Continuing the popular trend of slapping curious comic book readers in the face with a $5 pricetag, Marvel is at it again with this summer’s (second?) big blockbuster event titled INFINITY. Is it just me or did Marvel’s other big summer event comic just wrap up 2 months ago with AGE OF ULTRON #10? Hmm, o well. At least INFINITY has some direct ties to a couple of books that have been coming out over the past year. So should you care about this book!?
In short, yes, I think this 6-part mini-series will be worth your time especially if you are surfing on the currently-popular AVENGERS wave that seems to still be getting bigger and bigger. Jonathan Hickman (FF) has been building up to this epic event for over a year with his consistently awesome work on the MARVEL NOW! titles THE AVENGERS and NEW AVENGERS. Those two books have legitimately been building up to this event which gives it purpose but may seem a bit daunting for those who have not been keeping up. Here is a quick blurb from the synopsis to see if this is something you’re interested in:
Earth has been marked as an “Avengers World”, protected by Iron Man, Captain America, Thor and more from the deadliest threats facing humanity. A powerful and destructive race is on a collision course with Earth and the only thing in their path is the Avengers! But even Earth’s Mightiest Heroes realize the one hope of defeating this dire threat is to unite every great hero across the cosmos…because only with a united Avengers Universe is there any chance of survival!
That said, Marvel has always been great at letting readers jump into a story or major event without skipping a beat due to the great “previously on” sections that typically grace the front page of each issue. Basically I’d say if you enjoy The Avengers universe, and have a basic knowledge of the characters, then you should jump on for this event.
The major plus here is that Hickman wrote the buildup (for about a year) and Hickman is writing the mini-series. This will be great for consistencies sake and prove to have a great payoff if he plays his cards right. And while I prefer a single artist per event, INFINITY will feature artwork by a rotating team of artists including Jim Cheung, Jerome Opeña, and Dustin Weaver. Could be cool due to the talent on board, but a single artist would have been appreciated especially since this event is only 6 issues long.
The the main question here is pretty simple. Should I buy this book? My advice (and what do I know?) would be to “Stick with Hickman”. If you are extremely interested, catch up on Hickman’s run of THE AVENGERS (#1-17) and NEW AVENGERS (#1-7) and then lead into this event. As with most events, there will surely be a shitload of tie-ins. Again, my main advice here is “stick with Hickman”. Tie-ins can be fun if you have a favorite character you want to focus on, but if you are looking for relevance, the main rule-of-thumb is to stick with the tie-ins by the original writer.
Issue #1 of 6 of Marvel’s INFINITY is on store shelves now! It’s selling out fast and the promise of a second print is already on the way. If you are a collector, get your happy ass to the comic store now to secure your first print #1 issue NOW! Happy reading!
In the San Francisco area looking for your next AVENGERS comic book fix? If so, Check out MISSION: COMICS & ART. They’ve got you covered!
