We Do Seek Out New Avengers!

Now

It’s 6:30 pm, and a man returns home to work as his wife prepares for dinner. Hoping to watch some TV before supper. He caches an announcement by Thor, calling out for new applicants in the Avengers.[1]

Earlier

The Avengers had just returned home from the double weddings of Vision and the Scarlet Witch, as well as Mantis and a Cotati. After seeing Wanda and the Vision off on their honeymoon, they notice the star that signaled the arrival of the Celestial Madonna is still shining in the sky and wonder why.[2] Jarvis is happy to see the Avengers since he’s been worrying since the Scarlet Witch went missing. Agatha Harkness assures the butler that she is fine and goes up to her room to pack her things as Wanda’s training is complete.[3]

With pleasantries out of the way, the Avengers get down to business. With the Vision and Scarlet Witch away on their honeymoon and with Mantis gone, they all agree that they should fill the ranks.[4] Iron Man immediately suggests they make Moondragon an official member of the team. While she is flattered, Moondragon says she will consider it but warns them that she is not the same as Mantis, despite their similar origins. With that out o the way, they begin placing calls to former members to see if they will rejoin their ranks. Thor calls the Black Panther first, who despite being interested, needs to remain in his native Wakanda and rule his people. Quicksilver flat out rejects after hearing that his sister married the Vision, something that he is strongly against.[5] With the task appearing harder than they originally thought, Hawkeye comes up with someone else they can call.[6] He puts in a call to Captain America, reminding him, but even though Cap promised to come back after dealing with the Serpent Squad, he can’t come back yet as the Red Skull has reappeared.[7]

Similar calls go out to the Black Widow and Hercules, both of whom decline the offer to return to the Avengers. The team finally hits paydirt when they contact the Wasp. She tells them that after her husband, Yellowjacket got involved with the Defenders she has decided that they return to costumed heroics.[8] While the Avengers are busy finding a replacement, Wanda and the Vision have begun their honeymoon on the French Polynesian island where they found the Silver Surfer.[9] Wanda has the Vision trade his costume for swim trunks and at first he feels a little embarrassed until she compliments how he looks.

Back at Avengers Mansion, Hawkeye wonders if it is futile to keep the Avengers going, pointing out how many other superhero teams. That’s when the Wasp and Yellowjacket arrive to resume their membership in the Avengers.[10] Yellowjacket and Hawkeye quickly get into a squabble over how Clint keeps trash-talking the Defenders since he left that group. However, the fight is quickly ended when Hank uses his cellular disrupter to stun the archer. When it it suggested they start recruiting new members, Hawkeye doesn’t like this idea and decides to use Doctor Doom’s time machine to go back to the 12th Century to try and convince the Black Knight to come back and rejoin the team.[11] This led to the Avengers making the call for new members, announcing that they will be holding try-outs at Yankee Stadium…

Now

As the Avengers wait at the stadium for new applicants, they are visited by a man who appears to be the late actor, Humphry Bogart. However, this turns out to be a disguise worn by the Beast, who decided to play a prank to break the ice. He confirms to the Avengers that he was the same Beast who was once a member of the X-Men. That was until he graduated and started working as a scientist for the Brand Corporation. It was there that he created a serum that transformed him into a literal beast. He used this identity to investigate the illicit activities of his employer only to discover that he was now trapped in that form.[12] He was horrified by his transformation but learned to live with it. After leaving the Brand Corporation, the Beast spent time watching old movies and coming to terms with his new life until he read about the Avengers membership drive in the papers.

The Beast’s introduction is then interrupted by a mystery villain who then fills the stadium with floating mines that will go off in about six minutes unless they find a way to stop it. Both Thor and the Beast recognize the voice of their attacker as that of the Stranger.[13] Both Thor and Iron Man try to get past the minefield but they are too thick to get through without contact. The Wasp then tries, hoping that her smaller size will get her through. Unfortunately, this doesn’t work either and she is caught in a blast. Worried for Janet’s well-being, Yellowjacket tries to foolishly run to her aid only to be subdued by Moondragon to prevent him from blundering into the explosives.

The Beast proves to be the only one agile enough to slip past the mines and shut them off. Yellowjacket then rushes to the Wasp’s side and discovers that she has been gravely injured. That’s when the Stranger appears before them and tries to attack with his mental powers.[14] Luckily, Moondragon can match him with her own powers of the mind and she proves the superior telepath, forcing the Stranger to flee. While the new team of Avengers succeeded in their first mission together, it did not come without cost.

