Jonathan Hickman’s Amazing Never Ending Avengers Story

24 Issues over 240 pages and we are
just getting to the prelude? WTF

Jonthan Hickman and the Marvel Universe is a match made in Omnibus heaven because his muther f**king stories will need Omnibus treatment to try and collect one story in it.  

Hickman’s Fantastic  Four story went on forever and I can’t even remember much about the conclusion, except future Franklin saved the world or universe. By the time we got to the end I had cancelled the title and then picked up a trade or two to catch up and the story still had not ended. He managed to add the Future Foundation and tried to age Johnny a couple of years. Johnny already is being written by Fraction like that never happened. The bottom line was after four years or what ever the impact to the title was minimal. Some great ideas as Hickman always has been a forgettable experience.

Now we have Hickman on Avengers. His current Avengers run is about 16 issues (and what 10 on New Avengers) in and we have the Builders, the New Universe characters involved, endless worlds being destroyed, the Black Swan, various parts of the globe changing and now it is all leading into the big Infinity event. Come on man, can’t you just tell us a story or two in a six issues. At this point by the time you get to the grand finale I will not even remember why I was reading this story. Hickman has these wonderful grandiose ideas that make Morrison seem like the only drug he has used is caffeine. The problem is it makes the characters into bit players in his drama. I see Hickman as almost being too diffused and unable to focus enough to get in and get out with his story. Every damn story does not have to be involved as Games of Thrones.

Guaranteed to be launching the
Inhumans series and at least one
more book by the time it ends.

 The Avengers work when you have the great team dynamics and fighting some cool villains or impossible menace but Hickman has them handling crisis or some many fronts even as a reader I can’t keep it all straight. Worse they try and tie the continuity together by explaining how Reed Richard and Tony Stark are doing what they are doing in other books and still finding time to be in the Avengers and/or the Illuminati. Now we find out it is just building up to a new Infinity event. It makes me long for the dragged out six issue Daredevil arcs under Bendis.

Even worse it seems like Marvel just uses one event to launch new books to go into the next event. Age of Ultron was a disaster that just set up story arcs. This never ending story may end the same way.

Let’s face I’m willing to commit to books and give writers a chance by Hickman seems to be living up to his full potential on East of West, while at Marvel he has so many great ideas and he decided to use them all at once.

Story – beginning middle and end, it should not take 24 issues to get to the prelude of the event you are writing.

Kyle Rayner is TOO DAMN YOUNG as is the rest of the DCU

Pre the New 52 Kyle

Baby Kyle in the New 52

The new DCU has made all of the characters so young that there is no way any of them have any gravitas to them anymore. Check out Kyle Rayner in this picture he looks like he is 14 years old at best.  It is just ridiculous to assume that Batman has only been around six years, has had at least three Robins and done all that he has in that short of a time. Before we were able to just think it may have been years or never know the exact timing, but since Batman appeared to be in his 40’s at this point (or late 30’s) we could at least think the story had some level of comic book believability. Now Green Arrow and the rest all look like kids and could be in the teen titans. Also, almost half the characters look the same Steve Trevor, Aquaman, John Constatine and a few others could be doppelgangers.

New 52 Kyle - Can't Buy a beer yet. 

Baby Face Steve