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Heroes Reborn: America's Mightiest Heroes
Heroes Reborn: America’s Mightiest Heroes
A world without Avengers! Tony Stark never built an Iron Man armor. Thor is a hard-drinking atheist who despises hammers. Wakanda is dismissed as a myth. Captain America was never found in the ice - because there were no Avengers to find him. Instead, this planet has always been protected by Earth's Mightiest Heroes: the Squadron Supreme of America! Now Hyperion, Blur, Doctor Spectrum, Power Princess and Nighthawk face an attack from some of their fiercest enemies - including Dr. Juggernaut, the Black Skull, the Silver Witch, the Goblin and Thanos with his Infinity Rings. But why is Blade the vampire hunter the one man alive who seems to remember that the entire world has somehow been...reborn? And what is the Daywalker going to do about it?
Collects Heroes Reborn (2021) #1-7, Heroes Return (2021) #1.
Collects Heroes Reborn (2021) #1-7, Heroes Return (2021) #1.
224 pages, Kindle Edition
Published August 31, 2021
9 people are currently reading
123 people want to read
About the author
Jason Aaron
2,358 books1,676 followersJason Aaron grew up in a small town in Alabama. His cousin, Gustav Hasford, who wrote the semi-autobiographical novel The Short-Timers, on which the feature film Full Metal Jacket was based, was a large influence on Aaron. Aaron decided he wanted to write comics as a child, and though his father was skeptical when Aaron informed him of this aspiration, his mother took Aaron to drug stores, where he would purchase books from spinner racks, some of which he still owns today.
Aaron's career in comics began in 2001 when he won a Marvel Comics talent search contest with an eight-page Wolverine back-up story script. The story, which was published in Wolverine #175 (June 2002), gave him the opportunity to pitch subsequent ideas to editors.
In 2006, Aaron made a blind submission to DC/Vertigo, who published his first major work, the Vietnam War story The Other Side which was nominated for an Eisner Award for Best Miniseries, and which Aaron regards as the "second time" he broke into the industry.
Following this, Vertigo asked him to pitch other ideas, which led to the series Scalped, a creator-owned series set on the fictional Prairie Rose Indian Reservation and published by DC/Vertigo.
In 2007, Aaron wrote Ripclaw: Pilot Season for Top Cow Productions. Later that year, Marvel editor Axel Alonso, who was impressed by The Other Side and Scalped, hired Aaron to write issues of Wolverine, Black Panther and eventually, an extended run on Ghost Rider that began in April 2008. His continued work on Black Panther also included a tie-in to the company-wide crossover storyline along with a "Secret Invasion" with David Lapham in 2009.
In January 2008, he signed an exclusive contract with Marvel, though it would not affect his work on Scalped. Later that July, he wrote the Penguin issue of The Joker's Asylum.
After a 4-issue stint on Wolverine in 2007, Aaron returned to the character with the ongoing series Wolverine: Weapon X, launched to coincide with the feature film X-Men Origins: Wolverine. Aaron commented, "With Wolverine: Weapon X we'll be trying to mix things up like that from arc to arc, so the first arc is a typical sort of black ops story but the second arc will jump right into the middle of a completely different genre," In 2010, the series was relaunched once again as simply Wolverine. He followed this with his current run on Thor: God of Thunder.
Aaron's career in comics began in 2001 when he won a Marvel Comics talent search contest with an eight-page Wolverine back-up story script. The story, which was published in Wolverine #175 (June 2002), gave him the opportunity to pitch subsequent ideas to editors.
In 2006, Aaron made a blind submission to DC/Vertigo, who published his first major work, the Vietnam War story The Other Side which was nominated for an Eisner Award for Best Miniseries, and which Aaron regards as the "second time" he broke into the industry.
Following this, Vertigo asked him to pitch other ideas, which led to the series Scalped, a creator-owned series set on the fictional Prairie Rose Indian Reservation and published by DC/Vertigo.
In 2007, Aaron wrote Ripclaw: Pilot Season for Top Cow Productions. Later that year, Marvel editor Axel Alonso, who was impressed by The Other Side and Scalped, hired Aaron to write issues of Wolverine, Black Panther and eventually, an extended run on Ghost Rider that began in April 2008. His continued work on Black Panther also included a tie-in to the company-wide crossover storyline along with a "Secret Invasion" with David Lapham in 2009.
In January 2008, he signed an exclusive contract with Marvel, though it would not affect his work on Scalped. Later that July, he wrote the Penguin issue of The Joker's Asylum.
After a 4-issue stint on Wolverine in 2007, Aaron returned to the character with the ongoing series Wolverine: Weapon X, launched to coincide with the feature film X-Men Origins: Wolverine. Aaron commented, "With Wolverine: Weapon X we'll be trying to mix things up like that from arc to arc, so the first arc is a typical sort of black ops story but the second arc will jump right into the middle of a completely different genre," In 2010, the series was relaunched once again as simply Wolverine. He followed this with his current run on Thor: God of Thunder.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 59 reviews
August 13, 2022
Blade finds himself in a world where Steve Rogers was never thawed out of the ice so the Avengers never formed. What’s going on?! Oh - another desperately thrown-together and bloated Marvel event book that’s not worth reading.
If all you want to see is a slightly different Marvel universe, then Heroes Reborn is for you. Robbie Reyes isn’t Ghost Rider, Coulson is President, Doom has the Juggernaut thingamabob to become Dr Juggernaut, Tony Stark isn’t Iron Man, he’s just a drunk weapons dealer, Thanos has Infinity Rings, and so on.
It’s really boring. What If?-type stories don’t do anything for me and that’s all this silly noise was. The story itself is so empty. Blade and Cap know things are amiss but tread water until the story needs to end so they can punch whoever and restore the status quo.
I guess Jason Aaron wanted to write a DC vs Marvel-style story and this was the closest he’d realistically get. So he subs in Marvel D-listers Hyperion, Nighthawk and Power Princess (who?) to be the DC Trinity of Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman (with Green Goblin as Joker in Ravencroft, Marvel’s bargain-basement Arkham Asylum).
Before this, I’d have been interested to see that. Jason Aaron’s been at Marvel for pretty much the entirety of his comics career and the one Penguin comic he did for DC years ago was so good I’ve hoped he’d one day write a Batman run. That said, his “Batman” issue with Nighthawk (drawn by Scalped/Goddamned artist RM Guera) was disappointingly weak and forgettable so maybe he wouldn’t be that good a Batman writer after all.
