REVIEW: ‘Avengers,’ Issue #3

Avengers #3 is published by Marvel, written by Jed MacKay, art by C.F. Villa, colors by Federico Blee, and letters by Cory Petit. One of Kang’s prophesied Tribulation Events is about to land on Earth, but this is one that the Avengers were not warned about.

You can tell that these Tribulation events will be big when this first one is split in two. Avengers #3 is largely just setting up but does a brilliant job of detailing just how huge the situation is. Spread around the globe are various foes, all inflicting their own version of destruction on particular cities. The opening of the issue demonstrates the global threat and the variety of what the heroes are about to go up against. The pacing is not as quick as what might be expected, with a lot of exposition and briefing, but I personally felt like that created a sense of scale and peril, part of something epic that just simply throwing us into the action. Even the Avengers are hesitant, gathering information before splitting up to take on the enemies. But even then, there isn’t combat, more of an initial sparring of words. The action comes from what the villains are doing and the magnitude of their danger, with that taking the place of a real fight. But from how the issue ends, you can tell that fight is coming.

The characters and the dialogue are fantastic. As these bizarre new villains appear, they are spoken about through narration. MacKay captures the menace that comes with incredibly powerful beings, capable of taking over cities, and each of these introductions has weight and power stitched into it. The members of this mysterious group bring unique powers, like the Horsemen of the Apocalypse of the Black Order. To challenge them is one of the most powerful Avengers lineups to date, but they are already showing signs of division. With headstrong figures like Captain Marvel at the helm of the book and the more tactical approach of Black Panther, those first pieces of order-giving can be awkward. But they are there for a reason, as Carol brought T’Challa, Tony, and others in to question her in the first place. The variety in the characters creates the opportunity to pair them with a villain, each getting their own situation to try and rescue the cities.

The art is brilliant, with Villa tapping into an aspect of the book that was hinted at briefly last issue. This is a global comic, accessing parts of the world that I don’t think I’ve ever seen in a comic before, let alone a Marvel one. Places like Manila, Vatican City, and even Toronto are rare in comics, but it makes sense for a team that is supposed to save the world to be spread out further than just New York. And Villa superbly recreates those cities. It isn’t just as easy as copying what could be found on Google Maps. The characters have to fit within it, with the destruction around the characteristics of the location. Then comes the villains themselves. They are all extremely distinctive and intimidating. At first, many of them lack faces, but when they are revealed they are imposing and haunting. It’s not just different costumes, their shape is completely unique. But Earth has beings that are just as awesome, and the way that Villa places the Avengers against these villains demonstrates their own status.

The colors are stunning. Those natural tones that fill most of the pages are beautiful and clear. But when the extraterrestrial beings enter the planet, they bring some peculiar shades with them as well. When the Avengers enter the fray, their costumes are more vibrant than anything else. The lettering is extremely easy to read, even with the new group being given a subtle custom font.

Avengers #3 puts saving the world to the test. It spans the entire Earth with a situation that has a massive magnitude, fitting for Earth’s Mightiest Heroes. It’s a superb challenge for the team as the first of a series of huge events that are supposedly coming. The book generates an aura and excitement without even throwing a punch, with drama in the dialogue and magnificent art.

Avengers #3 is available where comics are sold.