Recurring Characters

Avengers (Captain America, Iron Man, Thor, Yellowjacket, Wasp, Hawkeye, Quicksilver, Scarlet Witch, Hercules, Black Panther, the Vision, Black Widow, Moondragon, Beast), the Toad (disguised as the Stranger), Agatha Harkness, Edwin Jarvis

Continuity Notes

1. This televised announcement was explored further from the public perspective in Marvels: Eye of the Camera #3

2. The star had a double purpose. Signaling the coming of the Celestial Madonna in Avengers #128 as well as the trial of Uatu, Earth’s Watcher in Captain Marvel #36-39.

3. Wanda underwent training in witchcraft in Avengers #128. She disappeared from the mansion in issue #135 because she was kidnapped by Dormammu as seen in Giant-Size Avengers #4. This is the same issue with the double wedding, BTW.

4. Also mentioned is the death of the Swordsman, which happened in Giant-Size Avengers #3.

5. Quicksilver left the team in Avengers #104 due to injury. He has been against Wanda’s romance with the Vision since issue #110.

6. Hawkeye mentions his time with the Defenders, mentioning their loose membership. He joined up with them after quitting the Avengers in issue #109. His tenure with the Defenders lasted from Defenders #7-11 and Avengers #116-118.

7. Some notes about Captain America here:

   • Hawkeye mentions how Steve Rogers is back to being Captain America again. Steve was disenfranchised when he discovered that the President of the United States was the leader of the Secret Empire in Captain America #175.

   • He quit being Captain America and took on the identity of Nomad from Captain America #180-183.

   • His battle with the Serpent Squad ran from Captain America #180-181 with the Red Skull popping up again in the following issue.

8. Yellowjacket and the Wasp decided to retire from heroics in Avengers #91. Hank served on the Defenders Giant-Size Defenders #4 and Defenders #23-25.

9. The pair fought the Surfer during the Avengers/Defenders War in Avengers #116.

10. The Wasp mentions their recent battle with the Lunatic Legion (Captain Marvel #35) and how a microbe has been affecting their size-changing powers. (Marvel Feature #4 & 6)

11. The Black Knight has been in the 12th Century since Defenders #11. The time machine that Hawkeye is referring to is the one the Avengers used back in Avengers Annual #2.

12. The Beast casually drops a lot of facts, they are:

    • That he was a member of the X-Men. He was a founding member of the team as seen in X-Men #1.

    • He eventually left the team to work for the Brand Corporation in Amazing Adventures (vol. 2) #11. This is where he developed the formula that turned him into a literal beast. He discovered that the Secret Empire was operating within the Brand Corporation and clashed with them until issue #15 and Captain America #174-175.

13. Both the Beast and Thor have met the Stranger in the past in X-Men #11 and Thor #178 respectively. However, this is not the Stranger, but the Toad in disguise as we’ll learn next issue.

14. Iron Man recounts seeing Moondragon’s mental powers at work during the Thanos War. That took place in Captain Marvel #25-33, Marvel Feature #12, and Avengers #125. This story specifically cites Captain Marvel #33.

Topical References

• Dated technology: The TVs in this story are depicted as CRT televisions.

• The man who comes home to watch TV says he wants to watch re-runs of Hogan’s Heroes. Since he specifically states that he is watching re-runs, this would not be a topical reference.

• The Avengers hold their recruitment drive at Yankee’s Stadium. It is depicted as the original stadium the team played in almost consistently from 1923 to 2008. This should be topical as that stadium. That stadium has since been torn down and replaced with a new stadium that opened in 2009. As such any reference to the original Yankee’s Stadium should be considered topical.

• What is also not a topical reference is the Beast’s choice to dress up as Humphry Bogart. This is because the Beast tells the Avengers that he spent the past few months watching a lot of old movies. The whole point of the Avengers’ shock and surprise is the fact that Bogart’s death pre-dated the publication of this story (He died in 1957) The Beast intentionally used the disguise to get their attention. Likewise, the Beast referencing Carlos Castaneda and Stevie Wonder are probably not topical since he is not referring to their work as “new”.

• Another reference that should not be considered topical is the reference to Tinkerbell, the character from Peter Pan. Unlike other pop-culture references, Tinkerbell is a character from classic literature and wouldn’t become dated because of its classical status. Even so, the fact that Disney now owns Marvel Comics, a reference to a character that is also classically associated with the Walt Disney Company would also not be considered topical because of brand synergy. You’d think that some of you out there never took notes watching 30 Rock.