Avengers #10: Poor Bedside Manner

It has been an oddly unsettling sight, seeing Kang the Conqueror brought low and made vulnerable in the pages of Jed MacKay’s Avengers. Stripped of his armadas and armor, Kang’s frail human form has laid comatose in the infirmary of his arch-nemeses for some time. Now a rude awakening awaits him in Avengers #10, as the dreaded Myrrdin has breached his unguarded room.

A battle of wits ensues between the feuding chrononauts, a nice contrast to the battle of brawn that dominated last issue and continues to rage outside. Witnessing a villain face off against an individual as cunning and dastardly as themselves has unlimitedly entertainment potential, which MacKay takes full advantage of. Their conversations fit a few more pieces of this puzzle into place, revealing that  both warlords are in a race to obtain a shiny new MacGuffin. The missing moment, as it is called, can only be unlocked by heroes who have survived an unspecified number of “tribulation events.” The exchange is a masterclass in building intrigue, shedding light on old mysteries while creating brand new questions.

Everything comes to a head as Myrddin calls off his lackeys, forcefully extracting all knowledge of the tribulation events from Kang’s mind before retreating. Filled with rage at this humiliation, Kang flees and leaves the Avengers with no knowledge of the cosmic treasure hunt they’ve been manipulated into starting.

The frequency with which artist C.F. Villa switches from panel to panel makes a mundane issue feel thrilling. The bulk of the twenty four pages are set entirely within one small medical room, yet Villa finds interesting perspectives and angles with ease. With his wooden staff, billowing cloak and silver armor gives Myrrdin the façade of a figure pulled from dark fantasy, making him a natural foil to the sci-fi warlord. These same features also draw parallels to the grim reaper; fitting symbolism as he sits bedside from Kang’s near-death body.

Avengers #10’s singular shortcoming is the hasty exit of Kang, as his alliance of circumstance with the Avengers could have proven an excellent source of drama. In its totality, his role in this arc was more plot device than character, but perhaps this is just the beginning of a series of events that will bring all of these characters back together.