Avengers #2

After suffering a crushing defeat from the hands of Martian inhabitants Ex Nihilo, Abyss & Aleph, the Avengers watch helplessly as “origin bombs” crash land on multiple areas on earth creating a world wide panic.

The Team

Written by Jonathan Hickman (The Manhattan Projects Vol. 1 : Science Bad, The Red Wing, FF by Jonathan Hickman Vol. 1) & illustrated by Jerome Opena (Uncanny X-Men Vol. 1 : The Apocalypse Solution, Lone, Fear Agent Vol. 1 : My War). Published by Marvel Comics.

The Pros & Cons

Think big. Or think bigger, as Marvel described this title, everything’s bigger, bigger teams, bigger villains with bigger threats, bigger vehicles and of course bigger egos. Nobody handles mass global threats quite like the Avengers and writer Jonathan Hickman throws everything at you with a no holds barred attitude. Immediately following the events from Avengers #1, the story is told in a before & after way. With the exception of the Hulk (who’s under their control) we see Thor, Iron Man, Captain America & Black Widow being held captive by these new, but ancient villains. The before segments keeps the story light with a whimsical banter between Tony & Steve as they go off recruiting new members like Captain Universe, Hyperion, Smasher, Wolverine, Spider-Man, The Falcon, Shang-Chi (that’s Master of Kung Fu to you old school Marvelites) Cannonball, Sunspot, Captain Marvel, Spider-Woman & Manifold (is he Gateway from the Uncanny X-Men\Chris Claremont years?).

I like how these new baddies don’t just use the same old cliché bombs to attack earth, these are special bombs that assimilate humans and sort of speed up evolution with devastating results (wonder if the High Evolutionary would approve?). What is a little cliché is the origin of these villains, describing Builders & Gardeners who were there before the universe even existed. What does that say about the Eternals, the Celestials & other Marvel cosmic heavy weights? Do they predate them? I guess I’m putting too much into it and I should just go with the flow.

I can’t mention Jonathan Hickman’s awesome writing skills without talking about Jerome Opena’s incredible illustrations. Like Esad Ribic, Opena has a sort of European style that’s rarely seen in American comics. The panels & pages are full of vibrant colors that stimulate the senses and really give the comic a real sense of a world invasion that I just can’t get enough of.

The Outcome

Like other new Marvel Now titles like Uncanny Avengers, Thor God of Thunder & Indestructible Hulk, this one’s red hot and I can’t praise it any more than I already did. Make damn sure this is on your LCS’ sub-list.