Collects issues seven to ten and Most Wanted Files
Writer: Brian Michael Bendis
Artist: Steven McNiven (p), Mark Morales with John Dell (i), Morry Hollowell with Laura Martin (c)
Publisher: Marvel Comics
The second arc of Brian Bendis' New Avengers deals with one of the most enigmatic characters to grace Marvel comics in quite some time: that of Robert Reynolds, the Sentry. Having been left in continuity limbo by the conclusion of Paul Jenkins' excellent miniseries which first introduced the character, Bendis had him reappear in the very first issue of New Avengers - but thanks to the writer's sparing use of him in the first arc, readers had still gained very little insight into the hero by the time the title's second major storyline came around. However, within the space of one issue Bendis pushes him centre stage, adding to the mystique of the character by confronting him with a decidedly fourth-wall-breaking proposition: that this Sentry may not be the original, and that the hero of Jenkins' series may be nothing but a fictional character in the Marvel Universe. Having Jenkins himself appear as a character might be over-egging the pudding somewhat, but it's definitely a very strong first issue which grabs your attention and makes you keen to find out what Bendis has planned for the character.
Sadly, the following three issues don't make the most of this idea, descending into a slightly muddled story which guest-stars the majority of the Marvel Universe's elite (clearly the A-list Avengers team didn't give Bendis enough toys to play with) and seems to revolve around Emma Frost and the Fantastic Four as much as it does the new team of Avengers. In fact, the strongest elements of the arc prove to be the less important subplots such as the Wrecker's rampage after his escape in the first arc, or Tony Stark's clandestine meetings with what we now know to be the Marvel Universe's superhero "Illuminati". That said, the story does make entertaining use of the meta-textual elements of Paul Jenkins' original concept, presenting some pages from the fictitious adventures of the "Sentry" in a decidedly retro fashion, and featuring some natty alternate covers by celebrated Marvel artists which rebrand these four issues as instalments of the Silver-Age-style "Startling Stories - Featuring the Sentry".
In fact, the story of this arc is largely salvaged by the excellent artwork of Steve McNiven, who first caught my attention with his work on the Ultimate Secret miniseries, and has most recently gained widespread acclaim for his work on Marvel's Civil War. McNiven's characters are expressive and solid-feeling, and even if there's a slight tendency for the colouring to combine with his distinctive linework to make his figures look a little plasticky, it's almost fitting for a story which takes such pleasure in throwing Marvel characters around like they were action figures. When the big battle scenes come they're as exciting and frantic as the story demands, juxtaposed neatly with the minimalist scenes in which Emma Frost explores Bob Reynolds' psyche through images which present themselves in the form of comic-book panels. But for all the cleverness, there's something anticlimactic about the conclusion to the story, which sees Bendis introduce a repressed memory which shows that the Sentry's mind had been tampered with to make him - and everyone else - forget that he was once the Golden Guardian of Good in the Marvel Universe. Not only does it not match up with the explanation given by Jenkins' original series, but it reduces the psychological problems of the character from a compellingly cracked form of schizophrenia to a cliché supervillain plot, and as such threatens to upset the intriguing balance between the Sentry and his villainous alter ego the Void, which is such a key part of the character. What's more, I know from having read ahead that the Sentry's backstory isn't ever addressed again by Bendis, who left his dangling threads to be addressed by Jenkins in a follow-up miniseries which was a pale imitation of the original. Bendis hasn't exactly ruined the character, but he's definitely simplified him to a point where he's less interesting, and I can't help but feel that if the writer simply wanted Superman on his team, there are a handful of other Marvel analogues that he could have chosen.
That said, there are a lot of enjoyable sequences here to offset my complaints, and it's likely that those with no prior knowledge of the Sentry will have no problems with the way he's portrayed here. He's an interesting addition to the group, and I enjoyed seeing a less obvious choice being taken for the New Avengers to go along with the high-profile characters that comprise the majority of the team. It remains to be seen whether the Sentry can really make his mark on the book or whether he'll be simply brought in whenever they need a powerhouse character, but if Bendis chooses to examine his psychology a little more deeply in future, there's still potential for the Sentry to make a very worthwhile contribution to the book. Just don’t try basing an arc around him again.
This collection also features an extensive handbook-style breakdown of exactly who escaped from the Raft in the book’s first arc. As with the recent Secret War entries, the villain factsheets feature “commentaries” (this time from characters such Spider-Man, Wolverine and Captain America) as well as a rundown of powers, personalities and character histories. These largely text-based character profiles are fine if you like that sort of thing – but personally, I find them incredibly tedious.
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