| Savage | |
| Creative Team: | Writer: Christophr Yost Artist: Scott Wegener Colorist: Jean-Francois Beaulieu Letterer: Joe Sabino |
| Summary: | The Collector and the Grandmaster, two
of the known Elders of the Universe, have a bet going - with their
Infinity Gems as the prize. The Collector has chosen Hulk for his
champion, and the Grandmaster chooses Thor. The Grandmaster wastes no
time in taking over the Asgardian's mind and directing him to battle the
Hulk. Hulk, struck by surprise, needs no mind-control to fight Thor - but his "inside voice" of Bruce Banner notices that Thor is under control, and before the fight can get too out of hand, convinces the Hulk that rather than give in to his savage nature, the Hulk should instead try and help Thor break free of those who would use him - like those who have always tried to use the Hulk for their own ends. Ultimately the Hulk agrees, and transforms back to Bruce Banner, the Hulk's theory being that it is so far against Thor's nature to attack someone as helpless as Banner that it should break the mind-control of the Grandmaster. Thor breaks free and attacks the Grandmaster. The Collector and the Grandmaster teleport away, but are seen pondering how Earth might serve for the momentary amusement of all of the Elders. |
| Commentary | More of the same
art. I recognize that its a style, just not one I care for;
clearly, they are hoping to sell this series to the fans of the show,
and are not relying on the artwork's appeal. If they were
depending on the artwork as a marketing issue, there would be at least
one fewer reader. The same applies for if these stories weren't
part of the show continuity. The plot, pacing, and dialogue are much better than the previous stories; while there really is not a lot of new developments - this incarnation of the Hulk seems more intelligent, and can trigger his change to Banner at will. |
| Courage | |
| Creative Team: | Writer: Christopher Yost Penciler: Patrick Scherberger Inker: Jean-Francois Beaulieu Colorist: Jean-Francois Beaulieu Letterer: Joe Sabino |
| Summary: | Wasp and Captain America are somewhere
(I'm guessing Canada, eh?) tracking the Wendingo, when a snowstorm
basically blankets the area. When we join Winghead and Wasp, we
find that Captain America has been wounded, leaving the Wasp as the only
combat-capable Avenger, and she's scared witless at the idea that not
only is this one of the escapees from the Breakout, but also a
human-eater. Winghead tells her that she has to go get help - and to take his shield; since he's lost so much blood, Cap'll try and delay it to give Wasp time. The Wendigo attacks, and is driven off once by the Wasp's bio-stings. Winghead again urges her to go - and Wasp takes the shield and shrinks. The Wendigo comes for Winghead, and Wasp grows to normal size, slamming the shield into the Wendigo's head with all her might and body weight. She begins to wail into the Wendigo with bio-energy-powered punchs - Wasp has chosen fight over flight. She beats it down and turns back to the fallen Captain America, urging him to keep talking to her until help can arrive, and to please not tell the others how scared she was. Cap mumbles "...bravest person I know...: as an Avengers Quinjet closes in for a rescue pickup. |
| Commentary | I think Chris Yost has gotten the short
format down with this story; it punts some of the details in favor of
getting straight to the meat of the story - Wasp dealing with her own
fear of the Wendingo, with Captain America's help. While the Wasp
has not shown this level of fear in the animated series, its almost not
appropriate for her to do so, but we have to bear in mind this is Janet
Van Dyne, who has yet to accumulate the experience of the Janet Pym we
remember fondly. Yost really grasps the real role of Captain America in the Avengers, and I'm happy he's emphasizing those in the series and here. Captain America is a true leader, whose value is not how hard he can hit, but how he can lead, plan, and most importantly - he inspires others. Even severely wounded, he helps the Wasp through her moment of fear and doubt, while still exorting her to get to safety... even has he prepares to fight, wounded as he is, to give her a head-start. |