This issue opens at breakneck speed and does not let up, alternating between Deputy S.H.I.E.L.D. Director Victoria Hand’s response to the Dark Avengers’ disappearance and the Molecule Man and his cohorts’ confrontation with Osborn and company. Although the issue actually starts out with Deputy Director Hand’s flashbacks, things tie together so nicely that the tension only continues to mount through those scenes before we move into the showdown between the Molecule Man and Osborn. And what a showdown it is, as the Molecule Man and his cohorts wage a divide and conquer strategy on Osborn and the rest of the Dark Avengers, with some devastating results.

Yes, some pretty big things go down this issue. And I’m not talking about just one or two things, but a bagful of ‘everybody must die’ types of doozies. Despite the fact that everything with the Molecule Man’s team is not what it appears to be, the Molecule Man himself definitely means business here. Remember the Molecule Man, a.k.a. Owen Reese, the Fantastic Four’s old nemesis and Marvel Super Heroes Secret War’s baddie? He has the power to control all matter, or as he says, “all matter around himself” on a molecular level and reshape it into anything he wants. He is one of the most unbelievably powerful beings on the planet, apparently quite unhinged these days, and very, very dangerous. All of which is not good for our team.

As you might expect from last issue, Osborn is the first Dark Avenger the Molecule Man and his team go after. The Molecule Man’s non-lethal move on Osborn is only equaled by Osborn’s retaliation and the psycho-logical battle they have with each other is well-written by Bendis, with each taking their best shots. The painted art by Horn also really accentuates the title here in the sequences it was designed for. I have to really applaud Marvel for using dual artists for different sequences on occasion over the last few years. It has to be done carefully, kind of like bringing in your wildcat offense or middle reliever, lest you blow the chemistry of an issue, but a second artist can provide some nice contrast to the texture of a story. And that’s exactly what Horn’s painted work provides in some of the key sequences here. Deodato also continues to be outstanding, providing a real consistency to the book, but does have a couple of rough pages this issue.

By the end of the issue, the Molecule Man has confronted each and every Dark Avenger, paving a path of destruction and serious trauma across the team like we’ve never seen. But with the story unconcluded, one has to wonder if Bendis really means business here or if everything isn’t going to somehow magically be put back together next issue. Things are happening a little too fast, which usually indicates the latter, but if he is serious, we may very well have a couple of members—major members—of our team left for dead, with others mind-wiped, or worse.

But I don’t think anyone will be criticizing Bendis for a lack of action this issue, as he delivers with all of the Molecule Man’s confrontations with each of the Dark Avengers. The stare-down between Osborn and the Molecule Man to see who will blink first is really good, but the confrontation between the Molecule Man and Sentry might be even more dramatic, and no less devastating. The Molecule Man’s encounter with Ms. Marvel (Moonstone) is also intriguing, particularly how he and Moonstone, the psychologist, react to each other.

Despite how well it’s rendered, I’m not sure I enjoy looking at the cover, but it’s certainly representative of the issue. The image of a Norman Osborn Spider_Man is every bit as horrific as Deodato intends and portrays one of the issue’s main themes, the exposure of Norman Osborn (in more ways than one). And some of Deodato’s best work this issue comes in a two page sequence where the Molecule Man goes to work unhinging Osborn, though Deputy Director Hand’s sequences are sharp too. Beredo also adds a lot to these scenes in keeping with the dark palette that makes Deodato’s style work so well. The outdoor lighting used in Dinosaur, something of a Deodato trademark now, also adds that additional drama that makes the characters really stand out there.

Given the gravity of events this issue, there is some concern that this could actually be the end of the team as we know it, or at least the beginning of the end. I guess we always knew the ride couldn’t last forever. But whether it is an ending of some kind or our team finds a way out of this one, it doesn’t matter, because the creative team is in their element here and hitting their stride on all cylinders. Bendis’ dialogue is tight and has a rhythm, the pacing is swift, and there are a lot of things happening on a number of levels to the characters. And the art is not only stunning, but a really good fit for the book. Are Osborn, Sentry, and Spider-Man (Venom) goners? Will Ares be mind-wiped? Is the United States of America really surrendering to the Molecule Man and his crew? I can’t wait to find out. On the Avengers Forever five star scale, Dark Avengers #11 gets a solid four stars, but may have actually been just a little bit better than Dark Avengers #10, which also garnered four stars.

	Greg Orzech
	By the time Greg was fifteen, he had amassed a comic collection that included almost all of the first 200 issues of the Avengers. Though an on again, off again love affair with comics took him off course at times in the 80's and 90's, the 1998 volume three Avengers relaunch brought him full circle with the Avengers.