Mighty Avengers #7 (Marvel – Bendis / Bagley / Miki / Cho) – The Ultimate Spider-Man super-team of Bendis and Bagley reunite and just in time for the Avengers’ biggest problem ever!!! A Venom virus hits the city of New York!! A Venom virus!! The entire city of New York turns symbiote. Plus, Wonder Man gets a much needed makeover. All this and Tony Stark. This issue (not unlike some other current issues of major books) is a bridge issue, sort of a filler putting a closing on one storyline, opening another. This is the bridge into the Symbiote War storyline and the upcoming Secret Invasion crossover event. The issue opens up with Jessica Drew bringing Tony Stark the dead skrull’s (Elektra) body in hopes of finding out more about the upcoming invasion. We spend several pages having Jessica and Tony talk about “who’s a possible skrull?”, “Who thinks you are a skrull?”, “Who thinks I am a skrull?”, etc. Tony then convinces Jessica to join his Avenger team (seemed quick). There is some jib-jab repartee between members as to whether or not Jessica is trustworthy, who’s really in charge and what everyone’s roles will be…. culminating into Janet (Wasp) convincing Simon (Wonder Man) into getting a costume change. Even though the cover would make us think this is a huge “battle the symbiotes” issue, they only show up in the last couple pages and the issue ends with the Avengers going out to attack, but not yet engaging the symbiotes in question. A very classic Marvel cover-plot switch. The only thing in Mighty Avengers that is more distinctive that Brian Michael Bendis’ ability to write a plot that blends well off-the-wall and paranoia and everything in-between is Mark Bagley’s cinematic layouts. Not a bad place to jump into the Avengers’ landscape.
Issue Grade: B
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