Avengers #27 – Review

By: Brian Michael Bendis (writer), Walter Simonson (penciler), Scott Hanna (inker), Jason Keith (colorist), and Cory Petit (letterer)

The Story: The Avengers confront the betrayer in their ranks as Noh-Varr strikes a deal with the Supreme Intelligence.

The Review:  As someone who also reads Rick Remender’s Secret Avengers, this arc of Bendis’ Avengers poses an odd conundrum, essentially following the same characters through a story with shared and conflicting plot elements.  That said, while last month I was less certain, I’m actually thinking that Bendis’ story might be the better one.  While Remender fell back on ye olde mind control plot device to explain Noh-Varr’s betrayal and the general Phoenix obsess of Hala’s residents, Bendis goes for a simpler, but more genuine idea.

Instead, Noh-Varr turns out only to be doing what he thinks is best, taking big risks, playing people against each other, and making sacrifices in a desperate gambit to save Earth.  The result is a more human story and, more than that, by issue’s end, Bendis delivers the repercussions that “mind-control” devices are used to skirt around.  Without such a “get out of jail free card,” Noh-Varr is forced to face up to the consequences of his betrayal and we get a more meaningful story.