Blackest Night #0
Hey, you know what? This is actually pretty good. “Blackest Night” hasn’t actually started yet, but I’m already deathly sick of it due to the roughly six months-worth of “Prelude” we’ve had to put up with in the Green Lantern books, which have only served to overwhelm and confuse with sheer volume of concepts and characters, rather than inspiring excitement for the event. But this #0 issue, designed as a primer for readers not following recent DC history, actually lays out far better the basics behind the storyline, and in having Hal Jordan and Barry Allen discuss death and rebirth at Bruce Wayne’s graveside, provides a nice meditation on the way the subject tends to get covered in comics. After all, given that the resurrection of dead (or thought-dead) heroes has been a tradition of the genre all the way back to Captain America, it actually kind of makes sense to build an entire event around the concept. There are decent moments as Johns shows yet again that his knowledge of DC characters and history is second to none (even if his ability to come up with decent new ideas for ‘em is sometimes lacking), and Ivan Reis’ art is no rush job, particularly when covering various flashbacks. Profile pages that explain the nature of each of the different Corps in the Lantern spectrum do little to convince that the concept isn’t inherently ludicrous, but at least negate the need to have read the last year’s worth of Lantern books. If you’re interested in reading the upcoming event (or, indeed, still considering whether or not to), then this is a heartily-recommended primer. [SP]

FCBD: Avengers #1
Marvel’s FCBD books of the last two years have been pretty agenda-setting, both in the case of their Spider-Man issue (which was the first “Brand New Day” book some 8 months before that continuity officially arrived) and their Uncanny X-Men freebie, which was set after Messiah Complex despite being when the crossover hadn’t even been solicited. By contrast, this Avengers book is fairly current – though perhaps the fact that the title is simply “Avengers” will bear fruit in the future? There’s a certain perverse joy in having the Dark and New Avengers team up before they’ve actually even fought one another, while Spider-Man’s narration gives readers a clear “in” to the story (even if the Dark Avengers’ introduction is ridiculously wordy.) It’s a fun issue, suffers slightly from having a lot of characters to cram into one issue, but Bendis is at his quippy best, which Cheung’s art is as stunning as ever. Definitely worth buying when the inevitable “Director’s Cut” gets released. [JHu]

FCBD: Wolverine #1
In stark contrast to the character-packed and complex FCBD Avengers, Marvel is also offering this all-ages Wolverine solo title by Fred Van Lente. Set literally minutes before Wolverine was sent to fight the Hulk in his first appearance (because god knows that particular moment in continuity hasn’t been repeatedly mined before…) this is essentially an issue of Wolverine: First Class, and is clearly aimed at younger readers. While one must applaud Marvel’s attempt to reach younger readers, one can’t help but wonder if it’s not a little misguided. In comics, “all ages” is practically synonymous with “patronisingly simplistic” and such comics rarely seem to be the entry point for new readers anyway. Even worse, with a Wolverine movie on screens, the comic seems more likely to end up in the hands of freebie-seeking Wolverine fans far older than the comic’s true audience, and in that case, it isn’t going to help dispell any of the popular myths about comics being for kids. Well-intentioned, soundly-crafted, but ultimately it’s a case of “wrong place, wrong time.” [JHu]

Review: Doktor Sleepless #10
As with the previous issue, events are viewed here through the eyes of an incidental character. A more forceful presence from previously introduced figures means that the detective is a little overshadowed, however, with the final revelation about her coming somewhat out of the blue. While not the book’s best issue, it provides a smart demonstration of the success of the Doktor’s strategy, with even a hard-boiled police officer instinctively siding with the “cartoon mad scientist”. The main addition to the ongoing plot is slightly predicable, but this doesn’t dampen enthusiasm for the next issue. [JHa]

Review: Mighty Avengers #20
The final issue of Bendis’ run on the title, and it’s hard not to feel a little disappointed. Initially conceived as a more nostalgic Avengers book, only the opening storyline really lived up to expectations before it quickly devolved into permanent crossover mode – first with New Avengers, then with Secret Invasion, during which time there was no guarantee the book’s cast would even appear in it. One of the major problems with modern trade-focussed pacing is starkly evident – the original Mighty Avengers concept barely drew breath before being replaced. This issue itself deals with Hank Pym returning to society while dealing with Jan’s “death”, and is largely a Secret Invasion epilogue. Slott introduces a new Mighty Avengers team and concept next issue. One has to wonder whether the book’s audience will feel like sticking around for it. [JHu]

