Review: ‘Avengers Inc.’ #1 Fills A Niche We Didn’t Know We Needed
by Tony Thornley
The Marvel tradition of a second Avengers series goes back decades now with multiple incarnations over the years from the Avengers West Coast to USAvengers. Now, perhaps the most unique of the batch debuts with Avengers Inc #1.
Al Ewing, Leonard Kirk, Alex Sinclair and Cory Petit put a new sort of team on the case.
Six supervillains have been murdered in locked cells. To investigate, Janet Van Dyne has been called in, particularly because one of the villains is Whirlwind, her longtime stalker. But when the investigation gets way more complicated, Jan finds herself forming a whole new Avengers squad in its wake.
Ewing just has a lot of fun with this issue. It’s a self-contained mystery to a certain degree, but in an unexpected way. The conflict is resolved by the end of the issue- with Jan and her new ally Victor Shade- but the main mystery isn’t, and Shade’s identity is put on top of it. Janet’s narration is extremely natural, and feels equal parts detective noir and superhero action. I was satisfied, but immediately made me want more to see what Victor Shade is, and what is up with the last page reveal.
I liked Kirk’s art quite a bit. He makes Jan look introspective, and the villains are threatening. Whirlwind is a bit scrawny compared to past takes on him, but that seems intentional here. The fight late in the issue is paced great, and makes for an exciting action scene just as much as it advances the plot. Sinclair’s colors are great at establishing the tone of the story- with muted flats feeling just like the noir the script creates. In a few places it’s too monochromatic, but overall, it helps with the tone quite a bit.
Avengers Inc. #1 is available now from Marvel Comics.
Overview
This issue shows us there’s a ton of potential to the concept of Earth’s Mightiest Heroes serving as PI’s. Not only that, it starts to fulfill that potential, and we hope this is just the beginning of a long run.