Jed MacKay has received considerable praise for his work on Moon Knight, X-Men, and Blood Hunt, but I’ve always felt his Avengers run has flown under the radar. Not only has MacKay assembled a roster that’s truly worthy of calling themselves “Earth’s Mightiest Heroes”, but he’s been delivering the kind of stories that you’d expect in an Avengers book – and the kind of superstar artists. He even made it to 25 issues!
I bring this up because Avengers #25 is another stirring example of the “go big or go home” attitude MacKay brings to the book, and the fact that it takes place in the wake of One World Under Doom is no mean feat either. In the aftermath of a battle with Doom, Captain America takes a hit and is sent back to the Impossible City, only for it to mysteriously shut down. The new Masters of Evil, led by the Mad Thinker, have claimed the City as their new base in a bid to usurp Doom’s seat of power…and Sam Wilson is the one Avenger who can take them out.
This setup is basically “Die Hard in a giant floating space city,” and I love it. It also makes sense that Sam’s the Avenger who pulls this off; early in the fight, he gets into an argument with Captain Marvel about participating in the fight since he’s a non-powered hero. What stops this from being a trite argument is that Sam did take a major hit from Doom and is the only Avenger onboard the City. MacKay does a great job of setting up the major crisis of the issue, and exploring how Sam deals with it.
Marvel
Avengers #25 also marks the return of Valerio Schiti to the book, who doesn’t hold anything back. The very first page features the Avengers (and their allies) entering into battle with Doctor Doom. Even if you haven’t picked up One World Under Doom, this singular image is enough to sell the stakes that the Avengers are fighting for, and just how immensely powerful Doom has become as Earth’s Sorcerer Supreme. Schiti continues to deliver striking imagery, including a new Captain America suit for Sam.
Federico Blee’s color art is vibrant, eye-catching, and appropriately superheroic. In the opening pages, there is a bright green glow that immediately draws your eye to Doom. Like their heroic counterparts, the Masters of Evil have their own unique color schemes – especially the appropriately named Madcap, who is decked out in garish purple and orange (and has one of the most unique lettering schemes I’ve seen in comics courtesy of Cory Petit.) Even though Sam has a new suit, it still contains the red and blue hues he sports as Captain America, and matches his shield.
Avengers #25 is proof Jed MacKay and Valerio Schiti intend to deliver nothing but superheroic goodness with this title, and since One World Under Doom is upon us, that approach is needed now more than ever. If you’ve been enjoying MacKay’s other Marvel work, this is the perfect time to hop on.
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