Avengers Versus X-Men, Zenith Phase III and absolutely NOT a shameless plug for anything I've done.

Heroes on the run as super heroes become possessed by a dark force/entity.  The world changing about them as the heroes mount a last ditch resistance.  Using a pan-dimensional device to get from one point to the other. Eventually defeating the god-like opposition.

Yeah, yeah, yeah.  Avengers Vs X-Men...2012.

What does Wikipedia say?

"Avengers vs. X-Men (abbreviated AvX) is a 2012 crossover event that was featured in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The event, consisting of an eponymous limited series and numerous tie-in books, involves the return of the Phoenix Force and the subsequent war between the Avengers and the X-Men. The 12-issue twice-monthly series was first published in April 2012, and features a storyline by Jason Aaron, Brian Michael Bendis, Ed Brubaker, Jonathan Hickman and Matt Fraction, with a rotating team of artists including John Romita, Jr., Olivier Coipel and Adam Kubert."

Now, let me explain what happened.  I was walking through a book store in Bristols Union Street when I saw some, presumably, sale item trades.  One was Avengers Vs X-Men and had a price of £5.99.  The book has 372 pages and  collects Avengers Versus X-Men #0 and 1-12.  On Ebay some crooks are asking for £45-70 which is $73-122.00 or 57-97 E:-   Am I going to say "no"?

A clue to the answer is: (1) I've ready everything I have so many times its monotonous. (2) I bought the book.

So I sat down at 21:00 hrs and read the book in one long session --finishing about 01:00 hrs since I look at the art and don't just read through!  All the way through the book I kept thinking "I'm sure I've seen this all before?"  

Now, I have mentioned before that Avengers versus X-Men is not a new idea -1960s, 1970s, 1980s.  But this time round it was 'different' but let's not get into that.  Somewhere on this blog, if you can find it, you can read it.   But let's deal with the 'epic' itself.

Were this another comic company using its own characters then it might have all worked. In fact, part through I just switched off 'Marvel' and continued.  Then no real problem.  But, seriously, far from being a "landmark pop-culture event" it was more akin to a "landmark slap-it-all-together-and-see-how-it-turns-out" event.

Firstly, we have Prince Namor The Sub-Mariner.  I have a run of the 1960s series and just one story from that run wipes this AvX crap into the pan.  Namor is treated as one of the "big guns" of the X-Men since he was "Marvels First Mutant"  (no, I am NOT going there).  Well, in fact he is treated a little like Aquaman is said to have been treated -as a joke. 

The Thing and Luke Cage are smashing the crap out of Namor's face (UNDERWATER TO BOOT!!! W T F????) and what does the Scion of Atlantis do? He limply starts saying "Imperius Rex".  I am NOT kidding.  Cue another fight and Namor again getting the crap beaten out of him.  His response? "Imperius Rex" but it gets worse.  At another point he is transported by a pan-dimensional/Einstein-Rosenberg Bridge/Boom Tube type device to another location and as he looks up he says...."Imperius Rex". 

 I say there and, almost stunned.  This is the best that such 'Great' writers could come up with? Let me give you an equation here:

Luke Cage invulnerability/strength v Sub-Mariner. Invulnerable, flies, super-super strength =Luke Cage delivered home in a doggy bag.  Fact.

Ben Grimm aka The Thing -tough but has never beaten the Hulk.  Namor has pummeled the Hulk and even fought him to a stand-still underwater and on solid ground.  The Thing -again- has never beaten the Hulk. So...Thing v Sub-Mariner =Thing sent home in a doggy bag.  Underwater Cage + Thing =Sub-Mariner delivered back to Fishy Al's in Atlantis is a dogfish bag.

No FECKIN way!!

Namor is treated like some inferior third rate hanger-on. Even with the "phoenix force" he is.....crap.

Very very very poor characterisation.  However, as Bendis et al have shown they have no real interest in the characters what can you expect.  It's all ego massaging and pay cheques to them.

Dr Strange Master of the Mystic Arts is tricked in the most dumb-ass way by young Illyana and gets creamed.  This is, I assume, NOT the Dr Strange who defeated Nightmare, Mephisto and any other number of demons and supernatural threats? NOT the Dr Strange who was involved in the Sise-Neg Genesis? Or any of the major stories you'll find in his Marvel Premiere, Strange Tales or Dr Strange comics? Again, the Sorceror Supreme is a third rate character.

