Comic Review -- Avengers X-Sanction #3: Noon / Jeph Loeb, Ed McGuinness, Dexter Vines, and Morry Hollowell

Alright, so I've got the all-red variant cover for this one, which doesn't look too bad, given the content of the issue, but I do have some issues here.  First of all, the all red feels like a lazy cop-out.  I can understand altering some of the tones to give the cover a different look, but really?  One-tone red, for 99% of the shot?  Give me a break.

I'll save my commentary for how he's fighting Red Hulk for my analysis below.

Cable has taken down Falcon, Captain America, and Iron Man, all because he's convinced the Avengers are directly responsible for the inability of his adopted daughter Hope Summers to save the world at the dramatically appropriate time it needs saving.  This has had a serious effect on his timeline and future, so he travels back in time, with tech from his time, to take on Earth's greatest heroes.  He's dying as the techno-virus overtakes and destroys his body, and he's fought alongside the Avengers innumerable times, but neither of these things will stop him from destroying them so that his daughter may live.

But things have hit a serious snag.  Red Hulk has shown up, and he's no pushover.  With the help of Blaquesmith, whose version of the future is what brought him back to assassinate the Avengers, a final psi-blast, and one seriously weird power stunt to take him down.  Cyclops and Hope show up, brought by Blaquesmith, but before they can contain the situation, two more Avengers show up, who will presumably feature in next month's final fight: Spider-Man and Wolverine.

To say I'm feeling let down by this story at this point is something of an understatement.  First of all, there's very little action going on in this chapter--which actually makes sense, as any kind of sustained fight with Red Hulk would surely end in Cable's destruction or death.  Instead, we see more flashbacks of what led us here, and how Cable got some of the tech that's allowed him to beat and capture some of the most premier heroes of the day.  When Red Hulk finally gets Cable in position to grapple and crush him into submission, readers get the most surprising and ridiculous display of power yet...!

Cable PORCUPINES a bunch of metallic spines out of himself and THROUGH Red Hulk's steel-like hide and body, apparently infecting him with the techno-virus!

Now, I'll admit, I've not read many of Cable's recent exploits.  It's perfectly possible that he's developed this power over time, even if it doesn't seem like something that would match his power set by anything I have read.  But the idea that this situation--you know, the one in which he's on his last legs, and being consumed by his own illness--and his love for Hope alone is what triggers this "unthinkable" turnabout in the tussle, just comes off as contrived and downright ridiculous.  I also think the paucity of action scenes between Cable and Red Hulk was a major cop-out.  At this point I really would have preferred to watch Red Hulk just pound on Cable until he shattered, bent, or broke.

I can't find much more to comment about with the art that I haven't already said.  Cable and Red Hulk look big and impressive enough in the few action scenes where they're actually fighting each other, but I was underwhelmed by the appearances of Scott and Hope, visually.  I don't know why exactly, but Hope in particular looked a little too wide-eyed and cartoony in her appearances.  Maybe that's simply emphasizing her youth, but it just didn't work for me.  And Scott just looked wooden and flat.  Oh, wait, never mind, McGuinness nailed him perfectly!  Even Spidey and Wolverine seemed a bit off in their one appearance.  Not a great setup for your final smackdown.

Overall, I'm really starting to get pissed at this story.  Unless something fan-frickin'-tastic turns things around in the last issue, I'm going to see this as simply a puerile, pointless piece of fluff fiction that's not even passable as a setup for the next story arc.  I don't want to have to say that about Jeph Loeb's story, and I'm willing to acknowledge again that this might not all be his fault, but this entire experience has been nothing short of disappointing, thus far.  NOT recommended.

Comic Review -- Avengers: X-Sanction #1-2 / Jeph Loeb, Ed McGuinness, Dexter Vines, & Morry Hollowell

Avengers: X-Sanction #1: Midnight

The cover for this issue isn't bad, but not great, either.  I like the use of colors, and the depiction of Cable and Captain America, who have fought on the same side many times, locked in mortal combat is conceptually interesting, but the facial expressions ruin it for me.  This is a vicious, balls-to-the-wall fight--there should be more expression on both their faces.  Gritting teeth, eyes locked on each other... something more that what I'm currently seeing.  As it is, it just seems too contrived and pre-posed for me.

