The Avengers #31: Your Own Worst Enemy

Heads are still spinning from last issue’s perplexing reveal, yet the pacing of Avengers #31 does not relent, diving straight into answers. To recap: it turns out that the heroes’ mysterious new foe, Myrddin, is actually their age-old nemesis Kang in disguise. Even stranger is the fact that Kang was often present at the same time and place as Myrddin, and seemed to despise the wizard’s motives as much as the Avengers themselves did.

Avengers #31 is a break from action and adventure, with its titular team occupying only a brief cameo in the opening page. The comic is truly about context, trying to make sense of the time-twisting logic behind these dual conquerors. The only problem is: it doesn’t have as many major revelations to present as it thinks it does. As far as full-circle time travel moments go, these events don’t close in as satisfying a loop as one would hope. It’s almost disappointingly straightforward: Kang simply deduces that the only being capable of repeatedly besting him is himself. Knowing that the Avengers are the key to passing the tribulation events, he figures Myrddin must exist to reframe his treasure hunt as a battle for the fate of the universe, tricking the heroes into doing his bidding by posing as a larger threat. So he dons a new costume and nearly puts his younger self in the grave to set the events of Jed MacKay’s run in motion.

While the truth bomb isn’t mind-blowing, MacKay at least has fun giving Kang the spotlight, intersecting his immense power with his even larger ego. Knowing that he personally funds Shakespeare’s theater company in exchange for the opportunity to perform is a wonderfully ridiculous lore drop that feels ripped out of Marvel’s golden age. And seeing him retreat back to the drawing board after a humiliating defeat humanizes Kang on a new level.

Further humanizing him are the subtle intricacies of Javier Pina’s pencils, furrowing Kang’s brow and tweaking his scowl in a way that allows his frustration to shine through the hardened façade. The thick textured inkiness of Pina’s line art imbues the issue’s cosmic imagery with a sense of majesty, yet also fits perfectly with Kang’s detour to the Elizabethan era. Even the flowing, ever-shifting folds and wrinkles of his iconic robes are vibrant with their paintbrush-stroke quality, amounting to an overall visually delectable issue of Avengers.