Hello again faithful readers! I know its been an awful long time since you’ve heard from me and for that I apologize. I will do my best to be around more often to talk about funnybooks and what not.
The big story for me the past few weeks has been who will the Secret Avengers be. There have been shadowy teasers popping up online that have people guessing and I thought I would throw my best two cents into the discussion. I’ll tell you who I think these silhouettes are and give my reasons along with my second choice if I have one.
Most of the people I’ve talked to have stated matter of factly that the team leader is obviously Steve Rogers. He has a pouch on his outer thigh and something that looks like it might be part of a shield or strap attached to his arm. That’s a pretty obvious guess and one that I feel almost certain is incorrect. My hope for Steve is that he end up as Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. once Norman has been taken down a peg or three. I think what we are looking at is a whole new era of Avengers. One of the best things about the old era was the inclusion of Henry McCoy the X-Men’s Beast on the team. Henry recently left the X-Men after some pretty serious disagreements with Cyclops over the way he was handling things. I think the “Second Coming” storyline that will be rocking the X-books in the next couple of months will leave Scott Summers a pariah. I think he will leave the X-Men and strike out on his own and I think he will be hand picked by Steve Rogers to lead the Secret Avengers. He has the training, the leadership experience and the pants with that big pouch on the thigh.
Second Choice: Hank Pym
Unlike the team leader position this one is a little harder to pin down. The outline obviously lokos like the Green Goblin but I think that is a clever misdirect. I just can’t see Norman Osbourne being allowed anywhere near a government sponsored team of any kind ever again. On the other hand his knowledge of the criminal underworld he helped maintain would be invaluable to the right people. Keeping his sane and under control would be nearly impossible however which is why I just can’t believe that its him. While talking to Phillip he mentioned a character I barely remembered, The Shroud. In doing some research on the character I found that not only is he a crime fighter with ties to the criminal underbelly of society but he has a long standing relationship with Steve Rogers. The Marvel Universe character bio is incredibly informative; “The Shroud went on to organize his own gang, the Night Shift. Still committed to subverting the underworld from within, he led the team only in combating other criminals and criminal organizations. Also, by keeping an eye on the other members of the Night Shift, the Shroud hoped to make certain that they did not victimize law-abiding individuals. One of their first such endeavors was against the Power Broker, in which they aided Captain America. Once, however, when the Shroud was absent, the Night Shift battled the West Coast Avengers in an attempt to obtain the release of their captured member, Digger. Dansen Macabre, the deputy leader, could not understand why the Night Shift had never battled the Avengers before. (In reality, the Shroud had previously made a deal with the Avengers not to interfere with his motives for leading the Night Shift.)” I think Steve is looking at some old friends for some help with picking up the pieces and I think Max Quincy is one of those people.
Second Choice: Believe it or not, Norman Osbourne.
Cockroaches are tough to kill and that is exactly what Noh-Varr of the Kree is made out of. Grant Morrison introduced us to this version of Marvel Boy a number of years ago and he made his comeback during Secret Invasion eventually becoming a member of Norman Osbournes Dark Avengers thinking himself and his teammates heroes. He learned the awful truth after being used (in every sense of the word) by Ms Marvel (Moonstone) he left the Avengers and has been wandering around learning what it means to be human ever since. This is a powerhouse of military skills and survival techniques that can get the Secret Avengers into and out of some tight spots. I think this one is a no brainer as Bendis spent a year developing the character and I can’t see him tossing Noh-Varr in the garbage when the Heroic Age begins.
I’m torn here. There is the logical choice and then there is the choice that I really would like to see. My head tells me that the Secret Avengers needs an Iron Man and after all his legal troubles this is the only place to put War Machine. However my gut wants to go with the Initiative drill sergeant Gauntlet. Both of these guys are military men who put the well being of the world above their own. Either one would bring a sense of purpose and regimentation that Cyclops could build on for the future of his team. Either one would be a fantastic second in command for the former X-Men. I’m pretty sure we will be seeing James Rhodes in the secret avengers but I’m hoping for Gauntlet. Hes been a great character in Avengers Initiative and if that book is going away I really want to see him somewhere. Sadly he has to fall as the second choice to War machine.
Oh Wanda, how we’ve missed you. Yes folks, I do believe we are about to see the return of the Scarlet Witch. What does this mean for the Avengers? Is Hawkeye still mad about dying that time? Did he tell mockingbird out his one night in the mountains with Wanda? Is this one of the reasons Cyclops is leading the team? All of these are good questions and I can’t wait to find out the answers. Its been far too long since we’ve see Wanda and I’m looking forward to hearing her story. Does she remember who she is? Does she know what she’s done to the Avengers and the mutant population? All I have are more questions the more I think about it.
Second Choice: Emma Frost. It would make sense that she would leave the X-Men alongside her lover but I don’t see that happening. I think Scott will still be the brains behind the X-Men, Emma will just be the face (and lets face it, she’ll also be the chest).
The last member of the team is also the hardest to figure out. The silhouette obviously looks like Spider-Man but he is going to be on the official team. The next logical place to look is Venom who is currently taking up a roster spot on Norman’s Avengers team. He’s a complete psychopath so I can’t really see Steve putting him on ANY Avengers team. We did see in an issue of Dark Avengers that he can be controlled with the right combination of drugs so I suppose that is a possibility. Venom on the team makes as much, or more, sense than Norman being there but I don’t buy it. The next place to look is at the original Venom, Eddie Brock. Eddie is running around right now calling himself Anti-Venom and sporting a white after Labor Day look that people are really digging. Does it make sense from a storyline standpoint? No, not really. So where does that leave us? The Scarlet Spiders from Avengers Initiative. There were three, there are currently two and after the Seige of Asguard there could very easily be just one. I think this is the most logical conclusion.
Second Choice: Eddie Brock