Aaron also seems to write the Frank Miller version of Superman with his Hyperion, as a tool of the US government using brutal strength and ruthlessness to enforce authoritarian control. Supposedly the world we’re presented with in this book is a better one than the usual 616 world but I didn’t see that which only made the feeble premise even less convincing. It’s pretty clear which side Aaron’s trying to skew readers’ feelings towards and it ain’t the suddenly DC-flavoured one in this Marvel book, surprise surprise.
All this amounts to is the most banal of things: superheroes punching superheroes. Sure, there’s some imagination to the new combos of characters/roles in this alternative universe, but there’s none at all when it comes to the story itself. And that’s the worst part of it - it’s a story masquerading as imaginative and novel but it’s really just the same old structure with the most superficial of veneers.
Like all Marvel event stories, Heroes Rebored: America’s Dreariest Heroes was dull, overlong, pointless and messy, even with a writer like Jason Aaron who used to be a great writer but seems to only crank out rote superhero drek these days. And, also like all Marvel event stories, I suggest sparing yourself the tedium and skip it entirely.
If all you want to see is a slightly different Marvel universe, then Heroes Reborn is for you. Robbie Reyes isn’t Ghost Rider, Coulson is President, Doom has the Juggernaut thingamabob to become Dr Juggernaut, Tony Stark isn’t Iron Man, he’s just a drunk weapons dealer, Thanos has Infinity Rings, and so on.
It’s really boring. What If?-type stories don’t do anything for me and that’s all this silly noise was. The story itself is so empty. Blade and Cap know things are amiss but tread water until the story needs to end so they can punch whoever and restore the status quo.
I guess Jason Aaron wanted to write a DC vs Marvel-style story and this was the closest he’d realistically get. So he subs in Marvel D-listers Hyperion, Nighthawk and Power Princess (who?) to be the DC Trinity of Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman (with Green Goblin as Joker in Ravencroft, Marvel’s bargain-basement Arkham Asylum).
Before this, I’d have been interested to see that. Jason Aaron’s been at Marvel for pretty much the entirety of his comics career and the one Penguin comic he did for DC years ago was so good I’ve hoped he’d one day write a Batman run. That said, his “Batman” issue with Nighthawk (drawn by Scalped/Goddamned artist RM Guera) was disappointingly weak and forgettable so maybe he wouldn’t be that good a Batman writer after all.
Aaron also seems to write the Frank Miller version of Superman with his Hyperion, as a tool of the US government using brutal strength and ruthlessness to enforce authoritarian control. Supposedly the world we’re presented with in this book is a better one than the usual 616 world but I didn’t see that which only made the feeble premise even less convincing. It’s pretty clear which side Aaron’s trying to skew readers’ feelings towards and it ain’t the suddenly DC-flavoured one in this Marvel book, surprise surprise.
All this amounts to is the most banal of things: superheroes punching superheroes. Sure, there’s some imagination to the new combos of characters/roles in this alternative universe, but there’s none at all when it comes to the story itself. And that’s the worst part of it - it’s a story masquerading as imaginative and novel but it’s really just the same old structure with the most superficial of veneers.
Like all Marvel event stories, Heroes Rebored: America’s Dreariest Heroes was dull, overlong, pointless and messy, even with a writer like Jason Aaron who used to be a great writer but seems to only crank out rote superhero drek these days. And, also like all Marvel event stories, I suggest sparing yourself the tedium and skip it entirely.
May 26, 2022
I actually really enjoyed this book. This us as close as you can get to a Marvel and DC crossover without the others permission, and not get sued for copyright.
The world has changed the Avengers have never been formed. The Justice League I mean the Squadron Supreme protect the world and the American way with ruthless efficiency. Is the world better? Should it go back to the way it was?
The majority of the book is featuring the Squadron Supreme. Issues 2 - 6 give each character a spotlight and it is very obvious which DC character they are based on. Not the most action packed book but a good story. I especially like how they mixed the DC characteristics to Marvel storyline and characters.
A lot of intriguing way this cold be followed up. I like the big implications for the MCU. It is also interesting how the Squadron Supreme will fit in in future Marvel stories.
The world has changed the Avengers have never been formed. The Justice League I mean the Squadron Supreme protect the world and the American way with ruthless efficiency. Is the world better? Should it go back to the way it was?
The majority of the book is featuring the Squadron Supreme. Issues 2 - 6 give each character a spotlight and it is very obvious which DC character they are based on. Not the most action packed book but a good story. I especially like how they mixed the DC characteristics to Marvel storyline and characters.
A lot of intriguing way this cold be followed up. I like the big implications for the MCU. It is also interesting how the Squadron Supreme will fit in in future Marvel stories.
May 25, 2022
Is Jason Aaron even trying anymore? This was just bland with very little story. Earth gets turned into an alternate reality where the Avengers didn't exist because the Squadron Supreme took their place. Phil Coulson is president and all of the Squadron are right-wing conservatives. Aaron completely changes the personalities of all the Squadron. Very little is explained, like why Blade suddenly remembered the old reality. The story takes a back seat throughout the middle issues to focus each issue on an extremist version of one of the Squadron Supreme. This is the worst event Marvel has done in years. Completely pointless.
November 4, 2024
Every once in a while, a comic comes along that really makes an impression. "Heroes Reborn" is one such volume. Collecting Heroes Reborn #1-7 and Heroes Reborn #1.
The volume seems to be a stand-alone story and it's a great one. The artwork is very good and the different artists did a great job with the different styles of art. The story? Top notch.
Welcome to a work where the Avengers never existed. Strangely enough, it's Blade the vampire hunter who is wandering around this reality and he seems to be the only one who knows something is wrong. Tony Stark never made Iron Man armor. Thor doesn't remember who is was and is a drunk. Captain America is still encased in ice. So who is running things? The Squadron Supreme. It is Hyperion who plays a major role in defending humanity. The old villains are there, but different. From Doom to Red Skull, they are different than their normal iteration.
How did this come to be? As the story develops we find a nefarious plot from Mephisto to alter reality. Blade must try to reassemble the Avengers.
