The biggest hyped story is about to begin. With a prologue issue, you'll want to pay close attention to see if there are any clues to what we can expect in the full story.
The Good
This issue is split into two parts. The first is a story by Brian Michael Bendis dealing with Scarlet Witch. Even though most of the focus of this event has been on Hope and the Phoenix Force, it was the fact that Scarlet Witch appeared on the cover that got me curious. With AVENGERS: THE CHILDREN'S CRUSADE at an end, the big question is what's next for Wanda? Fighting MODOK in the streets of Washington seemed a little odd when the preview pages were first released. The fact that she's included here opens the door to many possibilities as for what her immediate future might hold. Are there any hints or suggestions in this issue? You'll have to read it to find out. But I will say there are some moments here that long time Avengers readers (especially from all of Bendis' run) will be happy to see.
The second story focuses on Hope and is written by Jason Aaron. I feel like Hope isn't written the same by the different writers but Aaron manages to grasp who she is and what's she's been through. She is a teenager who has gone through some crazy times. It's good to see that there's more to her than just running around on whatever mission she's needed for.
Frank Cho's art is always a treat to see. If this issue is meant to kick off the event, Cho's art is a good choice to give it the flashy and action-packed feel to start things off. I don't often dwell on it but I dug the choice of panel layouts in this issue. There was a good mix in the number on each page with the occasional two-page spread. There's also a character or object that comes 'out' of the panel at times that gave the art a bigger feel. It will be a little weird going from Cho's art to Romita Jr's art in issue #1 since they have different styles.
The Bad
As much as I dig Cho's art, I do have to say that sometimes certain body parts have a slightly exaggerated look, especially with Scarlet Witch. But I'm sure there are many that don't mind the style. It might be me nit-picking (it is my job after all), but I tend to notice when characters are drawn differently by different artists.
I did really enjoy the Scarlet Witch story and liked the way Hope was written but I didn't get a great feel as to how this absolutely fits in with the 12-issue miniseries. Yes, there are seeds being planted and we can assume some or many of the events here will come into play later. It almost felt as if these stories could have been told in an issue of AVENGERS or an issue of X-MEN.
And no real fault to this issue, I still don't like MODOK's new look that debuted in the pages of HULK.
The Verdict
"It all begins here." We've heard that before but actually, it really isn't true. This is something that has been building up for sometime. Whether it was intentional or not, this issue is building on everything that has happened in the pages of AVENGERS since Disassembled as well as Second Coming in the X-Men comics. Now we're about to see Marvel's two big teams clash and seeing the execution of making them come to such drastic blows is going to be very interesting.
The story comes together in an interesting way. Not only does this serve as a prologue for the event but we're also getting some resolution for some of the characters. There are a couple scenes that long time readers won't want to miss. Avengers Vs. X-Men is off to a good start. You can feel the excitement bubbling beneath the surface waiting to explode in your face.
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