Random Happenstance

So the other day I got my pre-order in for the Marvel Legends Crystal and Lockjaw, and I also had some credit that I put towards the slightly marked down Sersi and Black Knight set. Sersi looks great, although it's a shame she probably won't get her classic green outfit look; while Black Knight looks like an angry dork, like his helmet and/or his codpiece are too tight. (The former, probably; the latter, unlikely.) Still, I didn't really read Avengers regularly, for the long stretch they were basically the leads; but conveniently enough, the quarter bin provides one from that era: from 1992, Avengers #354, "The Conqueror Worm" Written by Len Kaminski, pencils by M.C. Wyman, inks by Steve Alexandrov and Ariane Lenshoek.

The issue opens with a disclaimer: "We strongly advise that anyone with a heart condition, or who is easily upset, put this issue of Avengers back on the rack right now." And break up your collection? The Grim Reaper has played the old Legion of the Unliving card, a plotline used so often it actually has its own trade paperback! It boils down to, let's take a bunch of dead bad guys and throw them at the Avengers again; which opens another can of worms when somebody gets brought back later and maybe wasn't dead at the time: are these really the spirits of who they're supposed to be, or just demons or whatever playing the part? The latter explanation kinda sucks the air out of the concept, though: it'd diminish any emotional stakes.

I was going to say it was a sign of the times, but it actually seems a bit early: this time around, the Legion guys are more cadaverous and zombie-like, and seem largely intent on eating their foes. The injured Black Knight isn't doing great against three originals: Black Knight, Baron Zemo, and Red Guardian; even though he had a goddamn light saber--excuse me, "photonic sword"--and should be cutting those corpses into mulch. (Also, the Red Guardian bites right though BK's chainmail pants!) Vision is faring better, while Hercules gets pounded by Count Nefaria and...I don't know if that's a generic demon, or a deep-fried Stegron the Dinosaur Man. (He had a weird head and tail, but maybe lacked Stegron's sibilance; probably not him.) Crystal and Sersi can't seem to stop their respective foes: Sersi has Nebulon the Celestial Man, who is able to reverse her molecular transformations. The Vision makes his way to the Grim Reaper, who is watching all this via a magic flame and cackling like crazy. This was the white, emotionless Vision; so he couldn't fear the Reaper, as it were; but instead points out his illogical reasoning: the Avengers didn't murder him, the Reaper had killed himself. The Reaper is surprised to remember this, but doing so breaks his hold on the Legion, which immediately turns on him. Seriously, they make great time, it takes the Avengers another page to get there, and they do so in time to see a giant creepy hand with eyes grab the Reaper. That's one of the old Nameless Ones we've seen mentioned before, this one's named Lloigoroth...hey, wait a minute!

The Avengers are returned to earth, and head out for coffee. Next month, the book's regular creative team would be back, as the Proctor storyline continued. Despite the disclaimer, that felt like a pretty tame issue? It's not that I'm jaded or hardened inside; I don't think it would've hit harder in '92 either. I don't know if I'd recommend that Legion of the Unliving trade--even the Busiek/Perez story is alright, but I still don't think the dead Avengers used in that one were 'real.' Get Avengers Annual #16, though: it's the second of a two-parter, but reads just fine on its own, it's great! (Well, it's well-done fun; it's not Maus or anything, you know what I mean.)