Avengers: The Initiative #24 (Dark Reign) – Review

By Christos N. Gage (Script), Humberto Ramos (Art), and Edgar Delgado (Colors)

Some Thoughts Before The Review: Avengers: The Initiative is downright reliable. The storylines are a perfect fit for the style of the series, the artwork is almost always solid, and the character work is handled in a way that manages to impress each and every month.

The Story: Bengal’s wife comes to Gauntlet looking for answers about her husband, Bengal’s whereabouts. As you probably know, he’s in Madripoor with the other members of the Shadow Initiative, desperately fighting to survive the night. But Taskmaster has an idea that just might help them deal with Hydra…

What’s Good and What’s Not So Good: It’s cool to see an issue dedicated almost entirely to the Shadow Initiative. Especially one that’s as entertaining, funny, character-driven, and intelligent as Avengers: The Initiative #24. The book has some nice twists and turns, a few surprising guest stars, and best of all, it sets things up for the future in a very interesting way.

Christos N. Gage’s character work is some of the best he’s written, though from time to time he tries a bit too hard to bring the funny. Most of the humor and sarcasm is spot on, especially the way he handles Typhoid Mary’s personality and the banter between Taskmaster and one of the guest stars, but a few lines feel slightly forced. Another thing worth mentioning about Gage’s work is how well he uses the Dark Reign concept to elevate both his storytelling and his character work; partiulary the way he writes Norman Osborn the politician and the Dark Reign period for the Initiative. Everything has far been better than I expected it to be.

The artwork by Humberto Ramos and Edgar Delgado is solid all around. While the kinetic, cartoony style may not be for everyone, it definitely does the job. Of particular note is the way that the muted color scheme that Delgado uses allows Ramos’ work to stand out a bit more than usual. I think it does wonders for Ramos’ style, as I’ve seen it completely overpowered by the color work in the past.

There is one thing I must ask though. What’s the deal with showing Typhoid Mary’s nipple? While I have no problem with seeing some (drawn) skin, I found it rather odd considering that the book is rated “Teen +” and not even “Parental Advisory.” Maybe I’m weird for noticing, but I just had to bring it up.

Conclusion: Despite a flaw here and there, Avengers: The Initiative #24 is a damn fine chapter in a very good series. I highly recommend it.

Grade: B+

-Kyle Posluszny

Avengers: The Initiative #23 (Dark Reign) – Review

By Christos N. Gage (Writer), Humberto Ramos (Art), and Edgar Delgado (Colors)

Some Thoughts Before The Review: Avengers: The Initiative is almost always a sure thing as far as quality is concerned. Nearly every issue feels like a trip to a giant Marvel sandbox filled with all sorts of different characters. While recent issues have not been all that new reader friendly, the series is strong enough that I have no problem saying that it’s well worth taking the time to catch up with things if you are at all interested in jumping on board.

The Story: Camp Hammond is under fire as controversy rages. With the cover-up of Michael Van Patrick’s death now out in the open and part of a major city in shambles, the Initiative’s future looks shaky. Meanwhile, the Shadow Initiative finds Hydra operating in Madripoor and soon learns that things are more serious than initially believed.

What’s Good: Avengers: The Initiative #23 scores big points for simultaneously dealing with both the past and the future in a successful manner. It ties up loose plot threads that have been lingering for quite some time, while dragging the Initiative fully into the Dark Reign period of the Marvel universe. Fans of the series, both new and old, should find something a lot to like.

Christos N. Gage’s writing is very good throughout the issue. He effectively captures the transition of the Initiative through some fantastic character work. As for the artwork, Humberto Ramos and Edgar Delgado do a very nice job capturing the tone of the time and the emotional ride the various cast members are going through.

What’s Not So Good: As a long time fan of the series, I couldn’t be much happier with issue 23. That said, the comic isn’t perfect. A few of the scenes suffer from awkward visuals and, in some ways, the Shadow Initiative storyline seems sort of shoehorned into the plot until the last few pages. It seems like it might have been better off in another issue because both storylines in the issue suffer from breaks in momentum as the focus shifts back and forth.

Conclusion: Avengers: The Initiative #23 is just an extremely solid comic book all around. I highly recommend it, especially if you have been a fan of the series for a while.

Grade: B+

-Kyle Posluszny

Avengers: The Initiative Special #1 – Review

By Christos N. Gage & Dan Slott (Writers) and Steve Uy (Art)

The Story: Meant for longtime Initiative readers, this special issue focuses mostly on the Initiative recruit, Hardball and his relationship with both Komodo and Hydra organizations. Also, the book offers a short story about the day Trauma’s unique powers manifested during a school day.

What’s Good: As part of this special’s target audience, I really couldn’t be much happier with how things come together in this issue. It really hits all the right notes as Hardball’s bittersweet love story is handled extremely well. The Hydra plot wraps up (or truly begins?) in a satisfyingly interesting fashion, and Trauma’s origin proves to have been worth the wait. Simply put, longtime Initiative fans will find a lot to like here. Especially since Christos N. Gage’s character work is some of the best to ever grace the series known for it’s strong, well-written cast. In addition, Steve Uy’s artwork is the best it has ever been.

What’s Not So Good: A minor complaint, but Steve Uy’s work is definitely lacking in some spots. While it is without a doubt much improved from his last outing with the Initiative series, I can’t help but wish it was a bit more detailed.

Conclusion: For those that have been reading Avengers: The Initiative from the beginning, consider this to be a must buy. The character work is outstanding and the payoff for sticking with the series so long is most definitely worth the purchase price.

Grade: A-

-Kyle Posluszny