If you are going to throw in so many characters get a writer who CAN handle them --Kurt Busiek for one. Oh, I was forgetting that he has integrity.

The story-telling was very shaky and odd. I actually read this twice which is why it took me so long. Pacing seemed to be all over the place at times. I'll not mention characterisation again. Nova -another cast off character.  

In one scene, Wanda The Scarlet Witch is invited back to Avengers Mansion.  Here her 'ex'(?) husband, the synthezoid Vision, tears into her telling her it is no longer her home and she is no longer welcome.  Now, she was invited back there BY Avengers and Tony Stark (I assume he still owns Avengers Mansion?) stands by as one of his oldest friends is told to "go feck off" but just says to, after: "I get it. I just always liked them together"....well, feck you, Tony.

Oh, and the kicker to this is that (I'm sobbing now -see that tear running down my cheek?) the Vision has his back turned to the others and is 'crying' -how poignant.  No, not really. Just a bad...er..."hommage" to the famous "Even An android can cry" panel from Avengers v.1, no.58

When I saw that page (Avengers 58) first it really had an impact on me.  Even decades later I consider that to be one of the most iconic images from the comic.  In A v X it had no impact what-so-ever.  I'd call it "naff".

The art.  Well, there was not a great deal wrong there. Oddly, John Romita Jnr art shone through. Figures, colour -all seemed to work well.  Frank Cho -well, he's Frank Cho!  But this book showed the major problem if you have more than one artist.  Yes, pick a good artist for pencils (if they use pencils any more) and a good inker. Give them the script and get to work. Yes, I know, two books BUT it's not a race to see how many crises a year you can produce....is it?

I had to keep checking while reading as Illyana looked different depending on who drew her, Emma Frost -ditto. And what the Hell was this costume -lack-of-design that was going on? Okay, Emma Frost (the character with the odd, changing personality) doesn't wear that much BUT it looked like they were trying to outdo Cher's outfit from the "Turn Back Time" video!

The focus of the story, the character Hope, attacks the Serpent Society during a robbery and this line is part of the dialogue:

"You mean your friend with the tail and big spiky arms? Did you guys know those arms are cybernetic?  I didn't.  Until i cut them off."

And then I got it:

Above: page 61 (in sequence) of Zenith Phase III: War In Heaven, 1988

Coincidence?  

Hmm. The Lloigor defeat and take over the bodies of heroes.  Heroes from other parallels are fighting these creatures as the world changes around them.  They use an Einstein-Rosen Bridge to travel from one point to another.

Hey, Wikipedia -whaddaya say?

Zenith Phase III involved a multi-dimensional war against the Lloigor utilizing comic-book characters from other British comics from the '50s, '60s and '70s (using either the actual characters or analogs, depending on their legal status). The Lloigor, close to "ascending" and dominating the universe(s), were waiting for the infinite alternate universes to align and form a universe-sized crystal –- the "Omnihedron". The multi-universal heroes destroed several alternate Earths to introduce a flaw into the Omnihedron and prevent the alignment, but discovered that they had been betrayed by Maximan: the destruction of the worlds removed a flaw already present in the Omnihedron. Only at the last moment did they succeed by destroying the alternate Earth that the Lloigor were using to ascend. Due to the vast cross-dimensional body count incurred in this series, a surviving superhero commented that it may have been "...a pyrrhic victory".

Hmm. A bit like the end to the whole Avengers Versus X-Men thing, you mean?

Now, Zenith ran in 2000 ADand it was criticised by some as consisting of "scratchy" artwork.  Sheer and utter crap.  Steve Yeowell produced a comic strip and art that is truly "of the time" -Punk, New Wave, Acid House --it's all there.  Phase III, from which the art here is taken was probably the best of the stories.  Series writer, Grant Morrison described it, modestly, as "I think it is one of the greatest superhero crossover events ever."

Hmm. It is good. I'd say Crisis On Infinite Earth at #1 with Zenith at #2 but that's comparing it to American comics.  By itself I think Zenith Phase III can't really be beaten.  Yes, I know, there are certain people now calling me all sorts of names!  I am not a big Grant Morrison fan.  I like some of his books just as I like some of Alan Moore's...but, no, I just ain't getting into that arguement.

You know, there are so many comparisons that I keep thinking "What are the chances?"  Well, I have said it before, written it ad nauseum so let's add a bit more nauseum to the ad shall we?

