Post by goldenfist on Dec 6, 2007 14:02:43 GMT -5
Here are two reviews of Avengers The Initiative Annual #1
I don't think I'm alone in saying that I didn't have the utmost faith in Dan Slott when Avengers: The Initiative first launched this spring. For all the entertaining comics he's penned over the years, the deplorable state of She-Hulk at the time was enough to make me wary. I was pleasantly surprised with the first issue, however, and the series has gone on to become one of my favorite new books of the year. This week Initiative becomes the latest subject of Marvel's increasing fascination with annuals. Unlike most annuals, this one does add quite a bit to the series' mythos, even if the story itself fails to live up to expectations.
My overall impression with this issue is that Slott had a few loose plot threads from the first seven issues he wanted to wrap up, but perhaps no solid idea of how to do that. The result is a joint effort with Marvel's official go-to writer, Christos Gage, that explores the origins of several Initiative members in individual segments. To that end, the success of each story depends on your interest in the character and the amount of new information revealed. For instance, while the Gauntlet segment is presented well, it doesn't exactly tell you anything that couldn't be inferred from the previous seven issues. The same goes for the MVP story.
However, not every segment is a rehash of what we've already read. My personal favorite stars Armory, the would-be heroine who washed out of the program in issue #1 after an unfortunate accident. It's nice to know that, unlike some other Initiative books *cough* The Order *cough*, small characters aren't unceremoniously tossed to the curb. The final segment should be of most interest to Initiative fans, as it unveils Pennsylvania's official superteam, The Ameriteens. They're only slightly less campy than they sound. This story also presents a cliffhanger that's meant to set the tone for the series moving forward from World War Hulk.
Maybe it was just the cartoony art style, but the cliffhanger didn't do much for me. That's often a danger with Initiative. Because of the less than realistic tone generated by the art, Slott has an uphill battle to face in trying to tell a serious story. This has never been much of a problem with regular artist Stefano Caselli, but he isn't around for the annual. Instead, a variety of artists from Salvador Larocca to Steve Uy to Clayton Henry do their best to replicate Caselli's style. They do a respectable job, but the writing and the art never quite seem to gel like they do in the main series.
Nothing about Avengers: The Initiative Annual #1 is poorly done in any way. It's just the overall execution that falls a little flat, and it leaves me to wonder if we really needed it in the first place. Assuming we see a follow-up next year, Slott would do well to focus on telling a single, fulfilling story rather than a handful of forgettable tales. After all, annuals fell out of favor for a very good reason.
Review Score 7.6
I've been saying for months that Avengers: The Initiative was an overstuffed book with a cast too large for its pages. By necessity, the first issue began already deep in the action and as a result, nobody really got origin tales. Enter A:TI's first annual issue, a set of short origin and catch-up stories by regular writer Dan Slott and new regular co-writer Christos Gage.
I'm thankful this issue focuses on the characters of Gauntlet, Armory, Hardball, and MVP because it's the original team that needs the most fleshing out. Of them, I think the Hardball story does the most for the character. He's been the unofficial protagonist of the parent title, and his origin casts a new light on him. The goofy final strip, featuring Pennsylvania's Initiative team the Liberteens, is good fun and Patrick Scherberger's art is beautiful. The "Secret Invasion" banner on the cover refers exclusively to this story and the Skrull-related business here probably won't reveal anything you couldn't have already guessed on your own.
As much as this annual feels necessary, I sort of found the origins uninspiring. I guess if you really examine the origin stories of most popular heroes today like Daredevil or Spider-Man, they're actually kind of lame. It's just that I remember a Young Avengers special not too long ago similar to this and their beginnings were actually cool and added to their characters. I just expected more punch here, I suppose.
The art is all over the map; no two artists have the same style. Salvador Larroca turns out some predictably good work, as does the aforementioned Scherberger. Steve Uy is the one responsible for A:TI #6, maybe the ugliest book I've ever read this side of Igor Kordey, so his return isn't exactly welcome. The beauty of an annual like this, though, is if you don't care for a particular artist, he'll be gone in like five pages.
So, like I said, probably necessary to catch some stuff that couldn't fit in the obese monthly title, but not really the best effort on character development.