Review: Spider-Man : Noir #1
An altogether different proposition to the companion X-Men Noir, this isn’t just a noir story that’s had elements of Spider-Man lore shoehorned into it; rather, it’s a fairly straightforward “alternate version” Spidey tale (if it were DC, it would be an Elseworlds – indeed, it has its roots in the likes of Gotham by Gaslight). So core elements remain the same, but are given a twist – “the Spider-Man” dresses all in black, “the Goblin” is Norman Osborn’s crime kingpin nickname, Edward Toomes is a violent cannibal. It’s not a bad little story, but it suffers from a major flaw – it’s not really noir. It’s set in the ’30s, and it’s a gangster story – you could call it “hardboiled” at a pinch, but it doesn’t really have much of the feel or plotting elements of either Chandler, or the subsequent film noir genre. Quibbling over definitions aside, it’s a nice-looking work that benefits from pitching Ben Urich as the lead, but like its counterpart, it feels far from a particularly essential read. [SP]

Review: Thunderbolts #127
As an old-school Thunderbolts fan, I can’t pretend I’m particularly pleased to see the last vestiges of the original concept being given the heave-ho, but on the other hand, I’m actually quite relieved that Songbird made it out of the issue alive at all. Swordsman makes an unexpected guest appearance, a week after he was killed in Secret Invasion: Dark Reign, and makes some promises about dealing with Norman Osborn that now seem unable to go anywhere. It seems that Dark Avengers, is going to be the real heir to the Thunderbolts legacy as, not for the first time, the book is retooled almost from the ground up. Diggle’s opening issues have been good, so I’m willing to stick around to see where it’s going for now, but it is taking a lot of faith and effort not to see this as a perfect jumping-off point. [JHu]

Review: Uncanny X-Men #505
With Brian Bendis’s scripts treating the White Queen as Jessica Jones in a blonde wig, it’s up to the Marvel Universe’s other mainstay to make Emma Frost’s role in the Dark Reign seem plausible. As usual, Matt Fraction achieves his objective with aplomb, while managing to advance his other plotlines with a similar degree of competency. Also deserving of praise is the Dodsons’ work, with the artists looking completely at home in the book, despite this only being their second issue. Their ability to adjust their style to any situation is admirable, with the dark scenes in the Mayor’s office far removed from Frost’s dream sequence. [JHa]

The focus on Pym is an understandable decision. His absence from the regular cast of either Avengers title means that he benefits from a certain amount of re-establishment, so that the secrets his impostor can give her fellow Skrulls are obvious. However, this almost first-person approach creates problems during the second half of the story. Given how closely we’ve identified with Pym, the switch in perspective to that of his Skrull suitor is jarring. Bendis clearly isn’t ready to spill the beans on the fates of those replaced during the invasion, but the face that the Skrull doesn’t even check whether her target is still alive feels rather forced. The un-named agent’s voluntary sex change also seems artificial, given how every impostor revealed to date has been of the same gender as his or her victim, but it’s an understandable way of simplifying the story.

Although a nice enough character piece, the issue is constrained by having to fit with the Secret Invasion formula without imparting much new information. We’ve seen the skrulls’ body snatching techniques before in the pages of The New Avengers, and the way the aliens managed to disable Starktech’s systems is hardly the most pressing issue in the crossover. At times, it’s a charming little story, but the moments when the issue’s cynical conception shows through make it difficult to wholeheartedly enjoy.

Secret Invasion has finally kicked off, and if we’re to believe the hype, Bendis has had it in the works as far back as Secret War and Avengers Disassembled. Not too shabby, and if true, represents long-term planning that would impress even the writers of Lost.

With this in mind, I thought it’d be a good idea to use this week’s Dusting Off to go back and have a look at the place where Bendis claims he explicitly started identifying Skrull infiltrators to Tom Brevoort – the first arc of New Avengers, and give ourselves a refresher course. After all, the cover to Secret Invasion #1 is a homage to the cover of New Avengers #1. There’s got to be some link, right?

