Avengers #375
The Last Gathering
New York City is rocked by the sudden explosive appearance of a strange energy vortex. The Avengers — Captain America, Black Knight, Giant-Man, Quicksilver, Hercules, Vision, Black Knight and Thunderstrike — race to the scene. There they find Proctor and his Gatherers — Jocasta, Silver, Korg, Tarkas, and Rik — waiting for them with Sersi and Ute the Watcher as their prisoners. Finally face-to-face with the villain that they have been plagued by for months, Quicksilver asks the Black Knight if he is ready for the battle ahead. Since he just discovered that Proctor is his counterpart form another reality, Dane believes he has no other choice.[1]
When Hercules attacks Proctor head on, the villain shrugs off his attack. Proctor then shocks everyone by channeling the powers of both Ute and Sersi to start collapsing realities on each other. This begins with the World Trade Center being replaced by futuristic towers from another reality. As the other Avengers leap into battle, Thunderstrike is ordered to use his hammer to create a vortex to lift innocent bystanders out of the battlefield. Although he is still learning how his hammer works, Thunderstrike attempts to do as he is ordered but is ambushed from behind by Jocasta. Hercules comes to his aid, but Proctor blasts him from behind.
The Black Knight then leaps to fight his counterpart and reveals that he knows the truth. Proctor admits that he is Dane’s counterpart from another reality. However, other than being made the Gann Josin of Sersi, the pair have very little in common.[2] Proctor explains that when the Sersi of his reality left him he was heartbroken and alone, something that Dane has been spared of because in this reality loves Crystal, not Sersi.[3] He also shows off another thing that is different about them: He still wields the Ebony Blade, something the Black Knight stopped doing some time ago.[4] While Dane feared the blood curse, Proctor reveled in it after using the Ebony Blade to kill his version of Sersi. He then lunges at Whitman, intending to kill him with the enchanted weapon as well.
By this time the Eternals Thena and Sprite have arrived to lend the Avengers a hand, however unless they can find a way to free Sersi and Ute, realities will continue to be collapsed on one another. Inside the vortex, Ute communes with Sersi telepathically and encourages her to fight against Proctor’s scheme. Meanwhile, Crystal is watching the battle between the Black Knight and Proctor. She wants to aid Dane in battle, but when she sees that the others are having problems with the rest of the Gatherers, she decides to aid them instead. Ultimately, Proctor defeats the Black Knight in battle. As he prepares to land the killing blow, Sersi sees what is happening and pleads with Ute to help her get free. Also seeing this is Quicksilver who races in to save Dane’s life, paying the Knight back for the time he saved him.[5] However, still recovering from injuries of his own, the speedster collapses to the ground.
Seeing both her husband and her lover at risk, Crystal orders Thunderstrike to summon lightning with his enchanted hammer. She then boosts its strength with her elemental powers and makes it strike Proctor. The sudden jolt of electricity also shorts out the vortex freeing Sersi and Ute. Furious over being emotionally manipulated and mentally tortured, Sersi picks up Proctor’s Ebony Blade and uses it to decapitate her tormentor. However, this is a hollow victory as Sersi explains to the others that although Proctor is now dead, the damage he has done to her mind was permanent and she has no hope left. The dying Ute disagrees and tells Sersi that there is always another way. He then uses the last of his cosmic power to undo all the damage caused by Sersi. This also includes repairing the damage done to Avengers Headquarters, replacing it with a duplicate of the original mansion.[6]
After Ute dies a portal suddenly opens in front of Sersi. She can sense that this was the Watcher’s final gift and it will lead her to a world where her mind can be whole again and decides that she is going to go through it. The Black Knight shocks everyone else by revealing that he wants to go along with her. Dane explains that he is not doing this for the sake of Crystal and Quicksilver’s marriage, but because he wants to stop running from his problems and seeing things with him and Sersi through to the end.[7] The other Avengers try to plead with Sersi and Dane to stay, but they have made up their minds. As soon as they pass through the portal to closes behind them. Captain America can’t bring himself to understand why Whitman would choose this decision, but Crystal explains that given the heart and soul of the Black Knight this was simply wasn’t any other choice.
Recurring Characters
Avengers (Captain America, Giant-Man, Quicksilver, Hercules, Crystal, Black Knight, Black Widow, Sersi, Thunderstrike), Gatherers (Proctor, Jocasta, Silver, Korg, Tarkas, Rik), Thena, Sprite, Ute
Continuity Notes
The revelation that Proctor was is an alt version of the Black Knight was revealed last issue. All the Gatherers come from alternate realities. Per Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A-Z #2, Proctor and Ute come from Earth-374 and Jocasta from Earth-943. The others, as of this writing (in May, 2022), have yet to have their realities indexed.
The Black Knight was forced to become Sersi’s Gann Josin in Avengers #361. However, he was able to break free of this mind link in issue #373.
