Avengers #685: This issue mostly just moves the chess pieces around the board, as Dr. Voodoo volunteers to be "paused" so Vision can prevent the Hulk from killing everyone in the auxiliary headquarters in his march to get to Voyager and the Pyramoid. But, Vision incorrectly dismiss the Hulk as mindless, believing the Hulk is too dumb to realize he's solidifying his fingers around the Hulk's brain. The Hulk recognizes this trick, and he bashes the Vision over the head as he solidifies, possibly killing him. Meanwhile, Simon arrives to try to talk some sense into the Hulk, and Voyager rebuffs her father's attempts to get her to activate the final Pyramoid. Looking back, certain parts of this issue confused me. First, everyone expresses concern that Simon turning into ionic energy to get to New York quickly might mean he won't be able to become flesh and bone again. However, didn't he do exactly the same thing a few issues ago to visit Jarvis in the hospital? Moreover, I thought it was a bit of a stretch that Wanda could suddenly chose someone to freeze in exchange for someone else. If she can, shouldn't they bench the B and C Listers in favor of more powerful players? I would think someone like the X-Men's Magik would be super-helpful right now. On the plus side, I now realize Voyager was supposedly the Grandmaster's ace in the hole, but she's refusing to help him, given her anger of him treating her as little more than a pawn. That wasn't totally clear to me last issue, but it makes more sense here.
Mighty Thor #705: This issue is suitably epic, though I'm not sure I have much to say. Thor uses the chains the dwarves of Nidavellir originally created to restrain Fenris until Ragnarok to restrain Mangog and then sends Mjolnir with him into the center of the Sun. Often climaxes of years-long stories feel oversimplified, but this one doesn't; the destruction of Mjolnir and subsequent death of Jane feel like the only way Mangog could be stopped at the point they occur. Other options might've been available earlier, but this resolution is the only one that seems to work now. It's hard to even know what we're supposed to feel. After last issue's meditation on death, you get the sense Jane knew exactly what she was doing, so it's hard to regret her death here. But, Odinson becoming Thor again feels like a regression, no matter the excellent job Aaron has done showing Odinson's march to worthiness. He's certainly aware of that, so I'm intrigued to see how he bridges that gap and makes Odinson taking up the mantle of Thor again as invigorating as Jane's run has been. He's set his own bar really high.
Ms. Marvel #28: You guys, I totally cried a lot at this issue. Like, a lot.
Spider-Gwen #29-30: The story Latour was telling -- reaching all the way to the "Spider-Women" event and the Madripoor arc -- took a sharp turn in issue #29, as Uncle Ben's exhortation for Gwen to murder Matt Murdoch apparently created some sort of divergence in the time stream. I didn't totally understand it at the time, but, having read issue #30 and now re-read issue #29, I feel like I can now review both issues.
In issue #29, Utaa, the Watcher of Earth-8 (the one where Gwen marries Miles and they create some sort of Spidertopia), visits Utau, the Watcher of Earth-65, to warn him something happening on Utau's world threatens Utaa's future. Utau confirms Earth-8 is the future version of Earth-65's present. Right off the bat, I have problems with this part. As far as I understand it, the multiverse doesn't work that way. Something had to happen to make Earth-8 diverge as a timeline from Earth-65. Utaa tries to explain timelines are a continuum where time recycles itself and the "sturdier" timelines show little change. Or, put another way, "we are delicately intertwined by a baffling paradox -- we know each moment diverges infinitely making all roads possible." He says Earth-65's past has been "a reliable passage" to Earth-8's future, but that still makes no sense. Something has to happen to make Earth-8 diverge from Earth-65; it's not a separate timeline if it's just the future of an existing timeline. Earth-8's and Earth-65's futures at some specific point -- the same point in both Universes -- have to be different. Ugh, time-travel stories.
On Earth-65 itself, Castle makes his way through the Hand to get to Murdoch, but Gwen saves him from Castle. The Punisher is furious at her for doing so, but Captain America joins the fray, knocking out Castle and encouraging Gwen to let the justice system handle Murdoch. But, her appeal to "justice" infuriates Gwen, and she lets her Venom persona take control. She takes out Cap, and she's poised to kill Murdoch, much to his delight as he won't be alone when it comes to power corrupting people. But, she stops herself, refusing to become him. Right then, Murdoch's increasingly dinging watch he swiped from Gwen activates, sending Gwen outside the space-time continuum...to the original Gwen Stacy!
Issue #30 starts with Utaa taking Utau to Earth-8 to show him how Gwen intending to kill Murdoch is the first problematic feature of the timeline. (Presumably it means she didn't do so in the existing Earth-65 and Earth-8 timelines, but I still don't understand the idea that they don't know when exactly their timelines diverged.) Utaa says a "rot" has already set into Earth-65, and he expresses concern someone intentionally removed Gwen from the time stream. Meanwhile, in original Gwen's world, Spider-Gwen seeks help from Reed Richards, but the Baxter Building's security system confuses her for Peter trying to get a job (they're not hiring, FYI) and shocks her off the building. (Heh.) She tracks down original Gwen and admits she's from a different universe. Latour is brilliant here, showing original Gwen as the sort of genius even Stan Lee had problems showing her as being back then, as she quizzes Spider-Gwen about whether she's from an anti-matter dimension, like the Negative Zone. She offers to bring in Peter, but Spider-Gwen hilariously says Peter's sweet, but makes it all about him.
