Avengers #13The Avengers enter the theater of Fear Itself… sorta.
Most readers of Brian Michael Bendis’s recent run of Avengers and New Avengers will have, by now, recognized the “Oral History of the Avengers” that concludes each issue. It’s a nice added extra for the extra dollar you have to pay for the books over Avengers Academy or any of the regular DC titles. It’s written in a first person, “I was there” kind of way that adds a nice touch to the history of Earth’s Mightiest Heroes. This issue is mostly a visual telling of that Oral History segment. It’s mostly talking heads with a few other added extras – like Jarvis’ reaction to serving the Red Hulk and the recent romantic ties shared by Spider-Woman and Hawkeye. However, there are a lot of allusions to something very large and very bad happening during Fear Itself giving us a tease that the current Marvel event has shaken the Avengers to their cores.
First, I will say that I was slightly disappointed in this issue. I hoped this tie-in was going to be action-packed with the Avengers jumping headlong right into the fray of the American Blitzkrieg unleashed by the Serpent and Sin. I did not expect to see what we got. However, I do say that, despite my initial disappointment, there were quite a few things to like. The chronology of the scenes jumps around. We see Steve Rogers in his Cap uniform followed shortly by him in his Commander Rogers uniform. Janet Van Dyne’s contributing. Thor is seen in both his original look and his bearded appearance. Tony’s armor, and amount of facial hair, goes through various stages. I actually found this jumping around fairly easy to follow. I didn’t expect that Janet’s appearance meant she was returning after Fear Itself, I wasn’t irritated by differences in peoples’ appearances because these were interviews that were conducted over time. As a longtime fan, I appreciated seeing them mentioning some of those older stories that I grew up on.
I appreciated the two main scenes that stepped away from the talking head panels. There wasn’t too much time spent on Jarvis and the Red Hulk being weirded out by each other or anything like that. We’re actually given just the right amount of time to see exactly what Red Hulk’s presence means to everyone else and how odd it is that’s sitting there eating eggs in a civil, albeit gross, manner. The scene in Asgard revealing Spider-Woman and Hawkeye’s relationship is also perfectly managed. As the audience, we’re in the same boat with Ms. Marvel. We had no idea, but it’s not like they don’t have private lives and can go off and have little secret romps away from prying eyes. It’s a nice scene and relatively sweet.
Lastly, Chris Bachalo gives me relief and a lot less gas as he steps into the artist duties. I don’t hate, or wish ill upon, John Romita, Jr., but I’m not a fan of his art. I understand his lineage and his status at Marvel, but man, was I glad to see Bachalo on the front cover’s credits. His style is quirky and probably not for everyone, but I like it as someone who can pull off those facial expressions and breakdowns like this issue needed.
Overall, if you’re looking for action connected directly to Fear Itself, you might want to skip this one. Regular readers of the series will likely be mixed. I fall on the side that marginally recommends the issue, but not without some thought to what the person I’m talking to about it is looking for.
A COMIC BOOK BLOG RATINGProsConsA couple nice scenes that don't drag on highlight this issue that's mostly done in documentary format. Hurray for Bachalo coming on board for some different visuals.Not exciting, though it teases something pretty bad to come. It feels very weird for a tie-in to a major event. Steer clear if you are looking for action. Rating65% All Fear Itself reviews:Fear Itself: #1 | #2 |Fear Itself: The Home Front: #1 | #2 | Fear Itself: Spider-Man: #1 |Journey Into Mystery: #622 | #623 |Invincible Iron Man: #503 | #504Avengers: #13 | For more visit our Fear Itself tag @ acomicbookblog.com/tag/fear-itselfYou might also like...
Fear Itself: Spider-Man #1 Review
Fear Itself: Youth in Revolt #1 Review
Journey Into Mystery #623 Review
Journey Into Mystery #622 ReviewBy BlogsdnaTagged with: Avengers Brian Michael Bendis Chris Bachalo Fear ItselfLeave a ReplyClick here to cancel replyYour name (Required)
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This post was added on 18 May 2011, 16:59 by Geoff Arbuckle who has contributed 403 posts to this blog.
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