Lewis Reynolds Comic Reviews

Despite its powerful resemblance to a Superman origin story, Al Ewing and Dale Keown manage to create an original and captivating solo adventure for Hyperion that serves as a nice breather before the 'Time Runs Out' event that begins later this month.

Leading on from a moment of personal and moral victory, the Captain's self-righteous anger at what the Illuminati has done ultimately gives Avengers the spark and sense of purpose that it has sorely missed, in a story that is greater than the sum of its parts. Bogged down by diversionary arcs and brand-wide tie-ins in the past, Hickman clears the cogs somewhat here, leaving us in a relatively good place for the rapidly approaching Time Runs Out event that begins next month.

The initial decision to move forward eight months appeared a smart one on the part of Hickman, allowing him to avoid former missteps made during house-wide events by skipping straight past "Axis" in a way that prevented his own story from derailing. It comes with some surprise then to see just how disjointed this issue is, especially considering the extra space allocated to it as an oversized release of particular ambition. It attempts to spin too many plates without ever actually doing anything important beyond some immediate world-building, leaving its character development for other books to largely fill in over the coming months as the 616 universe begins to catch up with Hickman's own titles.

Stefano Caselli's art is consistently solid, but not quite as spectacular or affecting as Hickman's scripting sometimes needs it to be. Likewise, Frank Martin's colours are a little too bright and optimistic for what is essentially a dystopian future. Again, these are only small complaints, and take little away from an otherwise exceptional instalment of the "Time Runs Out" event.

Regardless, this is still a very strong outing for Hickman's core Avengers title. Not much is provided in the way of forward motion, but the greater web of power plays and machinations inexorably tightens in a way that promises gratification for the reader in the near future.

Avengers is doing an admirable job of tying together its various disparate plotlines, although it's certainly a measured and slow consolidation. The ever-expanding role call at the book's opening displays just how unwieldy Hickman's story can get when left unchecked, yet this issue seeks to rectify that somewhat by having Sunspot set out a plan moving forward. What Hickman ultimately delivers is a lot of table setting and exposition, couched in the trappings of an enjoyable read all the same.

Avengers #39 sees the title hunker down and get on with it, working towards the consolidation of its various alliances and factions in advance of next year's 'Secret Wars'. Having negated some of the initial confusion surrounding the time jump and this new world's balance of power, Avengers has now hit a more consistent run of successes, confirmed here in this fun and comprehensible read.

Along with the 2011-2012Ultimatesrun, callbacks are also made in this issue to last year's 'Infinity' event, as the cosmic repercussions of Earth's Incursion problem are explored with a visit to the Galactic Council. Examples like this show how Hickman is increasingly tying-in every aspect of the Marvel universe into his master narrative, yet where prior additions have sometimes felt extraneous or ill timed, this week's contribution only enhances reader investment. Despite featuring almost no Avengers at all,Avengers #41manages to feel very much like an organic and necessary development in the on-going saga of the title, with a final cliffhanger that feeds directly back into the main drive of its narrative. Admittedly, for those not so familiar with Hickman's wider catalogue this issue may well elicit as much confusion as it does delight. Irregardless,Avengers #41displays a Jonathan Hickman at the very height of his form.

Ostensibly a place-setting issue, Avengers #42 nonetheless transcends itself based off the strength of Hickman's dialogue and the handle he has on his various characters. Providing a teasing glimpse of what's to come, Avengers #42 ignites anticipation for the final event as 'Secret Wars' looms ever closer.

It almost goes without saying at this point that whenever Hickman gets into connect the dots mode, it's best to just sit back and enjoy the ride.

The plotting is, as ever, simple, but it carries an earnestness that proves refreshing. The issue is bookended by a much more mundane story of the three Alexander's moving house, with the family continuing to serve as the beating heart of Nova. Those aspects of the story that take place back on Earth rarely feel out of the place with the title's pulpier elements, and help to ground Sam's more outlandish adventures by juxtaposing them with the ironically unheroic day-to-day tribulations of being a teenager in school. It may not be spectacular, but consistently entertains as a light and enjoyable romp that warrants the admission price simply for the art.

The cliffhanger ending promises greater adventure in Nova's future, as he sets off for New York at the beck and call of Captain America. Much of the title's success so far has come from its relatively self-contained nature, crossovers aside, in what is essentially a fairly conventional coming of age story. It makes this final, earnest step towards integration all the more exciting for Sam's future trajectory as a hero, as he takes his first tentative step into the big leagues of the Marvel universe.