Sounds strange but this was a really interesting and well written story. I enjoyed this different alternate universe. A great one-shot volume that is well written and well illustrated. Looking for a cool plot and good art? You will find it here.
The volume seems to be a stand-alone story and it's a great one. The artwork is very good and the different artists did a great job with the different styles of art. The story? Top notch.
Welcome to a work where the Avengers never existed. Strangely enough, it's Blade the vampire hunter who is wandering around this reality and he seems to be the only one who knows something is wrong. Tony Stark never made Iron Man armor. Thor doesn't remember who is was and is a drunk. Captain America is still encased in ice. So who is running things? The Squadron Supreme. It is Hyperion who plays a major role in defending humanity. The old villains are there, but different. From Doom to Red Skull, they are different than their normal iteration.
How did this come to be? As the story develops we find a nefarious plot from Mephisto to alter reality. Blade must try to reassemble the Avengers.
Sounds strange but this was a really interesting and well written story. I enjoyed this different alternate universe. A great one-shot volume that is well written and well illustrated. Looking for a cool plot and good art? You will find it here.
June 23, 2021
The story is about the Marvel reality being changed and we see glimpses into this Squadron Supreme and its members and their daily Superhero lives like Hyperion, Nighthawk, Blur, Spectrum and Zarda basically rip off of the JL and then finally stories from Marvel being altered or referenced which happened in this reality differently like Civil war and all but the main thing is these Avengers in the background who have been causing chaos and disrupting this reality. The question is who changed this reality? And will it be restored ever?
This story was good and has seminal moments taking time to establish its characters and referencing new villainous versions of characters and its so fun to see but then the ending was sudden and the villain behind it predictable but despite it a good fight and aftermath for bigger things to come but then again this was just like another House of M event with not that big a consequence. The writing was okayish for the most part and the art with so many artists around is pretty good and manages to stay consistent and makes the writing better.
This story was good and has seminal moments taking time to establish its characters and referencing new villainous versions of characters and its so fun to see but then the ending was sudden and the villain behind it predictable but despite it a good fight and aftermath for bigger things to come but then again this was just like another House of M event with not that big a consequence. The writing was okayish for the most part and the art with so many artists around is pretty good and manages to stay consistent and makes the writing better.
February 27, 2022
Spinning out of Jason Aaron's current Avengers series, this deals with but doesn't entirely resolve the Squadron Supreme sub-plot that's been twining through there from the beginning.
It's another ho-hum, everything-you-know-is-wrong alternate reality event series where one hero remembers the way things used to be and sets out to regather his team to set things right. Blade draws the short straw this time in a world where the Avengers never were and instead Earth's Mightiest Heroes are the Squadron Supreme of America. After the first chapter, Blade's quest becomes the back-up feature as subsequent chapters focus on a single member of the Squadron and their place and/or history in this new reality. There are lots of side characters reimagined from their Marvel-616 continuity as powerless or with different powers and code-names. There is passing mention made to how the Squadron handled major moments in Marvel history of the What If? variety.
And then there's a big fight.
It's all very been there, done that, with few developments that seem like they'll have lasting impact. Definitely not the least bit memorable.
It's another ho-hum, everything-you-know-is-wrong alternate reality event series where one hero remembers the way things used to be and sets out to regather his team to set things right. Blade draws the short straw this time in a world where the Avengers never were and instead Earth's Mightiest Heroes are the Squadron Supreme of America. After the first chapter, Blade's quest becomes the back-up feature as subsequent chapters focus on a single member of the Squadron and their place and/or history in this new reality. There are lots of side characters reimagined from their Marvel-616 continuity as powerless or with different powers and code-names. There is passing mention made to how the Squadron handled major moments in Marvel history of the What If? variety.
And then there's a big fight.
It's all very been there, done that, with few developments that seem like they'll have lasting impact. Definitely not the least bit memorable.
November 26, 2021
If you been reading Jason Aaron's Avengers up to this point, you know what you're gonna get from this story arc, more mashup characters and over the top emotionless stories that evaporates out of your mind as soon as you close the book, but at least this one was set in a different timeline of the Marvel Universe, which works better in my opinion, but I still didn't care for it. I'm giving it one extra star for the art by Ed McGuinness, still the best thing about this run. Only recommended for fans of the Squadron Supreme.
February 15, 2022
Yikes! That was horrible, the plotting, the timing, the invisible voice narrator, the name and character dropping dead or already dead or murdered by the Squadron Supreme or the evil Coulson. I can see how this might have been pitched, but the execution was bad. If you are going to have some evil people (Not the JLA Honest!) in the Marvel Universe and how f**ked up that would be is one thing. But this was sold as a what if? we did not have certain heroes, but instead it was a whole new universe. Either give us the new universe or how dropping the current heroes changed things. But this whole, "I remember a different Universe!" was just lame. I mean if you want to have the teams fight just let them fight don't make an evil new universe (not stolen from the Dark Universe at DC honest!). This actually had so much good storytelling such as following Thor around. But ugh. I am glad I missed this "event".
August 13, 2021
The world is no longer as it was, and a Mephisto-lead Squadron Supreme reigns! But one man stands against them, and he will scour the newly changed world for those he remembers as the heroes the world needs, rather than the ones that have been thrust upon it.
As an event, Heroes Reborn doesn't really do very much. The majority of the actual plot takes place in the back-ups in each issue, as Blade recruits the Heroes Reborn versions of the Avengers in order to try and restore the world to the one we know and love. The bulk of the story is instead one-shots that deal with the Squadron Supreme's current status quo on the Heroes Reborn world.
That's not to say they're not interesting - the reimagining of their origins and the way they play into the grander scheme of things is decent, but it definitely smacks of 'why should I really care?' when we know that this world is inevitably going to revert back at the end of the story. It's something that extends out into the multiple tie-ins as well - they're all decent stories, but I wonder why we needed to spend so much real estate fleshing out a world that isn't going to have any impact on anything. It's similar to DC's recent Future State story, but the difference being that Future State has had an impact on the rest of the DC line when everything reverted back to normal. Other than Aaron's Avengers, I can't see Heroes Reborn doing anything of the sort.
