Uncanny Avengers #3

With the brain of the recently deceased Charles Xavier inside his own skull, the Red Skull has just become the most powerful telepath on earth. Backed by a handful of super powered individuals under his command, he mind controls human beings into killing any mutants they see, turning New Yorkers into blood thirsty killers. It will take the Avengers and the X-Men everything they have to keep New York City from turning into a permanent war zone.

The Team

Written by Rick Remender (Uncanny X-Force : Final Execution Book 1 & 2, Venom : Circle of Four, Age Of Apocalypse Vol. 1 : The X-Terminated), illustrated by John Cassaday (Astonishing X-Men Vol. 1 : Gifted, I Am Legion, Absolute Planetary) & coloured by Laura Martin. Published by Marvel Comics.

The Pros & Cons

Epic is the word I’d use to describe this issue. I always considered the Red Skull to be a second rate villain, sure he was hot shit during WW2, giving Captain America and American troops more trouble than they can handle, but from the comics I’ve read over the years, he was never more than some Nazi thug with delusions of grandeur. He never achieved villainy greatness like the other big cheeses like Magneto, Doctor Doom or Thanos. Not anymore. Having the Red Skull use Professor X’s brain as his own to cause havoc (not this Havok) was a stroke of genius from writer Rick Remender. RS is still full of hate, but instead of targeting Jews, his focus is on mutants.

The super powered people working for the Red Skull might look a little silly, with even sillier names (Honest John? Seriously?). But looks can be deceiving and they give Wolverine & Thor a run for their money. Ouch. Kudos to John Cassaday for his classic style of illustrations of these familiar heroes clashing with an old school bad guy. Every amazing panel of action comes to life with painstaking details that had me flip the pages back to soak up what I just read.

The Outcome

This is definitely one of Marvel Now’s big guns and it’s a title that just gets better with every new issue. Not to miss.