AVENGERS

No.51 (or 466)

Writer: Kurt Busiek

Guest Penciler: Brent Anderson

Guest Inker: Tom Palmer

"Prisoners: A Love Story"

      Earth has fallen to Kang.

      Okay, not everyone, but there doesn't appear to be any nation still in defiance of Kang. I'm curious about Latveria and Atlantis, but perhaps I've forgotten something or Kurt'll clean those bits up presently. For the moment I'm still finishing that sigh of relief from last issue's wrap-up of the Triune Understanding and Triathlon/3-D Man connection storylines.

      The focus of this issue is Wanda, the Scarlet Witch, and Simon Williams, Wonder Man. Sure, it also gives us a view of the state of an occupied Earth, but this issue addresses the tricky relationship between these characters and does it fairly well. Kurt's using the backdrop of this large, large story - which every fan of the series I know recognizes will read better in a sweep but seems to be dragging on taking it an issue at a time - to wrap up as many details as he can. As I understand things this wartime story runs solidly through #54, with an epilogue of sorts in #55, before Kurt tells one, last, standalone story in #56.

     Back to Wanda and Simon, it's a tricky, twisted road. I'd be happy to explain it to anyone interested, but that's more than I should go into here. Let it suffice to say that a love that appeared to last beyond the grave ultimately took on too much a sense of duty. This issue's development makes sense, and moreover it frees up these two characters for the development of new relationships. This tempts me to speculate on what Geoff Johns will do once he comes aboard with #57, but that's getting well ahead of matters.

     The fill-in team of Anderson and Palmer's a good one, though I don't know how jarring this is going to look if they package this storyline into a trade edition. Simon and Wanda (especially Simon) look older here than I think we've seen in a while, and while it looks appropriate to me it flies in the face of the general de-aging that appeared to be mandated across the board with all of these titles that went the Heroes Reborn/Heroes Return route.

     This issue's almost certainly the last extended, quiet respite we'll see until after the war's over. The scope of the next few issues will have to be broad as the liberation of Earth commences. There are plenty of loose ends to tie up, but it seems that Kurt's getting to them bit by bit.

     Feel free to drop me a line or leave any comments on this series on my messageboard.                                             

                                                                                                                                             ---MJN