Johanna Draper Carlson talks about a barrier to fully enjoying Young Avengers:
“Every time I was starting to see potential in Young Avengers #1, a character would say something that reminded me that it was a spinoff of the mess that was Avengers Disassembled.”
I didn’t have as strong a reaction in this case, but man, can I sympathize with the problem. New Avengers was working pretty well for me until the third issue where writer Brian Bendis felt the need to look over his shoulder. If NA hadn’t tried so strenuously to justify its place in the Avengers legacy (yes, I know that’s a melodramatic overstatement of a publishing history that includes Dr. Druid), it could have coasted along quite well as a reasonably entertaining team book. Instead, the creative team had to draw the reader’s gaze to the rubbish that serves as the book’s foundation. They’d do a lot better, I think, to focus on the “New” and let the “Avengers” sort itself out over time.
Because, seriously, there aren’t that many people who would put forward the argument that Avengers Disassembled was any good. When the editor’s best defense is that it could have been much worse, it’s clearly time to look forward as much as possible.
Young Avengers escapes this a bit, to my way of thinking. Given what seems to be the nature of the story and where it’s headed, it needs an obvious starting point. In spite of putting Disassembled in that slot, it establishes its own tone. It’s got lightness and energy to it that even allow Jessica Jones (Marvel’s new go-to Misery Chick) to stop sobbing and do something.
I’m very curious about Dan Slott’s Great Lakes Avengers, due in April. Slott has certainly demonstrated his ability to fold unsavory and contradictory bits of Marvel lore into an entertaining story. And if there was ever a story that lent itself to a good satirical drubbing, it’s Disassembled. (For the record, I don’t think this counts.) But, cover aside, the characters have plenty of satirical potential on their own. We’ll see.
Bad, bloated stories happen. Publishers plan spin-off and follow-up titles based on bad, bloated stories before it’s fully apparent just how bad and bloated they are. But, seriously, it’s time to step away from Disassembled as a thematic touchstone. Because it sucked, and it left a bad taste in a lot of readers’ mouths. Leave it lie.