But, it's where Latour goes next that really shows his brilliance. Spider-Gwen admits to original Gwen she's Venom, falling under sway of a dark voice inside her head. But, she also admits she knows original Gwen's father just died (after previously stumbling upon a flyer looking for Spider-Man in connection to his murder), so she knows original Gwen understand "dark." At this point, original Gwen calls Spider-Gwen on her bullshit, telling her the rest of us have to deal with our bad moments rather than blaming it on black ooze. Original Gwen talks about her particular era of a time, an era where anything she can dream is happening, but an era that still can't return Captain Stacy to her. Spider-Gwen is forced to admit she went after Murdoch not to do the right thing, but because she was angry and felt helpless; revenge gave her an outlet. Original Gwen explains Schrödinger's cat to Spider-Gwen, telling her each moment is unique, with everything hanging in the balance. She tells her to embrace the fact her options are infinite -- no one has opened the box yet -- and go make her dad proud. As original Gwen says this interaction gives her hope, where Gwen Stacy is a superhero and her father is alive, this Earth is suddenly designated Earth-617, making us all wonder what original Gwen will now do in this timeline.
But, Latour doesn't stop there. To freak out everyone, he reveals the "mysterious hand" that removed Spider-Gwen from the timestream is Earth-8's Spider-Gwen...because she's also been Venomized. Dun-dun-DUN!
Star Wars #45: I have to say, after Marquez's great cover, I found Larroca and Guru-eFX's reliance of photo referencing has grown particularly tired. The point of this series isn't to pretend we're watching some sort of intermediary episode between Episode IV and V, but to break new ground in telling the stories of these legendary characters. Luke and Wedge exude actual emotion on the cover, whereas everyone inside the issue has started looking like claymation figures someone moves between panels. [Sigh.] At any rate, the story itself is solid. Luke is thrilled to encounter Wedge in the mess hall at the Mako-Ta Base, where Han has taken him for a drink. Han asks if he wants something stronger than milk, but Luke reminds him the last time he had something stronger he was fed to "some kind of bloodsucking alien queen." Ha! (Han acknowledges his point.) Meanwhile, Leia informs the Jedi High Command of her plan to replace regent Urtya with King Lee-Char. Some of the commanders ridicule her, as they've never had Lee-Char's location. She reveals Trios (whose name she doesn't reveal) has provided it. (This part is particularly interesting, because Leia actually notes aloud she's not telling the High Command Trios' name, making it clear Trios' anonymity is both highly valued and probably at risk.) To free Lee-Char, she plans on capturing the Imperial Moff of the Calamari sector to use his access codes, and the commanders are shocked at the boldness of her plan. However, she acknowledges a weakness in her plan: the Imperials will change the codes once they realize the Moff is missing. One of the previously critical commanders is helpful here, providing Leia with details of where she can liberate a shape-shifter. Leia puts together the team, and they quickly acquire said asset from the "Dex Acquisitions Depot" on Meor Ain. The caper involves Chewie posing as a Wookiee bounty hunter called Violent Bok and Leia punching out the shape-shifter when he pretends to be her father. The issue ends with Leia agreeing with Chewie that they both need strong milks. Please someone show us that moment.
Tales of Suspense #103: Rosenberg does a great job here laying all the cards on the table in a way that make sense. Natasha awakens after her death at Captain Nazi's hands in the Red Room, but she remembers more than she's supposed to remember. We learn a telepath named Epsilon Red has a psychic connection to all the Red Room assassins, allowing him to serve as essentially an external hard drive where their memories are stored. When they die, they are resurrected into a clone body with Epsilon Red implanting Red Room-approved memories into their minds. The Red Room is also holding hostage Ursa Major (who can become a sentient bear), and he trades allowing Epsilon Red to pet his fur for Red installing all Natasha's memories into her new body. Natasha then sets about liberating all the clones, using them as disposable agents: she uses one to pose as Sally Blevins to be the victim of the Red Room's hit on her and later another one to throw off Hawkeye and the Winter Soldier after they spot her on the bridge. She then kills her handler after the operation is moved to New York, and the story comes to the present as she encounters the dumb-founded boys on the rooftop. She makes quick work of them, taking Bucky's arm and Clint's bow before trapping them in a panic room and exploding the building around them. It's pretty clear she doesn't want them to get hurt as she goes after the remains of the Red Room. My one question now is whether Epsilon Red made her remember her relationship with Bucky. Fingers crossed!
Also Read: X-Men: Gold #24
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