at play, the strengths came to the forefront that much easier, but with the story moving forward with almost every week of the month, does the book continue to be relevant to the event while keeping its own plotline and a modicum of quality?

So far, so good from what can be seen, as many of the plotlines and characters introduced in this title continue. Many of the threads are played with here quite aptly, with some of them moving the story forward in ways that really do bring surprising twists. One of them would be the scenes featuring Ex Nihilo, a character created by Hickman especially for this series, who deals with the Builders. For quite a long time, the motivations of the Builders to destroy and kill around the whole cosmos was pretty vague, much to the event discredit. In this issue, though, we do get an evolution and some explanations as to the problems that plagues creators that are turning into destroyers and killers. It is a fascinating development that makes this conflict a bit more interesting and that promises to make it even more so in the upcoming issues.

What’s also handled with care and gravitas would be the Galactic Council and how they are trying to pursue this whole conflict. The decisions, the in-fighting and how Captain America is portrayed makes for a rather suspenseful read that put the readers right into an impossibly large conflict. There are twists and a good use of those featured in the main event book without letting it lessen the impact of this book. It’s a neat use of the event, which is central to the book, without destroying the importance and the ongoing subplots of the book. It maintains its identity while it adds up to the whole experience.

Avengers #20 – Review

by Brian Michael Bendis (writing), Daniel Acuna (art), and Cory Petit (letters)

The Story: Norman Osborn confronts the Avengers as he and his allies prove to be a step ahead in their war on Cap and the gang.

The Review: Well, it’s a hell of a lot better than the last issue of New Avengers.

While the HAMMER War is still a poorly conceived idea, this issue succeeds in its completely ignoring the new “Dark Avengers.”  Instead, it focuses on Osborn, Hyda, and HAMMER.  The result is that the comic feels at least a little less recycled.  Osborn’s effort has a more underground, insidious feel and it at least feels fresh and not a diluted rehash of Dark Reign.  It’s really strange seeing a the same writer write basically the same storyline in two books at the same time, but in two distinct ways.

There’s some nice meta styled comedy on Bendis’ part as well.  Through Norman Osborn, he points out the obvious absurdity of Madame Hydra’s utterly ridiculous octopus head, which is thankfully done away with.  Later in the issue, there’s also a bit of a jibe at Jeph Loeb’s frequently derided run on Hulk.  In some ways, these little spots of humour may jar tonally with the rest of the comic, but long time readers should nonetheless crack a smile.

Yet, for all these bright spots, there’s just no escaping the fact that there’s so much about this “HAMMER War” that is undercooked or poorly conceived.  For instance, we’re still not really clear on why the Avengers are suddenly hated and protested by the public.  I like to infer that it’s due to perceived failure during Fear Itself, but I don’t think that’s ever been explicitly referenced; it seems to be left up to the reader.

WCBR’s Top Picks

Dean’s Top Picks

Best From The Past Week: Severed #5 – This comic scores of a couple of fronts.  First, it’s well written and illustrated.  In my opinion, reviewers get sloppy when praising “writing” and use it to mean “having good ideas”.  Severed is well written.  The pages and dialog just have an elegant flow to them that some writers just cannot manage.  And, it looks GREAT and very much pulls you into this time period when people were sweaty and wearing rumpled clothes.  Stuff just looks dirty.  But the other area where Severed scores is that it is keeping me guessing better than any comic I’ve read in a long time.  It’s amazing how the writers have been able to maintain this tease of when the old cannibal would attack the little boy without anyone yelling, “get on with it.”

Most Anticipated: Wolverine and the X-Men #3 – What a jolt of energy this series has been to the X-franchise!  I love how Jason Aaron is approaching this series with a dry and black sense of humor because these mutant books can get overly serious really fast.  Oh yeah….and that Chris Bachalo/Tim Townsend team is providing the art.  Should be awesome!

Other Picks: Batman #4, The Activity #1, Last Battle One-Shot, Amazing Spider-Man #676, Daredevil #7, Lady Mechanika #3, Avengers #20

DS’ Top Picks

Best From The Past Week: Warlord of Mars #13 – Oh yeah, no surprise for me. Warlord of Mars is a great book with a solid creative team and about half a million words of best-selling material to draw upon. Issue #13 is the first issue in the most excellent “Gods of Mars” arc. If you haven’t picked it up, give your head a shake and get out there

Most Anticipated: Lady Mechanika #3 – Benitez’ art alone is worth the price of admission, but his art turned to steampunk exuberance is a real treat.

Other Picks: Thunderbolts #167, Daredevil #7, Uncanny X-Force #19, Avengers #20, Defenders Strange Heroes #1