There are in most genres, 6-7 story plots.  Or basic ideas.  The difference comes in how you develop and use those genre plots. Yeas, folk can say Zenith was "like" Crisis On Infinite Earths but it was also quite different.

The gathering of heroes to go on a quest or fight a powerful foe is millenia old -Jason and the Argonauts is possibly the most famous but you also have Homer's The Illiad, set in the last weeks of the Trojan War -sigh.  The movie "Troy" in case you don't read the Classics.  So that is part of story-telling -whether the ancient or Medieval (such as Arthur and the Round Table) or even the modern super hero.  The main hero in a group  is also a common theme -Robin Hood, Hector and so on.

Now, unless I want to get out all my old 2000 ADs and read the Zenith strips the difference is that Crisis was collected into a trade paperback so you can read it in one book.  Avengers Versus X-Men was collected into a trade (unbelievably there is a 140pp version with "expanded fight scenes"???).  Zenith, however, has only appeared in no longer available Titan Books (someone is 'willing to sell' one of these for £400!!). And Rebellion Studios released a very -VERY- over-priced collection, and I know there are plans for single volumes but....

Off topic.  Back to topic.

 Having read the entire Avengers Versus X-Men trade I can say that it is NOT that well written considering the writers are over-hyped as "Today's modern masters of comic book story-telling".  If that's true "We're fecked, mate!"  Characterisation is not good.  As I've already noted, if this were an Indie comic company book I'd be more impressed but it isn't.  This is from what used to be Marvel Comics.  And they still use the "House of Ideas" blurb?!

It's what happens if you have five hyped egoes who then get their stories turned into a script by one of their number -Bendis in this case.  And here is what I like as the punchline for a story that comes out as passable.

Two Assistant Editors
One Associate Editor
One Editor  (come on, Tom Brevoort -who I used to respect- couldn't edit his lunch!)
One Consulting Editor
One Editor In Chief
One Chief Creative Officer snicker

One Executive Producer

That's five -FIVE- editors!  "Chief Creative Officer" -if ever a job title said "Yes- man -free lunches"  it's that one.  "Executive Producer".....WTF???  Did he have the "casting couch" for the characters cus that might explain WHY Namor was treated like crap. He ain't biting the pillow for anyone.  He likes his women!  Executive Producer: "You don't put out you don't get, Namor"  Namor:"Im...per...ius....Rex"

I may be a bit cruel.  If you don't have any interest in the decades long history of the characters and a good read that won't challenge you then this is it.  I'm sure many did enjoy this book.  Really, people, do yourself a favour and go buy Avengers Forever by Kurt Busiek (a GOOD writer) and Carlos Pachecco -a great artist!  You'll see epic story-telling.

There's that other book.... a 330 pages thick epic somewhere -gods, sci fi, robots, super heroes, magic, alien invasion, Lovecraftian dark old ones...no. Can't remember what it's called again.

Ah -THAT'S THE JOHNNY!

Editor Terry Hooper-Scharf

Writer  Terry Hooper-Scharf

Penciller Terry Hooper-Scharf

Inker Terry Hooper-Scharf

Lettewring  Terry Hooper-Scharf   :-)

Design  Terry Hooper-Scharf

Publisher Terry Hooper-Scharf

Medication  Terry Hooper-Scharf

A4

Black & White

Paperback

331 Pages

STAND ALONE BOOK -no tie-ins to buy!!

Price: £15.00

Ships in 3–5 business days

 http://www.lulu.com/shop/terry-hooper-scharf/the-return-of-the-godstwilight-of-the-super-heroes/paperback/product-20981003.html

It begins slowly with Earth’s heroes going about their daily tasks –fighting a giant robot controlled by a mad scientist’s brain , attackers both human and mystical -even alien high priests of some mysterious cult and their zombie followers and, of course, a ghost and a young genius lost in time.

 Pretty mundane. 

But there is a huge alien Mother-ship near the Moon and strange orange spheres chase some of Earth’s heroes who vanish into thin air –are they dead? 

Then black, impenetrable domes cover cities world-wide. 

Alien invasion of Earth! 

A war between the Dark Old Gods and the pantheons that followed! 

Warriors from Earth’s past having to battle each day and whether they die or not they are back the next day! 

And no one suspects the driving force behind the events that could cause destruction and chaos throughout the multi-verse —assaulted on all fronts can Earth’s defenders succeed or will they fail...is this truly the end?



And, crypticaly, might I add -Andrew Hope should remember this: The Wonderland Effect