Avengers: Armageddon #3 (Marvel Comics)
Hello there! Padawan J here, the resident Star Wars expert from the ODPH! This week I'm going to be reviewing the 3rd issue of Avengers: Armageddon from Marvel Comics!
Marvel’s big summertime comic event is now here! After a tense build up, the world is in serious danger! The world is seemingly on a knifes edge before the plunge into peril. So will they be able to step back from the edge? Or is it already too late? Let’s jump into it!
Credit: Marvel Comics // Avengers: Armageddon #3 by Chip Zdarsky (Writer), Ario Anindito (Artist), Jesus Aburtov (Color Artist), VC’s Cory Petit (Letterer), Dike Ruan & Moreno Dinisio (Cover)
*** POSSIBLE SPOILER WARNING ***
The Story
This might be the craziest story I’ve read from Marvel in quite some time when it comes to their crossover events. You’ve got what feels like most of the Marvel heroes uniting to deal with the ongoing crisis, while trying to hold the world together even though it’s hanging on by a thread.
Chip Zdarsky is the midst of writing what might be one of the most compelling event stories of the last couple of years, if not in the last 26 years period. It might be a wild statement to read, but stick with me for a minute. You think of some of the major event stories Marvel has done in the last 26 years, they’ve all had major stakes and Earth shattering consequences coming out of them. This series is on it’s third issue the stakes are as high as I’ve ever seen. This isn’t just going to affect the Marvel heroes/villains, this is going to affect the entire planet.
There is A LOT going on in this issue but at no point does it feel overwhelming. There’s a lot of stories outside of this issue getting referenced and playing a factor which is awesome to see those threads finally come in to play. Again though, it doesn’t feel overwhelming and even if you haven’t caught up on those stories Chip makes it easy enough to follow what’s going on and how they play at part in the story being told in the issue.
There are several points in this issue that I had to sit back and re-read what I was reading because Chip takes it to levels I was not expecting at this point in the story. There are several twists in this issue that will leave readers on the edge of their seats and a few moments that will leave you going “holy…” because it’s just that shocking. I have to admit though, as I read through the issue I had this nagging feeling in the back of my mind telling me that this wasn’t going to end well for anyone. It doesn’t take a Reed Richards or Tony Stark level IQ to look at the way things are going to figure that out, but I was NOT expecting it to go the way it does.
The last two pages particularly standout to me in that way. I won’t spoil what happens, but it feels like a turning point for the Marvel Comics universe that will leave things very different from where they were before this whole story started. One is very obvious, the other perhaps less so. It’s easily the most shocking ending Marvel has done in the last couple of years and it’s sure to have a LOT of people talking.
The Artwork
Ario Anindito & Jesus Aburtov are in charge of the artwork for the issue and as good as the story is, you know the art has to rise to the occasion and meet that greatness. Ario & Jesus both rise and exceed those expectations with one of the best drawn Marvel issues of the year. The action really jumps off the page thanks to the artwork and the level of detail in each panel is exceptional. I really enjoyed the level of detail in the panels as it added greatly to how great the story was.
Overall Grade: 10/10
Avengers: Armageddon is the biggest CAN’T MISS series of the year. Chip Zdarsky’s incredible story, together with Ario & Jesus’ spectacular artwork truly make this issue the first one you should read this week.
