Dark Avengers #10 Review - Secret Wars II

Dark Avengers #10

Direct Market Release Date: October 21, 2009

Credits

Writer: Brian Michael Bendis
Art: Mike Deodato
Color Art: Rain Beredo
Letterer: VC's Cory Petit
Cover Art: Mike Deodato & Rain Beredo
Associate Editor: Lauren Sankovitch
Editor: Tom Breevoort
Editor in Chief: Joe Quesada
Publisher: Dan Buckley
Executive Producer: Alan Fine

Previously in the Dark Avengers

Norman Osborn, former Thunderbolts leader, has risen to power and was appointed to replace Tony Stark as head of the National Peace Keeping Taskforce, H.A.M.M.E.R, which includes his own team of Avengers.

They're a gathering of controversial figures that Norman has given the iconic likenesses of many of the famous Avengers, as well as the secret identities that go with them. Joining former Mighty Avengers Ares and Sentry are the assassin Bullseye, now Hawkeye; reformed criminal moonstone, now Ms. Marvel; Wolverine's disturbed son Daken, now Wolverine; Venom has been transformed into a new Spider-Man; Kree warrior Marvel Boy took on the mantle of Captain Marvel, and Norman unveiled his new identity... the Iron Patriot.

Norman is also trying to help the powerful Sentry deal with his demons while he continues to deal with his own...

Summary

Veronica Robbins has just been dumped, and embarks on a road trip with her friend Betty Simpson to start her life over again. The pair stop for a break in Dinosaur, Colorado, and soon notice that everyone in the town is a little off. The car two women, and the car they were driving in, soon dissolve into dust and disappear.

Meanwhile, in the Louisiana Bayou, the Dark Avengers attack and kill the Man Thing, who was on Norman Osborn's list of things in the world that he wanted eliminated.

The next morning at Avengers Tower, the team have a chat where Moonstone and Bullseye begin flirting with each other. The group begins to notice that Venom's anti-depressant medication must be off, as he has been acting overly sensitive lately. Daken, the son of Wolverine, remarks that Norman Osborn's second-in-command, Victoria Hand, doesn't seem to know where Osborn is.

Just as she is about to retaliate, Osborn surprises them by walking into the room. Victoria Hand informs him of the two girls who disappeared in Dinosaur, Colorado. Veronica Robbins was the daughter of the Secretary of State, who is asking Osborn and the Dark Avengers to find her as a personal favor. Grudgingly, the Dark Avengers suit up and head to Dinosaur Colorado.

The Sentry is sent ahead to Colorado as the first wave. At first glance, the small town seems absolutely deserted, but the Sentry eventually spots a stranger in a cowboy hat in the distance, who refuses to respond to the Sentry's greeting. From the H.A.M.M.E.R. Helicarrier, the rest of the Dark Avengers watch as the Sentry's hand begins to glow, followed by an explosion that completely annihilates him.

Alarmed, the Dark Avengers fly ahead on hover bikes, during which time Venom's emotional instability gets him sent back to the Helicarrier by Osborn. Moonstone is the first to reach the town, where she has enough time to exclaim that she thinks she knows what is going on, before she too disappears. Norman Osborn barely has time to react, when he suddenly he blacks out.

When he comes to, Norman Osborn is naked and standing in front of a throne covered with skulls and serpents, where sits the Molecule Man, the Beyonder, Mephisto, Zarathos, and the Enchantress. The Molecule Man mockingly tells Osborn that despite all his power, he is not in charge of anything at all.

Quotes

Molecule Man: And there he is. Norman Osborn. King of the World. That's so funny to me... because to us it doesn't look like you're in charge of anything at all.

Commentary

This issue marks the first chronological appearance of the Beyonder in his classic white threads and jheri curl since he was last seen in Fantastic Four #319. Between then and now, he was depicted in his female Kosmos form. A fantastic set up issue, Bendis establishes a great mystery, and the abduction of the Sentry delivers enough shock to keep you interested to see what happens next issue.

Strangely enough, this issue of Dark Avengers has no story title.

The next few Dark Avengers issues are ramping up to Marvel's "Siege" event, where Norman Osborn storms Asgard, currently located above Wisconson, USA. A Siege promotional image has been released, asking "Who is Norman's Secret Weapon?", featuring the Beyonder as one of the options. The Beyonder is a good candidate, as he is the only plot point from Brian Michael Bendis and Brian Reed's New Avengers: Illuminati series that has yet to be followed up on.

It is later revealed that the Beyonder's appearance here is merely a construct created by the powerful Molecule Man. Still, the car that was driven by Veronica Robins and Betty Simpson (and presumably the girls themselves) dissolved into dust in exactly the same way that the Beyonder and his simulated Earth on Ceres did in New Avengers: Illuminati #3. This could either be hinting that the real Beyonder is still in some way involved in this story, or that the Molecule Man was somehow a part of the events of the Illuminati series.

In a way, this issue's cover image has a bit in common with the cover to Secret Wars II #1, in that a group of characters face forward, ready for battle with a mysterious opponent. In fact, the "Who Is The Beyonder?" cover blurb from that issue would not look out of place on Deaodato's image at all!

Up next...

The Beyonder appears next in Dark Avengers #11!