Tuesday, May 13, 2014

All-New Invaders #4 (HERE BE SPOILERS!)

Man, this issue is tight.  Although it was pretty clear that Bucky wasn't dead, Robinson managed to keep us guessing, leaving open the question why Bucky would fake his own death.  (I loved Steve's bad acting, with his Hestonesque, "Damn you!"  I actually felt that Robinson wrote this part cheesily on purpose.)  First, Steve's plan is as brilliant as you'd expect Captain America's plan to be:  he knew that Hala is virtually impenetrable, so he sets up a plan where Bucky gets himself "killed" and the remaining Invaders fight Ikaris to distract the Kree to give Bucky enough time to rendez-vous with the Vision.  It sounds complicated, but it actually flows organically.  Although it was a jarring moment, Bucky attacking the Kree because he refused to be a slave again made perfect sense, making the fact that it was all part of the act all the better.  Plus, Robinson knows not to keep us in the dark too long, using the Human Torch's narration to clue us into the plan a few pages before Bucky's revealed to be alive.  Finally, Robinson didn't make it easy:  Jim is clearly worried as he and Cap fight Ikaris, noting that they're not familiar with his moves, as Cap would be of Thor's.  It might be a plan, but the risk is still there.  But, Robinson brings it full circle, making it clear that they're all willing to take that risk because they're brothers and trust each other with their lives.  Awesomeness.

**** (four of five stars)

No comments:

Post a Comment