Casey's Book of the Week: 8-22-07

Avengers: The Initiative #5

Even though there've only been five issues of this title, it'd take me while a while to explain everything that's happened so far. If you've been paying attention to the Marvel Universe at all over the past year you know all about the Super Human Registration Act the Fifty States Initiative. Anyone with powers wishing to put on a costume and fight evil doers must register with the government. Young and/or new heroes must report to Camp Hammond in Stamford, CT for training. Once they've been put through the ringer and earned their stripes they'll be assigned to one of fifty teams, one for each state. I hardly think Rhode Island needs it's own super hero team, but I digress. This book tells the story of those young and/or new heroes. That's the bare-bones basics of The Initiative.

Writer Dan Slott does a fantastic job of creating new characters and dusting off obscure ones to be the stars of his book. Not only does he make them work within the book, he makes them work in the greater context of the Marvel Universe. Case in point, this issue features two separate teams of trainees facing off against the rampaging Hulk.

There's the action, the angst, and the drama of a great team book. There's even a compelling mystery going on with another set to start next issue. Shining a spotlight directly on registration and The Initiative (the good and the bad), this book is one of the most important in the post-Civil War Marvel U.