Anghus Houvouras reviews the third issue of Marvel NOW!’s Avengers…
“The New Adam is born! And on Mars, the battle between the Avengers and the Garden comes to its dramatic conclusion!“
The third issue of the re-launched Avengers series is kind of a puzzler. Writer Jonathan Hickman has wrapped up his interplanetary threat in record time. In the span of three issues we’ve seen the earth attacked by world conquering aliens, Captain America recruiting a slew of new Avengers and a massive dust up that wraps up the entire affair in an instant.
When we last left Earth’s mightiest mortals they were facing the evolutionary alien Ex Nihlo who was tinkering with our planet like a middle school science kit lobbing genetic altering bombs from the safety of Mars. The Avengers were beaten with relative ease and the only solution seems to be recruiting every single super powered hero on the face of the earth and handing them an avengers ID card. Its hard to argue that logic as a fighting force of epic proportions emerges and unleashes a smack down on Ex Nihlo and his allies.
As far as superhero dust ups go, its a doozy. The combined might of nearly two dozen Avengers pop off every panel. Hickman manages to work in some nice character moments and the entire affair ends in a rather unconventional way. Our planet conquering aliens are talked down by the omnipresent Captain Universe and left on Mars with a stern warning to steer clear of Earth.
There are so many unanswered questions after three issues. The inclusion of Smasher, Hyperion, and Captain Universe is still unexplained. They are welcome additions to the team, but I’m still curious to find out exactly how they found their way onto the Avengers roster.
Those mysteries are left to subsequent issues as the series transitions out of its first arc and hopefully into some more back-story involving the widening roster.
While the third issue doesn’t quite match the pace and precision of the first two, it does a solid job of delivering a satisfying if unsubstantial conclusion to this arc. There’s lots of loose threads remaining to be tied, but I’m betting Hickman is going to deliver on the promise of a bigger and bolder Avengers.
Anghus Houvouras
Originally published January 28, 2013. Updated April 11, 2018.