This final showdown between the Hulk and Nova functions as the emotional heart of the issue, somewhat making up for the lackluster first half. The Hulk's threat is proven palpably real when he bites down on and breaks Sam's arm in one particularly hard-hitting panel, with Gerry Duggan quick to remind us that Nova is, for all intents and purposes, still but a boy. Nonetheless, Sam rises to the occasion as best as he can, acquitting himself admirably without ever compromising that sense of youthful optimism that makes Nova such a refreshing read. Ending on a complete change in both setting and circumstance, Nova promises not to let off anytime soon.

With the Black Nova helmet left temporarily out of commission after the battle, this seems as good a time as any for Duggan to close out on the first chapter of Sam's career, allowing the boy to return home for some much needed rest. This reprieve promises to be a short one however, as Nova foolishly reveals his civilian name to Carnage, a mistake set to bite Sam in the butt as soon as the Inversion Wave is overturned. It's a fun development, in a title where scripting arguably plays second fiddle to the art " or more optimistically, works in tandem with it to create an entirely holistic offering.

Nova #25 succeeds not only as a jumping on point for new readers, but also as a celebration of Sam Alexander's adventures so far as he has progressed from inexperienced rookie to a more seasoned superhero. Dugan delivers a palate cleanser of sorts here before #26 kicks off the next chapter of Nova's life in earnest. Based off the strength of this issue, it'll be one worth following.

That isn't to say that the title has to become dark and dreary, far from it, with Duggan proving time and time again on Deadpool that he can successfully balance levity and tragedy. A solid if flawed release then, Nova #26 at least leaves off with a fairly exciting cliffhanger to keep its readership engrossed and waiting for the next instalment in February.

Sliney's slight visual reimagining of a classic Spider-Man villain in the closing pages is another enjoyable surprise, drawing upon a more atavistic, organic look for the villain in comparison to prior physical portrayals in order to create a genuinely frightening visage. With a good handle on pace, David closes out the issue on a cliffhanger, following up an intriguing opening sequence by delivering a level of action previously unseen whilst still maintaining his penchant for humour and strong dialogue.

Spider-man 2099 #4 acts as a nice cap for the title's first arc, clearing some space for the imminent "Edge of Spider-Verse" tie-in whilst delivering some fantastic artwork along the way.

Miguel's own story is cut relatively short. His brief interaction with Tiberius Stone and Liz Allen is largely restricted to establishing future plot points, and paints Miguel as a little nave in his suggestion that Alchemax could do good by building a new prison for the city's super-powered villains. Having come from a dystopian future, for-profit private prisons are presumably a fairly common feature amongst the wider military-industrial complex. Any and all development for Miguel takes place on the closing pages, in a fairly intriguing ending that promises wider implications for the main AmazingSpider-man title.

Spider-Man 2099 #6 works exceedingly well as a tie-in, its own tangent growing naturally out of the wider 'Spider-Verse' event. It should satisfy both long-term readers and those who are here only for the event tie-in, perhaps gaining the title a few more potential fans along the way.

The 'six men of sinistry' are similar non-entities, existing only as an entertaining diversion used to delay Miguel and May's return to the main thrust of the overarching narrative. By this count, Spider-Man 2099 #8 isn't really as wired into the events of 'Spider-Verse' as much as David's previous two issues. For all its faults however, you can't really hate on a story that features a giant Spider-Man themed robot, especially one drawn by Will Sliney.

This sort of world building suits Spider-Man 2099wellas it continues to develop its own identity. Hopefully the title will return to a more recognisable version of its own futurebefore too long, as opposed to another sojourn in modern-day New York (does anyone even remember what was going on with Liz Allen and Alchemax, or actually care about what happens to Miguel's ill neighbour?), but this all remains largely up in the air with the news that the book will be ending soon and replaced with Secret Wars 2099 in the coming months. Whether this new title operates as a temporary event tie-in or as a more comprehensive opportunity to relaunch the 2099 line in some new configuration, readers can only hope that Peter David'sSpider-Man 2099comes out the other end returned and relatively unscathed. For now at least, this clash with The Maestro proves to a more than entertaining stopover along the way as Miguel continues his pattern of temporal misfortunes.

Spider-Man 2099 #10 really shouldn't work as well as it does. Its plot exists mostly as a lead-in to 'Secret Wars' and the two mini-series that David is writing under its collective banner. Despite this, the series continues to standvery muchon its own terms, having developed a distinctive identity for itself away from the rest of the spider-roster.

Spider-Man 2099 #11 very much benefits from its shift in pace and slower-moving plot, giving the title a little room to breath before Peter David is called upon to tie up various loose ends in the next, ostensibly concluding issue of his run. That this doesn't feel like the penultimate chapter in a series would seem to suggest that Spider-Man 2099 will come out the other end of 'Secret Wars' still standing; perhaps even fairly unscathed. It's probably for the best that readers not ponder other, more disheartening conclusions.