When Marvel brought back annuals after a lengthy absence from the shelves, they promised that they would essentially function as extra-sized issues of the parent series that would make them a must-buy. In the past, annuals contained extra-sized, though largely peripheral stories, and buyers treated them like the superfluous luxuries they were. While recently not everything has lived up to Marvel’s claim that the annuals would “matter” in the larger scheme, New Avengers Annual #2 is one of the few that hasn’t forgotten the promise.

If you’ve been reading New Avengers, you’ll know that there are two major antagonists in their current lives. Firstly, there’s the looming paranoia of an apparant skrull infiltration, and much closer to home there’s the small-time crime boss The Hood, who’s been making his way to the top of the underworld using a magic cape and a pair of pistols, as he assembles what is essentially the New Masters of Evil. While the latter was defeated, part of his new regime was that no-one in his group languished in prison, and that they’d get their revenge on the Avengers. And in NAA #2, that’s what they attempt to do.

But still – a giant fight with The Hood and his goons? Isn’t that what we just read in the pages of New Avengers? Well, yeah, but this is slightly different. For a start, he’s coming to get the Avengers, not the other way around. Secondly, the fight is more of a plot driver than the gratuitous action scenes of the last arc. There are a few major developments in this issue, which I will now recount so that you realise why you need to buy it. Dr. Strange leaves the team, if not our entire dimension to recuperate after the dark energies he’s unleashed recently (ie: Zom in World War Hulk) start to get the better of him. That leaves the New Avengers homeless, though it’s not a problem since the Sanctum Sanctorum was already stormed by the Hood’s crew, leaving it an unsuitable venue anyway. Finally, Jessica Jones – removed from the battle by Spider-Man but with nowhere else to turn – goes into Stark Tower and announces her intention to register in return for sanctuary.

It’s indeed big stuff, and the next arc of New Avengers can’t help but be steered by these events, so it’s definitely a must-buy. There’s good news for those who were upset with Lenil Yu’s pencilling, though. The annual is drawn by Carlo Pagulayan, who’s being given a deservedly high-profile assignment following his work on Planet Hulk. His character designs echo Yu’s, but without the scratchier linework. It’s good to see him back and drawing such a wealth of characters after being restricted to alien landscapes and figures over in Hulk. Someone give this man a regular gig.