Marvel Comics
The New Avengers Annual #1
By Hervé St-Louis
October 1, 2011 - 10:46

Marvel Comics
Writer(s): Brian Michael Bendis
Penciller(s): Gabrielle Dell'Otto
Inker(s): Gabrielle Dell'Otto
Colourist(s): Ive Svorcina
Letterer(s): Joe Caramagna
Cover Artist(s): Gabrielle Dell'Otto
$4.99 US
Rating: T



TheNewAvengersAnnual001.jpg
Simon Williams, Wonder Man has assembled a team of heroes to take down the Avengers. Williams wants the Avengers to cease to exist because of the many crisis their very existence was responsible for creating. First on the list are Luke Cage’s New Avengers. Will Wonder Man and his crew take down the Avengers once and for all?

I like how this story recaps some of the biggest failures of the Avengers and how they have systematically put their interest above that of others – from Simon Williams’ perspective. But I do have to question the methods Wonder Man wants to use to stop the Avengers from being. He’s not helping his cause by attacking them and endangering civilians, no matter how noble his intentions are and how careful his team of reject super heroes are. He’s virtually created the Avengers again by assembling this rag tag team of nobodies and second tier heroes.

That’s why this story works. I’m not sure if this was Brian Bendis’ objective, but he shows Wonder Man’s hypocrisy clearly and why ultimately his ploy will fail.

Visually, Dell’Otto’s work has a painterly quality that works for a story about the epic history of the Avengers. The first few pages showing important crisis in the history of the Avengers, where they were responsible for creating a threat that could have affected the universe was quite powerful. Unfortunately, to read the end of this story one has to pick up another annual. The price of this comic book was ridiculously high, though.


Rating: 10/10

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