SENYC Report: Marvel – The Next Big Thing

Marvel came out in force for Special Edition: NYC. Though they easily flattened the competition when it came to number of panels, this was the one to see if you wanted to know what was coming from the House of Ideas.

The panel was moderated by Senior VP of Publishing Tom Brevoort and featured a slew of top name talent. This included Senior X-Men Editor Mike Marts, fan favorite writer Peter David, Storm writer Greg Pak, and Deadpool editor Jordan D. White. There was even a surprise guest in the form of Katie Kubert, the former editor of Batman and Detective comics who had announced her departure from DC less than twenty-four hours before!

Fear Itself: Avengers HC – Review

Writer: Brian Michael Bendis, Pencils: Chris Bachalo, John Romita Jr., and Mike Deodato, Ikners: Tim Townsend, Jaimie Mendoza, Al Vey, Wayne Faucher, Victor Olazaba, Mark Irwin, Klaus Janson. Colorists: Chris Bachalo (double duty), Dean White, Paul Mounts, and Rain Beredo.

Collecting Avengers #13-17 and New Avengers #14-16

The Story: The Avengers fight against FEAR ITS—I can’t do it. It was just such a horrendous event. Still, other writers tried their best in the tie-ins and some of them were MUCH better than the main event (like Avengers Academy).  So the first section of this review should really be…

Dealing with the Crap that was FEAR ITSELF: Bendis had two series to tie into Fear Itself, and did so in very similar ways. He must have known that Avengers and New Avengers would be collected together, as he used the same narrative technique in both series. The idea is that the Oral Histories of the Avengers are caught up, so the heroes are being interviewed about their most recent crisis: Crisis of Infinite Hemorrhoids—I mean Hammers. So we have a video interview-like thing going on with the heroes playing Monday morning quarterback, and then we get images from the event. Without Fear Itself, you’d almost think that something was happening in the world. There is some brutal fights in these tie-ins. The fight between Red Hulk and the Thing was ten times more exciting than the “brawl” in Fear Itself #5. Even Squirrel Girl’s story in New Avengers was more exciting and more dire than anything that happened in the main event. So in terms of making Fear Itself seem like an actual major crisis the heroes struggle to deal with, it’s successful. Crazy shit happens here. Daredevil takes on a brigade of Nazi Robots. Spider-Woman fights the Hulk while protecting a school filled of children. Protector hacks into Stark’s Iron Men suits (including Iron Patriot) and sets them on Sin. Every moment in the Avengers/New Avengers tie-ins would make you believe that this is one of the most important events in Marvel history. If only that were true.

New Avengers #19 – Review

by Brian Michael Bendis (writer), Mike Deodato (art), Rain Beredo (colors), and Joe Caramagna (letters)

The Story:  Norman Osborn explains the mission statement to his new Avengers and Victoria Hand plays her…hand?

The Review:  Every now and then, as a devoted comic reader, you find yourself reading something that’s just mind-numbingly stupid.  New Avengers #19, for me, is one of those times.

There is so much within this general plot that is so poorly conceived that even a diamond hard suspension of disbelief would find itself fractured.

With respect to this “HAMMER War,” Bendis tips his hand a bit and what we get is….a complete redux of Dark Reign, only shittier because we’ve seen Osborn’s plans fail once before already.  Even these new (and even more D-list) Avengers themselves ask Osborn (as I suppose many readers will as well) what makes this effort by Osborn any different from his last efforts under Dark Reign.  Norman’s answer is so vapid and empty that it can’t even be called an answer at all. Seriously, one of his reasons is that they now have a “Hulk.”  Right, because that’s more impressive than having the freaking Sentry and a GOD on your team? This is simply the same shit all over again and even though it failed once, we’re going to see it again.  Just because.

I remember when Dark Reign started up, a lot of people had believability issues.  Would the American government really give so much power to a former supervillain?  Well, given the very public failure of Osborn and how his general craziness was exposed for all the world to see  in Siege, this second effort by Osborn only becomes all the more unbelievable.  We get the same old scene of Osborn and his Avengers rushing in to save the day and hence get in the good graces of the American public while upstaging the New Avengers.

Are you kidding me?  Are we really going to see the American public embrace Osborn who is currently an ESCAPED PRISONER with NO government backing?  Really?  How can this even be a plot point?  The result is either going to be really stupid or an incredibly cynical take on the American people, possibly both.

