Avengers The Initiative - Volume 3: Secret Invasion [Hardcover]

This is one of several tie-ins to Marvel's latest event, the Secret Invasion. It's also one of the few that may be enjoyed either individually or as a tie-in.

As a result of last year's Civil War event, three of Marvel's "big brains" (Reed Richards, Tony Stark, and Hank Pym) developed a list of 100 ideas to make the world a better place. One of Hank Pym's ideas was the 50 State Initiative, which would train superheroes and place them in each of the 50 United States as established government teams. Now, thanks to the Secret Invasion, Hank Pym stands revealed as a Skrull infiltrator. The 50 State Initiative has a few secrets, and the entire country has been infiltrated by the shape-shifting and world-conquering Skrulls. With the Skrulls keeping the usual heroes occupied, it's up to the unusual, untrained, and inexperienced heroes of the Initiative to win this war.

Cowriters Dan Slott and Christos N. Gage have spent the better part of a year establishing the recruits, drawing inspiration from all sorts of interesting but unused characters from Marvel's substantial history. The writing team delivers as they always do on this title: the reader knows the necessary background for all members of a diverse cast, gets filled in on what they need to know from the main event, and is entertained the entire time. This is written as realistically as a story about shape-changing alien invaders and superhuman defenders can be. The recruits are rookies, and they don't all survive. They react to the stress differently, with reactions ranging from leading the charge to cowering in the darkest available corner. This is filled with humour and tragedy alike, and most importantly, tells a story that is interested when viewed in or out of the context of the main event.

The art teams are varied. In fact, the only negative comment I have is that the art teams rotate too often, leading to slightly jarring changes between issues. Each individual art team is good; I'd have been happy if any of the teams (of which there were at least three) had done the entire collection. The styles aren't tremendously dissimilar, but you'll know when you've gone from one to the other.

In general, "Avengers: The Initiative" has been one of the most consistently dependable titles Marvel has published where quality is concerned, and that quality is preserved here. Of all of the tie-ins I've read (and I made a point of reading all 24) this is the most enjoyable. I highly recommend it, whether you've read the main event or not; it stands on its own just as well.

The Initiative is probably one of the best Avengers books around. I was initially hesitant to buy a book that I perceived as a "Junior Avengers" kind of theme but the series has been rock solid in all three graphic novels to date.

The main appeal of the Initiative are its young characters. (Apart from Tony Stark, the book is less about the traditional Avengers who are hardly around, and puts ancillary characters like Gyrich to the fore.) Their naivete and the events that engulf them make this a compelling read - this is essentially a book about heroes who have no real control over their powers or situation, but have to soldier on somehow. Volume 3: Secret Invasion brings all this to head.

The success of the Initiative is precisely its ability to keep us guessing. I feel like if Marvel plays it right - they have a book that would be at least as interesting as the X-men. Remember when the new X-men came out 30 years ago?

I'm a fan of Dan Slott's writing - he keeps it fluid and though usually humourous, he steers the book into darker territory. Our would be heroes find themselves in a whole new game. This isn't about good vs. bad anymore. Since Marvel triggered the House of M and Civil War, it's a lot more and no-one really knows where they stand.

Remarkably, this book resolves one of the most important storylines in the Secret Invasion series - which I found interesting. Why pick The Initiative to do the big reveals? Maybe Marvel's powers-that-be have deemed this a series with potential.

While the Avengers comprises of its legacy line, The Initiative hints towards Marvel's evolution. They're not primetime yet, but they're worth checking out.

› Go to Amazon.com to see both reviews  4.5 out of 5 stars