Avengers #30

See, I knew you could do it, Bendis! This is much more what I was hoping for with the Avengers tie-ins during AvX. Rather than re-telling stories already published in other titles, this issue has a plot of its own.

Mr. Negative and his Inner Demons are raiding a SHIELD storage facility to steal Sin’s Nazi power armor from Fear Itself. Mr. Negative makes numerous references to taking advantage of the chaos of AvX, so this does quality as a tie-in. Its fun seeing a villain from a different Marvel neighborhood show up in an Avengers title. Mr. Negative never really seems like too much of a problem, but it’s still a nice treat to see Hawkeye and Spider-Woman take him on.

I still don’t really understand the Hawkeye/Spider-Woman romance. The characters don’t seem like that natural a combination, but I suppose adding another heroine to Hawkeye’s conquest list is something. Spider-Woman comes off as a major whiner through this whole issue, only restraining herself on the last few pages. I remember Mockingbird and Hawk always having a relationship like this too, so what is it about Hawkeye that leads him into these couplings? Weird.

Spider-Woman is justifiably upset, since a bunch of SHIELD agents die at the start of the issue. A few seconds faster, and the Avengers could have saved them, so maybe Hawkeye’s use of jokes after so many casualties is a bit flip. It’s too bad Spider-Woman’s dialogue goes a tad too far, this is ALMOST an all-ages book I could let my daughter bring to school.

Walter Simonson turns in his best art on the series so far. Hawkeye’s terrible suit actually looks OK through most of the issue. I think part of the trick is making Hawk’s goggles seem more form-fitting, more like a mask than sunglasses. Simonson also does a nice job on Spider-Woman, she’s sleek and fast-looking, and her action sequences feel different from the other combatants.

Fair