In the first issue, someone hires Electro to break out a bunch of prisoners from the Raft, and a group of heroes who are visiting the Sentry get caught in the midst. During the battle, over 40 villains escape, but a similar number are held back by the assembled heroes. As a result, they accidentally form what Captain America calls the “new” Avengers – Iron Man, Cap, Spider-Man, Spider-Woman, Luke Cage and later, the Sentry, with Wolverine joining a few issues later.

As an opening issue, it’s a fairly simple, iconic story of heroes overcoming the odds, and that’s what makes Captain America decide to re-form the Avengers team. However, we now know that the issue, and the rest of the arc, have Skrulls in it, pulling the strings. All will certainly be revealed in time, but for those of us who can’t wait, let’s see what we can figure out…

The most obvious wildcard in this story is the shadowy man in a trenchcoat that hires Electro to break into the Raft. To this day, we don’t know who it was. However, in that opening scene, Electro has some very deep, obvious green eyes. That’s been shorthand for “this person is a skrull” for some time. Is Electro one of the earliest confirmed skrulls? He’s done little of prominence recently, but that does suggest that the people freeing Lykos are Skrulls, and therefore you could assume the shadowy figure is too.

Thing is… that shadowy figure does look a lot like Nick Fury, from what we see of him. It’d also explain why we haven’t seen who it is even 3 years down the line – Fury’s still in hiding. There’s more going on it that it seems, of course. If it is Fury who hired Electro, he did so to break out Sauron, which pointed the New Avengers in the direction of SHIELD’s questionable activities in the Savage Land – something Fury would want to do now that he’s on the outs with the organisation. Maria Hill destroyed the SHIELD unit mining Savage Land Vibranium when the Avengers found out. If that shadowy figure is Fury, then all this also points to Maria Hill being a skrull – not an unpopular or particularly original theory, but one that, on re-reading New Avengers’ opening arc, could have some weight behind it.

Yikes. Two possible contradictory theories and we’re only one issue in. The clues allegedly start New Avengers #1, so why not have a read and see what you can find out?

Little is made of Echo’s powers in this issue. From her appearances in Dardevil, we know she has a taskmaster-style ability to copy any movement she sees exactly, but it’s largely underplayed in this issue in favour of simply showing her as a formidable fighter.

The plot gives us a rare look into the actual workings of Secret Invasion, as we see a skrull attempting to replace Maya. The skrulls, it appears, are going to have a ridiculous array of powers to call upon, which is going to make them incredibly difficult enemies to fight, though as this issue demonstrates, they also lack the experience to properly use their powers to maximum effectiveness. Despite employing the powers of several heroes, the skrull is still beaten by Maya and Logan, though it does manage to escape. Afterwards, Maya retires to the Avengers… er, apartment, I guess, before sleeping with Hawkeye. That guy really puts it around.

It’s a fairly straightforward story, but nicely plays off Maya and Logan’s history together (as explained in the pages of Daredevil some years ago) by pairing them up. Bendis is remarkably restrained with his dialogue, allowing Mack’s amazing pencils to speak for themselves. I’ve never seen Mack’s work like this – I’m only used to his painted pages, and I had to check the cover to make sure it was actually him. Let’s get this straight: Mack is nothing short of an amazing penciller. If I worked at Marvel I’d give him whatever it took to have him pencilling something on even a semi-regular basis. As it is, he only seems to put out the odd issue of Kabuki through Icon – a move that seems purely designed to keep him at Marvel ready for this kind of project. Either way, keep doing it.

Oh, and apparently: next issue – Skrulls! For a change? Someone should speak to the Brand New Day guys about writing those next-issue teasers.

Then, one day, the series accidentally ended. According to Bendis’ take on things, he finished issue 28, then realised he’d just written the last issue of the series. And by god, it’s only been a few years but it feels like decades have passed since then. After her brief stint in 2004’s aborted “The Pulse” series, which never really found its feet, Bendis took Jessica Jones and folded her into the New Avengers cast. In 2006’s New Avengers Annual #1, we witnessed Jessica and Cage marry, and in 2008, we’re watching them break up over that most common motivator of divorce – ideological difficulties.

