Avengers by Hickman vol. 2: The Last White Event

I know this came out several months back and that it has since been followed by two more volumes. The thing is now that my copy of “Infinity” has arrived, I figured it’s time to go back and offer my thoughts on it in the interest of having my thoughts on all of Hickman’s run documented here. If you’re thinking that I put this off for so long because I didn’t want to talk about it, that’s not the case. It was out of laziness more than anything else. That being said, even though I loved the first volume in this series, vol. 2 isn’t quite as impressive.

The first volume left off with the happening of the titular “White Event.” We’re told here that this is something which happens when a world is on the verge of ascending on a universal scale. Depending on how long your memory is, you might recall that it’s also something that serves as a creation event for a new superhero universe or for Warren Ellis and Salvador Larroca to recruit Hollywood’s A-list to star in their new comic book. With the ascension comes avatars to shepherd the inhabitants of the world through it, except that this was not a normal “White Event.” All of those proclamations from Captain Universe about the world being broken? We get to see what she means here as there are usually five agents of change for these events. As a “Nightmask,” Adam is one of them, but the protocols for the creation of the rest were either not or improperly followed. The end result is that the new “Starbrand” — a human planetary defense system — winds up obliterating his college in the process.

Seeing the buildup to this is very well-done with some nice misdirection on Hickman’s part as to the identity of the new Starbrand. Some of the scenes are a bit esoteric at first, as the destruction of the things in the “superflow” at the beginning takes a while before its true purpose comes out, yet things eventually do come together and even tie back into the events of the first arc in the series. As it turns out, Ex Nihilo and Abyss are going to have an ongoing role to play in this series and the locations they “seeded” on Earth have a much greater purpose than we were initially shown. If you were unsure about the whole business of the world being broken, this arc actually has some pretty key scenes which allow that idea to make more sense by the end of it.

All this leads up to a somewhat tragic outcome for Nightmask and Starbrand’s first adventure, but one that is marked by lots of perfunctory superhero fighting. Given that Captain America, Iron Man, Thor and the rest of the team have years or even decades of experience with confronting new superheroes in tense situations, they handle things pretty badly here. Only Cap comes off as anything resembling reassuring to the kid while the rest of the people on the scene only bring varying levels of menace and snark. Oh, and they brought Bruce Banner to this encounter as well; because, having him on hand to Hulk out at these things always makes them better. These scenes are enormously unsatisfying given how how well-plotted everything around them is.

The good news is that the majority of the three issues that comprise this arc were illustrated by Dustin Weaver. He previously collaborated with Hickman on “S.H.I.E.L.D.” (which I’ve heard will be completed eventually) and turned in some phenomenal work there. I can only assume the constraints of a monthly schedule are what led to his work being less impressive here, but there are still some fantastic sights on display. The opening scenes of the attack on the station in the superflow have an alien majesty to them while the actual fights, annoying as their presence is, possess real impact. Weaver’s work here also boasts an impressive level of detail overall and it’s clearly to see that he’s fully committed to making the weirdness of Hickman’s sci-fi ideas work on the page.

It’s likely that level of detail Weaver puts into his work that led to Mike Deodato Jr. having to fill in on the last few pages of this arc. Deodato also handles the last two issues in this collection and his work here boasts a more computer-generated look to it than it has in the past. It’s still consistent with his overall style, and the storytelling of these issues is clear enough, but the art has a more artificial look to it that I don’t find all that appealing.

As for the stories themselves, the first is an effective bit of sci-fi paranoia and suspense. After Canada’s Alpha Flight team goes missing after investigating one of the sites seeded by Ex Nihilo, the Avengers are called in to investigate by S.H.I.E.L.D. and Department H. They make their way into the site which is now fully overgrown with wildlife, inhabited by little pygmy beings along with what looks like Validator from Alpha Flight. Things end with both sides keeping lots of secrets and some clear foreshadowing for future events.

The last story in this collection is the most fun as Black Widow, Captain Marvel, Sunspot, Cannonball, Spider-Woman, and Shang Chi all head out to Macau to interfere with A.I.M.’s plan to sell their latest bioweapon. Each of the characters have their own role to play in this plot which helps each thread to stand out. Captain Marvel matches wits with one A.I.M.’s representative over several rounds of Texas Hold ‘Em, Cannonball and Sunspot bond with some of A.I.M.’s gunts over craps, while Black Widow and Spider-Woman get to know some of the buyers. There’s suspense, black humor — epitomized by Black Widow and Spider-Woman’s rendition-themed “Who’s on First” bit — and good-natured camaraderie from all of these scenes that makes them all quite memorable. I’m even willing to forgive the fact that Hickman’s take on Cannonball and Sunspot as the broest of bros is at odds with how they’ve been characterized over the years.

However, the standout here is Shang-Chi as the calm, confident martial-arts master owns every scene that he’s in. The man may not have the most dialogue, but his inner monologue flows quite well with his fight scenes and he’s the one who ultimately gets the job done here. I like this take on the character and I hope we get to see more of him as Hickman’s run goes on.

“The Last White Event” isn’t the home run I was expecting to follow on from the first volume. The main arc isn’t served well by the superhero fight scenes which ultimately felt shoehorned into the main plot. Yet everything around them, and the issues that follow do a better job of building up anticipation for what’s coming next in Hickman’s run. I certainly want to see what happens next even if this isn’t representative of the writer’s best work.