Editor's Note: Avengers/Invaders #1 arrives in stores tomorrow, May 7.

"Book One: Old Soldiers, New Wars"

Mark J. Hayman: 3 Bullets
Paul Brian McCoy: 3.5 Bullets

---

Mark J. Hayman 3 Bullets

Gosh, where to begin? Like the Invaders upon finding themselves in modern day New York, this book has left me confounded and a little angry.

There's plenty to like. The concept alone is worth something, outwardly predictable though it is (to start with). Sadowski's art is clean and smart and meticulous, no small feat as he works without a net (or in this case an inker), and allows the story to flow. The characters all seem to be in character up to and including Spider-Man's endless and, let's face it, tedious monologue. The book has wall to wall action, from the rugged terrain of Cassino to the urban jungle of Manhattan. Did I mention the concept? So with what on Earth could I possibly take issue? I guess it's the little things and as Hank Scorpio once said, "Well, you can't argue with the little things."

Take the means by which the Invaders are temporally displaced. In December 1943, with a support unit in tow, they storm Monte Cassino (a full month before the first real world battle) in pursuit of an artifact they intend to prevent Hitler from claiming, the "Ordnung Zeitgeist." This is translated in the book as "Operation Time Ghost," a very broad and basically incorrect transliteration of what's already an awkward phrase in both English and Deutsche. Zeitgeist we know, "ordnung" has several, related definitions, and "operation" or "process" aren't among them.

The first half of the book is described through Bucky's journal, which is fine, but with all due respect to Todd Klein's lettering, the cursive script isn't always the easiest thing to read, and there are eight pages of it (followed by one using standard balloons). This introduction to the WWII heroes describes Bucky's feelings about the war and his role in it, allowing him to describe the basic abilities and characteristics of his teammates and his relationship with them. Again, this is fine, but it feels, for lack of a better word, decompressed. Nine pages could as easily have been three or four. An argument can be made that the broad space gives us a glimpse into the brutality of combat and the lack of compassion for the enemy displayed by the heroes, informing their behaviour in the future. Bullets, grenades, and knives aside, dying at the hands of the Human Torch or Toro would be a truly grisly affair and they know it, or should know it. It all could have been portrayed more economically, however.

The story shifts abruptly to a battle between the current Thunderbolts and Spider-Man within the aegis of the Superhuman Registration Act. Spidey acquits himself reasonably well despite the odds, until he's handed an unexpected advantage when the Invaders appear and lay into the T-Bolts, assuming that they're Nazis. Marvel-style urban warfare constitutes the second half of the book. While the outcome is predictable, the Invaders definitely seem less than ruthless relative to the battle they'd just vanished from in Italy. Assuming that their behaviour is an effect of disorientation, it fails to negate the problem of their having showed up at exactly the right time and place for further mayhem. I enjoy a good punch-em-up as much as the next person, but this was a little too convenient.

A favoured theme of Alex Ross is the aged witness. Here, the last person to see the Invaders in 1943, as they disappear into the mists of time, manages to be the first to see them step back out of the mist today. Old, grey, and bespectacled, this man is never given a name (other than "grandpa" in his modern incarnation), but one suspects that we haven't seen the last of him. He gets in a dig, decrying the modern "heroes," but it resonates solely as a cliché.

The book concludes in two parts, beginning with a most mysterious teaser. An unidentified man hands someone who may or may not be Ben Urich a copy of the Daily Bugle, provoking shock. As the modern world of camera-phones and 24/7 newsfeeds and their implication of instant, global disseminaton of information is underscored, it's illogical to assume that the Bugle story has anything to do with the Invaders, unless it was white-hot off the press. It's a teaser that teases a little too much.

The finale has an angst-ridden, suited-up Stark locked away on the Helicarrier surrounded by images of Captain America. Outside, Maria Hill and an unnamed agent (briefly) ponder the implications of who these apparent Invaders might be while waiting for the boss to decide a course of action. Further outside, we wait, too.

With the Invaders having gone to ground to get their bearings, and Spidey gob-smacked by the return of Cap and intending to alert his fellow (New) Avengers (he also concludes that their appearance might be due to a "calendarastrophe"), "to be continued" is an understatement. We know, or think we do, that the original crossover, written by Roy Thomas, plucked the Invaders from 1942; whether they'll have any memory of T'Challa, the Vision, or Yellowjacket is a big IF. Presumably there will be some tug of war between Avengers both Mighty and New, though it's early to guess in what way. It would be nice to see this series act as a catalyst, bringing them together to form a more traditional team, but with the Initiative still fully in place that doesn't seem likely.

