The short featuring Gravity was probably the best of the bunch, although I'm not entirely sure where it fits in the current timetable. Gravity squares off against the Radioactive Man's illegitimate son, Warhead for the first time and the end promises a continuation in the first issue of Young Allies, yet I thought he fought Warhead and the Bastards of Evil for the first time in that issue? Either way, it's a well-told story that manages to deliver on a good theme of how much difference one hero, even a third-stringer like Gravity, can make in the grand scheme of things. The part with him "going Google earth" was a device I'm really surprised I haven't seen captured in any other comics, so far.
While I'm usually leery of mixing superheroes with real world conflicts, I have to say the Gauntlet's story had a poignant message about keeping the Heroic Age in perspective with America's real heroes.
The Bad
I haven't been reading Young Avengers, so I don't know the whole story behind the Young Masters but, recognizing their villainous names, I couldn't help but feel some redundancy with the Bastards of Evil in this same issue. That whole two-page segment seemed a little unfocused, too with a couple points odd gaps in the dialogue. I really don't understand what the Melter's "...WORDS" had to do with Thor's flyby, or how that flyby served as an ending at all. I wasn't really feeling the American Son segment either. It didn't seem like a short story in itself, like the Gravity one was. It was just an extended ad for how that one Daily Bugle reporter's going to be trailing "Harry Osborn" in the new title.
The Verdict - 3/5
The collection of shorts in this issue weren't as appealing as those in the first issue. While I realize that the aim of this mini-series is to get readers interested in the various new titles debuting throughout Heroic Age, the last issue offered more stories that could be enjoyed in themselves (in addition to being previews) while a lot of these just felt like teases and little else.
