Editor's Note: Avengers/Invaders #3 arrives in stores tomorrow, July 2.

Normally, I don't let continuity concerns bother me. If the details of two books in a shared universe don't match up exactly, I can normally shrug off any inconsistencies in favour of enjoying the stories on their own terms. However, for Avengers/Invaders, continuity is one of the key elements of the book's premise, and as such it's not as easy to ignore. I'm not going to complain that Alex Ross and Jim Krueger have made errors in the continuity of their series. In fact, the story slots very neatly indeed into the timeline of recent Marvel Universe developments. But therein lies the problem: the continuity is so tight that it's very limiting as to when this story can actually be happening, and it robs the book's story of much of its power as a result.

The book draws so much attention to specific elements of current MU continuity that it's difficult to ignore the specific placement of this story in the recent timeline of events. There's an explicit reference to the discovery of Skrull-Elektra, including an appearance from Spider-Woman that can't help but raise questions due to the recent revelation of her own Skrulliness in the Avengers titles. This wouldn't be too limiting on its own, but there's also an appearance by Dr. Strange, apparently still associated with the New Avengers - which means that this book is set before the New Avengers story involving the Hood (in which Dr. Strange left the team). The current Marvel Universe has already moved way beyond those stories, which means that it's difficult to create any real sense of jeopardy for any of the book's key players, since we know that they emerge from this story completely unaffected. I wouldn't normally make so much of this kind of problem. After all, the rules of superhero stories dictate that the forces of good will win in the end, that the villains will be defeated, and that the Invaders will be returned to their own time in order to maintain the continuity of Marvel Universe history. However, I do think that it's a weakness for a book that has been marketed on the promise of this being an in-continuity story that will have an effect on the present-day Avengers teams.

Of course, this wouldn't matter too much if the book were telling an enjoyable story in its own right. When it comes to stories that take place in the continuous fabric of ongoing serial fiction, the journey should be as enjoyable as the destination, because we know that the story is never really going to end. However, there isn't enough meat on the bones of this story to really keep me interested. The plot can be summed up as follows: the Invaders have been mysteriously transported to the future, they're fighting the Mighty Avengers due to a contrived misunderstanding (in the classic tradition), and the New Avengers want to rescue them from S.H.I.E.L.D. custody. That hasn't really been enough to sustain three issues of story, let alone the 12 chapters that Ross and Krueger have planned for the book. I don't doubt that they have more developments up their collective sleeve (we still don't really know who the villain is behind this plot, or how the New Avengers plan to send the Invaders back to their own time), but with only a quarter of the story laid out so far, it's already starting to feel drawn-out and padded, which isn't a good sign.

The book fares better when it comes to the artwork. Some people have complained that Steve Sadowski's interior art is a letdown after the lush painted covers of Alex Ross. However, I don't agree. I don't think that Ross would be suited to this kind of story - which contains plenty of dynamic scenes that might not be well served by his painted, posed style - so I'm happy to see a more traditional artist handle the interiors. I'm also pleased to report that these are Sadowski's best visuals yet: there's an impressive splash page of a destroyed Atlantis as the 1940s version of Namor returns home, a devastating image that also conveys an important character beat for the story. It's only matched by a later, equally impressive image of a rusting Titanic on the seabed, which becomes the venue for a powerful showdown between the Sub-Mariner and his modern-day counterpart. If Marvel decide to launch another Namor series anytime soon, Sadowski should definitely be in consideration for the role of artist, as his work on the undersea scenes is particularly effective here.

Elsewhere, Sadowski copes well with the demands of a big team crossover book, making every member of his large cast recognisable and giving them a consistent look from panel to panel. The artist's style is fairly generic and doesn't call attention to itself, but he has a good command of pacing, and changes perspective often enough that scenes don't get visually repetitive or boring. Because the story isn't the most complex in the world, he's never called upon to do anything particularly unusual or innovative - but he conveys Krueger's script more than adequately.

The most interesting element of the story is a minor one, and one that's only tenuously connected to the book's bigger picture (for now, anyway). The scenes which deal with a regular soldier from WWII meeting himself as an old man contain a humanity and emotion that's missing from the much of the rest of the book, with a bittersweet quality as his aged counterpart tells him about the highs and lows of his life that are yet to come. The artist also seems to be particuarly engaged with these scenes, with more variation in his artwork here than we see in the rest of the book. Most of the issue is comprised of mid-range shots of the characters involved, but in the comparatively sedate scenes involving these two versions of the same man, Sadowski makes good use of close-ups, long shots, and monochrome flashbacks to tell his story, making it one of the most visually interesting parts of the issue.

Unfortunately, there's not enough substance in the rest of the book to make it a compelling read, with moments of silliness that undermine the drama (S.H.I.E.L.D. appears to be staffed by a number of robot agents, apparently for the sole reason that Captain America is able to "kill" them with a clear conscience) and a lack of any real tension surrounding the appearance of the 1940s-era Bucky and Cap (which is odd considering the manner in which they were hyped as the big draw for the book). There are a few fun moments spread throughout the issue - a couple of neat one-liners from Spider-Man and some enjoyable dialogue between Namor and Namor - but they don't amount to a satisfying overall read.

The lack of jeopardy and ultimately inconsequential nature of this story wouldn't normally be a problem, but at this point, I think it's asking a lot for readers to invest in 12 issues of a book that doesn't feel like it's even managing to do anything particularly interesting with its core concept.

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