Picks of Comic Book Week - May 26th, 2010 - New York Comic Books

They are...the A-Team. Even if most are B-Listers...

BOOK OF THE WEEK - SECRET AVENGERS #1 (Marvel Comics)

It was a very tough choice between this or THOR #610 (see below) for the coveted top spot of the week for this column. Both offer a story that is easy to dive into, exceptional art, good writing and a heap of action. The tie breaker? SECRET AVENGERS, written by Ed Brubaker (of Captain America, Daredevil, and Uncanny X-Men fame) and drawn by Mike Deodato (best known for runs on New Avengers and Amazing Spider-Man), is the second big Avengers launch of May, on the heels of Marvel's Heroic Age promotional event. It, like the Brian Bendis/John Romita Jr. produced AVENGERS #1 from last week, is supposed to be a huge deal. What gives this book the tie breaker is not only it being hyped as being very big and important, but also delivering on that hype with a very entertaining introduction to this latest Avengers spin off (which essentially replaces Mighty Avengers). While Brubaker has usually been exceptional in writing solo-hero titles, he has at times struggled with writing team books. His work on Uncanny X-Men from 2005-2006 was at times rough (the less said of Deadly Genesis, the better), and while many issues of CAPTAIN AMERICA REBORN had so many additional heroes that they served almost as much as Avengers issues than Captain America issues, REBORN had it's failings. This time, Brubaker's pace seems more confident, with him having access to all the "toys" he wants. While this team roster is as eclectic as many Avengers rosters have been, it all feels natural so far.

Tired of debut issues of team titles that treat it as a major suspense that the team as shown on the cover will unite inside, sometimes even taking a full four to six issues to fully unite? Apparently, so are Brubaker and Deodato (with Rainier Beredo on colors). It assumes that the reader has read things such as SIEGE #4 or AGE OF HEROES #1 or ENTER THE HEROIC AGE #1, or even his run on CAPTAIN AMERICA, or that the simple concept of a back-from-the-dead Steve Rogers running a black ops strike force team of heroes makes enough sense that it doesn't need an arc to explain. Rogers compares the team to how the Invaders worked in World War II; a team of super heroes with various powers and specialties finding threats before they explode and surgically taking them down, whether it be chasing terrorists or claiming powerful Maguffin devices before bad guys can. In this case, it seems to be the Serpent Crown, a powerful magical artifact used to peril the world before. To that end he has recruited Black Widow, Valkyrie, Beast, War Machine, Moon Knight, Ant-Man (Eric O'Grady), Nova, and his ex-SHIELD agent girlfriend, Sharon Carter/Agent 13. The only members whose "recruitment" scenes are shown are perhaps the team members who would be considered the most unlikely to answer a call to join the Avengers. These would be Moon Knight (who, as in the pages of VENGEANCE OF THE MOON KNIGHT, has struggled to hold onto his sanity) and Eric O'Grady, who was fresh off the Thunderbolts and is hardly known for being a noble man. These scenes are short (handled in two pages or less) and work to both fill a need and effectively address the issue. As for the rest? The other heroes are either former Avengers (or Defenders), or in Nova's case, are stable enough heroes who would rally if Steve Rogers asked them to. Valkyrie and Nova are first time Avengers, while Beast hasn't been a part of the franchise beyond a cameo in nearly a decade.

After a thrilling action sequence with Widow, Valkyrie and Rogers opens the book (paced so well that despite this being the 100th "heroes vs. random grunts" fight that Brubaker has written, it still is exciting), the Secret Avengers seem to claim the Serpent Crown (although it may not be "the" crown, but "a" crown). Unfortunately, the corrupt company Roxxon (which in Marvel is often involved in nasty things, often the source of many super villains historically) is involved in not only collecting magical artifacts, but in strip-mining Mars. Nova heads off to investigate, but when he doesn't return, it's off into space for a rescue (and provide a cliffhanger page)! Nova is actually quite busy in the latest space event, THE THANOS IMPERATIVE, but his appearance here shouldn't matter much here except for the strictest of continuity buffs (who likely have already gone mad with how many books that Wolverine, Spider-Man, Iron Man, and Deadpool can appear in at once). Deodato's artwork looks quite well here, and the only negative is one blatant speech balloon error where War Machine and Rogers' lines are switched (the text makes this clear) that really should have been caught by an editor. On the other hand, a "fixed" version will make a good excuse (besides another variant cover) for a second print if this sells well enough.

On the whole, this is an Avengers series whose debut is much different from what has been expected from writers such as Brian Bendis and even Dan Slott over the years. It delivers on the hype as well as uniting a score of great characters, with solid art and some exciting action scenes. It is a pleasant surprise of a debut that Marvel has advertised to the hilt that actually is worth it. Marvel fans new and old, cynical and optimistic, should run (not walk) and jump aboard now.

Honorable Mentions (Marvel):

The battle 3 years in the making; Thor vs. Clor! Mirror Match!

