So aside from huge glaring story inconsistencies with The Revengers being alive in ‘Guardians Of The Galaxy’ #19 we’re finally seeing the ‘Original Sin’ tie-in close in this issue as we found out what really happened to Nova in The Cancerverse. Did Bendis knock it out of the park? Did he deliver something even more and gave everyone who has loved these characters a final closure that they’ve been waiting for? We’ve got your answers here folks, though I’m not sure if you are going to like them.

I’m sure that I was clearly a little annoyed with the liberties that Brian Michael Bendis took with the last issue to make this story line work, how did he tie it all together though? In a loosely fitting knot that left things open for Nova and at the same time felt rushed and unfulfilled. In this series, and every standard series he’s written, I’ve been loving what Bendis has crafted. In the larger events since ‘Age of Ultron,’ however, I have been feeling rather let down in the level of talent that we know Bendis has. Sadly, this one was no different.

Honestly, if it wasn’t for McGuinesses art, the score would have been even lower. With the high hopes of finding out what really happened in The Cancerverse after all of this time, I feel that this was more of a letdown than even ‘Battle of the Atom.’

While the story of what really happened to Nova needed to be told at some point, I honestly feel that there was too much being told here. As someone who generally wants more, the fact that I feel that three issues were two issues too many to tell the story should speak volumes about how this series ended up. The story of Richard Rider is left off in a way that could be closed from now on or easily be opened up again in the future…great. The story of why they all, especially Thanos, kept things quiet until now? It didn’t feel right with everything else that all of the teams have gone through. It was an anticlimactic let down that didn’t actually seem to bring closure.

So the story has come to an end. We know how Star-Lord, Drax, and Thanos made it back to the 616 continuity and the door has been left open for a future where Nova could once again somehow be found. We also found out why they have been keeping the thing a huge mystery this entire time. Was it satisfying? Not in the slightest. Did it explain how they got out alive? In a way that didn’t match with continuity it did. Is Bendis starting to show that after his amazing run on ‘The Avengers’ that trying to tackle both the X-Men franchises with his flop of an ending on ‘Battle of the Atom’ and how he tied up this story line might just be too much for him? I think so. I love his work on the solo ‘X-Men’ series as well as ‘Guardians of the Galaxy’ aside from this larger arc. Bendis. You’re great man, just take a break from the large story arcs for awhile. Please. You’re killing us here.

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GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY #20
Writer: Brian Michael Bendis
Artist: Ed McGuinness