The Illuminati gather to learn how to destroy a world. But do they have it in themselves to save their world by destroying another?
Written by Jonathan Hickman
Illustrated by Steve Epting
“BLUE”
• Using the knowledge gained from the Black Swan, the Illuminati rework all their plans and cross the uncrossable line.
• The first secret alliance is formed.
• If an incursion is normally RED, what does a BLUE one mean?
For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. This is an idea clearly present in Jonathan Hickman’s work in revitalizing the main Avengers titles thanks to Marvel NOW! relaunch. With “Avengers”, he’s been exploring the expansion of the team and their place in the Universe as superheroes and guardians. Over in “New Avengers”, however, things have taken a much more sinister turn. The Illuminati – made up of Iron Man, Mr. Fantastic, Black Panther, Doctor Strange, Namor, Black Bolt and Beast – have been using the Infinity Gems to stop Incursions, universal collisions between worlds, from destroying the Earth. In this issue, Hickman and Epting explore just what drives the members of the team and the lengths they will go to defend the world.
This book doesn’t feel at all like a Marvel book. That’s not a complaint, mind you. In fact, the series feels much more complex than most superhero series, especially those from the Big Two. This is mostly due to Hickman taking some risks with the storytelling and even the concept of the book that doesn’t feel at all like something Marvel would do normally. This is a book about a group of men coming together and in their hubris they must decide if sacrificing another world is justified if it means saving their own world. That’s some heavy stuff right there, but it’s thanks to Hickman’s deft plotting and handling of the characters that it doesn’t feel too overbearing. Hickman never loses sight of the fact that in every other title in the Marvel Universe, these men are seen as heroes and so when faced with impossible choices they try to take the morally right choice. It’s the genius of Hickman, then, that they are presented with choices that aren’t morally right.
It’s not just Hickman bringing his A-game to the series, though, as artist Steve Epting has really been pulling out all the stops. Even for an issue that is very heavy on the dialogue, Epting keeps the pace flowing smoothly with exquisite art that never seems to be bogged down with words. And when the team enter the Incursion, Epting really knows how to bring the scope and scale of it all to fruition and how to make it feel imposing. The world really feel like it’s ending during Incursion, especially thanks to the colors from Frank D’Armata. Epting’s naturalistic style helps cement the events of the issue, keeping the fantastical happenings as believeable as possible. The art only helps to bring out the foreboding and oppressive feel of the feel of the book. This is not a happy fun time issue and from the art to Hickman’s title page design, they want you to know it.
Hickman is usually known for dense plotting and structure that introduce grand ideas while never losing sight of the humanity of the characters. That’s all present here with each character of the Illuminati getting adequate panel time, save, perhaps, for poor Black Bolt, and the Incursions taken a massive left turn, but it feels like the series hit a bit of a speed bump here. Introduced in this issue is the Blue Incursion, as opposed to Red, and the Mapmakers, however, their purpose isn’t made all that clear. The exposition to the team, and by extension the reader, comes from the Black Swan character and it could be that her dialogue isn’t as clear as it needed to be to introduce the concepts. It just seemed unlike Hickman to introduce a concept that’s so important to the series and be so vague about what it means to the series going forward. Or, perhaps, it could be that I’m just too dense to understand what it all actually meant.
Continued belowOther than the large, world-building (or destroying, as is the case) concepts, it’s the characters that really make this issue shine. The Illuminati is a built around a group of men that are world renowned superheroes, both in-universe and out, and so pitting them against almost insurmountable odds that require them to possibly compromise their steadfast morals is where the crux of this series is. All of the members of the team save one are still fighting not to compromise their integrity in order to save the world, but with each passing issue it seems that he may be right. The issue poses the question that if the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few, are these men willing to sacrifice their moral integrity to keep the world intact? It’s an interesting question and one that makes this issue so compelling.
Even despite the hiccup of the vagueness with which Hickman introduces the concepts of this issue, it’s still an enjoyable read thanks to his grip on the characters and their moral struggle with their situation. It’s still early days for this series, but to see how Hickaman and Epting are setting up the storylines it seems that this is going to be a fun ride.
Final Verdict: 7.8
