If you read issue #16.1, you know the New Avengers will soon be facing the return of a deadly villain. If that wasn't bad enough, a giant robot is attacking in New Jersey.
The Good
What could be better than seeing the New Avengers fight a huge robot determined to cause as much destruction as possible? Maybe having it drawn by Mike Deodato and Will Conrad. Ultimo is attacking Stark Resilient and and the New Avengers are on the scene. Sometimes this is exactly what we want to see, a giant battle with loads of destruction. We don't often get to see the team simply cut loose. The sense of mystery as to why this battle is occurring adds to the suspense of the story.
What's interesting is the team almost fights without direction. They see a giant threat and they go at it. There's no need for anyone to bark out orders and they have assessed the situation and know where to attack...or do they? Of course the kicker is in who is really responsible for the attack and the reason why. This is the beginning of some dark times for the New Avengers.
Mike Deodato and Will Conrad's combine art explodes off the page. With all this big action, you want nicely detailed panels. This kind of art is the kind I like to just look at again after reading the issue.
The Bad
As fun as the battle was, it did almost feel a little odd the way the New Avengers were just attacking and Iron Man was trying to get them to listen to him. It would have been nice to see Mockingbird in action with her new abilities rather than be stuck on pilot duty. We're thrown straight in the middle of the action, which isn't a bad thing but you can't help but wonder how this fits in with Fear Itself and the New Avengers Annual. Minor things that don't necessarily ruin this story but caused a tiny distraction for me.
The Verdict
There's some big things coming for the New Avengers. While fighting a giant threat in New Jersey, we find out there more to the attack than there appears to be. Every once in a while it's great to get an issue with over the top action. Having Mike Deodato and Will Conrad draw it makes it even better. We don't always get to see the New Avengers simply cut loose on their enemies but here they simply attack as soon as they arrive on scene. Iron Man's appearance and attempt to direct the team felt odd but seeing the seeds that are being planted for the next issue and arc is enough to get you salivating.
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