Secret Invasion #8

C'mon. Wasp gets ported out before she explodes? That is a tremendously returnable death! In fact, I'll be so certain of that, I won't even let myself be bummed about the death of a founding Avenger. Bendis sets up the story through a debrief with Norman Osbourne, who comes across as a charismatic jerk. He says the right things, but you just KNOW he's a slimebag. Most of the issue is merely mop-up duty as the various players get in their spots for Dark Reign, but that actually makes it one of the strongest issues in the series so far. Secret Invasion dragged on for FAR too long. Adding in the boring Avengers tie ins, and this was one hell of a drawn out snoozer. So on its own, Secret Invasion is a blunder. On its own, I give it a poor. Hell, there were too many pages in the early chapters devoted to Maria Hill and Agent Brand that should have gone to the Wasp and Norman Osbourne. They were central to this story, but we didn't know it for the first 6 months.

However, the Dark Reign idea is a good one, and it puts our heroes in underdog roles, where they fit in better. The core concepts for the Avengers titles look strong, and I like the return of various characters to the Marvel U with clean slates. Hank Pym can be a major player, Mockingbird is a great character to bring back, and even Dum Dum and the Contessa could end up improved if they are used correctly. The setup for the Marvel U is a nice one. The list of registered super-humans is now in the hands of the Green Goblin. That's an exciting idea! (I guess I was wrong to be pro-reg after all!)

Leinil Yu's art was fine. He works better with an inker, and you see it again here. His characters look fine. He's not my favorite artist, but he gets the job done. On its own, this issue only gets a Fair, because it concludes a horribly boring series. But it keeps the Fair rating because of where it leaves the Marvel Universe.

Fair