After the events of ‘New Avengers’ #3, this team is tighter than ever and more determined to do everything they possibly can to save the Earth from complete and total destruction thanks to the prophecy of the Black Swan. But then why does it still feel so wrong? What cost did they pay in order to do the things that need to be done?

Well, when we last left this incarnation of the Illuminati, Iron Man, Mr. Fantastic, Black Panther, Black Bolt, Namor, Beast, and Doctor Strange had just wiped the memory of their voice of reason, Captain America so that he would not remember the details of the team’s mission. In order to carry on with their plans, they had to eliminate one of the most well respected heroes ever and one of their closest friends. Yes, it was the only option that they had since they were so low on time to stop the two Earths from colliding with each other, but that doesn’t make it any more right.

Now, with Captain America out of the equation, the team of Black Panther and Reed Richards meet with Tony Stark to share their plans to stop this catastrophic event from happening. Meanwhile, Doctor Strange looks into a plan of his own just in case before meeting up with the rest of the group and venturing to the other Earth that is about to clash with ours. But when they get there, the team encounters a threat that no one was expecting.

I’ll admit that when that big surprise was unveiled on the other Earth, I did not see it coming at all. The team is on such a time crunch as it is and now they have to deal with this universal constant before carrying out their own plans. The drama is totally gripping at the moment. But the best thing bout this issue is that we finally get some action. For the most part, the Illuminati have been thinking and planning away without meeting much resistance. Mental roadblocks are good, especially since some of these guys are the brightest beings in the Marvel Universe, but we need to see these heroes get their hands dirty. I know that the problem that they’re dealing with is more of an intangible one, but there’s got to be someone behind it all to fight that wants to see it succeed, right? Well, now we don’t have exactly that, but we definitely have a fight brewing.

As I noted previously in other reviews of this title, I was a bit lukewarm on the first few issues, but after the last one and this current one, things are certainly getting more interesting. Like his work with ‘Avengers’, Jonathan Hickman is proving to be quite the cerebral artist when compiling these stories. There are a few quite complex cogs at play in both titles, but I don’t think they’re too far beyond the comprehension of the average comic book reader. If anything, I’m more curious about what’s going on because of the complexity.

Since there’s so little time left and the team has a battle on their hands with one of the strongest foes they’ve ever faced in the history of the Avengers, it’ll be interesting to see where this goes next and just how much time this takes up before they realize that the fates of two worlds hang in the balance.

Final Score:

 

 

New Avengers #4

Written by Jonathan Hickman

Art by Steve Epting, Rick Magyar, & Frank D’Armata

Cover Art by Jock