All in all, West Coast Avengers #1 is a rough start. While the concept is solid enough, it is largely outshined by the inclusion of Iron Man. Beyond that, there are conflicts within the story tone and the artwork. Hopefully future issues will shift focus to the ensemble, and the team will do more than support Tony Stark. Read Full Review

Overall, West Coast Avengers #1 is a promising start to a new series. It offers a fresh take on the Avengers formula, with a focus on character development and interpersonal relationships. While the concept of a reformed Ultron might be controversial, it provides an opportunity for some interesting storytelling. Read Full Review

West Coast Avengers #1 delivers a fresh, exciting take on the classic team while leaning into its quirky and nostalgic roots. Gerry Duggan and Danny Kim craft an engaging and action-packed debut that subverts expectations by placing a rehabilitated Ultron at the forefront alongside a slightly out-of-step Tony Stark. The character dynamics are promising, though further development for the broader team would elevate the story. Read Full Review

Kim delivers some great art throughout the issue. The action is definitely a visual highlight. Things always seemed to be in motion and I really liked how the imagery flowed from moment to moment. Read Full Review

West Coast Avengers #1 is solid in the team dynamic with some action to show off their dynamic and really nail down that this is a shitshow of a team. With some great humor and just unexpected moments (that ending!), it's a great debut that leaves us wanting more. Read Full Review

West Coast Avengers #1 is a fantastic farce. Duggan’s sense of humor in the comic can make for a shaky start and not all jokes land. But the slapdash team has enough personality and intrigue to generate enough energy to captivate the reader. Read Full Review

I really enjoyed this first issue. It has some great character moments, good dialogue and an intriguing story that makes me want to come back for more. Something about this series feels very nostalgic and charming, despite the fact that it’s an almost completely new team of West Coast Avengers. The biggest problem for me is the inconsistent art. It’s great in some places and quite horrible in others. Something tells me that with some more practice, Kim could become really good though.

This was a bit messy and clunky, but the premise shows promise, and that ending elevates it.

So much time was given to Tony’s backstory that the issue began with an info dump rather than a compelling narrative, and we did not get much team interaction, which is a bit of a shame in a team book.

The first five pages should have been jettisoned. The comic would then have begun with Tony in medias res, which I do believe was the intention. The first page would then have been the splash shot of Tony in the Retro Suit, with the endearingly drawn retro action pages following. The kitschy humour could have been muted too, then the book would have felt more cohesive. Ultron could have been seen later, saving the day in real time in front of his colleagues, leading us to get real time reactions to his presence.

Never mind. We got what we got, and in general the good points outweighed the bad.

It has an interesting cast, the potential for the set-up to work or fail big creates drama, and it promises greatness.

The art is a bit shaky at times, and suffers from a similar lack of cohesion as the writing, but when it works picks out some nice character beats, and the colourist is on point.

Mostly, it’s a pity that anyone on the team not called Tony Stark gets such little attention. I mean, poor Rhodey, c’mon! Spider-Woman, relegated somewhat to the Basil Exposition role, fares marginally better, but also has to provide a coincidental presence at one point to further the plot, before leaving for San Fran. On a positive note it is nice to see Duggan giving her a realistic voice, rather than the over-egged dialogue forced onto her by Hopeless and Foxe, so long may that continue. Personally, I would have liked to see her gliding alongside Tony rather than hanging off his arms. I think it would have made her look stronger and more of an equal to him, and the conversation would have been way more natural. Jess shouldn’t have needed any help to Super-Spy her way out of a Hospital, and Tony’s dialogue should have been clear in order to make her lame subterfuge work. Flying back to base didn’t need dramatic visuals, it needed a quiet reflective moment between team-mates, and if this book could create more of those, it would have a real beating heart. This book contains any number of characters that are both victims, and survivors, and, at times, the slightly glib edge is at odds with the darker heart. Lightness can mean space, as much as humour or jokes. It feels like it needs to decide what it wants to be. Does it want to be “The Empire Strikes Back” or “Return of The Ewoks”?

So imo this wasn’t perfect, but if it irons out the wrinkles, could turn out to be heading in that direction.
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I wish Duggan would stop trying to be funny. It just comes off awkward. Now Firestar is an alcoholic? I'm not sure why he's trying to make a new Thunderbolts team out of this. Is it a surprise to anyone that Ultron is still evil? This could be a good title if they drop the criminal side of things and just make it a team. I do miss Tigra not being a part of the team, but bring in She-Hulk and Hawkeye.


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• UW
• Chris X

UW - Dec 11, 2024

Yeah, I mostly feel that this hasn’t really made its mind up about what it wants a to be. It just feels that Duggan has taken a bit of a scatter-shot approach and needs tighter editing. On a side note, Marvel editors really need to start picking up the ball, there are some basic faults constantly overlooked in favour of flash, bang, wallop, and sensational storylines that are emotionally vacuous.

fzanca - Dec 11, 2024

I agree, UW. Happy Holidays to you and your family.

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Plot
Iron Man creates a team of Avengers whose foundation is to redeem villains and give them another chance, so he includes Ultron and Blue Bolt, while Spider-woman and War Machine serve as "babysitters."

The team's first mission is almost a failure when they try to stop the terrorist group SOVEREIGN SONS. Spider-woman asks Tony to improve the team's lineup or have a plan B. Tony is unaware that Ultron is plotting something, one of his versions prepares an army of Ultrons with human heads.

This comic begins with a lot of action but without many answers as to why this team arises and why it is different.

Art
It is full of textures and many incomplete strokes that provide a certain dynamism in particular, a retro tone as a tribute to the first comic that existed of this team.

Summary
Iron Man calls for a new team of Avengers where there is room for redemption. more