Last one, and it is a doozy.
SECRET INVASION #4: The green elephant of the week, the event title ships another overpriced issue. Seriously, Marvel, the economy is bad and those card-stock covers ain't worth it. Next event, try not to shamelessly milk retailers and fans quite so hard, no? Ah, well, this thing's selling 200k anyway.
This issue has a lot of crying superheroes. Reed Richards' eye waters as he is tortured (more stretching). Skrull Ms. Marvel cries. Sentry cries. Even Agent Brand from SWORD cries, which seems like a bit much. I mean, the fine b**th line between her and Maria Hill is pretty thin, and I'd never imagine Maria shedding a tear (no, that is only rain you see). Yep, Earth has never been invaded by aliens before. Things have never looked dire. Superheroes have never had to dig down deep at the last hour to save the planet before. Bust out the tissue boxes.
Skrull Queen, as Jessica Drew, continues her attempt to convince Stark that he himself is a Skrull (which he isn't) and basically does the Bond villain schtick of laying out her ambitions and plans because she assumes the plot is complete. She even doesn't kill Stark in pure Bond form. That is still the hassle with these Skrulls. We are supposed to go "Oooo! Aahhh!" at how methodical, super-powered and dangerous they are now, yet they keep making the same mistakes that Paste Pot Pete made when fighting heroes (i.e., going with pride over results). There's a speech about how the Skrulls are merely waging war as humans usually do, but I have heard speeches from aliens like that before. It isn't bad, mind you. I guess after 6 years, a "you humans are nothing but ******ed war mongers" rant gets old.
That is SECRET INVASION in a nutshell. It has some interesting moments but they don't all work as a whole. And while it, so far, is a perfectly reasonable average invasion story, albeit with more hype, posturing, and gore, this ain't Eisner material. This is middle of the road, C+ grade popcorn fluff with no substance. Still, coming off the dud of HOM, Bendis is improving in that he knows to pace a lot of action and to sometimes just let his artist work. Considering he had 2 full years to build the story, though, it is almost the bare minimum that SI at least have action in every issue.
Nick Fury and his new squad of Howling Commandos (relations of various heroes and villains) storm into Midtown to save the Avengers, Young Avengers, and Initiative from a mass execution. How? Lots of punching and shooting, which is somehow more effective because, uh, they're the cavalry. Nick Fury risks a lawsuit from the
Rob Liefield School of Cable by hefting a gun larger than his body with ease. Bendis literally names a speedster woman "Yo Yo", which is like what people get called in Bensonhurst. Stonewall (who is actually Stonewall II) saves about three or four dozen heroes by, uh, hefting them all on his back somehow.
I am sorry, but I can't stop thinking about a speedster named "Yo Yo". Ugh. Okay, I officially apologize to Alan Heinberg for consistantly criticizing his codename of "Speed" for a speedster character. Sure, that was generic, but at least it wasn't outfight stupid sounding. I will try to never knock Speed again.
Speaking of Yo-Yo's, the Hood's gang decides to help defend the Earth, because one of Bendis' morals is that heroes are incompetant. I understand wanting a new Kingpin figure, and it is nice for Hood to get this exposure, but I still can't buy him ordering around seasoned pro's like Wizard and Madame Masque. That's like Magneto and Dr. Doom working for Electro.
Oh, and the same Skrulls that are immune to all of Dr. Strange's magic despite having analyzed him during the 70's when he wasn't as potent and who can shrug off Otherworld crap in other books are at the mercy of Ares' kid and his glowing eyes. I'm sorry, but I can buy 3-D Man's goggles better.
Black Widow and Wolverine rescue Stark in the jungle and I actually felt bad that Widow apparently killed the Skrull-Beast from SI: WHO DO YOU TRUST? Y'know, the one who was actually FUN. The fate of Jessica Drew is still up in the air, but I honestly doubt Bendis has the balls to forevermore vanquish a heroine via retcon who he obviously cares for. If when he leaves the Avengers titles after another 5 years and hasn't revived her, then I will believe it. But right now, I doubt it, which leaves the window open for Pym, Jarvis, etc. being alive. Because murdering them while making some hackney excuse for Drew would be a low I almost doubt Bendis would do. Almost.
Then, of course, is that last page. A thunderbolt strikes a Skrull and he is dust. A figure in red, white, and blue moves into action. The silhouette of the mighty Thor is highlighted by a thunder-clap. This is one of those moments where Bendis thankfully knows to shut up and let Yu take over, which he does well. It is an awesome way to end the issue. Of course, next issue is when Thor and New Cap will actually have to talk, and Bendis will probably ruin it. This is the man who reduced Dr. Doom to a whiney putz. But for now, it was pretty cool. Definitely a "Holy ****!" moment.
Considering my fears, the fact that this has been a basic alien invasion storyline is probably a step up. The problem is I can't feel at ease until the final page of #8 because there is always that voice in the back of my head that goes, "Bendis will ruin this. No matter how the build-up is, he will ruin it". I sometimes get frustrated waiting for him to ruin it, like, "C'mon, you are the ****y comics mastermind! Give me the horse-**** already like I expect and get it over with!" Instead he is writing a standard action yarn with some pithy lines and while it isn't outstanding, it isn't bad, either. It falls apart with any scrutiny, but frankly, so do most action yarns. The biggest hassle is that what is the story at the core; another threat that pits heroes against each other and destroys their trust, and exposes them as under-prepared and incompetent, a theme Marvel has officially run into the ground. Out of all threats to unify against, it should be aliens, but nope. These people just saved Manhattan Island from the Hulk last summer and they can barely stand each other during another war for survival. They did so for countless decades until 2004; which was Marvel 616 B.B. (Before Bendis). I would like an event to provide something different than disunity, self-hatred, and heroes divided, crying, and impotent. It gets ****ing old. It is hard to enjoy a comic, even one with as great a last page as this one, when you are "bracing" for something. That is what I always do for Bendis comics. I am braced for impact, like I am about to take a punch.
This is a step up in quality for Bendis, but the question is, will it be another step backward for the MU? Time will tell. In the meanwhile, Thor & Cap are back, and Skrulls go a-splatty.
