(I originally read these comics in early/mid February 2016)
Thought I'd carry on with volume 3 of Avengers, having read Kurt Busiek's run on the title over the past couple of years. Now it's Geoff Johns' turn to chronicle the adventures of Earth's Mightiest Heroes, but his run is underwhelming. (I think it dates from before he was a really heavy hitter at DC.) After a Vision limited series that apparently plays fast and loose with the character's origins, Johns launches into 'World Trust,' in which the Avengers are declared a world power by the United Nations as major cities from around the world disappear into swirling energy voids. The three-part crossover 'Standoff' crossover has nice Alan Davis art, but is thin on plot. 'Red Zone' is next, where a flesh-eating virus is launched from beneath Mount Rushmore. His last major arc, 'The Search for She-Hulk,' deals with Shulkie's powers having gone out of control, but we've seen the same thing in dozens of issues of her cousin's mag and it's nothing new. However, at least the story returns Hawkeye to the team. Aside from perhaps the first one, none of these really feel like Avengers tales. Johns' run is now probably best remembered for an embarrassingly incongruous and inappropriate sex scene between Hank Pym and the Wasp in issue # 71.
Juvenile garbage like this has led many fans to regard Marvel comics as having long since entered the realm of fan fiction.
I wasn't looking forward to reading Chuck Austen's succeeding run as it's where I gave up reading the title twelve years ago and Austen went on to become one of the most reviled Marvel scribes of modern times. His run isn't quite as terrible as feared, but it ain't good. His 'Lionheart of Avalon' arc introduces a new, female Captain Britain (later 'Lionheart') and his British dialogue is cringeworthy. (Even worse than Chris Claremont's, and that's saying summat.) The 'Once an Invader' arc spawns a new series, which I'll review in the next post.
The Vision (2002) # 1-4, Avengers (1998) # 57-63, Thor (1998) # 58 and Iron Man (1998) # 64 are collected in:
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The Vision (2002) # 1-4 are collected in:
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Avengers (1998) # 57-62 are collected in:
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Avengers (1998) # 57-61 are collected in:
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Avengers (1998) # 62-64, Thor (1998) # 58 and Iron Man (1998) # 64 are collected in:
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Thor (1998) # 58, Iron Man (1998) # 64 and Avengers (1998) # 63 are collected in:
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Avengers (1998) # 64-76 are collected in:
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Avengers (1998) # 64-70 are collected in:
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Avengers (1998) # 64 is collected in:
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Avengers (1998) # 65-70 are collected in:
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Avengers (1998) # 71-76 are collected in:
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Avengers (1998) # 77-81 are collected in:
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Avengers (1998) # 82-84 and New Invaders # 0 are collected in:
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