Review: Avengers - The Private War of Doctor Doom

Following their recent victories against Kang and the Squadron Supreme, the Avengers return home and are faced with the task of settling on a new roster. No sooner do they announce their line-up than the once-dead Wonder Man returns to the fold. Then, they must face off against Atlantean menace Attuma in his latest plot to best Namor the Sub-Mariner.

Avengers: The Private War of Doctor Doom collects Avengers #150-156 and Annual #6, and Super-Villain Team-up #9, written by Steve Englehart, Gerry Conway and Bill Mantlo with art by George Perez and John Buscema.

This collection follows the events of The Serpent Crown and almost immediately sees the departure of Hellcat and Moondragon (boo!), as well as Avengers mainstay Thor. With their new roster, the Avengers must investigate the circumstances behind the resurrection of Wonder Man. At the same time the Living Laser is busy plotting his revenge on the Avengers and intends to use the unstable Nuklo to do so. After that, the Avengers are captured by Attuma and are forced to attack Namor’s Hydrobase. When they arrive, however, they discover the base is being run by Doctor Doom and they are swiftly bested by the Fantastic Four foe. In order to defeat Attuma, they must form an uneasy alliance with Doctor Doom.

As a trade, The Private War of Doctor Doom is densely plotted and is continuity heavy with plenty of references to past events. It lacks excitement and depth, as it falls into the rather generic box of “supervillains trying to take over the world using some kind of experimental device.” The collection begins with a tedious re-telling of the Avengers’ rosters’ various origins and then transitions into the re-introduction of Wonder Man. Understandably, his return creates conflict between Scarlet Witch and the Vision since the latter’s brain patterns were based off of Wonder Man’s. While there may be a smidgen of tension between the newlyweds throughout this trade, that’s about it for character development. The dialogue for the Beast is strong and we get some really great action scenes involving Scarlet Witch on a solo mission, but everyone else feels depressingly generic and they all fade into the background over the course of the collected issues. It also feels dated, given the fact that these stories occur during a time period when Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver were canonically viewed as the children of the Whizzer and Miss America.

The highlight of this collection is the art done by George Perez and the late John Buscema. Perez delivers dynamic work that features an active expressiveness, while also showing off his skill at drawing the male form (we get a rather strong panel of Namor flying through the air towards the end). Buscema, meanwhile, has a distinctive moodiness to his style that emphasizes some of the more emotional aspects to these characters. Notably, there’s a series of panels in which the Scarlet Witch is distraught and turns for comfort from the Wasp when she’s given the cold shoulder by her husband.

Avengers: The Private War of Doctor Doom isn’t the most impressive collection of stories featuring Earth’s Mightiest Heroes. It’s an awkwardly plotted series of stories that follow on the heels of Steve Englehart’s remarkable run on The Avengers. Where his stories often included social commentary and soapy interpersonal drama, The Private War of Doctor Doom restores the status quo of paint-by-numbers supervillain conflicts. Attuma and Doctor Doom make for great opponents for the Avengers, but the narrative never attempts to do something new with them. It’s also mildly irritating that Hellcat and Moondragon were written out, since both had been standouts in the preceding trade Avengers: The Serpent Crown. Though we get some notable art from Perez and Buscema, The Private War of Doctor Doom is skippable.

RATING: C-

Review: Avengers - The Serpent Crown

When Hawkeye goes missing, Thor and new Avenger Moondragon must travel into the past in order to recover their arrow-slinging ally. There, they must confront the villainous Kang as he schemes yet again to conquer Earth. Back in the present, the remaining Avengers duke it out with the Squadron Supreme after uncovering a plot by the corrupt Roxxon Oil Corporation.

Avengers: The Serpent Crown collects Avengers #141-144 and #147-149, written by Steve Englehart and illustrated by George Perez.

