Captain America and the Mighty Avengers #8 Review (Last Days Spoilers)

[Nyadnar17]

I still think it made Monica look a little ridiculous.

Steve is dealing with the end of the multiverse, and Monica literally is worried about what Steve will think of her hair. There's a valid message behind it all which I think if conveyed at a different time with a different character might have worked better.

We are going to have to agree to disagree then. I like robreedwrites felt it was made pretty clear that Spectrum that she changed back to her previous look to avoid tipping Steve off that she was off the reservation. Hell if anything I was little annoyed by the implication that relaxed hair styles are somehow less authentic and real than natural hair styles.

do wonder if there isn't some metatext here, though--that it isn't just the Blue Marvel talking. Maybe Ewing is talking to Hickman through the characters--if you'd just told everyone and worked with us, we'd have been able to.... and I don't exactly know what to fill that blank with. And maybe it isn't metatext, since we've been told all the writers knew what was coming. Still makes me wonder, though.

I don't think there was anything meta. If anything everything I have read and seen seems to indicate that Time Runs Out involved much more headsup/writer input that most "Epic" events. IMO Blue Marvels statement to Black Panther was a "mission statement" type arguement showcasing the different ideoolgies of the Avengers and New Avengers vs the Mighty Avengers. Its the difference between leading vs protecting vs helping. Mighty is the only imprint of Avengers that views those they serve as equals. The Avengers see others as children that need to be lead and inspired to greatness. The New Avengers see others as children that need to be protected. The Mighty Avengers see others as equal to be helped and who can help in return. The Avengers tried to lead/inspire out of the crisis and failed. The New Avengers tried to protect us from the crisis and failed. We will never know if the Mighty might have been able to do better because despite supposedly being equals they were never given a chance.

[JudicatorPrime]

I know it's been a bit of a debate point within the thread, but I enjoyed the Blue Marvel scolding Reed and T'Challa.

I do wonder if there isn't some metatext here, though--that it isn't just the Blue Marvel talking. Maybe Ewing is talking to Hickman through the characters--if you'd just told everyone and worked with us, we'd have been able to.... and I don't exactly know what to fill that blank with. And maybe it isn't metatext, since we've been told all the writers knew what was coming. Still makes me wonder, though.

I was thinking something similar. Ewing may very well be on board with the big picture, but that doesn't necessarily mean that he agrees with every plot point. Or perhaps he sees the continuity gaps that we see as readers? It just seems entirely too coincidental that Ewing would not only re-introduce Kevin Brashear at this critical juncture, but have his father -- perhaps the most peripheral and/or routinely marginalized hero -- confronting Reed Richards and T'Challa. It's really sad that Blue Marvel won't even register as an afterthought in the coming event.

[JudicatorPrime]

I get what Ewing was going for here ... but I still don't entirely buy it. Even under normal circumstances I don't think Monica ' s hair would really effect Steve. In an end of the universe situation I'd be mildly shocked if he even noticed. Given the stakes Monica ' s hair just seems so far below the radar.

I think in a different situation with maybe a different character that didn't already have a working history with the non straight haired Monica this might have worked better for me.

Frankly, the hair and costume won't work, because not that many people know about NextWave Monica. In fact, Monica herself only just realized that the events of NextWave actually happened. I think it's a stretch for Steve or anyone else to share in that awareness.

It's too late to do anything about it now, but what Monica needed was a more substantive reimaging than a trench coat and dreadlocks. I mean this isn't an '80s Miami Vice re-run or a rap video. Turn green and gold Phoenix into blood red and gold Dark Phoenix and we all get that the **** has hit the fan. Even without knowing that Dark Phoenix is capable of causing the death of ~ 5 billions souls, you know that the woman with a gravelly voice, daemonic white eyes, psychotic, toothy scowl and, oh yeah, the giant fiery raptor above her that blots out the sun and calcines the horizon means business.

I'm not calling for a "Dark Monica" per se, but I would appreciate more visually. If you're going to make her edgy, by Jove, let's go current and all out, and not resort to the NextWave look to get that point across. As evinced by some of the responses in this thread, the change is not very effective.

[Habis]

As it is, couldn't they have used Pym particles to fit the entire planet's population aboard?

I hope that after Secret Wars it is revealed that Hank Pym used Pym particles to shrink whole cities during the Incursion and take them to the past or to a different Multiverse.

[Marvell2100]

I have a problem with Steve's defense of his reasons for joining the Illuminati. He says he did it to basically spy on them and to make sure they didn't cross the line. Yet he still kept that secret like Luke pointed out. He didn't tell anyone else what his plans were or that the Illuminati had reformed and how the gems were still around. Then he gets very defensive about it. He's doing the same things he accused Tony of.

[JLS Comics]

It was a good read

[king of hybrids]

I have a problem with Steve's defense of his reasons for joining the Illuminati. He says he did it to basically spy on them and to make sure they didn't cross the line. Yet he still kept that secret like Luke pointed out. He didn't tell anyone else what his plans were or that the Illuminati had reformed and how the gems were still around. Then he gets very defensive about it. He's doing the same things he accused Tony of.

to be fair; nothing in these events of late (from siege onwards) have shied away from the fact that steve is a prideful, bitter, Manichean old hypocrite who hasn't inspired anyone since he died; and arguably should have stayed dead. hell, if i was cynical i'd say that, between this and his idiocy in AoU; its set up to make sure he actually comes across as being in the wrong for civil war

