Avengers (vol. 3) #63

Jan 22

Jan 22 Avengers (vol. 3) #63

Standoff, Part 3

This story continues from Iron Man (vol. 3) #64…

When Asgardian worshipers in Slokovia became victims of ethnic cleansing, Thor came to their aid. This action created has upset Doctor Doom in the neighboring Latveria to the point where he is threatening retaliation. In order to try and diffuse the situation, the United Nations have asked Iron Man to step in.[1] Unfortunately, Thor is not willing to listen forcing Iron Man to put on a specially designed suit of armor made to withstand a battle with the thunder god.[2]

Captain America had just arrived as the two began to fight and the force of their blows create a powerful enough shockwave that sends Captain America plunging into a nearby lake. Sinking into the frigid waters, Cap can’t help but think back to when the Avengers thawed him out after decades in suspended animation.[3] He remembers how jovial both Iron Man and Thor were at the time, how much more innocent things were back in those early days. Pulling himself from the water and watching the two former allies trading blows, Cap feels as though they might kick off another World War.

Pushing through the heavy storm, Captain America tries to reason with his friends. Thor is so enraged that he is able to rip Iron Man’s Destroyer armor to bits. That’s when Cap points out the military tanks coming his way and pleads with him to stop. The thunderer, however, isn’t phased by this and welcomes the fight. When Iron Man tries to leap back into battle, Cap tackles him in an effort to stop the fight. Steve reminds them that at the end of the day, the Slokovian people have suffered, more so as a nearby village of Thor worshipers was decimated in the battle because of Thor and Iron Man’s over inflated egos.

Watching all remotely from his castle, Doctor Doom is thoroughly entertained but wants the fight to keep going. Hacking into an artillery cannon he makes it open fire on Thor, setting him off into another rage. The King of Asgard summons back Balder, Sif, and the Warriors Three and orders them to destroy the enemy tanks. As the battle begins, Captain America realizes that the soldiers were as surprised as they were when the cannon went off. Learning how they were provided by Doom is all the answer Steve needs to know why. That’s when Iron Man picks up incoming Russian jets that are heading into the area to raze it should they find American involvement in the region. Cap tells Tony to intercept them while he deals with the situation on the ground.

Captain America then tries to get Thor to stop, but is swatted into an advancing flank of American soldiers. While the troops have orders to engage Thor and his allies, Captain America tells them to stop. When the commanding officer insists they press forward, Captain America sternly orders them to stand down. Due to the respect the troops have for the hero, they all stand at attention and salute him.

Cap then returns to the fight and tries to convince Thor to stop fighting, reminding him that his father wouldn’t have won a conflict in this fashion. This angers the thunder god who reminds his friend that he now rule Asgard and will do so as he sees fit.[4] In his rage, Thor strikes Captain America’s shield at full force. Thor realizes that he went to far too late. Luckily, Iron Man has returned and manages to grab Steve out of the air before he is seriously hurt and stops fighting. Earlier in the battle, Thor referred to the ethnic cleansing of his followers are similar to the concentration camps of World War II. Now, Cap has a moment to have his say on the matter. He agrees, but points out that they didn’t start dropping atomic bombs on Berlin, as Thor has metaphorically done here. He also says that this is not the Avengers way. After a moments consideration, Thor notes that he is no longer an Avenger.[5]

With tensions defused Russian and American forces pull out of the region. As Doctor Doom follows the news coverage of the situation, his computers are hijacked by Iron Man. Stark informs Doom that he has just installed a particularly aggressive version of his Friday artificial intelligence that is programmed to mess up Doom’s entertainment center.[6] Tony then tells Doom that he’ll be seeing him anytime he wants now that he has access to the Doctor’s computer. As the screens turn to static, Doom raises a glass.

Back on the ground, Thor uses Mjolnir to pound out the dent he put in Cap’s shield when he struck it earlier. This is the least he can do after his old friend convinced him the errors of his ways. With that job done, Thor and his allies fly back to Asgard. Once Iron Man and Captain America return to the United States, they and the other Avengers — the Scarlet Witch, She-Hulk, Falcon, and Ant-Man — are watching the news. A report soon comes in stating that Latveria had successfully annexed Slokovia after deposing of its dictator. Doctor Doom issues a statement thanking the Avengers for protecting the Slokovian people until he could liberate them. Iron Man is annoyed by this, but Captain America points out that they did their best and they won the war with only one casualty.

Meanwhile, the kingdom of Asgard floats high above New York City.[6] Inside the royal palace, Thor sits on his throne staring at an old photo of himself, Iron Man, and Captain America. Approaching his king, Balder says that Thor was all too ready to lay down his weapons for mere mortals. This angers Thor who tells Balder that his father never knew any mortals such as the Avengers. He then tells Balder and the others to take their leave. Once alone in his throne room, the thunder god looks at the photograph once more and then tearfully tosses it to the ground.

Recurring Characters

Avengers (Captain America, Iron Man, Thor, Scarlet Witch, Falcon, She-Hulk, Jack of Hearts, Ant-Man), Doctor Doom, Warriors Three (Fandral, Hogun, Volstagg), Sif, Balder, Enchantress, Thailfi

Continuity Notes

Thor came to the aid of the Slokovia people in Thor (vol. 2) #58.
Iron Man couldn’t reason with Thor, leading to their battle in Iron Man (vol. 3) #64.
This of course is a reference to Avengers #4.
Thor took over rule of Asgard following the death of Odin. See Thor (vol. 2) #40-45.
Thor quit the team in Avengers (vol. 3) #61 so he could focus on ruling Asgard. He won’t return to the Avengers until may years later in Avengers Prime #1-5.
Friday is an artificial intelligence that has operated as Tony’s personal assistant since Iron Man (vol. 3) #53.
Thor had transported the kingdom of Asgard to the Earth dimension where it now hovers over New York City. This happened in Thor (vol. 2) #51. This will remain the status quo until Thor (vol. 2) #80.

Topical References

Iron Man specifically states that the Russians are sending Blackjack bombers into the region. Also known as the Tupolev Tu-160, these bombers have been used the Russian military since 1987. While these aircraft are still in use time of this writing (February, 2023), their reference here should be considered topical is the type of aircraft used at the time of publication and this could change should the Tupolev be retired in favor of more advanced aircraft at some point in the future.