The artwork's nothing to complain about though. Aaron's Avengers co-conspirator Ed McGuinness pencils all the back-up stories as well as the first and last issues, while the other issues get the likes of Dale Keown, Federico Vincentini, James Stokoe, R.M. Guera, Erica D'Urso, and Aaron Kuder - almost all of these are artists that struggle with monthly books, so it's nice to see Marvel playing to their strengths.
Heroes Reborn is fine, I suppose. It's inoffensive, and furthers Aaron's ongoing Avengers plotline well enough. But I question the decision to blow it up as large as it became - it really could have been just another arc of Avengers and it'd have had the same impact.
As an event, Heroes Reborn doesn't really do very much. The majority of the actual plot takes place in the back-ups in each issue, as Blade recruits the Heroes Reborn versions of the Avengers in order to try and restore the world to the one we know and love. The bulk of the story is instead one-shots that deal with the Squadron Supreme's current status quo on the Heroes Reborn world.
That's not to say they're not interesting - the reimagining of their origins and the way they play into the grander scheme of things is decent, but it definitely smacks of 'why should I really care?' when we know that this world is inevitably going to revert back at the end of the story. It's something that extends out into the multiple tie-ins as well - they're all decent stories, but I wonder why we needed to spend so much real estate fleshing out a world that isn't going to have any impact on anything. It's similar to DC's recent Future State story, but the difference being that Future State has had an impact on the rest of the DC line when everything reverted back to normal. Other than Aaron's Avengers, I can't see Heroes Reborn doing anything of the sort.
The artwork's nothing to complain about though. Aaron's Avengers co-conspirator Ed McGuinness pencils all the back-up stories as well as the first and last issues, while the other issues get the likes of Dale Keown, Federico Vincentini, James Stokoe, R.M. Guera, Erica D'Urso, and Aaron Kuder - almost all of these are artists that struggle with monthly books, so it's nice to see Marvel playing to their strengths.
Heroes Reborn is fine, I suppose. It's inoffensive, and furthers Aaron's ongoing Avengers plotline well enough. But I question the decision to blow it up as large as it became - it really could have been just another arc of Avengers and it'd have had the same impact.
June 25, 2021
This was real close being a two star review, which was quite surprising because it was the Aaron issues that had me leaning that way. But, the last issue was so good that it was easy to award this one extra star. While this does not end on a cliffhanger, it feels to me that Aaron is setting up some Avengers stories for later in his run.
For whatever reason, and on me it was lost, Marvel recycled the Heroes Reborn title for this arc (last used when they allowed multiple creators to "reboot" FF, Avengers, Iron Man). What really takes place is that reality has been re-written (oh no not again!) and the Avengers and most Marvel heroes are gone. In their place is Marvel's pastiche of the JLA, the Squadron Supreme.
Each Squadron member gets a spotlight issue (read as digital floppies), but in what amounts to say the last chapter and a half both the story and character work are ramped up.
SPOILERS (and yeah I don't like using the hide entire review bits because you might want to read what's above).
The mild surprise is Philip Coulson hooks up with Mephisto to re-write reality. The end pieces of character work made up for some of the earlier failures. Hyperion comes across more as a Superman type. When reality is restored the Squadron members are all lost to some extent, as to what are they do because their reality is now gone, except...
Nighthawk, aka Batman. Aaron sets him as a villain for a later story. I don't mind that Kyle Richmond has been switched from White to Black. What I do mind is that when he was white he was a hero (most of the time) and now he's being set up to be a villain (my interpretation of the end of his part in the story).
Then again how many people remember when Dr. Spectrum was first unmasked he was Black man, a government official from Uganda. Upon going from Squadron Sinister to Squadron Supreme he all of sudden became White.
Just saying, Marvel you might have some issues.
For whatever reason, and on me it was lost, Marvel recycled the Heroes Reborn title for this arc (last used when they allowed multiple creators to "reboot" FF, Avengers, Iron Man). What really takes place is that reality has been re-written (oh no not again!) and the Avengers and most Marvel heroes are gone. In their place is Marvel's pastiche of the JLA, the Squadron Supreme.
Each Squadron member gets a spotlight issue (read as digital floppies), but in what amounts to say the last chapter and a half both the story and character work are ramped up.
SPOILERS (and yeah I don't like using the hide entire review bits because you might want to read what's above).
The mild surprise is Philip Coulson hooks up with Mephisto to re-write reality. The end pieces of character work made up for some of the earlier failures. Hyperion comes across more as a Superman type. When reality is restored the Squadron members are all lost to some extent, as to what are they do because their reality is now gone, except...
Nighthawk, aka Batman. Aaron sets him as a villain for a later story. I don't mind that Kyle Richmond has been switched from White to Black. What I do mind is that when he was white he was a hero (most of the time) and now he's being set up to be a villain (my interpretation of the end of his part in the story).
Then again how many people remember when Dr. Spectrum was first unmasked he was Black man, a government official from Uganda. Upon going from Squadron Sinister to Squadron Supreme he all of sudden became White.
Just saying, Marvel you might have some issues.
February 21, 2022
So much effort poured into a largely pointless series. And for what? There were a few nice touches, like Aaron's characterization of Blur (basically The Flash), who is so fast that he's constantly losing his train of thought. I also liked the James Stokoe issue focused on Rocket Raccoon vs Doctor Spectrum, but I know not everyone appreciates Stokoe's art. But, ultimately, if an "event" like this doesn't have any effect on characters or continuity, why spend so much time on it and put so much effort into it? Pretty bleah, to be honest.
September 30, 2021
Wow. The worst of comic events distilled and aged for maximum potency. Skip!
March 27, 2023
Reality has been shifted, history has been altered and only one man remembers how it should be - leaving the readers full of questions. What has happened to the Avengers? What is the mysterious force behind these changes? And most pressing of all - who in editorial gave the nod to ANOTHER one of these stories?
For this kind of changed reality story to work, you either need a new twist or you need to go all in. Age Of Apocalypse worked because nobody had done it before and it committed to the bit - cancelling and replacing Marvel’s most popular titles for four months. Secret Wars did the same for the entire line, and came with years of build up. House Of M had terrible but still lasting repercussions. Commitment doesn’t guarantee success - Flashpoint rebooted DC’s entire continuity (admittedly one prone to it) but was still wretched. But without it you’re not an event, you’re just a What If story with delusions of grandeur.
