The New Avengers, vol. 2 #14 – Review

Hush, loyal reader, don’t say a word. Brian’s going to tell you a story about Mockingbird. Ok, well obviously don’t be quiet. Comments are always greatly appreciated, so please speak up. Especially now because I’m mixing up the format of my review a bit. Instead of breaking it down into what I felt worked and didn’t work in the issue (the “heroic” and “not-so-heroic”), I am expounding on my little rating system by giving a bit more detail into the five categories that I feel make up a good comic. So yeah, a new Mockingbird, a new review format. Let me know your thoughts if you’re so inclined.   

The New Avengers, vol. 2 #14

Writer: Brian Michael Bendis

Artist: Mike Deodato
Color Art: Rain Beredo
Letters & Production: VC’s Joe Caramagna
Cover Art: Mike Deodato & Rain Beredo

The New Avengers: Luke Cage, Ms. Marvel, Thing, Iron Fist, Spider-Man, Wolverine, Dr. Strange, Mockingbird, Jessica Jones, Victoria Hand, Squirrel Girl.

Plot: Alive and well, Mockingbird is participating in an oral history interview about what it means to be an Avenger. She admits that her covert S.H.I.E.L.D. training has not prepared her to be a world-class superhero and because of this, she has remained a relatively uninteresting member of the team. Because of this, Mockingbird rarely gives interviews or makes public appearances. She then opens up and admits that she should have died recently.

At Avengers Mansion, several of the New Avengers are gathered around the table when Spider-Man announces that he can no longer be a member of the team. Spidey states that he is spread too thin with his allegiances to the Future Foundation and can no longer pull double duty. Victoria Hand accuses Spider-Man of leaving the team because of her association with the Avengers and Spider-Man does not deny it.

An argument about trust between Spider-Man and Hand ensues. The other Avengers begin to intervene when Hand brings up the fact that Spider-Man still wears a mask and won’t reveal his identity, as well as the fact that he has been accused of murder on numerous occasions. The fighting ceases when Mockingbird returns from the hospital and shows off her freshly healed body. Wolverine pulls Spider-Man aside to talk to him in private. The two are joined by Luke Cage and walk off, with Victoria Hand watching from the other side of the room.

The story cuts back to Mockingbird’s interview. She explains how she was able to survive and heal from her grave injury so quickly. The serum Hawkeye had given her supposedly gave her the strength and agility of Captain America, as well as the longevity and liveliness of Nick Fury. Mockingbird was aching for an opportunity to try out her new power set when the ancient Norse god, the Serpent, unleashed his army and fear across the world. The Avengers were dispatched to Manhattan to confront the Red Skull’s daughter, Sin, and her Nazi robot army.

The New Avengers get to work taking down their enemy. Luke Cage delivers a fastball special, sending Wolverine claws first at the closest war machine and Iron Fist takes down one of the manned-robots with a powerful, energy-infused uppercut. Mockingbird jumps atop one of the flying tanks, tosses the pilot from the contraption and takes over the machine.

Mockingbird uses the combat vehicle to save Jessica Jones and some civilians from another one of the machines. She flies off in her tank and speeds towards a head-on-collision with three more. Mockingbird leaps from the cockpit before all four of the machines violently explode in the air. The revitalized hero lands on a rooftop and rejoices at her new powers. Her joy is short-lived, however, as she sees Avengers Tower come crashing to the ground in the New York skyline.

*

Story: I thought this was a nice tie-in to the Fear Itself story. It showed which team of heroes gets tasked with helping Steve Rogers protect Manhattan from the Nazi war machines. It’s not as grand as taking on some of the Worthy as we see in the main Avengers title, but this part of the story is equally as important. It’s not super necessary to the main event, but since the Avengers are front and center during Fear Itself, it makes sense for this comic to tie into the event.

I’ll be really sad if Spider-Man actually leaves the New Avengers since he is the main reason I am picking up this comic to begin with. Not to mention he’s also the reason I get to review this comic for the crawlspace. I don’t see how Bendis can write out one of the main heroes though, especially when his archenemy, Norman Osborn, is lined up to give the New Avengers some trouble in an upcoming story arc.