Clever, pretty, and thoroughly average are enough for a normal comic, but a letdown for the kickoff of what's been advertised as something that's supposed to matter. There's definitely some gold content here, and possibly a sapphire or two, but this issue serves as a reminder that not everything that Alex Ross touches turns to diamond-studded platinum. I suggest putting on your thickest fanboy glasses before diving in to help things along, and be content that there's considerable content to come, or so we've been told.

---

Paul Brian McCoy: 3.5 Bullets

This is one of those projects that I just don't know whether to get excited about or not. On the one hand, it is by Ross and Krueger, and I did enjoy Earth X. On the other hand, it is by Ross and Krueger, and I really didn't care for Universe X. On one hand it's about the Invaders, a team I loved as a child, traveling in time to the current Marvel Universe, so that could be cool. On the other hand, it's about the Invaders, a team I loved as a child, traveling in time to the current Marvel Universe, so that could be awful.

Do you see my dilemma?

According to interviews and whatnot, this story is in-continuity and will affect the current MU. But it's a twelve issue maxi-series, so whatever effects it's going to have, it probably won't play out in any titles for the next year, since they're all occupied with the old Skrull invasion.

So what is the point?

I'm really very conflicted about this because, like many of you I would assume, I'm poor. Paying for gas and food and a place to live is expensive these days. And I buy way too many comics to be comfortable adding another one to the list without some real motivation. At the moment, my main determining factor for new book purchase is the writer. Because of this, the new Invincible Iron Man is on my pull list since I love all things Fraction at the moment. I'm adding Uncanny X-Men when he moves over there with Brubaker, too. Warren Ellis has always got new projects hitting, so I'm all over those. And I just added anything with Jason Aaron's name on it (most notably, Scalped and Ghost Rider). And doesn't Morrison's huge Final Crisis start sometime soon? Not to mention the whole damn Secret Invasion at Marvel.

That's just too many books I don't want to drop to haphazardly add another one to the list.

And that's too bad, because this is a pretty good first issue (if we just disregard all of the standard problems that come with time travel stories; i.e. why did Cap never remember or mention this adventure? If they go into a creepy time travel mist in Italy, why do they pop out of it in New York? I'm sure others will crop up as the story goes on). The writing is effective, sticking mainly to Bucky as narrator - although the whole "Bucky's War Journal" conceit kind of falls apart when he's commenting on the action as it happens, instead of reflecting upon it as though he were really keeping a journal. Hmmmm. Now that I think about it, that's pretty weak.

The other major narrative voice is Spider-Man, who is being harassed by the Thunderbolts when the Invaders suddenly appear in Times Square. How'd they get across the ocean again? Not important? Um, okay.

Anyway, that's pretty much the first issue. We see how bad and dangerous war is, then the Invaders kick the Thunderbolts' collective ass before scurrying off to the alleys to figure out what Hitler is up to this time. That wacky Nazi!

Okay, maybe this isn't as good as it seemed on the first read.

What does actually resonate is Spidey's reaction to seeing Cap alive again. That was nice. The final page is also very strong, as Iron Man, from S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters, realizes that Cap is back. It's understated and simple, but it's very effective. Those moments make me want to keep reading this series.

Another plus for the series is that it seems to have a very similar storyline to another "Marvel heroes out of time and dealing with the modern Marvel world" comic, The Twelve. The biggest difference, I suppose, is that while The Twelve is better written, Avengers/Invaders didn't depress me so much I felt like slitting my wrists when I finished it up. That's another check in the plus column.

Another element that I like a lot is Sadowski's art. At first I wasn't sure what it was about it that made it stand out to me, but then I realized that there are no inks. This is color art over finished pencils and it looks great. The pencil shading adds a layer of texture to every scene, and unlike most books on the shelves today, it's the penciler who is creating details, textures, depth, and weight. This is a very attractive book.

In the end, though, I'm probably going to skip it and wait for the trade, just because I'm a cheap bastard. If I was flush with cash I'd drop some coin on this without hesitation, since even though some of the basic conceits of the story are kind of silly and don't really stand up to scrutiny, there are some very nice situations and relationships in play that look like they'll be very satisfying down the line. And it will look fantastic doing it.

---

What did you think of this book?
Have your say at the Line of Fire Forum!

---