Avengers #7

By Colin Andersen
November 18, 2010 - 20:47

I am desperately waiting for this book to become what I want it to be. This is the second arc in a row that has some amazing potential, but based on this first issue, I’m worried it is going to fall flat again. Just like the last story with the “Next Avengers,” the idea is very Avenger-y and is a nice throwback to the Avengers stories of old but it’s the execution that is leaving me wanting.
This time the story revolved around Parker Robbins, AKA The Hood, trying to get some power backs and rebuild his criminal empire after it was all taken away from him in the Siege of Asgard. This time, The Hood is stepping up his game and attempting to collect the Infinity Gems from the Illuminati members that were keeping them safe. With all the gems, he can reassemble the Infinity

Gauntlet and become a god. For those of you that were not aware for the endless solicits, this issue also marks the introduction of the Red Hulk to the Avengers. As far as I’m concerned, this is actually a very strong general plot that appeals to both my sensibilities and my nostalgia of 90’s-era Marvel Comics. Unfortunately, the execution is about as strong as the Infinity Gauntlet without the gems (yikes, sorry about the terrible simile).
   While the general idea is good, Brian Michael Bendis’ plot just feels incredibly bland. Ever since he lost his first, demon-based powers, The Hood has been an extremely uninteresting villain. He has felt like a complete non-threat and the Infinity Gauntlet would certainly help that. However, the Parker Robbins presented in this book is just boring. He does have some good qualities, such as the ways he teaches himself how each gem works, but the rest of the time, he could pass for any generic bad guy. The Avengers don’t fare much better either. There’s some more arguing with Wonder Man that still seems to be going nowhere. The team comes off as supporting characters in their own book which might be okay in, say, New Avengers, but these are supposed to the big guns of the Marvel Universe and shoving them to the side, especially after the lame conclusion to the last story, comes off as a missed opportunity. Also, I refuse to believe that Hawkeye has never so much as heard of Red Hulk.
   For the part of the issue that does focus on the team, the ugly head of Bendis’ dialogue makes itself known. Watching the Avengers talk to “Protector” (and yes, I still hate that name) about his girlfriend is painful and uncomfortable, though that is probably part of the point. Noh-Varr’s involvement in the team still feels uncomfortably forced and this scene certainly didn’t help. These characters don’t talk like real people. Now, I’m smart enough to know that I am not reading real people, but I’d like some kind of realistic dialogue that does not make every character seem like a poor Spider-Man impersonator. It is not as bad with the Hood as he is man clearly in over his head and trying to compensate, but it needs to be toned down for everyone else.
   I’m probably beginning to sound like a broken record with this, but I wish John Romita Jr. would leave Avengers. I have never been a fan of his work, but he seems to have hit new lows with issue #7. Every single panel looks muddy and rushed and no character comes off looking even marginally okay. It was so bad at first that, even know he would be in this issue, I did not realize The Hood was The Hood until he said his own name eight pages into the book! He looks like some sort of generic background character that you would see running away into the crowd during a battle. Maybe he is supposed to have “normal” look for this issue, but he looked far too bland and was completely unrecognizable. Thor fares almost as badly, especially when he is flying by holding his arms lamely underneath him. I respect that Romita is one of the most successful and respected artists of the last three decades, but this is just painful to look at. The best solution would be to simply replace him.
   More than almost any book being published today, I want Avengers to succeed, but it continues to disappoint on nearly every level. I love the ideas that Bendis is throwing out there, but he can’t seem to make any of them work and he is not showing any real signs of improvement. This is only the first issue of the story and it could obviously improve, but the first seven issues fill me with little hope of that happening. Maybe I’ll go get myself an Infinity Gauntlet of my own and wish a new Avengers book into existence.

Rating: 4 /10

Last Updated: August 31, 2023 - 08:12

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