Thursday, May 22, 2008

Wait until the story's done, killer.

SECRET INVASION #2 SPOILERS AHOY. You have been warned.

Secret Invasion's excitement is starting to fizzle on me. As the side Avengers books go on about Nick Fury's new team, and the backstory of the Skrull invasion force, the main story itself seems to be tossing as many possible characters into the mix as humanly possible to confuse readers and characters alike as to who may actually be a Skrull. This comes as a misfire to me, as the paranoia should be represented amongst the heroes themselves, not by putting them face-to-face with doppelgangers to force the issue. But beyond that, it also gives the opportunity for fans to see some of the deceased characters back - and give them the hope that maybe, just maybe, the likes of Phoenix and Captain America will be back amongst the living.

So when Mockingbird made a convincing argument as to her authenticity, fans got really excited, while comic cynics (i.e. - bloggers like me) bitched that the thing didn't fit in with the continuity of the character. I have two issues with this argument. First, this happened in issue #2 of an 8 issue mini-series. Why are they going on like this is set in stone? Let the story play out, then feel free to bitch about the ramifications. If this Mockingbird is the real deal and she makes it out of the story, then she's fair game. Until then, rein it in and try to enjoy the story.

Second, Mockingbird died in Avengers West Coast #100, which came out in 1993 (by cover date). There is no way that any of this could have been planned back then, so why is it so hard to swallow that things would have to be adjusted to fit? Of course Mockingbird didn't revert to a Skrull when she died. Secret Invasion was still over a decade away from being planned! No one complained about sticking the Illuminati back into Marvel continuity, so this hubub needs to quiet down...bub.

But really, there will be complainers about any story, so this is not surprising. I'll pass judgment if I feel the need when it wraps up. Hits and misses, if you will. However, I realize that I'm no one special - I just write them out because anyone who may be reading this obviously is somewhat interested in what I have to say about it. Marvel will keep doing what they do despite what I think, and unlike some people I've noticed, I'm cool with that.

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