AVENGERS vs. X-MEN #12 of 12

(W) Jason Aaron

(P) Adam Kubert

(I) John Dell, Mark Morales, and Adam Kubert

So that's it. Avengers vs. X-Men finally comes to a close after six months of nearly non-stop melodrama, crazy battles, cosmic death gods, and general mayhem. And while the event - as a whole - had its missteps along the way, it managed to right the boat and finish strong with Scott Summers' ascension as the new Dark Phoenix, the death of Charles Xavier, and the incredible new developments contained in the pages of Avengers vs. X-Men #12.

It's do or die time at the opening of the issue: Cyclops has totally flown the coop and has become the Dark Phoenix, corrupted by absolute power. Flash back 72 hours, and Tony Stark is giving one of the most candid (yet still somehow snarky) speeches of his life because he finally doesn't know what to do. Science, in all it's know forms and manipulations, has failed, and now the Iron Man cites 'faith' as the next step for the Avengers. I'm usually critical of religious overtones bleeding into mainstream comics, mostly because it's often done clumsily and awkwardly, but Jason Aaron's decision to give THE man of science a sense of belief in a higher power is spot on. The Avengers have been waging a literal war against a cosmic god (in whichever of it's forms) with no real plan, no way of actually knowing what they're doing, of if it will work at all. In a world where a mortal man (however evolved) can make decisions that could literally change the face of the planet, faith doesn't seem like such a nonsensical idea. But is it Tony's faith in his plan? Or his faith in Hope Summers and Wanda Maximoff? Perhaps it's faith in faith itself.

The first big moment of the issue is when Hope and Wanda attack Dark Phoenix directly. Wanda's chaos magic is the only thing that can harm the Phoenix, and Hope can mimic that power, meaning that for the first time since the Phoenix came back to Earth, the Avengers have a fighting chance. Soon, Scott breaks through the Phoenix power, begging the Avengers to kill him before he's consumed once again. It doesn't happen, and the Scarlet Witch and Mutant Messiah go H.A.M. on Dark Phoenix until it leaves Scott. Of course, it immediately sets its sights on Hope. For the short amount of time Hope wields the Phoenix force, she undoes all that Cyclops has done to ravage the world, setting out fires, calming volcanoes, extinguishing the ocean, and generally making sure the entirety of humanity wasn't swallowed by it's own planet. It's remarkable, even in it's inevitability. This is when the second big moment hits.

Hope is in full control: she's seen what the Phoenix is capable of in the wrong hands, and with the life she's had, Hope understands the need to keep the power of a death god on a tight leash. "No. That wasn't why you were chosen," explains Wanda. "It's because you're the only one with the strength to let it go." Hope's destiny, ironically, is completely shaped by the events of Avengers vs. X-Men, as opposed to being the cause or the result of. Without seeing what the Phoenix could actually do when it's host is corrupted, Hope would never have had the strength or the wisdom to withstand the power. In the end, she let's the Phoenix force go. Then, as the fire bird dissipates into space, Hope and Wanda take things one step further. They send the bits and pieces of the Phoenix down to Earth and use it to create new mutants all over the globe.

While I usually see these things coming, I'll admit I was taken aback by "No More Phoenix". It shocked me before it made complete sense: Avengers vs. X-Men is the bookend to an era at Marvel that began with House of M when Wanda declared "No More Mutants", decimating the homo-superior population down to less than 200. And while I seriously enjoyed this issue from beginning to end, I felt a bit unsatisfied by the event as a whole.

My main issue with Avengers vs. X-Men - one I've had since it started - is that the Avengers are the real bad guys here, and no one wants to admit it. What if the Phoenix Five were right? What if Captain America had just laid off a little bit, watched what happened with unbiased eyes, and seen the beauty that came from the power of the Phoenix? Instead, Marvel was content with making Cyclops, Emma Frost, Colossus, Namor, and Magik all out to be mastermind criminals who simply decided that they would become dictators. Nowhere is there underlying subtext that hints at the Avengers being the symbolic destructive force that unleashed the literal destructive force.

If Marvel had made more of an effort to include layered meanings throughout Avengers vs. X-Men, the entire event would have been damn near perfect. In reality, it's still one of the best crossovers of the past decade, but without more than surface-layer meanings and forced misunderstandings, everything just seems silly in the end. But I try not to think like this. I try to see this story for what it was; a narrative intended to bring years of resentment and anger to a close with a conflict that tore them apart, both literally and symbolically.

GRADE

A

AVENGERS vs. X-MEN #9 of 12

STORY: Jason Aaron
ART: Adam Kubert and John Dell

One could argue that reading Avengers vs. X-Men might be pointless now. What with Marvel teasing 'Marvel NOW!' - a soft reboot including new titles, relaunches of current series, and a ton of creator mix-ups - for weeks, why not just wait until October and start fresh? Because this series has finally reached the epic level we were all promised from the start - things are starting to happen that matter and will have lasting consequences.

Marvel is letting their gang of writers play pretty fast and loose with the passage of time in Avengers vs. X-Men, allowing upwards of two weeks to go by between issues, something that sets this series apart from many previous line-wide events. Knowing that this conflict has been going on for more than just a few days makes it all that more palpable - this isn't some skirmish or quick blowout. No, this is a war, in a much better sense than Civil War ever achieved. The premise of the series has grown from niche at best, to an idea that could be a monthly ongoing if it's parameters weren't so strict: Human Superheroes vs. Mutant Overlords! It's a series that could go on for years based simply on humans being the underdogs - as the Avengers have been for four issues now - and the mutants, however benevolent, have a dark fate ahead of them.