Art: Deodato finally takes over the sole art duties with this issue and it’s greatly appreciated on my end. The colors by Beredo are a great compliment to the detailed shading laid down by Deodato. Deodato masters the shadows, silhouettes and details of large epic scenes in the battle-ravaged city. He also has nice subtle touches that add to the scenes like the Thing sitting on two chairs to support his weight. His version of Spidey in the Future Foundation outfit was nice as well and showed off how strong the web-slinging hero is.

Writing: Bendis’ use of the interview narrative is pretty lacking in my opinion. He uses this same tactic in the Avengers comic, but the interview in this comic focuses mainly on Mockingbird and her recent storyline, so it’s a bit more effective. The best line he had in this issue was when Mockingbird referenced the face-melting in Raiders of the Lost Ark, but that’s overshadowed by weak lines, for example Spidey’s line “call me Mister Done.” Iron Fist and Luke Cage are old buddies, but I didn’t really dig their conversation about Iron Fist moving to Seattle to avoid the perilous situations the heroes always find themselves in.

Characterization: I agree that Spider-Man would not be thrilled at the prospect of working with Victoria Hand due to her past associations with Norman Osborn, but I really did not like it when he turned his resignation from the Avengers into a big spectacle. Why would he not want to keep his enemies close instead of leaving his friends to fend for themselves? I would prefer to see him take some responsibility and prove his point instead of just storming off.

Hand’s combative attitude and refusal to back down with Spidey is pretty on point and part of the reason why Steve wanted to keep her close to the team. But what was the point of Iron Fist standing between Spidey and Hand and holding them back during the argument? Did he think that one of them was going to attack the other? I liked how Thing took offense for Spidey when Hand brought up the murder allegations since they are friends. Once again, my prejudices against Wolverine aside, I thought it was good of him to talk to Spider-Man in private about Spidey’s decision to leave the team. 

Action: There’s not a lot of action during the first half of the issue and the action we do see is nothing new if you’ve been following the Fear Itself event. The Nazi-robots have been big plot devices in Fear Itself so far but, for the most part, they’ve been running around unopposed. It’s nice to see some heroes finally mix it up with them. 

Once again, Luke Cage’s main role in the action is to be the pitcher of the fastball special. This time he performs the move with the other half of the move’s originators, Wolverine. Despite not being a big fan of Wolverine, I do like that move, I just hope that we don’t start to see it over and over again. I enjoyed Iron Fist’s best Street Fighter impression when he delivered the super-charged Shoryuken as well. 

*

Most Valuable Avenger: Mockingbird takes front and center with her new powers and as the focus of the oral history interview. I didn’t think that I’d be giving Mockingbird this prestigious title, especially so quickly after her power-up, but she finally does something productive to warrant this reward.

Least Valuable Avenger: Now, it may seem contradictory, but just because Mockingbird was the main attraction, that doesn’t mean she is free from criticism. Her character is still used as a sex symbol when she lifts her shirt to show off her fabulous body to her teammates. She even admits that most of America probably doesn’t even know or care about her, which I tend to agree with. Giving her a new set of powers shouldn’t really change that, especially because her power set isn’t anything super special. I’m also curious to know how her S.H.I.E.L.D. training prepared her to navigate an old Nazi flying tank. 

*

Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Moment: Phones have come a long way with the advent of the smart phone, and along with the wonderful services of things like Netflix, Hulu and HBOGo, Spidey’s statement about the future shouldn’t be so surprising, but I get the point.

Spidey: “Well, as you can see from my awesome new Spidey costumage, I’m working with Reed Richards and his Future Foundation.”

Luke Cage: “How’s the future looking?”

Spidey: “Awesome. You can watch TV on your phone.”

*

Rating: Good, art. Meh, characterization, story and writing. Poor, action. 3/5 Avengers Assembled

“Remember that one time during the fight when it looked like you might actually win? No? Me neither.” – Marvel vs. Capcom 3
“Did I mention I beat up Firelord once? No, seriously. Firelord.” – Ultimate Alliance 2