New Avengers is barreling towards answers as to who the puppet master is, and right now, Winter Soldier is leaning towards Black Widow. But not the one we know, only a clone, which makes sense given the Killuminati are all clones of major Avengers. In New Avengers #7, it becomes clear that a major player is controlling them all, but for what reason, and can Winter Soldier trust the woman he loves? There’s a bona fide answer in there, trust me!
New Avengers #7 opens in San Francisco, where we meet Black Panther, only it’s the cloned version who goes by the name Luke Charles. He’s seducing a woman, but quickly we learn he’s a killer, and before he can revel in it, Iron Apex breaks in to ruin his fun. Writer Sam Humphries does a good job capturing the weirdness and off-kilter nature of these characters through dialogue, and soon it’s time for Iron Apex to spill some team. Much like the overarching mystery, Humphries and artist Ton Lima entwine plots till the very end, allowing for an even-keeled delivery of exposition.
Intercut with their meeting is the continuation of the fight that ended the last issue. Clea takes center stage thanks to captions that deliver her monologue of the events unfolding. As she pontificates, Luke Charles is cutting Wolverine across the head, and clones of Medusa and Captain Britain are giving the rest of her team a run for their money. All told, the fight is short, though spread out through the whole issue, so it serves its purpose of giving the issue a shot of action. Namor ends up having the best epic moment, and the Killuminati continue to steal the show in every scene they’re in.
“My name is Clea. You’re probably wondering how I got here.”
Credit: Marvel
While all that is going on, Winter Soldier and Wolverine take a meeting with Reed Richards. He’s the best guy to figure out if Black Widow is a clone, they wager, which leads to a rather intense and well-written face-to-face between Black Widow and Winter Soldier. The very idea that they are shooting around each other for practice and fun is a clever wrinkle to show how they spend their time. These two also close out the issue, creating a shocking cliffhanger.
While the general plotting of the issue keeps you guessing and allows expository scenes to feel less heavy, it also makes the issue feel like it gives you whiplash. The back-and-forth and time jumps will make you wonder why it’s not told linearly. The other gripe most will have is how Iron Apex’s little secret about who is pulling the strings, without just saying it to the reader, can be frustrating. He actually tells Luke Charles at one point, but the reader isn’t allowed to hear it. Rude.
Lima continues to show he’s got the chops for superhero comics, be it the action-and-fun double-page layouts or the detailed art, from Black Widow’s lace nightie to city backgrounds. I wouldn’t be surprised if we see Lima drawing an event book in the next few years.
New Avengers #7 thrives on tension, betrayal, and psychological uncertainty, pairing clone conspiracies with heartfelt character drama. While the nonlinear structure can be disorienting and a key reveal is deliberately stalled, the emotional payoff between Winter Soldier and Black Widow, combined with Ton Lima’s increasingly confident artwork, makes this one of the most gripping chapters of the series so far.
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