Indeed, the growing darkness surrounding the Phoenix Five Four takes precedent in Avengers vs. X-Men #9, as Jason Aaron gives readers a more detailed look into the psyche of each X-Man still wielding part of the Phoenix. Emma Frost, per usual, offers up the most introspective and existential dilemma dealing with her now awe-inspiring psychic powers. With the ability to look into every mind on the planet, she does and realizes that she could end the conflict in a moment using little more than a single thought; with Namor's power transfered to the other four Phoenix's, Emma's power is immeasurably grand. But Emma Frost is no simpleton - she understands the god complex she's undergone and sees that infinite power has brought her nothing but desire to destroy. In Emma's despair, we see the root of the Phoenix's terror, the meaning behind it's destructive tendencies. Would it be too far-fetched to see the original Phoenix, eons ago, attempting to save lives across the universe, only to be met with hostility by those who didn't understand it? Would it then be plausible to imagine that this ancient Phoenix would become sad, then angered by the lack of gratitude and understanding, leading to a rash of violence? We'll have to wait until next issue to find out if Emma succumbs to the pressure.

On the more visceral side of things, Magik and Colossus take center stage as the Avengers mount a rescue operation from the Verkhoyansk Mountains in Siberian. Magik has used her newly heightened powers to integrate a part of Limbo - the demonic dimension she uses to teleport through - into a volcano to act as a prison for the most powerful of Avengers, including Thor, Spider-Woman, and Quicksilver. Captain America leads his team into hell on Earth and is immediately ambushed by Colossus and Magik. After a few chaotic moments, Spider-Man manages to lure the Phoenix's away from the rest of the team rescue the captured Avengers. With his little sister whispering suggestions in his ear, Colossus beats Spider-Man to the point where I found myself questioning if this was the end for Peter Parker, a viable concern considering the upcoming reboot.

Magik starts getting a little too gruesome for Colossus' taste, and the two demigods begin bickering before Peter gets his two cents in. It's quite obvious that Magik has been corrupted by the Phoenix power, her already dark tendencies made even more chilling with the power of a death god. Colossus fears for his sister, and a few choice words from Spider-Man give each mutant a reason to take the other down. Spidey emerges, clinging to life with everything he has, while both Colossus and Magik lay defeated, their celestial power gone.

A major point in this issue is the fallout of the mutant race. After Namor's attack on Wakanda, Black Panther had his marriage to Storm annulled leading to Ororo gathering the other X-Men who've realized that Cyclops and the others have gone insane to stand against with the Avengers against the Phoenix Four. The fact that X-Men are distancing themselves from the Phoenix's was inevitable, but having Storm lead the rebellion is poetic justice. For decades, Storm has stood as a shining example of what most, if not all, X-Men strive to be - an agent of change for good through the use of a mutant ability. Now, it's her time to shine as the beacon of mutant hope against a force that threatens to demolish all life on Earth.

The Avengers now have more support than ever. Unfortunately, Cyclops rips through time and space to get to K'un Lun and take Hope away from Earth's Mightiest Heroes. While most of these issues have ended with cliffhangers, this one seems especially haunting because the writers can't jump forward in time next issue; this is the very moment before a giant brawl that promises to lead into the epic climax.

GRADE:

A-

(REVIEW) Action Comics #6

Written by Grant Morrison
Artwork by Andy Kubert and John Dell

In the six issues so far released for Action Comics, Grant Morrison's work has been exceptional. Issue #5's weird - and seemingly unprovoked - jaunt through the past being the exception, Morrison has really been stepping it up for one of DC's most iconic titles.

In this sixth issue, we find our titular hero still sifting through the time-travelling fudge-ups that have led to the involvement of the Legion of Super-Heroes. Morrison takes a few panels to pound in the idea that superheroes only arrived half a decade ago. "Down there, right now, the word superhero has just come into existence," explains Superman to the surprise of no one. I get that DC is trying to drive home the structural integrity of it's new universe, but making Superman come out and literally tell the reader what's going on? That's a bit much, even for Morrison.

Fortunately, the rest of the issue is spent giving us a sort of "crash course" in new-Superman's character history. We get to see the Legion's visit to a teenage Clark Kent kept in-continuity, which was a good choice considering DC has two Legion-based titles on the 'New 52' roster. This is the first we've seen of 'New 52' Lana Lang and Pete Ross, as well as a great few pages where Clark gives his childhood farm to a family in need. Apparently, the Kent's are dead by the time Clark goes to Metropolis. And while the purpose of all these flashbacks and time travel gets somewhat lost in a convoluted plot (from Grant Morrison?!?! REALLY???), the main sentiment is conveyed, leaving readers with a satisfying dose of Superman mythos.

Andy Kubert and John Dell's art is fantastic. The Kubert family is known for bringing excellent work to the table and Andy's work in Action Comics is no different. Full of emotion, believable body movement and that near-unexplainable 'comic book feel', Kubert's art is a good match with the 'New 52's younger iteration of the Man of Steel.

Overall, I was much more impressed with this issue than the last. Simply put, I'm excited to read the next issue, which is one of the main goals a single issue should achieve.

GRADE: 

A