Avengers #9: Review

Jan 2024

Jed MacKay, Francisco Mortarino

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Story Name:

Twilight dreaming part 3

Review & Comments

Rating:

Avengers #9 Review by Rob Johnson (January 13, 2024)

Artor may have the armour of Chthon but Wanda Mximoff contains within her captive Chthon and his book the Darkhold. Or at least she did until Agatha Harkness released the Darkhold in the Summer Annuals including those of Scarlet Witch and the Avengers.

Thor recognises Galehaut's hammer, a long-handled 2-handed affair whose head has 1 pointy end and the other blunt. It's the Hammer of Nul wielded by Hulk during Fear Itself.

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Synopsis / Summary / Plot

Avengers #9 Synopsis by Rob Johnson

The issue starts with a flash back to before #7. Captain Marvel chats to the Avengers' new orbiting base the Impossible City. She apologises for sending Black Panther and Captain America to 'kill' it in #4. The AI City assures her that it was going to commit suicide anyway but the Avengers inspired it to live instead. Carol Danvers reveals that she sent T'Challa on the mission because he would do the *hard* thing, but Sam Wilson was there to do the *right* thing. But then all but Vision fall suddenly asleep which leads to them face Nightmare in #7-8.

Scarlet Witch woke up at the end of #7 and joined the synthezoid in fighting the attacking Twilight Court in #8. Myrddin had sent them because the heroes were sheltering the comatose Kang The Conqueror. While the duo held them off Wanda Maximoff also allowed the other Avengers to escape from Nightmare's realm. And at the end of last issue the 2 full team's faced off.

As per Marvel-usual the teams split up into individual duels. CA's shield fends off Lancelot's light-swords until he hurls it past her to strike Bedivere's helmet and rebound to hit *her* in the back of the head. Galehaut is eager to fight the god Thor who decries her as a creation of science/magic without even a weapon to match his hammer Mjolnir. So she manifests a much bigger hammer. Panther attacks Parsifal, who stayed out of the battle last issue because 7 against 2 wouldn't be fair. Now however he successfully counters BP's attack because he can never be defeated as long as his cause is just. Scarlet Witch wants a rematch with the sorceress Mordred but King Artor takes her on. She is the living Darkhold but he wears the armour of Chthon. Meanwhile Bedivere faces Iron Man. But the 2 engineers spend more time complimenting each other's armours than fighting. And Mordred's magic holds off Vision while the nano-construct Bercilak's space-time warping deflects CM's blasts.

CA has taken his fight with Lancelot into the air. Thor and Galehaut are clashing hammers. IM extrudes a wrist blade to counter Bedivere's sword, and B is still complimenting him. As is Parsifal with BP who asks some teammate to exchange foes with him. Artor seems to be absorbing the Chthon-based spells SW throws at him. Vision is steadily breaking through Mordred's mystic shields when she asks for help from Bertilak, who diverts 1 of CM's blasts hit V in the back.

Now IM says that their individual foes are too evenly-matched to them and suggests a general swap. Team leader CM broadcasts the call and leaves Bertilak to punch Lancelot. IM and BP swap enemies. BP rips open the back of Bedivere's armour with his Antarctic vibranium claws while Tony Stark sheds his armour in front of Parsifal who immediately stops fighting because it wouldn't be a fair fight and his cause would no longer be just. V leaves Mordred who gets blasted by Mjolnir-lightning. Similarly when CA engages Bertilak whose power is purely defensive he ends the duel by refusing to strike. Galehaut is enraged when SW replaces the god she wanted to fight but Wanda counters the magic of G's ancient hammer with her much older Chthon-magic. Then Vision ends the whole battle by plunging his hand into Artor's chest and gripping his heart. The king urges them not to yield but his knights won't see him killed.

Now Carol Danvers has the chance to ask Wanda Maximoff what the fight was all about (because it started while she and others were trapped by Nightmare). SW says that their leader Myrddin brought them here to take Kang. But now the Avengers realise that M (last seen at the end of #7) didn't take part in the battle.

And now we see him standing over K's comatose body in the sick bay.

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