The Mighty Avengers
Hello all. I just wanted to tell you that my comic book reviews are growing exponentially and since I have been blogging here less and less that I have set up a site exclusively for posting comic book related content including any scripts I write. You can check it out at:
Ariel's comic book writing site
However, I will continue to blog about other issues including television, movies and whatever else strikes my fancy here.
This week Mighty Avengers #1 by Brian Michael Bendis and Frank Cho will be released by Marvel. A preview copy was met with a lot of skepticism from my sbc peers. I would have to say that there was plenty of action but some of the dialogue, as is always the case with a Bendis penned book was off the mark. Iron Man is now the director of S.H.I.E.L.D. as alluded to in CW #7 and he wants Ms. Marvel to lead the Avengers. Of course, he has a say in what heroes will make up the new roster. I suppose this comic book was OK for the most part. It's not all talking heads, there are actual threats which the new team has to deal with. One thing which was irritating about New Avengers was the fact they never seemed to be dealing with huge threats on a cosmic scale and I am sure that Bendis has heard this argument and has compensated for it here.
The creators also employ the old thought balloons which have mostly been replaced in modern comics with captions but it's not like the characters are hiding any deep emotional issues or secrets, mostly the device is employed for comic effect.
For example, we find out that Tony may have feelings (or at least lusty thoughts) about Carol.
I still dislike a lot of the artificial sounding banter which Bendis writes, but this one reads better than New Avengers #27. The cheesecake factor in Cho's artwork is not as evident as in some of his other work but that's not to say he can't draw some titillating panels, especially when Ms. Marvel is involved. The book also ends with a shock ending in which a long time Avengers foe returns, well sort of. Overall, this is a decent beginning but I think having two Avengers books on the stands penned by the same writer is a mistake. Bendis simply isn't capable (in my opinion) of sustaining this type of momentum on a monthly basis, especially if he has two books to write for. Of course, I hope that eventually I am proven wrong but as my peers also pointed out this comic feels more like a marketing ploy than a vehicle for some thought provoking stories.