I don't think there was anything meta. If anything everything I have read and seen seems to indicate that Time Runs Out involved much more headsup/writer input that most "Epic" events. IMO Blue Marvels statement to Black Panther was a "mission statement" type arguement showcasing the different ideoolgies of the Avengers and New Avengers vs the Mighty Avengers. Its the difference between leading vs protecting vs helping. Mighty is the only imprint of Avengers that views those they serve as equals. The Avengers see others as children that need to be lead and inspired to greatness. The New Avengers see others as children that need to be protected. The Mighty Avengers see others as equal to be helped and who can help in return. The Avengers tried to lead/inspire out of the crisis and failed. The New Avengers tried to protect us from the crisis and failed. We will never know if the Mighty might have been able to do better because despite supposedly being equals they were never given a chance.

the thing is; at the end of the day most superheroes (As a genre) are generally portrayed the way the Avengers and New Avengers are, on a much smaller scale.

even when said hero loathes themself; they will always, virtually without fail, hold themselves above the people they help. they'll belittle or impede law enforcement, even non-corrupt and more competant-than-them ones, beat tainted confessions put of people and destroy vast tracts of cities in a family squabble; among other things. its a great power fantasy; but a disturbing genre requirement if it gets to a high enough scale.

[PlanetaryDevastation]

I have a problem with Steve's defense of his reasons for joining the Illuminati. He says he did it to basically spy on them and to make sure they didn't cross the line. Yet he still kept that secret like Luke pointed out. He didn't tell anyone else what his plans were or that the Illuminati had reformed and how the gems were still around. Then he gets very defensive about it. He's doing the same things he accused Tony of.

Him joining the Illuminati never made any sense to begin with. It was silly from the start. They literally went through an adventure with the infinity gems revealing that their plans were flawed and then they went and did it again but suddenly now it was good idea?

Nevertheless, while I like Hickman, he really did write Tony and Steve as jilted lovers. I mean they really came off as a couple coming off a bad break up. Especially that diner scence.

Though in Steve's defense unlike the Illuminati looked like was going to reveal the incursion problem to the world so everybody could search for answers once the gems failed. However, you're right on most fronts.

[Double 0]

I have a problem with Steve's defense of his reasons for joining the Illuminati. He says he did it to basically spy on them and to make sure they didn't cross the line. Yet he still kept that secret like Luke pointed out. He didn't tell anyone else what his plans were or that the Illuminati had reformed and how the gems were still around. Then he gets very defensive about it. He's doing the same things he accused Tony of.

Yep, he fell into the same exact trap T'Challa did, but with added crabbiness.

[Mahes]

I have a problem with Steve's defense of his reasons for joining the Illuminati. He says he did it to basically spy on them and to make sure they didn't cross the line. Yet he still kept that secret like Luke pointed out. He didn't tell anyone else what his plans were or that the Illuminati had reformed and how the gems were still around. Then he gets very defensive about it. He's doing the same things he accused Tony of.

Others have responded to this but my take is that we as readers should find his reasoning hypocritical. I think Ewing's writing for Steve helped tie more into the narrative that Hickman set up of the problems with elitism/secrets.

I liked this issue though. Ewing always does good work when he is pulled into a tie-in issue.

[itspopularnowitsucks]

Others have responded to this but my take is that we as readers should find his reasoning hypocritical. I think Ewing's writing for Steve helped tie more into the narrative that Hickman set up of the problems with elitism/secrets.

I liked this issue though. Ewing always does good work when he is pulled into a tie-in issue.

It's not like Ewing has ever done anything besides tie-in issues.

[jackolover]

Him joining the Illuminati never made any sense to begin with. It was silly from the start. They literally went through an adventure with the infinity gems revealing that their plans were flawed and then they went and did it again but suddenly now it was good idea?

Nevertheless, while I like Hickman, he really did write Tony and Steve as jilted lovers. I mean they really came off as a couple coming off a bad break up. Especially that diner scence.

Though in Steve's defense unlike the Illuminati looked like was going to reveal the incursion problem to the world so everybody could search for answers once the gems failed. However, you're right on most fronts.

As to if Steve Rogers should be criticised for withholding Incursions from other people, when the government learned of the Solution to the Incursions, they refused to let the people know how it was being taken care of (the Cabal were blowing up planets).

[Marvell2100]

Others have responded to this but my take is that we as readers should find his reasoning hypocritical. I think Ewing's writing for Steve helped tie more into the narrative that Hickman set up of the problems with elitism/secrets.

I liked this issue though. Ewing always does good work when he is pulled into a tie-in issue.

Yeah I thought it was pretty ironic that Steve would justify his actions this way. And that he couldn't understand the reaction of Luke and the others about his secrecy. His anger at the Illuminati and Tony in particular has really clouded his thinking to the point that he didn't realize that he was crossing a line that he'd drawn himself.

As to if Steve Rogers should be criticised for withholding Incursions from other people, when the government learned of the Solution to the Incursions, they refused to let the people know how it was being taken care of (the Cabal were blowing up planets).

That's another interesting point. How much did Steve know about the gov'ts of the world giving up Wakanda to the Cabal. And why didn't he go after the Cabal.

[vitruvian]

As to if Steve Rogers should be criticised for withholding Incursions from other people, when the government learned of the Solution to the Incursions, they refused to let the people know how it was being taken care of (the Cabal were blowing up planets).

Nope. The government learned about the Cabal doing that in an open meeting of the General Assembly, so the whole matter was very public. Those meetings are televised, and they apparently didn't know exactly what Terrax was going to say, so there's no indication it was a closed meeting. Even if it had been a closed meeting, the number of representatives from all the member nations present would have meant word would have leaked out very, very quickly indeed. The government(s) (atypically, I would say, and probably only because they really couldn't) didn't keep any of it secret at all.

[vitruvian]

That's another interesting point. How much did Steve know about the gov'ts of the world giving up Wakanda to the Cabal. And why didn't he go after the Cabal.

The first part isn't even a question. He knew it all, just as the world (that was paying attention to UN coverage, anyway) knew it all. The man attacked Terrax with his cane at that UN meeting!