Avengers #12 – Review

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

The Story: Parker Robbins makes his stand against the Avengers in attempting to gather all of the infinity gems.

The Review:  Wow.  Art-wise, this is simply gorgeous.  Both Romita Jr. and Dean White go all out this month, putting out what may very well be the best looking issue of this series thus far.  Romita and White go old-school crazy on us in their depiction of the astral plane, Thanos, and the cosmic powers of the infinity gems with high-powered combat that is explosive fun.  Everything glows, carries an epic but gleeful cartoony tone, and is just so much fun to look at.  Clearly, putting Romita and White on a story like this was a good call, as it really lets them shine.  It’s clear that the artists are having a really good time, and that carries over to the reader.

Unfortunately, not soon after the issue begins, Bendis sort of spoils this by putting a completely foul tastes in the mouth of pretty much every reader.  Last issue’s Thano’s cliffhanger was awesome in an “oh no you didn’t” sort of way.  Well, this month, we learn that Bendis….actually “didn’t” after all.  I hate, hate, hate it when comic book writers pull cheap bait-and-switches like this.  They serve absolutely NO purpose other than to create a quick shock at the end of an issue.  They serve little to no narrative benefit and, honestly, this whole Thanos ruse proved to be utterly pointless.  It wasn’t an overly vital tactic on the part of the Avengers.  It was just a cheap move to get a rise out of the reader, which only led to crushing disappointment this month.

And worse still, if this is all a bait-and-switch, why have the Hood be in heavy dialogue with “Thanos” for five pages at the start of this issue?  That borders on sadism and it really just makes the ensuing wound all the more painful.

On the plus side, while this trick put a damper on the issue as a whole, Red Hulk does really shine this month.  By focusing on Red Hulk the most and having him seemingly lead the charge against the Hood and take him on in single combat, beating on Parker both physically and intellectually, Bendis nicely cements Rulk’s place on the team while also garnering support for the character.  This bodes well for the series in the long-term while also providing someone to cheer for this month, as well as a decent bit of character-work.

Avengers #11 – Review

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

The Story: The Avengers and the Illuminati raise to secure the rest of the Infinity Gems before the Hood does.

The Review: It’s always something of a treat to see a creator take a big creative risk on a major, mainstream flagship title, and that’s exactly what Brian Bendis does this month.  The entire issue is narrated, heavily, but Uatu the Watcher, with little actual dialogue, by Bendis standards anyway.

When I first realized that this would be the case, I’ll admit that I wasn’t enthused at the prospect of reading a comic with that many words on the page.  Admittedly, it does get a bit exposition-heavy and Uatu’s plot recap early on isn’t the most thrilling, but rest assured, it grows on you.  Over time, Uatu’s narration lends scope and importance to this story.  It makes Bendis’ narrative feel as huge, epic, and vital as it should be.  I mean, they’re battling over the Infinity Gems for crap’s sake!  Amidst all the punching, it’s often easy to forget just how great the stakes are, but Uatu’s solemn role in the comic brings the focus heavily onto that.  His narration also manages to add layers and nuance, essentially going out of his way to tell you exactly why all of this is very, very dangerous.

That’s not to say that there isn’t decent dialogue.  Spider-Man pulls a couple of funny jokes and Bendis throws a jab at Thor’s manner of speaking.  Little bits of humor in a story like this are a surprise, but also welcome.

More than that though, Uatu’s narration allows the comic to speed along at a much brisker pace.  The end result is a comic that is literally a mad-dash all over the world, as the Hood and the Avengers jump from one gem to another.  It lends the race a frantic and exciting pace, and that excitement is something that last month lacked.  In covering more physical ground in one issue, this really does feel like a competition between the Avengers and the Hood where every second counts.

Furthermore, John Romita Jr. helps this along even further by delivering quite possibly his best performance yet on this title.  A couple of his lay-outs are just awesome and his illustrations of the Astral Plane and the gems in action are positively gorgeous, while his action scenes are as fun and dynamic as always.

Avengers #10 – Review

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

The Story: The Avengers check to make sure that Xavier and Namor’s infinity gems are safe.

The Review: Avengers #10 is, unfortunately, something of a stumbling block for the series after a couple of solid outings.

The main culprit is the story structure, which sees various Avengers checking on the locations of Xavier, Namor, and Stark’s infinity gems.  Clearly, Bendis intends for us to be impressed with where and how each character has hidden them, each in his own distinct fashion.  Unfortunately, it’s honestly not that interesting.  Each character basically puts them in just the sort of place you’d expect them to.  Worse still, there’s something bland and formulaic about the narrative structure: we follow the characters to each location, Bendis tries to wow us with each locations security feature, and then we get a look at each of the gems.  It almost feels like a tedious video game, with each location being a level to play through.

The other thing that dogs Avengers #10 and, I suspect, is something that will hinder the series for some issues to come, is just how many freaking characters there are.  Avengers #10 began to feel a bit like a bad issue of Uncanny X-Men, where any sense of an actual team is thrown out the window and there’s basically just a mob of X-universe characters moving about.  Here, it’s just that, but it’s the Avengers universe instead.  Bendis has slammed all the teams together, and I can’t even say that it was really all that necessary.  I mean, even the Secret Avengers show up and, as Iron Fist awkwardly points out, isn’t that a little off if they’re supposed to be, you know, “Secret?”

Avengers #7 – Review

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

The Story: There’s somebody trying to collect infinity gems, and that can’t be good…

What’s Good: After all the time-traveling hijinks, the is actually a really comforting issue of the Avengers if only because it feels like the series is getting back to basics and, in doing so, it also continues to solidify its identity and tone.  Bendis has things much more under control and the result is an issue that is something of a relieving read.  This is a well-structured comic that hits the right notes.

As the first issue of a new arc, this book is all set-up and as such, functions as a perfect prelude.  There’s a mysterious new bad guy (maybe) who we know nothing about.  Despite this, his quest for the infinity gems and his use of their powers is enough to make him a foreboding figure and a real threat.  I like that Bendis didn’t reveal any of his cards this month, as it made me all the more intrigued to find out what happens next and to learn just who the hell this guy is.  I’m already far more interested in this plotline than I was the previous.  It’s all shrouded in secrecy, but the infinity gems alone are such a collective bogeyman that the issue is all the better for it.  The whole “pissed off Wonder Man” thread is also re-introduced, and it has me as interested as ever, as Simon continues to remind me of a grumpy forum-dweller.