Avengers Forever

Synopsis:

*Spoilers*

As with many impulsive purchases, this wild hair was picked based on appearance alone. The cover art by Aaron Kuder and Jason Keith is an exciting barrage of heroes from all over the multiverse charging to leap off of the page, bringing the battle right to you. With such a wide variety of characters including the likes of Beast, Sandman, and Speedball, how could a reader not feel compelled to pick up this first issue to see what all the action is about? With so much activity and color and so many familiar faces, one is compelled, nay, required! to study the cover intently before even opening the book. Come to find out, the artist's actually extend a challenge to the readers to write in and identify all of the featured characters on the cover. Every kid who ever plowed through the challenges on the back of a cereal box dreamed of an opportunity to finally prove their worth to the creators. Now, as grown-ups, we can; to be forever immortalized in the back pages of the next issue.

Once you peel your eyes from off of the cover, an omniscient narrator guides you across a nearly empty battlefield over 1 million years ago. The tone of the images and narration key the reader in that a devastating loss has occurred but only a few moments ago. The battle must have raged on for days, possibly weeks. A legless body, scorched beyond recognition, crawls across the desert to enact their last "hope" for humanity. Mjolnir lies unattended in the middle of the battlefield as the scrabbling torso approaches to bid Mjolnir an act of redemption: "Avenge".

Fast forward, and we are introduced to Tony Stark; a treasure-hunting archaeologist. However, the Tony of Earth-818 has taken up the mantle of Ant-man. This is more fitting as he struggles with father issues, alcoholism, self-doubt, and low self-esteem. The world is a difficult place to deal with and the best way to escape your problems: shrink away. Tony is still a genius, but he lacks follow-through, probably because of a lack of encouragement from his father. There is one small prototype of his Iron Man armor that is in use by Shellhead, a mechanical ant. Other than that, Tony created "Stark Particles" to shrink himself and also was forced to create an army of war machines for the mysterious and fearsome "Wastelord".

The story starts off with a classic "unsuspecting hero" stuck in a perilous situation. Thanks to aid from Shellhead, Tony escapes nearly unscathed. In his archaeological adventures, Tony uses the Stark particles to shrink artifacts that he can carry around on his journeys. This particular mission called for the head of a celestial that Tony briefly used and immediately disposed of. Perhaps, this was to show that Tony doesn't place value in much and only uses what he needs when he needs it; everything is disposable. This could also contribute to the fact that he lacks commitment and dedication as previously stated. However, as with any unsuspecting hero, Tony is provided with a taste of "hope" (a very frequently recurring theme) as he finds Mjolnir and lifts it upon high...until it comes back down and crushes him. But, it is not lost on him that he was at least able to lift it, even for a couple of seconds.

As Tony absconds with Mjolnir, he is confronted by the army of Wastelord's war machines. Luckily, a bigger threat has just arrived and demands Wastelord's full attention. Tony and Shellhead retreat back to their secret quarters, adding Mjolnir to their collection of artifacts. Meanwhile, the war machines find themselves tangling with Deathlok and Robbie Reyes' Ghost Rider: what an amazing team-up! A giant freight train is filled with humans and barrels through the wasteland. The humans are being used as "coal" to power the train, but not if Deathlok and Ghost Rider have anything to say about it. With bravery and determination, the duo does their best to save the human cargo, but they are quickly met with fierce opposition as Wastelord stands tall amongst his battalion of war machines.

Wastelord captures the duo and promises endless agonizing torture. All they can do now is "hope" for a savior. Luckily for them, a down and out Tony Stark was just given a glimpse of "hope" as he wielded Mjolnir. Upon his cave walls, Tony reflects upon hieroglyphs that denote humanity's last "hope". Tony is obviously going to buck up and gain some confidence to become the hero that Earth-818 needs. The fun part about this comic is going to be watching him get to that point of confidence, self-assurance, and finally completing something in his life: becoming the savior of humanity.

Oh yeah, there's also a ship of female Thor's being led by another Mjolnir...Wastelord, you are so screwed.