He Has But One Life To Give…And It’s Fun Sized – Review Of Secret Avengers #23

Rob got into a text exchange today with Crisis On Infinite Midlives contributor Pixiestyx about the size of our weekly pull list. Rob said “addicts…don’t count”. It’s true. We have a filthy comic book habit in this house, between the two of us, that sometimes results in multiple trips to the comic book store. In fact, just yesterday, Rob and I found ourselves early for a get together with some folks at a bar and you know what we did to kill time? Go to that neighborhood’s local comic book store where, despite having dropped about $120 dollars on Wednesday for the week’s take, we dropped another $80 on books. That’s $80 dollars we could have spent at the bar getting shit faced while waiting for people to show up at the get together. We might need an intervention.

With that many books coming into the house, I’ll fully admit that I don’t always get around to reading everything we buy each week. Sometimes I have to, I don’t know, go to work. So I can pay for more comic books and lights to read them by. Secret Avengers, which Rob has reviewed a lot in the past, no seriously, is one of those books. I read a couple issues of the Warren Ellis run and pretty much agreed with Rob that, dialogue-wise, it felt like a Next Wave retread. Now, Rick Remender has taken over writing duties and, with all of the other books to choose from in the pile this week, I decided to pick up the book on a Part Two of an arc already in progress.

Was this a wise use of my time? Short answer: yes.

Alert – Hawkeye is a dick, and other spoilers, ahead!

Captain America has stepped aside as the current leader of the Secret Avengers so that everyone’s favorite short tempered, sharp shooting, over-compensator, Hawkeye, can lead the team. But, he’s not the only guy on the team trying to demonstrate who has the largest set of cajones. Hank Pym and Beast banter over who is king of the lab. Former Human Torch from back in The Invaders, Jim Hammond, is openly skeptical about the inclusion of Venom to the Secret Avengers – and he does it right in front of current Venom, Flash Thompson, who is finishing up with his day’s physical therapy regimen (what with the not having any legs anymore because of the second Iraq War). Which leads to:

Thompson: Is your friend always this hypercritical, Cap?

Captain America: Jim and I were fellow Invaders in WWII, and, like you, he’s a Medal Of Honor recipient.

Thompson: How’d you earn the ol’ Medal of Honor, “Jim”?

Captain America: Jim killed Hitler.

Well. Okay, then.

However, the guy who actually ends up demonstrating he has the biggest pair is the littlest dude on the team, as well as its least likely hero, Ant-Man. Never known for being particularly effective at anything other than being an annoyance, Ant-Man stows away in the pant leg of one of a group of villains who have abducted a mother and child who have displayed special powers. The powers have made them the target of a group of half man, half machine zealots called The Descendants. Ant-Man doesn’t particularly want to be putting himself in harm’s way, but in the end summons the courage to do the right thing instead of the safe thing, when the life of a child is at stake:

...swear to god when this shit is over this mother fucker better get *paid*.

I’ve never been the biggest fan of Ant-Man, but his story line was compelling to follow in this book, despite being a bit exposition heavy and, really, out of left field. Why does Ant-Man suddenly have an overwhelming desire to be able to look at himself in the mirror in the morning and not hate what he sees? His actions/moral compass never seem to have bothered him before now. Perhaps Remender will answer this question in subsequent issues…if there’s anything left of Ant-Man capable of answering that. I’ll let you read the issue to find out why.

Gabriel Hardman’s art in this issue is spare and gritty, which works particularly well in the scenes of the robot city of The Descendants, lending a noir tone that calls to mind Blade Runner with its flying cars and dark alleys. Don’t look for detailed character work, particularly in panels with crowd scenes or distance perspective. However, enjoy the kinetic styling of the action scene in the book; there are plenty of them.

Overall, this book was a fun read to stumble across. Despite being a Part Two, the reader doesn’t really need to have read the previous issues to enjoy this book, as the bulk of the story hinges on a character that has gotten such little play in the previous issues that this may as well be his issue #1. I am going to make a point to try and keep up with Remender’s Secret Avengers going forward. So much for paring down my comic book habit.