With the superstar talent of Englehart and Perez behind it, The Serpent Crown stands as one of the most notable collection of stories from the early Bronze Age Avengers. Set during the Beast’s probationary period with the Earth’s Mightiest Heroes, this trade collects two concurrent storylines involving the Avengers’ conflicts with Kang the Conqueror and the Squadron Supreme (AKA Marvel’s “tribute” to the Justice League). It’s a tightly written, dynamically drawn seven issue arc that is packed with character development and incredible action. Englehart’s scripting sets the tone by creating an electric chemistry between the characters and sticking to a set theme of corporate corruption, while Perez’s pencil work fills each panel with expressiveness to match.

There are a lot of developments in The Serpent Crown, which is perhaps what has marked it for collection purposes above many other story arcs for the Avengers from the 1970s. Notably – Captain America re-joins the team after a lengthy leave of absence, Hawkeye departs from the Avengers to pursue a (mostly) solo career out west, and Patsy Walker makes her debut as the superheroine Hellcat. As mentioned previously, it’s also set during the Beast’s early days adventuring with the Avengers, which itself is important as it’s shortly after he turned his iconic blue hue. In fact, it is the interplay between Hellcat and Beast that makes this arc as interesting as it is. The habitually bickering duo is at odds with one another, which adds a layer of humour to their dynamic. Beyond all of that, Englehart and Perez seem to be setting new precedents for the portrayal of women in comic books.

Aside from a questionable line in which Hellcat declares that she’s no “women’s libber,” The Serpent Crown seems to be concerned with the pursuit and control of power when wielded by women. Newcomer Moondragon is unashamed and confident in her incredible psychic gifts. She employs them with a mastery that was often unseen amongst female characters in comic books. In fact, she seems to consider herself an equal to Thor and even questions why he (and by extension her) is “slumming” it with the mortal Avengers. Similarly, Scarlet Witch is seen embracing her status as a true witch and her power set seems to have grown exponentially as a result of this. A key scene in this collection involves Wanda becoming the caretaker for the Serpent Crown and must use her formidable willpower to free herself from its evil influence. Though Vision tries to intervene and “rescue” her, it’s clear that Wanda needs no one but herself to save the day. It’s an internal battle that is portrayed earnestly through Perez’s art and is a moment that is not to be overlooked, though it might be easy to do so given the incredible physical feats accomplished by the men in this book.

As much as we see Moondragon and Scarlet Witch embracing their fierceness, the slightly dippy Patsy Walker still has a ways to go. In fact, The Serpent Crown is very much her story and focuses on her rapid maturation from silly romance heroine to sassy superheroine. Much is made early on about how burdensome Patsy is as she accompanies the Avengers, with some members laying blame on her for their predicament when they are captured by the Squadron Supreme (namely, Vision). Through flashbacks, we see that Patsy lived a relatively unfulfilling life in a small town and that her marriage was disastrous. We learn that she’s always dreamed of being a hero and that she’ll do anything it takes to be one. By the time she finally dons the Cat costume, she’s adamant about dedicating her life to heroism. It’s admirable and her spunk is infectious, though the disdain from her male cohorts (and concern – on Captain America’s part) looms heavily over her. Thankfully, she does appear to prove herself and she’s shown to be quite fearsome in battle (though it’s implied that the suit may be doing most of the work for her).

The Serpent Crown is an enjoyable – albeit dated – read. Englehart and Perez make for a great team, one which suits the tone and aesthetic of the Avengers. As with his previous work on the title, Englehart always adds an angle of social relevance to the book and taps into themes that can be related to even today. His dialogue is satisfactory, though verbose at times, and he has a good grasp on the characters involved. I’m also rather impressed by how he handles the many women present in this collection. It also goes without saying that Perez’s pencils are gorgeous to look at. Given that this represents some of his earlier work, the art is not quite as defined or detailed as it would be later in New Teen Titans or Wonder Woman. There are minor issues with proportions and perspective every now and then. If anything, The Serpent Crown represents a strong showing from an era oft forgotten by comic book fans. Plus – it’s got Hellcat and Moondragon in key roles!

RATING: B