Friday, November 27, 2009

Avengers: The Initiative #30

Well that Nightmare story sure wrapped up in a hurry. It's weird, but in this Dark Reign era, an old-school villain like Nightmare feels more like a distraction than a main event. Pretty much all the time Christos Gage spends on Nightmare was difficult to get through, since I wanted to see the Avengers Resistance take on the Initiative. Wisely, Gage wraps up the Nightmare story very quickly, giving closure to both Trauma and Speedball while still pimping Nightmare's appearance in the Doctor Voodoo series. Even with Nightmare muddling up the ongoing narrative, there are some nice character moments here. We find out who the Avengers' mole in the Initiative is (makes total sense, too). There are tons of personal nightmares for most of the regular cast, but Slapstick's hits closest to home; his nightmare is working in an office!

The best happening in this issue is that it seems like Gage has put Speedball's fractured psyche in a state where he might actually be a viable character again. The whole Penance idea was such an awful fit. I can't wait for that chapter to pass by, although it will be difficult making Speedball quite as much fun as he used to be. This is a step in the right direction though. I'll also make a prediction that the buzzing Night Thrasher II feels in his skull is not a good sign...

Jorge Molina fills in on art here, and he does a decent job keeping things consistent with regular artist Rafa Sandoval. Some panels look fantastic, with really expressive faces while other look a bit more rushed. He also tends to put his characters in odd poses (check out two panels in a row with Tigra pointing off at things).

Good

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