The Avengers are called out to stop a jailbreak.  As they take on the Lethal Legion, Captain America goes after Whirlwind.  Falcon gets shot while watching Cap's back, and Cable drags him off to his base.  Cap eventually pursues, and upon finding Falcon held captive in a medical vat, gets ambushed by his former ally.  Both put up a vicious fight, but Cable narrowly wins, shackling Cap to a chair, turning a gun on him, and pulling the trigger with a loud bang, ending the issue.

So, apparently Cable's been dead for a while, having sacrificed himself for his adopted daughter, Hope Summers.  Now he's back, looking to kill all the Avengers with the vague goal of protecting her.  It seems that when people come back from the dead, or limbo, or wherever the heck they are that takes them away from the world, they come back with a few screws loose.  It looks like Loeb has decided to take this tack with Cable, and it gives me pause.  Much as I've enjoyed his writing in other stories, I can't help the feeling that, come the climax of the story, we're going to see that Cable's been made into a foolish old man, manipulated by someone else into doing something he otherwise never would have done.

It's not just the sickish sense of discomfort created by Cable so coldly and unfeelingly shooting down Avengers, or viciously beating down his former comrades, which he justifies ad nauseum throughout the narrative.  It's not just how he's able to best Cap in hand-to-hand combat, however narrowly.  It's not just the feeling that this plot feels so much like a flimsy excuse for a lead-in story to the upcoming Avengers vs. X-Men event later this year that I know there's no real risk here.  I mean, really--Captain America's going to die in a limited series, at Cable's gun?  Come on.

It's all of these things together.

I've generally liked Jeph Loeb's work, particularly when it involves showcasing one adversary per issue during a larger story arc, then moving to another.  But this is off to a shaky start, for a number of reasons.  I realize he may be constrained by narrative mandate at Marvel, but I'm so far only mildly intrigued by the Cable-as-Terminator thing we've got going here.  Hopefully it'll get better.

Artistically, I'm only moderately impressed.  Ed McGuinness does a good enough job with the supporting characters--Spidey, Wolverine, and Iron Man all look great in their appearances--but falls a little shorter when it comes to the two heavies in this issue.  Cable, I know, is not a small man, as neither is Cap, but they seem a little too widely rendered at various points in their fight, as if they've both consumed large amounts of cheeseburgers right before their brawl.  I'm also not sure I like how Cable's face is looking, and I don't just mean due to the effects of the techno-virus.  It's like every scar, vein, and wrinkle have been purposely exaggerated, and I don't like it.

Overall, I can't help but feel more than a little disappointed at how this story is starting off.  I like the overall concept, but the execution leaves a lot to be desired.  I'm confident in Loeb's ability to turn things around, but I have to say the start doesn't feel so great.  Recommended, with reservations.

Avengers: X-Sanction #2: Dawn

Okay, I like this cover because it basically shows that Cable's playing the role of the Terminator.  It's very simple, but sinister and expressive.  But I have to wonder, does he have to adorn all his guns with stylized X insignias on them?

Iron Man notices that Falcon and Cap have disappeared, and follows Redwing, Falcon's sidekick, to Cable's hideout.  Cable, of course, is ready for him, and they engage in a duel of technological and firepower proportions, with each getting the upper hand on the other at various points.  Cable finally dispatches Iron Man and shackles him to another torture chair like Cap's, and starts his version of monologuing before he's shot in the back by Red Hulk, who's eager for a crack at the mutant from the future.