And there have been plenty of those. It’s a measure of how worn out the idea is that we just had a reality reset story in Jason Aaron’s Avengers two volumes prior to this. When your reaction to the premise is “Christ, not again” the execution better be spectacular.
It isn’t. This is a Squadron Supreme story*. In the past that’s meant one of two things. Either a riff on DC, building on the initial idea of the Squadron as an off brand Justice League. Or a riff on authoritarian superheroes, building on Mark Gruenwald’s fondly remembered 1985 mini (so fondly remembered that for a while it was talked up by the more loyal True Believers as Marvel’s Watchmen).
Aaron goes for both options - all the Easter eggs and winks of the first bolted onto a story in which the Squadron are fascist lunatics a la their Gruenwald or Straczynski versions. It doesn’t really gel. In practice what you end up reading is yet another volume of Jason Aaron playing mix and match with powers and characters.
At its best it has some of the spirit of the 90s Amalgam Universe comics, but that level of playfulness is quickly squashed whenever it appears. The sole exception and the reason for the second star is an issue where James Stokoe gets to do his glorious, idiosyncratic thing and briefly gives you a glimpse of a world where Aaron’s maniac in a toy shop approach works. Now that’s a changed reality I’d like to explore.
*The fact it’s named after an event that had nothing whatsoever to do with them is the first hint that Marvel are well aware of how many people actually want to read about the Squadron Supreme.
For this kind of changed reality story to work, you either need a new twist or you need to go all in. Age Of Apocalypse worked because nobody had done it before and it committed to the bit - cancelling and replacing Marvel’s most popular titles for four months. Secret Wars did the same for the entire line, and came with years of build up. House Of M had terrible but still lasting repercussions. Commitment doesn’t guarantee success - Flashpoint rebooted DC’s entire continuity (admittedly one prone to it) but was still wretched. But without it you’re not an event, you’re just a What If story with delusions of grandeur.
And there have been plenty of those. It’s a measure of how worn out the idea is that we just had a reality reset story in Jason Aaron’s Avengers two volumes prior to this. When your reaction to the premise is “Christ, not again” the execution better be spectacular.
It isn’t. This is a Squadron Supreme story*. In the past that’s meant one of two things. Either a riff on DC, building on the initial idea of the Squadron as an off brand Justice League. Or a riff on authoritarian superheroes, building on Mark Gruenwald’s fondly remembered 1985 mini (so fondly remembered that for a while it was talked up by the more loyal True Believers as Marvel’s Watchmen).
Aaron goes for both options - all the Easter eggs and winks of the first bolted onto a story in which the Squadron are fascist lunatics a la their Gruenwald or Straczynski versions. It doesn’t really gel. In practice what you end up reading is yet another volume of Jason Aaron playing mix and match with powers and characters.
At its best it has some of the spirit of the 90s Amalgam Universe comics, but that level of playfulness is quickly squashed whenever it appears. The sole exception and the reason for the second star is an issue where James Stokoe gets to do his glorious, idiosyncratic thing and briefly gives you a glimpse of a world where Aaron’s maniac in a toy shop approach works. Now that’s a changed reality I’d like to explore.
*The fact it’s named after an event that had nothing whatsoever to do with them is the first hint that Marvel are well aware of how many people actually want to read about the Squadron Supreme.
August 17, 2021
Collects Heroes Reborn (2021) issues #1-7, Heroes Return (2021) issue #1
The concept sucked me in, and it was pretty good, but not amazing. There were lot of one-shot stories in this collection, and some of them were pretty good. Even though there were a lot of one-shots, everything is building towards the main story. Some things are never quite explained, but it was overall a fairly fun read.
The concept sucked me in, and it was pretty good, but not amazing. There were lot of one-shot stories in this collection, and some of them were pretty good. Even though there were a lot of one-shots, everything is building towards the main story. Some things are never quite explained, but it was overall a fairly fun read.
Read
May 21, 2023Their entire plan to right the magically altered world is to punch the heroes that replaced them? PUNCH THEM?!?!
December 31, 2024
7.5/10
My last book in 2024 (my bulkiest reading year so far!) but certainly not the least. I had a lot of fun trying to get all those references from both DC & Marvel. I also enjoyed the different art styles of the artists I've met here.
My last book in 2024 (my bulkiest reading year so far!) but certainly not the least. I had a lot of fun trying to get all those references from both DC & Marvel. I also enjoyed the different art styles of the artists I've met here.
Read
April 4, 2022After various hijinks in Jason Aaron's Avengers run (MEPHISTO CONFIRMED!!!), the timeline is altered such that the Avengers never existed, and only Blade remembers Marvel Earth as it was. Instead, America's greatest heroes are the Squadron Supreme – the company's long-standing analogues of DC's Justice League. And the world has reshaped itself around them, so that Ultron has been nudged a bit closer to being Metallo, the Beyonder is now Mr Beyonder as a nod to Mr Mxyzptlk, the Hulk is played as Bizarro, and so forth. Except for the villains who've been merged instead, so Red Skull + symbiote = Black Skull, or Doctor Doom + Juggernaut is Doctor Juggernaut. And this lack of focus is part of the problem here. There's definitely a potential story in Marvel Earth being wrenched into the shape of DC Earth but, perhaps not helped by the fact that DC have so drastically lost their way in recent years, this doesn't seem to know what that would mean, so flails in too many directions at once. Sometimes it's a better and brighter world, but also a more conformist one; elsewhere it's more ruthless, right down to having Hyperion (which is to say Superman) fly straight through Galactus' head when he first shows up. In places it feels like a venal Pottersville sort of world, not least with the scenes which play President Coulson as not far from a certain ghastly gangster who recently occupied that position, or (and at least in isolation I have to admit that this is a brilliant gag) the establishment Tony Stark's House Of Bullets: "Your Friendly Neighborhood Gun Bar! Do a shot while shooting some shots!" Yeah, you can say that the real world contains all of these things too, and so does DC Earth, so why shouldn't it be inconsistent? Certainly I can conceive of a feat of worldbuilding which unites all of this stuff. But let's face it: this is a superhero event, in which we all know perfectly well that this altered timeline is only going to be sticking around for a single-figure number of issues plus the same again in tie-ins. And given how much of that space will be given over to a bunch of dudes in brightly coloured outfits decking each other, you're not going to have much space for ingenious explanations of how it is at once purer and grubbier, darker and brighter. It needs a theme, a throughline, a sense of how it hangs together, if only in a fairytale sort of way, and that's lacking here.
