Avengers # 31
The Avengers are contacted by the Vision, who has learned
that the crime organization the Maggia are meeting in Chicago. Having completed some training and some
inconclusive medical scans on Hank, the Avengers head out and meet with up with
Vision. They ambush the Maggia, whose
ranks include Madame Masque, and find that the group is trying to be united by
the Grim Reaper. A battle ensues, with
all but three of the crime bosses being captured. Grim Reaper tries to use Madame Masque as a bargaining
chip, but she explodes (!) and the Reaper escapes
I liked this issue a lot.
It was great to see Vision back in the saddle and I enjoyed his dialogue
with Wanda. The tension between Duane
and Tony and the others is a little hard to deal with and I’m hoping to see a
break-through soon. While their first
outing was unexciting, this new team really shined in this mission. I’m actually excited to see what’s next! But first, off to Thunderbolts # 42 to find
out what happened to Simon . . .
Thunderbolts # 42
Atlas, wallowing in his misery, is suddenly attacked by
Wonder Man. The two of them duke it
out. Atlas tries to talk
villain-in-hiding Man-killer into helping, but she laughs at him and runs
away. The other Thunderbolts get
involved, but just as Wonder Man is taking Atlas away. Hawkeye decides to contact the Avengers.
Also, a lot of other things are going that I don’t
understand nor do I think matter. These
flashbacks hurt my head.
Um, well, this issue was fun. Maybe it’s just my mood, but I enjoyed
it. Now, I did skip over all of the
weird, confusing, inconclusive flashback stuff. It just didn’t make any sense. The Wonder Man vs Atlas fight, on the hand,
was cool. Bagley’s art is always a
pleasure to look at it.
Avengers # 32
She-Hulk leaves the Avengers now that Vision is back. On her way out, Black Widow shows up with a
coin given to her a while ago by a robot kidnapping Masque, a Madame Masque
clone-thing that joined the Avengers back in the crazy days of the mid-90s (but
she doesn’t have a jacket, so she was spared that). As Iron Man and Black Widow try and uncover
Madame Masque’s location, Triathlon makes it clear to Jonathan Tremont that his
Avengers responsibilities take precedence.
Eventually, the Avengers track down Grim Reaper, who is about to attack
Madame Masque’s butte (not butt) and fisticuffs follow. Madame Masque launches her own attack – but
it’s all interrupted by the arrival of Count Nefaria, who has Wonder Man and Atlas
in tow!
While the last issue was a breeze, this one stumbled. She-Hulk, who had been such a fun character,
leaves. It’s disappointing. I do like the arrival of Black Widow,
though. And there are some great scenes
– like Vision’s awkwardly asking Carol out and Triathlon giving Tremont attitude. But Madame Masque acts like a complete and
total nutjob and the constant flashbacks are just out of control. Sometimes, it’s okay to just tell a story
without having to show us everything that’s come before. On the other hand, maybe Madame Masque needed
this issue to just help clarify her history.
I dunno.
Thunderbolts # 43
Black Widow goes to the Thunderbolts headquarters and
recruits the Thunderbolts in sneaking into Baron Zemo Sr’s old base. The Maggia are looking for information
regarding Ionic Energy or some such.
They encounter Cyclone and fight it out.
They quickly learn that this is all moot; Count Nefaria has apparently
used all of this information all ready and has used to take control of Wonder
Man and Atlas.
Also, other things happen that don’t make sense.
Thunderbolts is a dense read. Aside from the story that’s going on, there’s
about five or six other subplots running around that just don’t have any
interest or relevance for me. It’s
difficult to follow under the best of circumstances and I think read as part of
an Avengers crossover, it becomes a chore.
So I skip that stuff. Ultimately,
though, this issue just feels pointless.
There was no real reason for it other than to crossover to
Avengers. The Thunderbolts did nothing
important other than confirm that they were too late. There’s very little to the Black
Widow/Hawkeye meeting. It’s a
snooze-a-thon.
Avengers # 33
The Avengers, Count Nefaria, Grim Reaper, and Madame Masque’s
forces all battle it out in front of Madame Masque’s butte. Madame Masque believes it’s all a ruse to lure
her out into the open, but as the battle because heated, she questions that
scenario. Egged on by Masque, she initiates
an evacuation. Count Nefaria has Atlas
and Wonder Man destroy the butte and captures Madame Masque. The Avengers interviene, and Count Nefaria
eventually decides to book it with his ionically controlled minions in
tow. The Avengers regroup at the mansion
with Grim Reaper in shackles and Madame Masque being interrogated. She and Tony have a few moments where he
tries to convince her to help them. Soon
after this, the Thunderbolts and Black Widow call in, claiming they’ve found
evidence that Count Nefaria is out to build a huge Ionic Bomb!
I’ll say off the bat, I’m not a fan of Count Nefaria and
Madame Masque. I did like the
appearance of Masque, as I never quite understood this character. I did also like the moment between Tony and
Madame Masque. It wasn’t a terrible
issue, but it wasn’t a homerun either.
Busiek does a good job of making Count Nefaria into a
dangerous threat. Madame Masque, for all
her paranoia and a little whacky for me, calms down as the issue goes on. It was okay.
Thunderbolts # 44
The Avengers and the Thunderbolts meet up at the mansion and
discuss their recent missions. Captain
America and She-Hulk rejoin them for this mission. Madame Masque, Doctor Malus
(captured by the Thunderbolts), Goliath, and Iron Man proceed to build a weapon
to stop the Ionic Bomb, called the Ionic Lock.
The two teams them locate Count Nefaria and engage Atlas and Wonder Man. This eventually leads to Iron Man using the
Ionic Lock on them and changing them back into their human forms. Suddenly, though Count Nefaria shows up and
activates his bomb. The Ionic Lock,
surprisingly, doesn’t work.
This felt like just another installment in this
crossover. I’m really clueless regarding
the Thunderbolts, so that stuff is completely lost on me. But I did enjoy the suggestion that Songbird
and Mach-2 could be Avengers. I also
loved the scene where Cap tells Clint he’s proud of him for standing by the
Thunderbolts and keeping with his convictions.
Beyond that, this was rather ho-hum.
I did want to comment on the rather pointless appearance by
She-Hulk and, to a certain extent, Cap.
She-Hulk’s absence from the team lasted one full issue and now she’s
back. Cap, on the other hand, was back
just a little bit ago and seems to really just pop in whenever he felt like
it. With the rigidity of the Avengers
membership early in the series, things have certainly become more relaxed.
Avengers # 34
The Avengers and the Thunderbolts duke it out with Count
Nefaria, trying to wear him out. Masque
then emerges, but is quickly killed by Count Nefaria. Madame Masque, in shock over her father’s
ruthless killing of a woman that she could have been, fires the Ionic Lock at
the Count Nefaria. It hurts him enough
for him to leak Ionic energy and the Avengers and Thunderbolts pile it
out. Meanwhile, Wonder Man and Atlas
wake up and have to race the bomb into space.
The bomb explodes and the pair have to absorb its energy. Count Nefaria goes after them, but explodes
with power and is defeated. Madame
Masque escapes, Count Nefaria has been defeated, the Ionic guys are safe, and
the Avengers and the Thunderbolts leave on good terms.
Except Yellowjacket just spotted his wife on TV . . .
An excellent conclusion to an otherwise uneven story. Busiek does an amazing job making Count Nefaria
into a real, impossible to beat bad guy.
I loved seeing the good guys just pour it on him – and not take him
down! I also enjoyed the scenes with
Madame Masque and it saved the character for me.
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