The Good
The Avengers return back to Earth only to find that there's a whole bunch of threats from across the globe.
What's great about this volume, spinning out of the last one, is that it explores the idea that one team of Avengers isn't enough to stop the evils in the world. The team is a bit more expanded, so Avengers can spread out to stop numerous threats. The mixture of characters from the Marvel universe is something that's really cool about this book. AVENGERS WORLD lets underused characters like Cannonball, Sunspot, and Hyperion shine here.
We don't want to spoil anything that happens here, but what we will tell you is that this first issue is filled with thrills and dare we say...chills? There's quite a few "no way!" moments in this premiere issue.Writers Jonathan Hickman& Nick Spencer have crafted an exciting and interesting issue. Hickman is a bit more high concept and Spencer's writing is a bit more down to Earth. These writers work extremely well together. It's a mixture of both of their styles. We get the ideas that Hickman's been using in his AVENGERS book, with a little bit more flare in the dialogue, which we see in Spencer's SUPERIOR FOES.
On the art side of things, Stefano Caselli (art) and Frank Martin (colors) really set the tone for this book, especially in the color department. This book looks very dark, and it works extremely well. The line work in the character's faces looks fantastic. It's soft and subtle, but adds a lot of detail and emotion. There's quite a few splash pages within this book as well. Caselli and Martin really keep this book interesting and fresh with their art.
The Bad
This isn't very new reader friendly. This book is a spin-off of Hickman's AVENGERS volume, so new readers, who didn't read that last volume, will be left a bit in the cold.
The other problem with this book is that it packs a bit too much into the first issue. It's pretty obvious that Hickman and Spencer are throwing the reader into a world of chaos and that spreads the Avengers across the world, much like the title of the book. However, because so much is happening, it's a bit easy for the reader to get a tad lost within this large story, filled with smaller events.
The Verdict
Obviously, we don't want to give away too much with this first issue, but what we can say is that it was a great start to a new series. AVENGERS WORLD focuses on just what you think it would, the Avengers helping out the rest of the world. Writers Hickman and Spencer mesh incredibly well together as a writing team. I love the team we see here, and the art is wonderful. On the downside, this isn't a new reader friendly book. Sure, you could just pick it up and give it a go, but it's better to read a bit of the last volume of AVENGERS. AVENGERS WORLD is exciting and shows a lot of promise. Overall, I highly recommend this issue.