Avengers World #2 – Review

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

The Story: Smasher gets a lesson in what the world will soon turn into, courtesy of A.I.M.

The Review: Beware what you desire, for you may get it.

I am pretty sure I am quoting this incorrectly, but the message behind this is abundantly clear, as expectations and desires should always be kept balanced and in check. One of the main problem I had with Avengers by Hickman was that I though there could be a better emphasis on characters instead of just big concepts and ideas, which made the title a bit frustrating at times. With Avengers World being released with Nick Spencer at the helm, I had high hope that this title could reverse the trend and give readers a title which could focus a bit more on the characters instead of the general huge ideas that Jonathan is rather good at writing.

It seems that this is what both Spencer and Hickman delivered with this issue, with a certain emphasis on Smasher, the new character created by Hickman during his first issues on the franchise, combining certain elements of the whole Marvel universe for his team. With an issue explaining a bit the character and giving us an insight on her philosophy and approach, there is unfortunately a certain oversight that makes this generally less enjoyable that it could be. Simply put, there is close to no progress to this story that is exciting and enticing enough to provide plenty for readers to latch unto.

For sure, the manner in which Spencer and Hickman are able to connect some of A.I.M.’s manifesto to Smasher to her vision and her past with her grandfather makes for some rather touching moment, as the philosophy of her beloved elder and how he says the world is does help in setting the character more for readers potentially interested in who she is and what she does. The manner in which the tale of Captain Terror and how she does her stuff in the Avengers makes for a good exploration of the character, which is something that extrapolate in the issue that focused on her in Avengers.

Avengers World #1 – Review

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

The Story: Problems arise in a lot of areas on Earth, as the collaboration between S.H.I.E.L.D. and the Avengers start now.

The Review: I wasn’t exactly sure what to expect when I first opened this issue. With this being a clear spin-off of the larger Avengers narrative of Jonathan Hickman, it’s a bit unclear what makes this book different. While it is detached from the structure that Hickman developed and it does try to connect with some of the A.I.M. threads that Nick Spencer has installed with his Secret Avengers run so far, there is a certain problem that doesn’t make the book what it could very well be.

That problem is a lack of a certain angle. It’s not particularly humorous, it’s not something that displays more character work or even something that tries to implement big new ideas. It might seem like a boring book, but it isn’t at all, despite this particular flaw.

One of the actual strength here is the use of the large roster, with both Spencer and Hickman using many characters aptly as the story is divided in multiple areas in the book. While Captain America and Bruce Banner are on a S.H.I.E.L.D. helicarrier, many teams with characters like Hyperion, Smasher, Cannonball, Hawkeye and plenty more are put on display, with most of them actually contributing through their voice or action for the story. It’s not the entire team, but it is a bit different from the regular title in the respect that not all of them are window-dressing, which is nice.

Avengers #22 – Review

by Jonathan Hickman (Writer), Leinil Francis Yu, Gerry Alanguilan (Artists), Sunny Gho (Colorist)

The Story: The galactic council and the Avengers prepares for their final battle on Earth as some people express doubts and a certain sensation of feeling small.

The Review: While big action scenes are the very foundation of capes comics, a series cannot strive on punches being thrown and huge super powers being used to vanquish foes. During big arcs, events or any such things where a lot of action will be one of the main focus, there usually breather issues where the focus comes a bit more on characterization or how things are simply shaping up, where they will go. Results may vary, but those kind of issues can break down the monotony of repeated clashes if handled right.

This issue of Avengers is one of those, as it acts as a bridge between the latest issue of Infinity (issue 5 to be precise) and the last one. Focusing on the Avengers and the galactic council as they prepare and plan ahead for their eventual fight against Thanos, it serves up as a character piece as well as setup for what will come next. However, does it manage being a satisfactory issue with the action being toned down?

Infinity #2 – Review

Jonathan Hickman (Writer), Jerome Opeña, Dustin Weaver (Artists), Justin Ponsor (Colorist)

The Story: Things heat up as Corvus Glaive wants to claim a tribute from the Inhumans and the Avengers are off with the rest of the Universe against the Builders.

The Review: Cautious optimism is an attitude that many readers learn to have when dealing with a great many things. Sometimes, despite the fact that many elements are lining up together in a way that feels too good to be true, it is normal to have some kind of defensive mechanism against too much hype. This kind of position is one that is very connected to event comics, as those type of stories are usually much hyper, with key sentences like ”nothing will ever be the same again” or ”this will have key repercussions across the whole line and the future of the shared universe”. With so many events failing to actually live up to their potential, it seems normal to adapt our desires to being a bit disappointed, as many events begins on a strong note only to falter in its own conclusion as each chapters reveals flaws that just kill the hype for its readers.

By having this attitude, a reader can also receive something that is not the norm to see, yet is always utterly pleasant when it arrives: surprise. This issue of Infinity definitely fits that very description, as the strong, yet mysterious direction does serve the story and the themes quite well. As the two fronts are given some attention, both of them receive either a ton of action and emotions, while the other receive mystery and revelations that really do make for two distinct stories that never really clash against each other.

The first angle being covered is the one on Earth, as Thanos and his Black Order are invading and seeding chaos everywhere they can. Opening up with a scene featuring Abigail Brand and Sydren of S.W.O.R.D., the comic swiftly switches to the Inhumans, then finishes up with the Illuminati. The second angle, all the while, features the Avengers and the Shi’ar with favourites like Mento and Gladiator fighting against the Builders. If there’s one thing that Hickman is doing right in this event so far, it’s selling the point that this is a story encompassing the Marvel universe, with a special emphasis on the universe part.

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.