ONCE MORE WITH FEELING: there has been an on going love triangle between the Black Knight, Crystal, and Sersi. The details:
Since Fantastic Four #150, Crystal has been married to Quicksilver. However, their marriage has been troubled since she cheated on him in Vision and the Scarlet Witch (vol. 2) #6-12. This was made all the more harder when Crystal joined the Avengers in issue #336 and both she and the Black Knight became smitten with one another.
Sersi on the other hand has been throwing herself at the Black Knight since Avengers #350. Later, when she was accused of suffering from the Mahd W’yry, her fellow Eternals forced Dane to become her Gann Josin, a telepathically bonded life mate. This happened after Crystal came to believe her marriage couldn’t be saved after a disastrous romantic getaway with Quicksilver in X-Factor #89 went bad. This led to Crystal having a romantic tryst with Dane.
More recently, Quicksilver was injured in a battle with Exodus in Avengers #369 and has been living with the Avengers while he recovers, adding significant strain on the situation. In issue #372, Crystal admitted to her husband that she loves both him and Dane.
The Black Knight decided to stop wielding a photon sword in Avengers #343. It’s later explained in Avengers Annual #22 that Dane stopped using the weapon in order to prevent himself from falling victim to the Ebony Blade’s blood curse.
When Quicksilver was injured by Exodus in Avengers #369, the Black Knight performed CPR, saving his life. Here, Quicksilver is referred to as a mutant. However, it this later turns out to be false. As explained in Uncanny Avengers (vol. 2) #4-5, Pietro was experimented upon by the High Evolutionary when he was still a baby. In order to cover up his work, the Evolutionary made it so Pietro would register as a mutant whenever his genetics were tested.
The original Avengers Mansion — the team’s headquarters since Avengers #2 — had been relocated to Hydrobase in Avengers #278. It was later sunk to the bottom of the ocean in issue #311. The new Avengers Headquarters was constructed at the original site of the mansion in issue #329. It was heavily damaged in Avengers #373. In Avengers: The Crossing #1 it is explained that this mansion is an exact duplicate of the original that was taken from another reality.
From here, the Black Knight and Sersi end up transported to an alternate reality known as the Ultraverse, starting in Ultraforce #8. Per Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe: Alternate Universes 2005 #1, this universe has been designated Reality-93060. They will remain in this reality until they return to Earth-616 in Ultraforce Unlimited #2/Black Knight: Exodus #1.
Topical References
The original twin towers of the World Trade Center are depicted as part of the New York City skyline. This should be considered a topical reference as these buildings were destroyed in a terrorist attack on September 11, 2001 and subsequently replaced with the Freedom Tower.
A Bigger Man Than I…
Hank Pym, aka Giant-Man, is about to undergo a psych evaluation using a newly built encephalo-helmet that will create a virtual reality simulation to gauge his mental health. Due to the risks involved, he has the Black Widow monitoring things and on hand to pull him out of the simulation if things go south.
In the simulation, Hank suddenly shrinks down to insect size and is dragged by ants into their underground hive. There, ants dressed in his old Ant-Man and Goliath costumes drag Pym to a bizarre court where he is put on trials for crimes against the insect world. He is also harangued by ants dressed in all his old identities - Ant-Man, Giant-Man, Goliath, and Yellowjacket — as well as one dressed as the Wasp, who all call him on being a failure as a hero. As Hank struggles to defend himself, the system begins going haywire. Unfortunately, when the Black Widow tries to pull him out of the simulation only to discover that only Hank has the ability to manually override.[1]
Luckily, Hank manages to fight off his virtual attackers and assert that he is a hero. When he wakes up he discovers that he has broken out of the device by growing to giant size. When the Widow asks him what happened, he assures her that everything is fine.
Recurring Characters
Giant-Man, Black Widow
Continuity Notes
There is a lot about Hank Pym’s past history that is put on display. Such as:
His various identities, such as Ant-Man (Tales to Astonish #35), Giant-Man (Tales to Astonish #49), Goliath (Avengers #28), and Yellowjacket (Avengers #59).
One of the ants also appears in Janet Van Dyne’s first Wasp costume from Tales to Astonish #44.
Hank mentions how he made the transition from Ant-Man to Giant-Man to make up for the Hulk leaving the Avengers. The Hulk quit the team in Avengers #2. However, Hank had already become Giant-Man before the Hulk quit. Clearly he is mistaken here.
Mention is made of the various mental break downs Hank had suffered over the years. The first led to his transition from Goliath to Yellowjacket in Avengers #59, the second time he struck the Wasp in Avengers #213 leading to her divorcing him. The last time was in West Coast Avengers (vol. 2) #17 where he contemplated suicide after getting dumped by Tigra.
Hank remained retired from costumed heroics in Avengers #230 until he decided to become Giant-Man again in Avengers #366.
Bonus Material
This issue also features pin-ups of Captain America and Deathcry.
