Ed pointed me to a column at Sequential Tart on the Asguardian/Hulkling relationship in Young Avengers, and it makes for interesting reading. I particularly agree with one of Michael Pullmann’s sum-up points:
“Aside from it being good drama, it’s fodder for discussion, and that’s something any artistic community needs to thrive. Take a look at the conversations, in the letters pages and on the Internet, that have arisen from a panel or two of innuendo. People are talking and thinking and developing opinions. That’s what art’s supposed to do.”
I think the point holds up particularly well because YA is well-crafted and entertaining independent of its value as a conversation piece. It’s easily one of the best books Marvel publishes.
The current issue, #6, wraps up the inaugural “Sidekicks” arc. While this chapter seems like it might read a bit better as the conclusion of a collection than as a single issue, it’s partly because there’s so much going on. Co-creators Allan Heinberg and Jim Cheung need to resolve the conflict that’s driven the arc so far and lay groundwork for subsequent stories. They generally do justice to both, though.
I think the entire cast is terrific, individually and in how they interact, but I can’t help but single out Kate Bishop. She’s an heiress not just to a family fortune but to character traits from some of my favorite old-school Avengers. Kate combines Hawkeye’s playful disruptiveness with Wasp’s dilettantish savvy to wonderful effect. She’s a winning mix of wit, pragmatism, and noblesse oblige, and she’s one of the best new characters in ages.
One thing struck me as I was reading Pullmann’s piece. YA would be a perfect opportunity for Marvel to try and lure in some manga readers, particularly the shonen-ai and yaoi audience. A few well-placed advertisements featuring attractive, heroic young men in love (picturing Hulkling and Asgardian looking soulfully at one another in front of a swirling background of roses) could provide a crossover draw. I’ll even provide a tag line: “You can’t spell yaoi without YA!”