And don’t get me started on Hand’s treatment.  I can’t help but feel that all the potential in Hand, who I called one of the best things to come out of Dark Reign back at the start of the Heroic Age, is flushed down the toilet this month.  All that cool stuff about the character proving herself, redeeming herself, all that back-and-forth banter with paranoid ol’ Spidey…it’s all for nothing, as Bendis goes three steps backwards with the character.

New Avengers #15 – Review

by Brian Michael Bendis (writer), Mike Deodato (art), Rain Beredo (colors), and Cory Petit (letters)

The Story: Squirrel Girl tries to prove her worth, as she runs through a New York City under attack to get to Luke and Jessica’s baby.

What’s Good: When I read that this issue was going to be centred on Squirrel Girl, I honestly expected goofy comedy.  I realize that Fear Itself doesn’t exactly lend itself to belly laughs, but I just couldn’t see a “Squirrel Girl saves the day” comic being anything but comedy.

Bendis manages to make me feel pretty guilty, in this respect.  He puts out an issue that’s fairly serious, one that focuses on the tough life of being an unknown superhero.  The result is a comic that is far more rewarding than one played simply for cheap laughs.  Squirrel Girl, under Bendis’ hand, becomes a fully realized, sympathetic character who ends up being more “Doreen” than “Squirrel Girl.”  It’s hard not to root for her and like her and she certainly has that “lovable loser” appeal, but without ever becoming a punch-line.  With goofy lines like “Great Lakes Avengers, represent!” after beating Wolverine in combat, she’s naturally adorable in a way that’s never forced.

There are monologues from Doreen as well, with the issue following much the same format as last month’s Mockingbird feature.  Once again, it lets us really get to know Squirrel Girl.  She’s more “person” than superhero, and Bendis very naturally portrays her “hard luck” status, being a relative unknown from a team of Avengers no one’s ever heard of.  Worse still, having a giant squirrel tail makes her stick out like a sore thumb, even as she struggles to go about doing normal, everyday things.

New Avengers #7 – Review

by Brian Michael Bendis, Stuart Immonen (pencils), Wade von Grawbadger (inks), Laura Martin (colors), and Joe Caramagna (letters)

The Story: The Avengers set their house in order and get a little help along the way.

What’s Good: This is one of those issues that’ll serve as a litmus test for how much of a fan you are of Brian Bendis.  I myself like his work quite a bit, so I enjoyed this issue, as it played to many of his strengths as a superhero writer.

I thought the dialogue was well done.  It was full of laughs and felt dynamic, going through at a good clip.  Yes, there is that Bendis-trademark of repeated lines between characters, but it’s not as overbearing at it occasionally is, and seem to be used in a more restrained fashion.

Ultimately, this is an issue that highlights the strong chemistry that this team shares, arguably the strongest of any of the Avengers teams out there right now.  New Avengers truly does feel like a bunch of friends hanging out, all characters that have been through a lot and know each other well.  This makes the dialogue all the more pleasant to read.  It also makes a conversation-based issue like this one end up being a kind of feel-good read.  It’s pleasant and easy and sometimes it’s just fun to see your favourite characters chatting and having some fun with each other, especially after a big arc.  It takes the series back to the basics that distinguish it while giving it a momentary sigh of relief.

As far as the actual events of this month, a lot of it is really just consolidation and cementing of the status quo, but Bendis’ dialogue and the tight character relationships make this comic far less of a snooze than it could have been.  Once again, Bendis also does fantastic work with Victoria Hand, re-establishing that she you may very well be the best thing to come out of Dark Reign.  She’s a compelling character with interesting motivations and, as she says this month, she adds something unique and special to the team.  The additions of a “household” staff to the Avengers Mansion is also a lot of fun.  Squirrel Girl as nanny is wacky and already a good fit and the addition of a very familiar, grumpy cook, or a Jarvis with an attitude problem, looks to be a blast.  Of course, I’ll leave that cook’s identity for you to see.

Even in a quiet issue like this one, Stuart Immonen’s artwork still shines.  His Victoria Hand in particular looks positively excellent.  I worry that this series will lose a good chunk of his appeal now that he’s leaving the book, which is funny given how iffy I felt when he first came on-board.