Set against which – and here's those paradoxes again – it's also too long. Yeah, compared to the way something like Secret Empire or War Of The Realms, which would have been much more comfortable kept within the confines of one title, sprawled into line-wide crossovers, then one core collection plus two of supplemental tie-ins is positively restrained by recent Marvel standards. But all those JLA stand-ins kept making me think of how the definitive run on the League's own comic, Grant Morrison's, would have done the equal and opposite story to this better in 2-4 issues, and home in time for tea. Not every member of the team needs a character spotlight issue, not when they're mostly so one-dimensional, even if the James Stokoe art on Doctor Spectrum's (Green Lantern, but here played as several notches of U!S!A! dickhead past Guy Gardner) comes closer than anything else to justifying the project.
All of which said, I loved Peter Parker as Jimmy Olsen, not least because it seemed much more his speed than actual superheroics:
"PARKER LUCK STRIKES AGAIN!
Bugle's Own Peter Parker Temporarily Transformed Into Giant Spider From Alien Bite.
Falls And Breaks Own Legs.
All Eight."
Set against which – and here's those paradoxes again – it's also too long. Yeah, compared to the way something like Secret Empire or War Of The Realms, which would have been much more comfortable kept within the confines of one title, sprawled into line-wide crossovers, then one core collection plus two of supplemental tie-ins is positively restrained by recent Marvel standards. But all those JLA stand-ins kept making me think of how the definitive run on the League's own comic, Grant Morrison's, would have done the equal and opposite story to this better in 2-4 issues, and home in time for tea. Not every member of the team needs a character spotlight issue, not when they're mostly so one-dimensional, even if the James Stokoe art on Doctor Spectrum's (Green Lantern, but here played as several notches of U!S!A! dickhead past Guy Gardner) comes closer than anything else to justifying the project.
All of which said, I loved Peter Parker as Jimmy Olsen, not least because it seemed much more his speed than actual superheroics:
"PARKER LUCK STRIKES AGAIN!
Bugle's Own Peter Parker Temporarily Transformed Into Giant Spider From Alien Bite.
Falls And Breaks Own Legs.
All Eight."
May 30, 2022
Blade wakes up in a new world where Avengers never existed. Instead we have squadron supreme which is basically a rip-off of DC's Justice League twisted with Garth Ennis' The Boys' moral compass. It feels weird because you know you are reading Marvel but you see Homelander, I mean Hyperion, and Batman, I mean Nighthawk, doing amoral stuff to keep the America safe.
June 29, 2022
Mark Gruenwald is the only one who GOT the potential in the Squadron Supreme. Aaron just treats them like Justice League Lite. Seven issues of lameness with the Avengers lurking in the background. Evil Coulson is a bore. I don't understand why these writers tank when given entire universes to play with.
August 23, 2024
POPKulturowy Kociołek:
Autor zabiera nas tutaj do świata, w którym Tony Stark nigdy nie zbudował zbroi Iron Mana. Gdzie Thor jest pijakiem i ateistą, który gardzi młotami. Gdzie Wakanda jest odrzucana jako mit. I gdzie Kapitana Ameryki nigdy nie odnaleziono w lodzie, ponieważ nie było Avengersów, którzy mogliby go znaleźć. Zamiast tego ten świat zawsze był chroniony przez Najpotężniejszych Bohaterów Ziemi, którzy teraz muszą zmierzyć się z naprawdę groźnymi przeciwnikami.
Ten nowy świat, wykreowany przez Jasona Aarona, jest z jednej strony pełen znanych motywów i wątków, a z drugiej — pełen niespodzianek i zwrotów akcji, które zaskoczą nawet najbardziej zagorzałych fanów Marvela.
Jednym z kluczowych elementów fabuły jest nie tylko walka z przeciwnikami zagrażającymi światu, ale również wątek poświęcony znanemu łowcy wampirów (Blade), który jako jedyny pamięta oryginalny świat i stara się przywrócić dawny porządek. To on staje się niejako przewodnikiem dla czytelnika, wprowadzając nas w tę nową rzeczywistość, która stopniowo odkrywa przed nami swoje sekrety.
W scenariuszu nie brakuje wartkiej superbohaterskiej akcji, która mocno przyciąga uwagę odbiorcy. Największym jego zaletą jest jednak sposób, w jaki przedstawione są znane postacie w zupełnie nowym świetle. Każda z postaci jest zarazem odpowiednikiem bardziej znanego herosa, z drugiej zaś posiada szereg unikalnych cech, które sprawiają, że się dość mocno wyróżnia (przyciągając tym samym jeszcze większą uwagę).
Heroes Reborn porusza również kilka głębszych tematów, z których najważniejszym jest pytanie o to, co tak naprawdę definiuje bohaterów. Czy jest to ich siła, moralność, a może decyzje, które podejmują w najtrudniejszych momentach? Komiks w ciekawy sposób bada różnice między dobrem a złem, zastanawiając się, czy istnieje jasna linia dzieląca te dwa pojęcia. Alternatywna rzeczywistość pokazuje, jak bardzo może się zmienić świat, gdy bohaterowie, których znamy, nie istnieją, a ich miejsce zajmują inni, być może mniej doskonali, ale równie potężni.
W przypadku fabuły można mieć jedynie pewne zastrzeżenia do momentami niepotrzebnie zbyt przekombinowanej historii. Ponadto wielość postaci, różnorodność wątków i częste skakanie pomiędzy nimi mogą wprowadzać chaos i utrudniać pełne zrozumienie historii, zwłaszcza jeśli ktoś jest „nowy” w uniwersum Marvela....
https://popkulturowykociolek.pl/heroe...
Autor zabiera nas tutaj do świata, w którym Tony Stark nigdy nie zbudował zbroi Iron Mana. Gdzie Thor jest pijakiem i ateistą, który gardzi młotami. Gdzie Wakanda jest odrzucana jako mit. I gdzie Kapitana Ameryki nigdy nie odnaleziono w lodzie, ponieważ nie było Avengersów, którzy mogliby go znaleźć. Zamiast tego ten świat zawsze był chroniony przez Najpotężniejszych Bohaterów Ziemi, którzy teraz muszą zmierzyć się z naprawdę groźnymi przeciwnikami.