Review Score 7.4
So who here agree's or disagree's with the reviews.
I don't think I'm alone in saying that I didn't have the utmost faith in Dan Slott when Avengers: The Initiative first launched this spring. For all the entertaining comics he's penned over the years, the deplorable state of She-Hulk at the time was enough to make me wary. I was pleasantly surprised with the first issue, however, and the series has gone on to become one of my favorite new books of the year. This week Initiative becomes the latest subject of Marvel's increasing fascination with annuals. Unlike most annuals, this one does add quite a bit to the series' mythos, even if the story itself fails to live up to expectations.
My overall impression with this issue is that Slott had a few loose plot threads from the first seven issues he wanted to wrap up, but perhaps no solid idea of how to do that. The result is a joint effort with Marvel's official go-to writer, Christos Gage, that explores the origins of several Initiative members in individual segments. To that end, the success of each story depends on your interest in the character and the amount of new information revealed. For instance, while the Gauntlet segment is presented well, it doesn't exactly tell you anything that couldn't be inferred from the previous seven issues. The same goes for the MVP story.
However, not every segment is a rehash of what we've already read. My personal favorite stars Armory, the would-be heroine who washed out of the program in issue #1 after an unfortunate accident. It's nice to know that, unlike some other Initiative books *cough* The Order *cough*, small characters aren't unceremoniously tossed to the curb. The final segment should be of most interest to Initiative fans, as it unveils Pennsylvania's official superteam, The Ameriteens. They're only slightly less campy than they sound. This story also presents a cliffhanger that's meant to set the tone for the series moving forward from World War Hulk.
Maybe it was just the cartoony art style, but the cliffhanger didn't do much for me. That's often a danger with Initiative. Because of the less than realistic tone generated by the art, Slott has an uphill battle to face in trying to tell a serious story. This has never been much of a problem with regular artist Stefano Caselli, but he isn't around for the annual. Instead, a variety of artists from Salvador Larocca to Steve Uy to Clayton Henry do their best to replicate Caselli's style. They do a respectable job, but the writing and the art never quite seem to gel like they do in the main series.
Nothing about Avengers: The Initiative Annual #1 is poorly done in any way. It's just the overall execution that falls a little flat, and it leaves me to wonder if we really needed it in the first place. Assuming we see a follow-up next year, Slott would do well to focus on telling a single, fulfilling story rather than a handful of forgettable tales. After all, annuals fell out of favor for a very good reason.
Review Score 7.6
I've been saying for months that Avengers: The Initiative was an overstuffed book with a cast too large for its pages. By necessity, the first issue began already deep in the action and as a result, nobody really got origin tales. Enter A:TI's first annual issue, a set of short origin and catch-up stories by regular writer Dan Slott and new regular co-writer Christos Gage.
I'm thankful this issue focuses on the characters of Gauntlet, Armory, Hardball, and MVP because it's the original team that needs the most fleshing out. Of them, I think the Hardball story does the most for the character. He's been the unofficial protagonist of the parent title, and his origin casts a new light on him. The goofy final strip, featuring Pennsylvania's Initiative team the Liberteens, is good fun and Patrick Scherberger's art is beautiful. The "Secret Invasion" banner on the cover refers exclusively to this story and the Skrull-related business here probably won't reveal anything you couldn't have already guessed on your own.
As much as this annual feels necessary, I sort of found the origins uninspiring. I guess if you really examine the origin stories of most popular heroes today like Daredevil or Spider-Man, they're actually kind of lame. It's just that I remember a Young Avengers special not too long ago similar to this and their beginnings were actually cool and added to their characters. I just expected more punch here, I suppose.
The art is all over the map; no two artists have the same style. Salvador Larroca turns out some predictably good work, as does the aforementioned Scherberger. Steve Uy is the one responsible for A:TI #6, maybe the ugliest book I've ever read this side of Igor Kordey, so his return isn't exactly welcome. The beauty of an annual like this, though, is if you don't care for a particular artist, he'll be gone in like five pages.
So, like I said, probably necessary to catch some stuff that couldn't fit in the obese monthly title, but not really the best effort on character development.
Review Score 7.4
So who here agree's or disagree's with the reviews.
