Siege #3

I'll give it to Bendis, he's delivering a fun little mini. There are some details I'm not fond of (Cap not remembering Taskmaster and the Mighty Avengers being absent) but overall, this is pretty fun.

With the arrival of Cap and the Avengers, the US Government decides to throw in with the real Avengers and dedicates the military to taking out HAMMER. This has been a long time coming, but man, it is nice to see. The other great reveal involves the unmasking of the Iron Patriot. Naturally, Iron Man had failsafes built in, so Osborn doesn't get to keep his armor much past Tony Stark's arrival on site. The cool part is Osborn's war paint. He's got his face slathered up to look like the Green Goblin, showing just how crazy he is. Cap, Iron Man, and most importantly, Spider-Man gets to each have a nice little moment taking down Osborn. But Osborn may get the last laugh, since he reveals the Sentry to be some horrific, tentacled being. I never thought the Initiative was tough enough to be the main oppenent for this mini, and it turns out the big bad is not Osborn, it is the Sentry. I'm looking forward to a big knockdown, especially seeing how easily he knocked around Thor this issue.

Olivier Coipel draws some great, dramatic panels. Cap looks great, Sentry looks horrific, and Spidey looks like he's having a great time. This isn't getting as much press as Secret Invasion, but it is a heck of a lot more satisfying (in about half the time!)

Good