Young Avengers #6

Genre action Author Allan Heinberg Publisher Marvel Comics External Links Marvel Comics

What happens when young Kang (Iron Lad) stabs old Kang? Well, the time stream starts to unravel, of course. The team and Iron Lad have to make some quick decisions before things get too wonky.

I can remember my reaction when I first heard about this title.

"My God, is this going to be a train wreck."

I can't remember if it was morbid curiosity or a quick scan of Jim Cheung's snazzy pencils that made me pick up the first issue. But I'm glad it did, as Young Avengers has become one of my favorite new reads of 2005.

It's interesting what's going on with the Avengers franchise right now. Brian Bendis is clearly going in one direction and trying something different. New team, new HQ, new dynamic. Comic readers aren't all that welcome to change (welcome back, Hal Jordan!) and Bendis has been getting far too much grief over this new team, in my opinion.

Heinberg, however, is playing at change from a different direction. There are elements in this book that have been at the heart of the Avengers for as long as I can remember, including Kang, time travel, team romances, line-up changes and the "classic" members, even if they are in teen form. But the formula feels fresh.

Some of that freshness may be coming from the mystery at the core of the team. Each, supposedly, have ties to some of the original members and we're learning along with them. And story elements that can feel like a gimmicky attempt to make a book feel "modern", such as the homosexual relationship between Hulking (Teen Hulk) and Asgardian (Teen Thor), feels just part of these characters. There has been a lot of Internet volume about this relationship and how it will play out, about if it is "romanticizing" homosexual relationships or not. But there's nothing romantic about the portrayal. These are characters who are afraid to come out to their parents, as either gay or super-powered. But he makes it funny, too, as there is a hilarious exchange about why Asgardian needs a new code name.

The art on the book is wonderful, really helping to tell the story that Heinberg is crafting. I'm reminded of Pat Oliffe's work on the late, great "Untold Tales of Spider-Man", especially on the final panel of the book, a full page shot of the team bursting from their new headquarters.

Given Marvel's aggressive trade book policy, it's likely this new arc will be collected pretty quickly. But if you can't wait to leap on the bandwagon, next issue is the start of a new arc.