I know I’ve already written about this, but now that we’re almost in The Heroic Age, I thought I’d revisit who is appropriate for the main Avengers title. I mean, who would best represent what the team is supposed to be: The best of Marvel, Earth’s Mightiest Heroes, protectors of our world from cosmic threats like Thanos, The Collector, Baron Nefaria and the Masters of Evil (and Egghead)? More importantly, who do I want to see Brian Michael Bendis write about? That’s the key part of this. After all, having multiple, interlocking Avengers titles just wouldn’t have worked during Dark Reign without a single vision guiding the ship.
I know this isn’t the lineup—that’s already been announced, pretty much–but this is who I’d go for on the main team. I’d make the team big, like it was back in its heyday, so that we could have multiple simultaneous missions. Hell, if this was the team, I’d probably read it if it came out weekly!
1. Captain American and Iron Man. Obviously. It will be great to read Bendis’ take on how Tony and Steve re-forge a relationship of trust and respect. But I wouldn’t include Thor. I like him out on his own, being all Godlike and aloof.
2. Hawkeye. Bendis has handled the return of Marvel’s archer with superlative skill. Clint is a fan favorite, even if he doesn’t have powers, and he’s always been a major part of the team.
3. Yellow-Jacket/Giant-Man or -Woman/Wasp/Ant Man. Or some variation thereof. They need a size-changer.
4. Vision. Even if he’s a robot, he was always part of the soul of the team. Part of that was due to his marriage to Scarlet Witch, and that obviously can’t happen again, but I’d love to see how Bendis could engineer a comeback here. Maybe the Young Avengers’ version?
5. Ms. Marvel. Her solo series sucked. Someone’s got to maintain her rep.
6. Storm. She needs to get back in the mainstream, and this is a good way to do it. Black Panther could come in once in a while, too, but I don’t see him as a regular. Or if she’s unavailable, how about Psylocke?
7. Hercules. First of all, we all know he isn’t really dead. Second of all, he would provide some much-needed levity to the proceedings. Third, this is the heroic age, and who likes being a hero more than Hercules? I’d say that The Beast could add jokes, but Hank hasn’t been jovial in a long, long time. If they don’t go with Herc, how about Valkyrie? They need some Godness on the group.
8. Quicksilver. I’ve lost track of the character and I’m not sure what he’s up to nowadays, but I always like it when he was on the team. ‘Cause he’s such a jerk. He provides the Guy Gardner ingredient.
9. Amadeus Cho. He could be their Martian Manhunter (or “Chloe” on Smallville)—the genius behind the scenes who keeps it all together.
10. She-Hulk. Nuff said.
11. Puck and Shaman (from Alpha Flight).
Note the omissions: Wonder Man (enough already with this reluctant hero); Dr. Strange (borrrring); Sentry (more borrring!).
SIDE TEAMS!
Side teams could include:
1. Luke Cage, Spider-Woman, and Wolverine. I really enjoyed them on New Avengers, but Wolverine is over-exposed and they never really made good use of him on the team—he never really got a chance to shine. And Cage and Spider-Woman already got too many chances to shine—he’s not really a “cosmic challenge” type of guy, and she’s certainly not one of Marvel’s “mightiest heroes.” And both of these qualifiers apply to Spidey, too, who is terrific in Bendis’ hands, but it’s time to let the boy go.
2. And how about Dazzler for some Bendis rebooting? I always liked her.
3. Power Pack/Young Avengers. This seems like a potential crew on its own—a young team that needs a solid mentor. (Maybe this is what “Avengers Academy” will be about?) Luke and Jessica Jones, perhaps? Or maybe Bucky Cap and Black Widow? Anyone but Nick Fury.
4. Speaking of Nick Fury, I could see him in charge of a SHIELD Avengers team—some kind of strike force for special, Earth-based missions, with a group of stealthy and/or hard-to-control fringe types like Ghost Rider, Deadpool, Nightcrawler, Mystique, Elektra, White Tiger, Taskmaster or Bullseye (don’t know where they’ll end up after Siege), the now-reformed Silver Samurai, and Iron Fist. With Wolverine as a hanger on. Fur will fly.
5. War Machine! (That’s a gimme and a given, I think.)
What do you all think?
1993 might not (definitely was not) the best year to see the Grateful Dead. Health issues plagued the band, and Bobby’s songwriting skills were not peaking, either. What makes this show so cool, though, is the widely varied setlist. There’s the last Casey Jones ever played, and in set one no less, a rare recording of Broken Arrow, and then old favorites like Eyes, Corinna, and Cassidy.