9 Stars out of 10
“Avengers Undercover takes a more human approach that many other comics will not and cannot.”-Riley Thompson
Launched in March of this year this new series is the creative project of Dennis Hopeless an up and coming writer who is new to the comic book scene and the amazing artist Kev Walker. Kev Walker’s background in the art world is extensive and he delivers in this series with bright visual displays that even the most snobby art major would appreciate. The other creator of this series Dennis made his first big debut with Avengers Arena and is continuing the story of those characters in this series Avengers Undercover.
Avengers Arena the series leading up to Avengers Undercover tells the story of what happens when a mad man named Arcade becomes inspired by the hunger games and kidnaps an assortment of super powered teens. He then traps them on and an island rigged with deadly puzzles he then makes them fight to the death. The darkness of the original series is complimented nicely by the realistic dialogue of the teenage hero’s conversations that is easily relatable and extremely human.
This same creative dialogue and human approach continues in Avengers Undercover as the remaining teens learn to live with the choices they made back in the arena. The series starts with the footage of their time on the island being leaked to the internet making the teen’s overnight celebrities living in infamy. The teens then are approached by a cabal of villains to become “bad guys” themselves. The young hero’s decide to go along with that plan to go undercover and stop them but realize they may have gotten in two deep and that some of their friends are no longer pretending.
The plot isn’t the most original thing you’ve ever read but what is intriguing and makes you come back to this series is the journey of each character as they realize they may not be as heroic as they previously thought. Most readers will be able to relate to each character from Hazmat a girl who can’t be near other without a containment suit in fear of killing them to Anarchism whose powers come with a downside of causing him to have anger management issues. This series shows that even though they’re super powered being a teenager is tough and that growing up means discovering things about yourself that might
All that being said there are some downsides for many readers interested in picking up this series. First off many of the characters are from other more obscure series so they are not the familiar faces you see in the movies over the summer. Additionally it is highly recommended that you read the first series in order more understand the content and characters of this series.
Overall I would highly recommend this comic book to anyone looking to get into the genre, the back story isn’t too complex and confusing unlike other long standing series. Also it is part of a new attitude in comics that has taken place in marvel in the recent years. This new attitude can be appreciated by most readers. To read this comic you can find it at local shops, Heebeegeebeez, Death Ray Comics and Hastings.
A review by Riley M. Thompson