It’s fitting that Gaydos should be brought back to collaborate with Bendis on this issue of New Avengers, because one thing that’s been made abundantly clear is that Jessica Jones only really looks like Jessica Jones when Gaydos is the man doing the drawing. It would be criminal to let anyone else draw such an important chapter in Jessica’s life. It’s almost like having Alias back. Almost.

Gaydos’ artwork in New Avengers is considerably brighter than it was last time we saw it, and he manages to meld the vastly different tones of Alias and New Avengers into something believably between the two. The story is pretty much talking heads the entire issue, as Cage and Jones fight over her defection, but Gaydos brings such a range of expression to every face in every panel that it’s hard to imagine caring that the height of action in the issue is a telephone being crushed.

Elsewhere, now unable to use Dr. Strange’s Sanctum Sanctorum, the New Avengers are set up by Danny “Iron Fist” Rand in a nice apartment where they plan continue their unregistered superheroics. The issue ends with a pointed shot of the cause of all their fighting – Cage and Jones’ baby. Is that another hint of green in her eyes?

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.

Following a good few months of barely comprehensible stories containing tie-ins with comics that still have yet to see print over in Mighty Avengers, this issue finally regains some sense of coherance. The New Avengers track down the up-and-coming crime boss, the Hood, and decide to ambush him and his super-villain army, using only their fists and a little magical trickery.

It’s a good issue for the character of the Hood. Dr. Strange asks him some pertinent questions about the nature of his powers, more concerned with which demon he might be incarnating than what he’s trying to do to the New York underworld. Meanwhile, once his crew gets put behind bars, he begins making good on his word to spring them, a storyline that’s coming to a head in New Avengers annual #2. It’s interesting to see a crimelord who’s this hands-on and if nothing else, the last few issues have managed to turn the Hood into someone I’d want to read more about.

The title is still suffering a little from crossover-itis. Spider-Man is still in his black costume, cracking wise like at no point during the Back in Black story that ran through his own titles (though that does lead to a funny line – “This ain’t just Spider-Man you’re getting spanked by, this is Black-Costumed Spidey. It’s going to be so much more a cooler story to tell. You know, in jail.”) That said, it seems pretty pointless to start worrying about Spider-Man continuity now, given the way things are about to go down over there. Yeesh.

It’s a decent issue in its own right, but as the concluding chapter of the current arc, “The Trust”, it just feels utterly irrelevant. Six issues ago They were fighting Ninjas in Japan and hauling dead skrulls around, in-between they’ve been dealing with symbiote-infected Mighty Avengers in half of a crossover that hasn’t happened yet, and now they’re taking down the Hood. Unless some of these people turn out to be Skrulls and give it some wider context, it’s going to read like a pretty disjointed story when it comes to be collected.

As much as I love Bendis’ Avengers, this title has been a complete mess recently. Unfortunately, that’s largely because of the scheduling problems being caused by Mighty Avengers delays, which leave the New Avengers playing out their cameo appearance in a story which hasn’t happened yet. There are some good Secret Invasion-related scenes and the fallout of Spider-Woman “switching sides” is nicely dealt with, as is the growing suspicion between Cage and Jones, but between the end half of the symbiote-hasn’t-happened-yet fight, and the apparantly beginning the end of the Hood storyline, the title’s all over the place.

Lenil Yu’s art is luckily on hand to keep us entertained where the plot doesn’t, and Dave McCaig’s colouring is especially excellent, with brilliant, bright colours for the superhero fighting sections and a sufficiently moodier pallette in the less actiony-bits. It’s rare that a colourist’s work makes me sit up and take notice, but for this issue it really did.

Overall, though, it just feels like this issue of New Avengers in particular is exemplifying the title’s main problems, where lateness in other titles affects this one, and there are simultaneously too many balls in the air to actually deal with them properly. Given its close ties with House of M, Civil War and Secret Invasion, New Avengers still feels like it lacks a specific identity. It hasn’t really told a story that wasn’t related to a crossover since The Sentry arc, way, WAY, WAY back in issues #7-10. It’s got some good characters, but christ, give them some time to breathe.