Okay, not really, but the critiques of AVENGERS 500 are coming fast and furious. Here’s a sampling:
Neither Don MacPherson nor Randy Lander at The Fourth Rail seems too enamored with it. As MacPherson puts it:
“I have no problem with darkness enveloping icons of the super-hero genre. But I have to tell you… this is just too much. Bendis goes over the top when he puts these Marvel heroes through the wringer. So much goes wrong so quickly that the story completely loses credibility.”
Lander has other concerns:
“There are any number of decisions made in this issue that I think are mistakes with far-reaching and difficult to undo consequences, and more to the point, since this is setting the tone for the Avengers ‘family’ of titles as a whole, I’m very unhappy, as it’s a tone I hate for these characters.”
At this point, I wonder if there’s just about anything that’s too difficult to undo in terms of storytelling. Exhibit A.
There’s commentary from one end of the spectrum to the other at the Avengers Message Board, from disappointment to love. Speculation is running hot and heavy, too. Even Bendis pops by! But, by far my favorite posts on the board come from the thoughtful and articulate Sean McQuaid, who must certainly qualify as some kind of lettered Avengers scholar. Take a look at his musings on Earth’s Mightiest Bottom Feeders.
At Avengers Forever, Glenn Walker offers a spoiler-rich review of the issue. He enthusiastically approves, and throws in this interesting compliment:
“Brian Michael Bendis is a writer, not just a comic book writer who excels in just that media, but a real writer.”
On the blog front, there are reviews of varying length at 4-Color Review, gutterninja, and Neil Gaiman’s Journal. (Kidding! Kidding!) Oh, and can we have some love for the Savage Critic?
“LEGION #36: Something bad happens, something else bad happens, another bad thing happens…. did Gail steal Bendis’ notes for Avengers? Waiting for motivations, or rationales or something to make it a mystery or a story rather than just a series of events. Part of the problem is that events are too big — any humanity becomes a sidenote, rather than the focus like good fiction. It’s not badly done, no not at all, but it sorta feels like plothammer more than anything else.”
Nicely put, Brian. Now, get out of my head.