A terrorist organization called Hydra attacks the United Nations while all of the worlds leaders are present. Tony Stark aka Iron Man, enters the scene to halt the rampage. After the skirmish, he comes to words with SHIELD commander Nick Fury, and learns that the threat of super villains are increasing and he's only one man. As the super villain activity increase, solo superheroes attempt to stop the madness. These random attacks are only the beginning of something bigger in the works.
The Avengers were successful in thwarting the shape-shifting Skrulls secret invasion of Earth were they managed to infiltrate key positions for a planet wide takeover. The team is still somewhat reeling, however it's Captain America enduring the worst of it, since a Skrull imposter used his face to deceive the world. Still, Cap will soldier on because there are new threats to face. -summary
Avengers Volume Six wraps up the series after its cancellation. Marvel has stated in some form or another that the next series titled Avengers Assemble will pick up where things left off, however this is still unconfirmed. It's also rumored that this series is going to take up a more kid-friendly approach. This I am not crazy about at all, especially after sitting through some of Ultimate Spider-Man, in which at the moment, I just dropped that series altogether during the third episode. It's very hard for me to sit through, and I'm unsure of when I'm going to finish it. Now getting on to this, it was mentioned before the second season had went into production that this was the finale and it shows; the series has it good moments for sure, but it definitely feels rushed as if the writers just couldn't wait to get it over with; you can tell many of these episodes are two parters crushed into one. This collection contains the final 12 episodes.
The revolving door of writers and directors for this batch of stories do their best in trying to go out the right way though. They manage to condense some popular storylines making them quite enjoyable, but you can tell they were originally written to be one episode longer, fortunately the good outweighs the bad; Ultron Unlimited is easily my favorite on this collection. The mad robot returns with his body now fully encased in adamantium, and he has his "son" Vision by his side yet again. The battles are entertaining during the episode, but they save the best for last as the final confrontation with Ultron captures that feel of the comic. He is among the Avengers deadliest enemies and I think casual fans unfamiliar with the comic will probably come away understanding that.
Other stories such as Code Red and Winter Soldier are done fairly well delivering some decent action, plus keeping casual fans in the dark on who the Avengers attacker may be, comic diehards will see it quickly though. Emperor Stark which is based on the average story from the 80's Emperor Doom is entertaining also, and it was great to see a villain that no one has really heard of given some type of exposure. If only Marvel would find use for him more often. Certain storylines that were left hanging in the last volume like the Hulk turning himself in to Thunderbolt Ross is continued in, The Deadliest Man Alive. Along with the Kree's final assault against Earth taking place in both Operation Galactic Storm and Live Kree or Die. Now I do understand that it would be foolish to expect Operation Galactic Storm to closely follow the 19 issue crossover, but I found this story so bland and even uninspired that I wouldn't have minded if it was left on the cutting room floor. The Avengers roster receives a boost with the Vision joining Ms. Marvel as regular members, plus their are various guest stars with most notably Spider-Man popping up in, Along Came A Spider... and in New Avengers.
My biggest complaint about this release is the obviously rushed feel which throws off the pacing. The character interactions aren't as great this time around, because on many occasions it has to be cut in favor of the action. However, there are moments where it does register, such as Captain America's speech towards Spider-Man paying homage to Civil War, in which Spider-Man clearly wears the need for a father figure on his sleeve. The characters are a mixed bag, but when they shine, they can be pretty bright. There was so much potential to give the fans a whole lot more with these re-imagined storylines though, so I can understand anyone walking away feeling half-full.
The voice acting is still on point though with Brian Bloom playing Captain America exactly how I would expect to hear him, which is commanding and inspirational, he could probably motivate a tree to uproot and find better soil. Colleen O'Shaughnessey once again steals it for me as the Wasp; I love the sarcastic and comedic side to her, as she taunts prisoners on their way to jail. The animation still holds up with some awesome action segments; the battles involving Ultron, Kang, and even Red Hulk are fun to watch, while others such as Thor battling Airwalker and even Galactus manage to once again pay homage to the original stories. The lightening effects and vivid backgrounds during the orbit segments, maintain the fantasy and sci-fi feel for those interested in that.
In closing, even though I enjoyed this finale I can't ignore the rushed feel which brings down my overall enjoyment. I expected great things out of this and I am disappointed, but my disappointment is more towards Marvel and Disney. Anyway, don't let this weak finish put you off from giving the series a shot. There's still a lot of animated fun to be found, and casual fans with no comic book knowledge at all can leap into this and have a good time. Kids can watch it as well, since the violence and references towards death are very tame. Fans of the comics may still enjoy it too despite seeing all of the surprises a mile away. For me, it's a nice little break from reading the stories.
Pros: -Animation, some of the stories, anyone can get into it
Cons: -Feels very rushed
What did you think of this review?
Helpful
9
Thought-Provoking
9
Fun to Read
9
Well-Organized
9
Post a Comment
FM_ALEXFebruary 26
Yeah it felt rushed but that is because of the new show they are doing I am sure. Wish they would have just countinued this show but oh well. At least we get the series on DVD.
MadpenguinFebruary 26
That wasn't the reason, Marvel had got the rights back to their animated characters and they were trying for awhile too. But they rushed and finished this so they couldn't leave fans stuck with a completely unfinished series like they did with Spectacular Spider-Man.
One of the producers said in an interview that they ended this to start a new one, they needed this done to make the next.
MadpenguinMarch 02
Maybe there's more than one reason then. Either way as far as I'm concerned there's no good excuse for deliberatly lowering the quality of a show. And because this is not the first time they did this, I'm going to be very careful with Marvel's animated shows by avoiding them completely until I see they are complete. I'm sick and tired of shelling out cash for unfinished shit. This is one of the reasons why I been avoiding anime.
FM_ALEXMarch 05
Yeah they wanted to make a show with the Avengers from the movie or something since it did so well.
I just received this last Tuesday and so I skimmed your review because I want to see it fresh. Your rating gave me pause. I guess it was good while it lasted.
MadpenguinFebruary 24
It was definitely rushed and you're going to see that quick. It's always the good stuff getting canceled.