Ten nowy świat, wykreowany przez Jasona Aarona, jest z jednej strony pełen znanych motywów i wątków, a z drugiej — pełen niespodzianek i zwrotów akcji, które zaskoczą nawet najbardziej zagorzałych fanów Marvela.
Jednym z kluczowych elementów fabuły jest nie tylko walka z przeciwnikami zagrażającymi światu, ale również wątek poświęcony znanemu łowcy wampirów (Blade), który jako jedyny pamięta oryginalny świat i stara się przywrócić dawny porządek. To on staje się niejako przewodnikiem dla czytelnika, wprowadzając nas w tę nową rzeczywistość, która stopniowo odkrywa przed nami swoje sekrety.
W scenariuszu nie brakuje wartkiej superbohaterskiej akcji, która mocno przyciąga uwagę odbiorcy. Największym jego zaletą jest jednak sposób, w jaki przedstawione są znane postacie w zupełnie nowym świetle. Każda z postaci jest zarazem odpowiednikiem bardziej znanego herosa, z drugiej zaś posiada szereg unikalnych cech, które sprawiają, że się dość mocno wyróżnia (przyciągając tym samym jeszcze większą uwagę).
Heroes Reborn porusza również kilka głębszych tematów, z których najważniejszym jest pytanie o to, co tak naprawdę definiuje bohaterów. Czy jest to ich siła, moralność, a może decyzje, które podejmują w najtrudniejszych momentach? Komiks w ciekawy sposób bada różnice między dobrem a złem, zastanawiając się, czy istnieje jasna linia dzieląca te dwa pojęcia. Alternatywna rzeczywistość pokazuje, jak bardzo może się zmienić świat, gdy bohaterowie, których znamy, nie istnieją, a ich miejsce zajmują inni, być może mniej doskonali, ale równie potężni.
W przypadku fabuły można mieć jedynie pewne zastrzeżenia do momentami niepotrzebnie zbyt przekombinowanej historii. Ponadto wielość postaci, różnorodność wątków i częste skakanie pomiędzy nimi mogą wprowadzać chaos i utrudniać pełne zrozumienie historii, zwłaszcza jeśli ktoś jest „nowy” w uniwersum Marvela....
https://popkulturowykociolek.pl/heroe...
August 12, 2024
Historie alternatywne to dosyć grząski grunt. Można mieć pomysł i można mieć wykonanie co ma przykłady w samym Marvelu, vide Staruszek Logan czy swojego czasu serie Ultimate. Kłopot zaczyna się w momencie, kiedy pomysłowi towarzyszy słabe wykonanie lub pomysł sam w sobie nie jest aż tak super, jak to myśli autor.
Aaron to twórca, którego sobie cenię począwszy od mojego pierwszego kontaktu (Wolverine and X-men) po zabawy z Thorem. Niestety tutaj nie dowiózł całości do końca, bo choć założenia były niezłe, tak historia jest typowa do bólu. Stark nie został Iron Manem, Avengers nigdy nie powstali, a Kapitan Ameryka nadal tkwi w lodzie. Tylko Blade z jakiejś przyczyny pamięta, że światy wyglądał inaczej jeszcze wczoraj. Co się tu stało?
Tutejszy świat jest broniony przez Squadron Supreme, w skład którego wchodzi m.in. Hyperion, Power Princess czy Nighthawk, którzy mają dosyć kontrowersyjne metody walki z zagrożeniem. W zasadzie każdy, kto wchodzi w drogę grupy, ginie. Taki Galactus chociażby. Całość jest zaskakująco brutalna i... brzydka.
Jesteśmy na takim etapie, że topowe marki prezentują nam to co najlepsze. Tutaj miałem wrażenie, że z każdym nowym zeszytem ktoś się ściga o to, jak to ma wyglądać gorzej. Brrr. I te nachalne porównania do Ligi Sprawiedliwości, gdzie de facto Power Princess wygląda jak Wonder Woman wyciągnięta z innej serii. Haha, to miało być śmieszne? To miały być takie mrugnięcia do czytelnika? Na zasadzie jakbyś się nie zorientował, to odpowiednik z DC, albo i kopia...
Normalnie mnie to nie razie, bo przecież różne postacie tych obu wydawnictwo z siebie "zżynają" co lepsze postaci i je mieszają, nadając im chociaż odrobinę oryginalności. Tu tego nie ma, a kopia jest zwyczajnie chamska. To było słabe. No i rozwój fabuły, który jest tak przewidywalny...
Nie polecam tego tytułu i gdybym go nie pożyczył, a kupił - miałbym większy ból w konkretnym miejscu. A tak jest tu kilka niezłych sekwencji, jak i pierwszy zeszyt, który wizualnie broni się najlepiej. Resztę przemilczę.
Aaron to twórca, którego sobie cenię począwszy od mojego pierwszego kontaktu (Wolverine and X-men) po zabawy z Thorem. Niestety tutaj nie dowiózł całości do końca, bo choć założenia były niezłe, tak historia jest typowa do bólu. Stark nie został Iron Manem, Avengers nigdy nie powstali, a Kapitan Ameryka nadal tkwi w lodzie. Tylko Blade z jakiejś przyczyny pamięta, że światy wyglądał inaczej jeszcze wczoraj. Co się tu stało?
Tutejszy świat jest broniony przez Squadron Supreme, w skład którego wchodzi m.in. Hyperion, Power Princess czy Nighthawk, którzy mają dosyć kontrowersyjne metody walki z zagrożeniem. W zasadzie każdy, kto wchodzi w drogę grupy, ginie. Taki Galactus chociażby. Całość jest zaskakująco brutalna i... brzydka.
Jesteśmy na takim etapie, że topowe marki prezentują nam to co najlepsze. Tutaj miałem wrażenie, że z każdym nowym zeszytem ktoś się ściga o to, jak to ma wyglądać gorzej. Brrr. I te nachalne porównania do Ligi Sprawiedliwości, gdzie de facto Power Princess wygląda jak Wonder Woman wyciągnięta z innej serii. Haha, to miało być śmieszne? To miały być takie mrugnięcia do czytelnika? Na zasadzie jakbyś się nie zorientował, to odpowiednik z DC, albo i kopia...
