“Short Term Fixes” Written by Nick Spencer.
Art by Rags Morales; David Curiel; & VC’s Chris Eliopoulos.
Avengers World # 1-5 Written by Jonathan Hickman & Nick Spencer.
Art by Stefano Caselli; Frank Martin; Antonio Fabela; Edgar Delgado; Andres Mossa; VC’s Joe Caramagna; & Chris Eliopoulos.
Collection Cover Art by John Cassady & Laura Martin.
SUMMARY:
Released in 2014 by Marvel Comics, this 120-page trade paperback compiles All-New Marvel NOW! Point One followed by Avengers World # 1-5 – all from that same year.
Captain America warily negotiates with SHIELD’s Director, Maria Hill, on new parameters of joint cooperation between the Avengers and SHIELD. Meanwhile, under Bruce Banner’s remote supervision, Cannonball and Sunspot attempt to infiltrate A.I.M. Island to retrieve illicit vials of an experimental short-term Hulk formula to keep A.I.M. from selling them and producing even more for black market clients. Predictably, the duo’s mission doesn’t come off as easy as they envisioned.
Avengers’ Current Roster: Captain America; Thor; Hyperion; Bruce Banner/Hulk; Wolverine; Spider-Woman; Black Widow; Falcon; Smasher; Hawkeye; Nightmask; Captain Marvel; Cannonball; Sunspot; Iron Man; Manifold; Captain Universe; Shang-Chi; & Starbrand.
Under Captain America, Maria Hill, and Bruce Banner’s remote supervision, Avenger field units are sent to four locales experiencing bizarre crises. Still, are all four simultaneous incidents somehow interconnected?
- With catastrophic and seemingly unnatural weather events impacting the U.S. East Coast, powerhouses Thor, Captain Marvel, and Hyperion are sent to investigate.
- A mass riot erupts on the remote island of Madripoor. An outmatched Black Widow, Falcon, Wolverine, and Shang-Chi find out that The Hand’s Gorgon is unleashing the island’s mystical giant sea dragon. Separated from his teammates, Shang-Chi faces a losing one-on-one battle against Gorgon.
- With A.I.M. Island vastly expanding due to unknown advanced technology, Smasher, Cannonball, and Sunspot go in to find answers. With her injured teammates captured, an inexperienced Smasher finds out that she has become prey for Jude the Entropic Man.
- In Velletai, Italy, the town’s residents and an European investigative team ominously vanish from sight. Exploring its dreaded underground ‘City of The Dead,’ Spider-Woman, Hawkeye, Nightmask, and especially young Starbrand encounter vengeful ghosts that have no intention of letting them escape. Sebastian Druid is brought aboard as Captain America’s mystical consultant, as Druid quickly explains the team’s Italian mission is in deep jeopardy.
- Iron Man unsuccessfully tries to recruit Manifold’s teleportation help against A.I.M. A subsequent extradimensional journey with Captain Universe, however, may change his mind.
- While Dr. Banner works on a means of penetrating A.I.M. Island’s force field, A.I.M.’s elite leadership (Superia; Jude the Entropic Man; Graviton; and their current Scientist Supreme) feel ready for an imminent showdown with the Avengers.
Note: This title is also available digitally.
REVIEW:
The art team’s consistently high-caliber visuals deliver A.I.M.pire’s best asset. As for Jonathan Hickman & Nick Spencer’s storytelling, what one gets is an entertaining and relatively good read. The problem with their storyline is that readers are being offered some intriguing bait in multiple locales, as opposed to enjoying a complete arc. Hence, Marvel’s ‘stay tuned’ approach becomes a take-it-or-leave-it proposition.
One could deduce from Volume 1’s inside back cover which other Avengers-related volumes are likely needed to finish this particular storyline. For casual fans, otherwise, finding Avengers World, Volume 1: A.I.M.pire at the library makes the most practical sense.
ADDITIONAL CONTENT:
Each primary Avengers World cover precedes its story. The cover artists are: John Cassady & Laura Martin (Issue # 1); Jung-Geun Yoon (Issue # 2); Rags Morales & David Curiel (Issue # 3); Mike Deodato & Paul Mounts (Issue # 4); and In-Hyuk Lee (Issue # 5).
Reduced to 1/3-size or ¼-size per page, there is a three-page cover gallery. For the primary All-New Marvel Now! Point One # 1 cover, the artists are Salvador Larroca & Laura Martin. Its variant artists are Steve McNiven & Justin Ponsor. For the double-page Avengers World # 1 wraparound variant cover, the artists are Arthur Adams & Jason Keith.
Additional Issue # 1 variant artists are: 1. Milo Manara; 2. Chris Samnee & Matthew Wilson; 3. Skottie Young; and 4. Carlo Barberi & Edgar Delgado. Additional variant artists include Simone Bianchi (Issue # 2); Agustin Alessio (Issue # 3) and Ron Garney & Jason Keith (Issue # 5).
BRIAN’S ODD MOON RATING: 6 Stars
