There are a few things in superhero comics that will never change. Batman never kills, Uncle Ben will stay dead, and the Avengers mansion is a place of unity. And so it returns in Avengers Assemble #1, out this week in comic shops. Writer Steve Orlando is taking the Avengers team and upping its membership because every hero is an Avenger at some point in time.
As you can see in the preview, Avengers Assemble #1 opens with Sin getting a mega boost in powers as she has acquired the goddess of Hate’s Holy Mask of Death. She’s messing around with her new powers in Germany. Meanwhile, Captain America is preparing the Avengers Mansion for a big get-together of all sorts of heroes. Well, Jarvis is doing a lot of the heavy lifting, but Cap, Shang-Chi, Wasp, and Photon can’t help for long as they’re zipping off to stop Sin.
And so begins two plot-building stories. The first is the small Avengers crew stopping Sin while all sorts of heroes show up at the mansion. Orlando plots this issue perfectly, ramping up the action and danger in fight scenes with Sin and then cutting to the melodrama between different past Avengers. It’s a fun way to honor the heroes and supply ample action.
Nice to see Jarvis at home.
Credit: Marvel
My only gripe as far as the heroes showing up is there isn’t a specific reason they need to show up right now. Cap makes the case that recent world-ending events require an “Avengers Emergency Response Squad” to be at the ready, but why now? I guess it doesn’t matter all that much, but I kept wondering.
Cory Smith perfectly pencils the issue, handling scenes with many heroes well and delivering on the big action. I honestly can’t remember the last time Photon and Shang-Chi looked so cool in a fight scene, and there are some cool team-up moves thrown in. The fact that one of my favorite moments is Wasp being blown out of a nose is a testament to the art.
As far as the writing, Orlando nails the characterization. This feels like an old Avengers comic from the Kurt Busiek days. From thought balloons to banter in the action scenes, there’s a lot to love. Orlando has to juggle a lot of voices with good segues, from dialogue to captions on page turns. The characters do a lot of talking in the action scene, but it feels natural and suits the scenes.
If you’re a fan of classic Avengers tales, you’ll love Avengers Assemble #1. The big team, the big action, and great banter make this a must-read for Avengers fans of all ages.
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