The Main Event Comic Book Reviews 8.30.08: Mighty Avengers #17, JSA 18
Posted by Dennis Twigg on 08.30.2008
JSA and Mighty Avengers get the Main Event treatment!
Mighty Avengers #17 General: Bendis continues to give a behind the scenes tour of his Secret Invasion Event. In this issue, we focus on Hank Pym, currently Yellow Jacket and formerly Ant Man and Giant Man. A "wife-slapping Ultron-creating" hero with dubious credentials, his Skrull replacement develops some interesting eccentricities that form the backbone of this issue. These tie-ins are quite hit or miss. I almost stopped purchasing them this week, but this issue was just good enough to keep me intrigued. Writing: One of the emerging ideas from the Secret Invasion is that the Skrulls cloning technique actually replicates the persona amongst the Skrulls whom human identities. This has led to some interesting behavior in one Skrull-Pym as he beings to doubt the Skrull's plans. I think that the potential for this development in the Pym-Skrull is great, but if it plays out in the main Secret Invasion book it may be a tad confusing to those only reading the ‘main' secret invasion story. As for the story itself, its actually quite mediocre. The attempt to ‘humanize' the characters in a coffee shop was wasted panel space. I found the further exploration of the Skrulls becoming overly attuned to their impostor personalities to be the real gem of the issue rather than the entirety of the events contained in the issue. Art: Khoi Pham's artwork leaves me underwhelmed. Hank Pym can both increase and decrease his size, but the visual representation of this was confusing and difficult to follow visually. His style just have a roughness to it that I find unappealing. Overall Score: B-. Despite my gripes I like the possibilities this issue left hanging open.
JSA 18 General: When last I reviewed JSA I was lukewarm on the whole comic. It was a book that I had followed since its relaunch, but had dipped in quality. In the midst of its One World Under Gog storyline I can happily report business is picking up. Writing: Geoff Johns is definitely the lynch pin that holds DCU together. When you look at my pull list his name is disproportionately represented. With the scope of the plot and the size of the cast I felt that JSA had been faltering, but now with the direction becoming more clear Johns is excelling at using the myriad of characters to provide insights into the story. His focus on Hawkman's hard charging conservative mindset, Jay Garrick's veteran wisdom, and Citizen Steel's conflicted opinion of his super powers. Gog's continued quest for peace and the heroes' reactions to it really demonstrates the diverse personalities on the team. The climax of the incident introduces a new character to the mix that should come as no surprise to Kingdom Come fans. Art: The art is pretty solid. The decision to use different artists for the Earth-2 and main universe scenes was great as it serves as an easy clue to the reader that we're changing perspectives. The action scenes are good, but when it's the JSA up against generic African rebels theirs a certain lack of tension that comes from the fighting. Overall Score: B. JSA continues to its rise from mediocrity. The story is going well so I see high upside potential.
