Friday, January 30, 2009

The New Avengers #49

One of the plot threads left over from the Secret Invasion series was the fate of Luke Cage and Jessica Jones' baby, who was last seen in the care of a trusted friend who turned out to be a Skrull (and don't you hate it when that happens)?

After his heroic friends failed to recover the baby, Cage turned to Norman Osborn and the Thunderbolts for help, promising to join their cause if they helped him.

That set up a great conflict, and in plays out in this issue of The New Avengers, as Cage does what he must to save his child.

It's a straightforward story from writer Brian Bendis, only marred by an interrogation scene at the beginning where Venom devours a Skrull prisoner - a scene that seemed unnecessary and graphic.

The art by Billy Tan and Matt Banning is good, although there are some rough edges here and there. But their dark, edgy style is well suited to this story.

The issue has one glitch - an unfortunate combination of a comics page that ends with a mention of a list, and on the next page is an ad featuring a large list of characters who have been killed in the Ultimatum mini-series. These things happen.

This comic really just serves two purposes - it wraps up the dangling storyline, and sets up next issue's battle royale between the New Avengers and the Dark Avengers.

It accomplishes its goal.

Grade: B

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