Secret Wars is over…kinda…sorta…I’m not really sure…but, we’re starting to see Marvel release the new titles emerging from their latest event, set to re-imagine the Marvel Universe. For Uncanny Avengers, this is the second time this title has been launched this year, and I was disappointed to see this volume of the series falling as short, if not shorter, then the last.

The core reason for this Unity Squad remains intact: to show the world that mutants and non-mutant heroes can work together for a better world; but now they have expanded that to include Inhumans (Marvels latest spotlighted characters) to show a united front to the world. But, as expected, there is hardly any unity in this squad. The roster for this team seems an odd choice to me; Steven Rogers choosing Rogue, Quicksilver, Spider-Man, Brother Voodoo, the Human Torch, a new Inhuman named Synapse…and Deadpool. Yes, Deadpool is now an Avenger. The last member seems to be a point of contention within the group, leading one of them to quit a few pages into the book.  This new team definitely does not feel comfortable, or overly friendly with each other, with even one member making a pretty nasty comment during a press conference in regards to the Inhumans. The team really feels disjointed and forced together.

I’m sorry to see that a lot of the characters from the previous volumes have not made it into this book (Rogue and Brother Voodoo being the only two), and Rogue and her powers seem to have been changed, no longer dealing with the absorbed Wonder Man and the problems that came with him in her head, but rather we see a more classic Rogue with flight and super strength.  For only carrying two characters forward in this book, it would have been nice to see come of the challenges facing them carry forward as well.

Gerry Duggan does an ‘ok’ job of bringing us this new team of Avengers. There is no real reason given as to why Steve chose this new team to serve, and there is nothing really to introduce the new character Synapse to the reader. She’s just here, now an Avenger, and the reader is supposed to care about her without knowing anything about her. The interactions between the team members fall flat for me and do nothing to  reinforce the feeling of a real team. Ryan Stegman’s art feels way too cartoony for me. The over exaggerated facial expressions really ruin some panels for me and these characters look like they haven’t eaten for quite some time, looking more like stick figures. And I really don’t like some of the costume redesigns (Quicksilver has a fast forward symbol on his chest?  Really?)

Overall, I was not happy with this latest relaunch. The characters feel flat on their own, and definitely do not feel like a team; I found the art very distracting and the villain feels very lackluster after the likes of the Red Skull and the Apocalypse Twins. This issue has set the bar very low for the latest volume of Uncanny Avengers, but here’s hoping it can only go up and improve going forward.

Story: Gerry Duggan Art: Ryan Stegman
Story: 5 Art: 4 Overall: 4.5 Recommendation: Pass