Case in point: the new Mist over in the Distinguished Competition’s Starman series by James Robinson. The daughter of arch-villain the Mist sets out to make her reputation and kills the Justice League Europe. Oooh, she’s a superhero murderer. That’s what it takes to make a villain badass these days. It’s a lazy writer’s trick. And as much respect as I have for James Robinson, and more specifically in the case of this review – writer Brian Michael Bendis - it’s an easy way out. It’s a cheat.

And sadly this is not the first time Bendis has used this tactic in his six year plus foray into the Avengers universe. The Hood, while a deadly nemesis today, began his villain days in much the same way. Throughout Dark Reign, Bendis has used the same building blocks for Norman Osborn, although he really didn’t need it. We old schoolers and Spidey fans know what the Green Goblin is capable of. We don’t need this manipulated cheat to show us how badass he is. Siege brings Osborn to the pinnacle of villainy and the writer’s low point in the above tactic. But it also brings us to Bendis’ greatest triumph.

When last we left our heroes (and villains), Norman Osborn had convinced the god of war Ares to lead an army of metahumans and normal everyday mortals in an all-out assault on Asgard. While the real Captain America, recently returned from the dead (don’t even ask), gathers a team of heroes to stop them – it appears that Osborn, his Dark Avengers and the U-Foes have defeated and possibly killed Thor the god of thunder.

Could Thor die? As we’ll see later in this very comic, gods are not immortal, but the question remains between last issue of Siege and this one – could Osborn and the Dark Avengers have killed Thor? The answer is yes. As we enter the seventh year of the Bendisverse Avengers, BMB’s legacy becomes crystal clear – anything can happen. Anything.

Admit it, folks, you thought it. Even though you’ve read all the previews and solicitations, it crossed not just the back of your mind but the front as well – Osborn might have killed Thor. There is no longer anything sure in the Marvel Universe. Anything can happen. Bendis not only refined the cliffhanger, he made it real.

And to Bendis’ credit, he does it well. We all cheered when Thor got up and defended Maria Hill. Avengers fans all over the world bumped fists and high-fived metaphorically. Go Thor, and yes, go Bendis. In many ways this was a moment to rival those in Civil War and came darned close to Kurt Busiek’s classic “Ultron, we would have words with thee.” This was an Avengers moment.

The thing is, what comes later, completely obscures that moment. You just can’t unsee what is to come.

After confronting Heimdall, Ares realizes he’s been bamboozled by Osborn. Notable here is the fact that a previously omitted text page from Siege #1 is included in this issue and gives a bit more of the attack ‘plan’ on Asgard. Heimdall and his observatory is the first prime target. Sad that the most important text page out of the bunch was left out, but at least it patches up a tiny bit of my complaints about last issue.

Ares goes after Osborn, and even his Iron Patriot armor won’t be enough to stop him. Ares had promised to take his head and I’m sure I’m not the only reader who was on the edge of his seat to see it happen. After months of Dark Reign, and since there are really any Avengers around in this story other than standing around talking – I was glad to at least see villain vs. villain.

But again, this is a Bendis story, nothing ever happens like you expect it. The Sentry, Osborn’s lapdog comes to his rescue and engages the god of war in combat. There are a couple of majestic pages by artist Olivier Coipel where we see the two titans pose and battle, pose and battle – and then it happens. On pages eighteen and nineteen, the Sentry finishes Ares once and for all. I won’t get graphic, but trust me, Ares is dead. So dead. And these two pages comprise a visual that none of us will forget any time soon.

And the Sentry is firmly established as the most bad ass of all Bendis characters, James Robinson Mist style. More dangerous than The Hood or Norman Osborn, more than the Collective or the Skrulls. The Sentry wears the crown.

Other things happen in Siege #2. Captain America gives a speech and organizes the New Avengers, the Young Avengers and the Secret Warriors to take on Osborn. Maria Hill makes a daring rescue of the wounded Thor. Bucky, Jarvis, Taskmaster and Nick Fury have a couple of good lines. There’s another pointless text piece. And Bendis delivers another excellent cliffhanger. But everything pales in comparison with pages eighteen and nineteen.

I’m giving Siege #2 three and three-quarters stars out of a possible five. The art is vivid and amazing, some of Coipel’s best. Bendis both shines and shames, but all in all, a tremendous comic book, full of emotion for both the characters and the readers. Powerful. I both look forward to, and dread what comes next.

	Glenn Walker
	Glenn has been a fan of Marvel Comics' Avengers since the early 1970s, when their current adventures were chronicled by Steve Englehart and their early exploits by Stan Lee in classic reprints featured in Marvel Triple Action. He has persevered through many incarnations of the team and he still loves the Avengers to this day.