Thor #610 - This is the sixth issue written by Kieron Gillen, which was once slated to be his last on the title. However, it seems that the next writer, Matt Fraction (who writes Invincible Iron Man, Uncanny X-Men, Casanova, and other titles), so he will be allowed another four issues on this title (without including his SIEGE: LOKI one shot, reviewed here: www.examiner.com/x-19829-Brooklyn-Comic-Books-Examiner~y2010m4d14-Picks-Of-Comic-Book-Week--April-14th-2010). That is excellent news, because Gillen's run has proven to be of such good quality that he should be considered more than a "stop gap" writer between two A-List runs. Aboard for art for this issue is Doug Braithwaite, with two colorists on hand to aid in that department. This issue acts as the epilogue to SIEGE #4, with Balder, the Warriors Three, Tyr, Kelda, and the other Asgardians cleaning up what is left of their demolished city in Oklahoma. Volstagg still wants to make amends for his role sparking the chaos with labor, and Kelda learns that her mortal lover Bill has passed into Valhalla, the realm where noble mortal heroes who die in honor go to spend eternity feasting, but since Kelda is still alive, she cannot join him. Balder and Thor also unite, and settle on who should be running things. There are some "no brainer" exchanges between the two, such as Balder (and Thor to a degree) being so surprised that Loki proved to be a manipulating rogue as an "adviser" to the throne. What saves the issue, and actually pushes it into "awesome" category is the long overdue confrontation between Thor and his cybernetic clone from 2006's CIVIL WAR, Ragnarok (or "Clor"). He took on Volstagg in issue #608 (reviewed here: www.examiner.com/x-19829-Brooklyn-Comic-Books-Examiner~y2010m3d25-Picks-of-Comic-Book-Day--32410), but here he gets to take on the genuine article. "At last," Ragnarok gasps, and it is easy to agree. Their battle is short without seeming brief, and isn't pretty. The best issue of THOR in a few months.

Luke Cage leads a new team of T-Bolts; and gets leopard spots?

Thunderbolts #144 - Jeff Walker starts on his set up of the next roster of the team, now without having to latch onto the lingering aspects of prior runs and crossover events. This was given a prologue in last week's ENTER THE HEROIC AGE #1 (reviewed here: www.examiner.com/x-19829-Brooklyn-Comic-Books-Examiner~y2010m5d19-Picks-Of-Comic-Book-Day--May-19th-2010), but here both Parker and Kev Walker (artist) and Frank Martin (colorist) get onto their new spin on the franchise. A master of continuity, Parker remembers to include old time Thunderbolts (and genuinely reformed villains) such as Songbird, Fixer, and Mach V, as well as using Luke Cage's past as a former con to his advantage (even utilizing the fact that Cage was innocent all along to convey his "hard luck" image to the perspective T-Bolts members). While Steve Rogers (who has taken over the "in charge of everything" job that both Norman Osborn and Tony Stark once held) put Cage in charge of the program, he still has to work with a committee of suits, who he doesn't always agree with outright, but usually has to compromise with. While Cage seems to want to legitimately have Ghost and Moonstone back as T-Bolts, some of these compromises include the Juggernaut (with Charles Xavier making a cameo to sell the point), Crossbones (for, surprisingly, an almost logical reason) and Man-Thing (who Hank Pym is utilizing as transport via the "nexus of all realities" that the creature is connected to). Despite the bizarre team, Parker makes the characters all work as one would expect, yet appear interesting enough as an alliance. Considering he does the same on AGENTS OF ATLAS material, this is no surprise. Another infamous figure from Thunderbolts past appears for the cliffhanger, which would be quite a spoiler. This is a solid jumping on point for someone who knows of the characters but hasn't read T-Bolts before. If one likes quirky characters on team rosters (assembled almost by random), this is for you. The book also feels very connected with the rest of the Marvel Universe, which is a plus after some isolation for a while. Kev Walker's artwork takes some time getting used to, but overall it is solid and dynamic looking. It is good to see Luke Cage be written in another team book by another writer than Brian Bendis for a change.

ABSURDITIES OF THE WEEK: That's right, two of them, folks!

"The Rise of Arsenal", atop a cover in which it looks like a man in spandex is performing some sort of "act" to another in a dank cellar, with Batman apparently intruding. The jokes almost write themselves.

How many copies of Wolverine can possibly be crammed onto a cover? There is Daken (wearing Logan's old brown costume), and Romulus (the new retcon menace of Logan's entire life), who looks like a dead ringer for Logan himself. And, naturally, Wolverine himself. The only way this could be made more complete is if X-23 and Albert, the robotic Wolverine double, where on the cover. "WAR OF THE SYMBIOTES" cluttered Spider-Man titles with copies of him in the 90's, and that was back when Scarlet Spider and Venom had their own titles. The absurdity of it is that Wolverine's titles are actually selling at historic lows, so this mass duplication of him is hardly justified. At least a cover finally comes close to capturing that absurdity. There was an arc of EXILES that played with that notion of "can't have enough Wolverines", but that was done as satire. This isn't.