Uncanny Avengers Volume 2 Apocalypse Twins TP Rick Remender 1st pr Kang X-Men

Description

Uncanny Avengers Volume 2: The Apocalypse Twins (Marvel Now) Paperback by Rick Remender (Author), Gerry Duggan (Author), Daniel Acuna (Illustrator), Adam Kubert (Illustrator)

The future begins in the past! It’s an 11th century clash of the titans as Thor batt les Apocalypse! The Avengers’ ancestors are being hunted, with Rama-Tut and Kang pulling the strings, and only a young Thor can save his future companions! And in the present, the beginning of the end looms as the Apocalypse Twins debut! Why are they targeting the Celestials? What is their connection to Kang? And how is Thor responsible for their mighty power? Apocalypse’s Ship attacks S.W.O.R.D., a Celestial meets a shocking fate, and the Four Horsemen of Death are unleashed! And as the Twins’ new henchmen shatter the Uncanny Avengers, Wolverine discovers the Midnight City – and immediately wishes he hadn’t! When all hope dies, Ragnarok begins! Plus: Kang and the Apocalypse Twins enter the Age of Ultron!

Beginning with a cracking-good flashback story featuring Thor’s encounter with X-Men nemesis Apocalypse and exploding into a plot involving time-lord Kang’s manipulation of the Apocalypse Twins and the slaying of godlike Celestial, Marvel presents the second volume featuring a team made of two of its hottest cinematic properties, the Avengers and the X-Men. The scope is ratcheted up to a cosmic level, which, along with a growing cast and a story that breaks off in the middle, will give experienced readers a lot to contend with and newcomers virtually no entry point at all. However, Remender does not do this at the expense of character, creating a sense of dire tension among the team and giving everyone in the large ensemble fine moments, particularly Thor, who feels responsible for letting a vastly powerful weapon fall into enemy hands, and Wolverine, plagued with guilt over the death of his son. Acuna takes over the art chores impressively, giving the space gods and superhumans a luster and wonder that even movies still can’t quite match.

COLLECTING: UNCANNY AVENGERS 6-11, 8AU

Paperback: 160 pages

This volume collects issues Uncanny Avengers 6-11 and Uncanny Avengers 8AU.

Following the events of volume 1, this series kicks it up to apocalyptic levels. To recap, Captain America has made an Avenger Unity squad, made up of Avengers and mutants to combat threats that deal more with the mutant community. Cap feels like he has let them down in the wake of the Avengers vs. X-Men event. He puts mutant “revolutionary” Cyclopes’ brother, Havok, in charge. The Red Skull managed to get ahold of the recently deceased Professor X’s brain and with it his powers. The Skull tried to provoke a human mutant war in which he would lead the humans in exterminating the mutant threat. Also, picking up from Remender’s incredible Uncanny X-Force run, the horseman of pestilence has given birth to the heirs of Apocalypse, The Apocalypse Twins. This faction wishes to lead mutants into the future by exterminating their weaker non-evolved cousin species, humans.

Ooookay, that takes us into this volume as the Red Skull has been defeated but still is out there. Remender really likes a massive story which can get to be dense. The Apocalypse Twins are kidnapped by Kang the Conquer, who for mysterious reasons, takes them into the future and trains them to live up to their birthright of bringing the genocide of humanity. This book gets pretty dark as those who have followed Remender’s other works can recognize this trait immediately.

The story starts with issue 6 in an awesome battle between the actual Apocalypse and Thor in the early 1000’s. The fight is all part of Kang’s manipulation as are most of the events to come. The Uncanny Avengers 8AU follows and is appropriately placed as it shows Kang “teaching” the young and impressionable Apocalypse Twins during the Age of Ultron event (even Kang admits the timeline is a little messed up but it may turn back to normal). Issues 7-11 follow with the Apocalypse Twins beginning their assault on earth in grand fashion. The team goes through different twists and turns and breaks due to secrets at the worst possible time as the new four horsemen are unleashed.

The overall flow of the story drags but the events unfolding are so gut-wrenching that to fully absorb and comprehend this story it is almost necessary to be slow paced. The characterization is perfect as no one feels redundant and Remender gives each member a unique voice that causes some personalities to bond and others to clash without feeling forced. One annoying aspect of this series is an omnipotent narrator that Remender uses at the oddest at times and at random too. If it was consistently used it would feel better used. He does not seem to use it for filling in details the audience would not know but just is describing what the artists so beautifully are portraying.

On to the art, Daniel Acuna does the regular series issues and is perfect. His style is very hard to describe but is just plainly gorgeous. Adam Kubert does the 8AU issue to great affect. He is very similar to his brother Andy and Jim Lee with really cool tough guy poses and shadowy angry faces. Very edgy and moody.

The end of this conflict will be coming in the next volume Uncanny Avengers Volume 3: Ragnarok Now (Marvel Now) and I am filled with excitement and dread at how things will play out!

978-0-7851-6604-7

Near mint, unread condition. 1st printing.