I enjoyed Avengers #1 and thought it was a great standalone issue. The fact that it was very much a continuation of the Avengers movie wasn’t necessarily a bad thing because the movie was great. My only concern is that tying in comics to a movie will eventually backfire when the films don’t quite hit the mark like The Avengers did. Even though comic book movies are becoming more common, The Avengers was an anomaly in that it brought out the best of every character involved and kept true to the Marvel mythos overall. Not all films are as accurate or approach these characters cherished by fans with such respect. But that’s for future Nicole to worry about so let’s focus on the here and now.
Jonathan Hickman has started off the series strong with an Avengers team lineup that moviegoers will recognize, but added ininteresting new baddies that are also a serious threat to Earth. They’re engrossing villains because they truly think they’re doing what’s best for the universe, even though there’s some dissent among them as to how to achieve their goals. Historically, the most interesting villains never see themselves as such, and that’s definitely the case here.
It’s a poetic issue with a strong narrative interspersed with great chunks of dialogue. The banter between Tony and Steve particularly made me smile and unsurprisingly, the man who managed to give voice to the Fantastic Four and their Future Foundation in a way no one else had really done before, managed to give each character in this title a distinct identity. Not a new identity; Hickman just brought out the core of what their characters should be/are known for. Mix that with what seems to be an ongoing font of intriguing ideas from this writer and I’m down for Hickman’s Avenger’s ride.
Although the letters section at the end of the issue already mentioned other featured artists to come for this title, I thought Jerome Opeña’s art with Dean White’s colours were spectacular together and could easily run the entire series. They give the book a softer toneoverall without diminishing any action-packed panels. There was also an excellent use of white space in the title pages of this issue, particularly powerful when paired with White’s lush colour work. It draws focus to the creative team/characters involved and feels very cinematic.
Although this isn’t my favourite #1 issue of the Marvel NOW! titles, there’s a lot of potential with this creative team and I really believe Hickman will make this the book to follow out of all the new series’.
