Avengers Twilight #1: The Best of Us

Avengers: Twilight #1 sits in a weird place. The book has been released after having been written almost four years ago, it’s author a much different creative now than they were then. Around the same time as it were to be originally released, it would’ve shared a time frame with Square Enix’s adaptation of The Avengers which shared a very similar concept: In a world where the Avengers have disbanded due to a catastrophic event seemingly of their own causing, who and why would assemble them once more?

So, the book seems to be an alternate universe release to coincide with the release of that project, but that isn’t where the strange, echoing familiarity of the book ends. If you’ve read The Dark Knight Returns you’ll see it’s influence everywhere in this book, even down to the coloring. If you’ve read some of Zdarsky’s other work, it won’t sound all that surprising to hear a Frank Miller comic can be found in the roots of one of Chip’s tales. However, it isn’t just ‘TDKR’ that can be found in this story.

While Daniel Acuña’s art stands out as something extraordinary, the rest of Avengers Twilight #1 is, and I don’t mean this in a disingenuous way,’every old hero picking up the mantle one last time story imaginable. Served up on a slick platter and with the artistry to keep it compelling regardless of how overdone its concept is, the issue is still one of excellent craft and character, but fails to stand out beyond judgement by its own merits.

That, ladies and gentlemen, is where my criticisms end. With the elephant out of the way, that being the overabundance of stories within the same archetype as of late, we can then focus on why this book is still worth checking out as it does succeed in so many ways, setting up that promise a future for the title that’ll go above and beyond it’s safe opening chapter.

The story follows Steve Rogers at the end of his rope, the world having fallen to a dystopian grayness after the events of a cataclysmic Avengers failure colloquially referred to as ‘H-Day’. With them off the table and the safety of society in jeopardy, the story picks up with a Marvel universe full of once proud heroes who’ve aged beyond there means. Dragged back into the fight by Luke Cage, Steve is challenged once again by the measures of fascism in a fight that won’t just challenge his ideology, but challenge his legacy as well.

While yes, the book’s plotting is beat for beat like so many other things, an alleyway beat down scene included, it’s in its characterization and conventions of the Marvel Universe in a timeline like this without stooping to ideas that stink of a goth kid’s edgy ramblings a.l.a Old Man Logan. There’s a balance struck and nuance to the approach of fascism as an enemy in this book that allows Steve Rogers to be a more jaded version of himself that doesn’t ever feel out of place. He retains the core of his character, his anger and deliberate anger coming from the fact that he lost the war after all those years. From World War II all the way up and into this twisted future, Steve Rogers lost the fight against fascism. He never gave up, never sacrificed his ideals, but with the massive H-Day attack the symbol of his heroism could simply not beat out the overwhelming symbols of terror now surrounding the entire concept of the ‘Marvel Superhero’.

Luke in this is particular evidence of this strength in combining new concepts with strong character writing. While the idea that his indestructible skin would force immobility upon as it grew heavy upon his ever weakening muscles, he’s still fighting the good fight as a bastion of civil heroics that properly showcases what the core of his character has always been about. Grumpy and old, sure, but a vessel for edgy posturing like many who would come to craft their own versions of TDKR and fail to understand its way of justifying off-beat characterizations.

That’s where this book is the strongest. It’s characterization, the fun of seeing a new alternate Marvel Universe with genuine meat to it, and it’s art are all incredible. Oddly enough, this book could very well be ‘Civil War III’ and that’s something Chip is playing into here with the foil for Steve seems to be Tony Stark’s son raised with the same moral grayness and commitment to centrism that could be found all over the original Civil War event.

So yes, the plot is familiar, but what has been setup here now allow for the series to swerve as it moves forward. If the overwhelming genre familiarity is something you don’t find appealing then I recommend keeping an eye on the second issue of this series where it will hopeful become something of its own from a plot perspective.

As for the technical prowess on display, this book is a smooth read. A lot can be taken from the art and the ideas underlying the dialogue/prose, but said writing flows exceptionally never gutting the reader out of the story by stating the obvious or having character’s spout nonsense lore and other jargon just to fill-up a page. Emotion and head-space comes pouring out what’s being shown, something I didn’t expect from a book setup conceptually to be an overwrought work of drama. The lettering definitely accents this, Cory Petit dancing through some exceptional panel layouts that bring the actual craft of this issue together with beauty.