Normalnie mnie to nie razie, bo przecież różne postacie tych obu wydawnictwo z siebie "zżynają" co lepsze postaci i je mieszają, nadając im chociaż odrobinę oryginalności. Tu tego nie ma, a kopia jest zwyczajnie chamska. To było słabe. No i rozwój fabuły, który jest tak przewidywalny...
Nie polecam tego tytułu i gdybym go nie pożyczył, a kupił - miałbym większy ból w konkretnym miejscu. A tak jest tu kilka niezłych sekwencji, jak i pierwszy zeszyt, który wizualnie broni się najlepiej. Resztę przemilczę.
September 6, 2022
High-key Justice League vibes (the fact that the "wrong" America was the one with the knock-off JL feels super petty and i kind of love it). Finally got around to reading the event from last summer and it was definitely worth it. I want to go back and read the Echo arc now because >>>>>. Satire on nationalism and tradition (is keeping things the way they are the right move? what determines the "right" one?) And I haven't read a Blade-centered comic since his ones from the 80s so that was fun! I was so invested in this -- it certainly kept me on the edge of my seat and seeing these heroes do villainous things without remorse was so dramatic and done really well to be able to evoke the kind of emotion it got out of me. I don't know if I could've emotionally handled any other Starbrand child was great, love the content. I need to get back to reading more comics/GNs, I just love them and I haven't been keeping up.
January 3, 2022
A fun remix of a punch-up, but never quite ascends to the level of major universe-altering events like Age of Apocalypse or the original Heroes Reborn - possibly because of its truncated-by-comparison length? Or the multiple issues that highlight mostly one member of the Squadron Supreme? Anyway, it feels like a protracted What If? which is okay, but not quite as lofty as maybe three volumes should be. The Avengers team that comes back to rescue this "World Without Avengers" is a cool, scrappy little club, but the status quo for the 616 moving forward is a little unclear at adventure's end, and the primary villain (or patsy?) is going to piss off a lot of people, I should think.
Still going to read the rest, though - the alternate histories of characters you know are mostly really interesting.
Still going to read the rest, though - the alternate histories of characters you know are mostly really interesting.
September 10, 2022
This was a weird Elseworlds-style book that featured a world without the Avengers (which I feel we've covered before), but also one with the Squadron Supreme as the main hero team for the world despite their rather severe methods for maintaining the peace.
Obviously, this comic event was really more about generating more awareness for the Squadron Supreme than anything else, but that's generally okay. Each member of the team got their spotlight issue depicting the space they occupy in this version of the world. And then everything had to come crumbling down.
This had the branding of a bigger event but it was really just a side story. It's not a terrible story, but I don't get why it had to have companion books and everything.
Obviously, this comic event was really more about generating more awareness for the Squadron Supreme than anything else, but that's generally okay. Each member of the team got their spotlight issue depicting the space they occupy in this version of the world. And then everything had to come crumbling down.
This had the branding of a bigger event but it was really just a side story. It's not a terrible story, but I don't get why it had to have companion books and everything.
November 13, 2021
Shocking, gripping, and a brilliant way of combining the magic of a Marvel What If…? storyline within the main Marvel Universe. The exploration of the history and mythos of the Marvel Version of a Dark Justice League was so awe-inspiring, and seeing the dark path Phil Coulson in the comics has taken and the growing power and influence Mephisto is building not just in the main 616 Universe, but in the Multiverse as a whole was chilling and exhilarating all at once to read. The artwork was inspired and the exploration of the characters and who they are when their heroic identities were taken away was brilliant to see.
December 1, 2021
There are some surprisingly good elements here. Sure, this is basically another variation on House of M. Sure, the Squadron Supreme are all JLA expys. But there was some work put into making them their own characters. In fact, most of this event is really character studies of the various Squadron members. Which can be interesting, until you remember there's supposed to be a story here. It ends up feeling rushed and shallow, since the actual story can only unfold a few pages at a time. I haven't loved the direction that Marvel has been taking Coulson, and this is sort of the ultimate expression of it. If you think about it, this is all Deadpool's fault.
June 14, 2024
Jason Aaron is a fun writer. His runs always take the characters into new and exciting directions; however, his runs should not be considered part of the main continuity. While his runs are fun and unique, his stories never revert to the "status quo" of the universe and other writers are inserting political stances or themselves into these newer variations of the characters. As for this specific volume, it was fun and different seeing the Squadron Supreme go against the forgotten avengers. It deserved to be a few issues longer for seeing the avengers get together but I enjoyed this volume. It's a definite read. Grade: B+
January 15, 2022
This was fun and well-executed, if not necessarily the most original thing in the world.
But I have questions:
Okay, my real thing with this book, and the appearance of the Squadron Supreme in the main Avengers book is this: The Avengers and the Squadron Supreme have met before, many times. Why don't they know each other? Is this a different Squadron? Did Hickman's Secret Wars reboot erase the old Squadron? I was hoping this would be explained somewhere by now, but to the best of my knowledge, it hasn't been.
But I have questions:
Okay, my real thing with this book, and the appearance of the Squadron Supreme in the main Avengers book is this: The Avengers and the Squadron Supreme have met before, many times. Why don't they know each other? Is this a different Squadron? Did Hickman's Secret Wars reboot erase the old Squadron? I was hoping this would be explained somewhere by now, but to the best of my knowledge, it hasn't been.
August 21, 2024
This gets a decent amount of hate but I really enjoyed it. While the book is more setup than it needs to be, Jason Aaron tells an entertaining story of a world where the Avengers never were and maybe the word is better off. The Squadron Supreme shines here and maybe for the first time. I thought this was a fun what if type of story that I'm surprised Marvel didn't make into a huge event because all the pieces are there. There were a handful of different artists and they all did well. Overall, big summer blockbuster type of comic that I enjoyed despite its flaws.
August 20, 2021
This felt less like an "event" and a really expanded "whatif" even though it will clearly have some impact on the 616-verse. Both the main storyline and the side books (I'll just review it all here) feel less like a tribute/callback to "Heroes Reborn" and more an homage to classic DC/Marvel. Which I am more than ok with.
I've always liked Squadron Supreme as well so I enjoyed seeing them get more to do than they have in recent years.
I've always liked Squadron Supreme as well so I enjoyed seeing them get more to do than they have in recent years.
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