For someone who's getting closer and closer to death with each passing minute, Cable's putting up a hell of a fight.  He just physically bested Cap, and now he puts his brain and technological know-how to the limit by taking down the "mighty" Tony Stark and his vaunted Iron Man suit.  I'm hoping he'll finally stay down now, with his breathing problems and the techno-virus working him over so thoroughly, but I'm skeptical that will be the case.  By all appearances, Red Hulk is on deck for the fight next issue, and I'm sure Cable will reach deep down and think of Hope and suddenly have the ability to fight him.  I hope not, but that's what I fear will happen.

Artistically, there's been improvement, now that Cap isn't one of the focuses.  Iron Man appears comparatively slight to Cable, which is appropriate.  It looks like there'll be plenty of thick-fest next issue with Red Hulk, which is fine for that hero.  It just really bothered me with Cap.  Cable's facial expressions are also better in this one; there appears to be more emotion in his face and less emphasis on veins, wrinkles and scars.

Overall, I'm still none too impressed.  We're halfway through this, Red Hulk will be the fight in the next issue, and I'm sure Cable will find some way to beat him, too, despite his ridiculously deteriorating condition.  I'm just none too excited for what's coming next.  I'll continue to read, because I'm a completist, but at this point I'm not expecting things to get much better.  I hope I'm proven wrong.  Barely recommended, with serious reservations.

GN Review -- The Avengers, v. 2 (2010) / Brian Michael Bendis, John Romita, Jr. & Bryan Hitch

When I reviewed volume one of The Avengers, I said I’d keep an eye out for further adventures of this team, so I could see how they shape up over time. When I got my hands on volume two, I took one look at the summary, and just about lost my faculties at the sense of giddiness that ensued.

You could say that it was the plot, in which the Hood, some presumably minor Marvel villain, goes looking for the Infinity Gems in a search for power that could conceivably topple the super-team, that excited me. Or perhaps it was the added element that the gems were each hidden by the Illuminati--a clandestine group of established superheroes assembled by Tony Stark before the Civil War--and that Steve Rogers, currently in charge of the Avengers, was about to discover all of this for the first time. Throw in a few elements like the appearance of the Red Hulk, the discovery of Attilan’s earthly remains, and Wolverine, Beast, and Professor X interacting tensely, and I was sold.

I really enjoyed the premise of this story, for multiple reasons. The madman on a power quest that could actually humble all of the Avengers is an entertaining one, particularly if it’s well plotted, which this is, and well paced, which it also is. The fact of Tony Stark’s idea of the Illuminati assembly of super heroes coming back to give him a well-deserved bite in the ass is also entertaining, particularly since it’s Steve Rogers--with whom he has the longest history of both friendship and enmity--to whom he has to defend himself. It makes for an engaging piece of internal drama within the Avengers, who are noticeably affected by the fact that these two guys--two of the quintessential Avengers--are arguing almost as viciously as they ever did during the Civil War.

I’d personally never heard of the Hood until this story, but he’s a good choice for the villain, as a man who happens to stumble upon a clue to what has to be one of biggest secrets in the Marvel Universe. His quest is motivated by pure selfishness and a desire to only live in the world if he can bend it to his own will, and in grabbing just one of the vaunted Infinity Gems, he takes a major step in securing that reality. The tension between the Avengers and the now-exposed Illuminati--arguably some of the most singularly powerful and well-intentioned heroes around--is also an interesting dynamic, as they fluctuate between resentment, humility and understanding between one another with the onset of this particularly dangerous puzzle.

I’ve said it once, and I’ll say it again: I’m not John Romita, Jr.’s biggest fan when it comes to these kinds of wide-ranging, epics story arcs. Still, I actually felt his style worked in this particular arc, which revolved around several brightly colored gems and had to potential of affecting all of reality. He rises to the occasion during the times good visuals are called for on this story, and his rendering of facial expressions works especially well for the villain, Parker Robbins, who at the end of it all is a small man who only cares for the world as far as he can control it.

Overall, I was thoroughly entertained by this work, and highly recommend it to fans of superhero comics. It’s a good crisis aversion story, and the art and writing actually mesh very nicely to tell a tale that both entertains and moves quickly to a memorable denouement. Highly recommended.