Weekly Comic Book Review

By Brian Michael Bendis (writer), Jim Cheung (pencils), John Dell (inks), Justin Ponsor (colors)

Much like last week’s Mighty Avengers #12, this week’s offering of New Avengers #40 has practically nothing to do with the Avengers as all. For those of you who are closely following Secret Invasion, this is a must buy issue. I realize some people are skipping the satellite books, but you really can’t afford to miss this one.

A more fitting name for this issue would be Avengers: Illuminati #6. After all, it’s got the same creative team – Jim Cheung on art and Brian Bendis on script. Why Jim Cheung doesn’t do more interior jobs, I’ll never know. But the work he does here is every bit as fantastic as his previous efforts. As for Bendis, he keeps the issue completely devoid of any action, but the story he tells here is an important and essential one.

Serving as yet another prequel to Secret Invasion, this issue is completely devoted to the Skrulls and their planned invasion. We’re taken aback from the very beginning when it’s foretold about Galactus, the Annihilation Wave, and a blue planet called Earth in Skrull scripture. There is much debate as to whether these prophecies are real, but when they finally come to pass, the Skrulls, whose race is already on the brink of extinction, make their move to claim Earth.

There’s great importance spent on this backstory, and as Bendis’ tale unravels he cleverly explains the rules of the game – what the Skrulls can and can’t do, and how they’ve managed to remain undetectable. Bendis also let’s us know that these new Skrulls aren’t just “Super Skrull 2.0″. The Skrulls are smarter than we think and have taken great precautions to avert another failure. For those keeping tabs, yes, another Skrull agent is revealed and it is a bomb shell – perhaps the biggest, and most important reveal yet. (Grade: A-)

- J. Montes

A Second Opinion

I’m going to have to completely agree with Jason’s review for New Avengers #40. This issue would fit well as another Illuminati issue as it holds the most significance if you read that series. The reveal is indeed huge and the implications surrounding the Skrull events set the stage for the entire Secret Invasion event. I cannot stress enough how important this issue is to Secret Invasion readers or even to the Marvel Universe as a whole if the Invasion arc winds up being as far reaching as advertised.

The art is uniformly excellent on every page and the writing explains enough without dumbing the story down. A little action wouldn’t have hurt things though, as this issue has very little to offer for readers not interested in the Secret Invasion arc. I can’t help but feel that the issue might have been better off as a one-shot because it has a lot of story to tell and the New Avengers title is almost meaningless when considered what’s actually contained within.

Overall though, there is next to nothing to complain about if you are a Secret Invasion fan. This issue was made for the Invasion and will please anyone looking for deeper insight into what makes the Skrull invaders tick. Also, as mentioned before, the reveal is huge. (Grade A-)

-Kyle Posluszny

Filed under: Marvel Comics, Reviews Tagged: | Avengers, Brian Bendis, Illuminati, Jim Cheung, John Dell, Justin Ponsor, Marvel Comics, New Avengers, New Avengers #40, Secret Invasion, Skrulls