AVENGERS #381

"SACRED GROUND"
Writer: Bob Harras | Plot Assist: Terry Kavanagh
Breakdowns: Mike Deodato, Jr. | Finishes & Colors: Tom Palmer
Calligraphy: Bill Oakley | Editor: Ralph Macchio | Chief: Tom DeFalco

Note: AVENGERS #379 - 382 were published as "Double Features" with a GIANT-MAN limited series included as a "flipbook" within those issues. I will cover the GIANT-MAN serial in one post after issue 382.

The Plot: In her cabin, Bova worries over Quicksilver and Crystal, but Fydor calms her. Meanwhile, the two Avengers are brought before the High Evolutionary, who accuses them of trespassing on Wundagore. He explains that a beam of energy recently pierced his citadel, and brought with it a message from the Acolytes of Magneto, who ordered him away from the mountain. The Evolutionary believes Quicksilver is involved, but Quicksilver retorts that he visited the mountain only to help Bova. This gets the Evolutionary's attention, and he, Quicksilver, Crystal, and the New Men head for Bova's cabin. There, the Evolutionary deduces that Bova is being slowly poisoned. Just as he reveals this, an image of Exodus appears and reveals that he had Bova poisoned to draw the High Evolutionary out of his citadel. Then, as Exodus's projection vanishes, Fydor mutates into a monster and the cabin explodes.

Continuity Notes: The Acolyte who appears in the message to the High Evolutionary identifies herself as Scanner, but she looks nothing like the character's standard appearance in the X-books -- indeed, she's drawn as a totally nondescript female with no distinguishing features; nor is she even wearing an Acolyte uniform! Exodus, however, is drawn to look like himself when he appears.

Quicksilver says that his injuries (sustained in AVENGERS #369) occurred "months ago." Personally, I might've called it "weeks", but I don't think there's any timeline issue to explcitly prevent it from being months.

As noted a couple weeks back, Exodus is (I'm pretty sure) the third most recurring villain in Bob Harras's AVENGERS run, between the "Bloodties" event and this story -- though sadly, he appears only as a holographic or psychic projection here, despite the cover's depiction to the contrary. (And by the way, note that departed penciler Steve Epting is still around, providing covers for all three installments of this Wundagore trilogy!)

AVENGERS #380

"ERRAND OF MERCY"
Writer: Bob Harras | Penciler: Mike Deodato Jr.
Inker & Colorist: Tom Palmer | Letterer: Bill Oakley
Editor: Ralph Macchio | Editor-in-Chief: Tom DeFalco

Note: AVENGERS #379 - 382 were published as "Double Features" with a GIANT-MAN limited series included as a "flipbook" within those issues. I will cover the GIANT-MAN serial in one post after issue 382.

The Plot: Quicksilver and Crystal arrive at Wundagore Mountain in Transia, where Bova, the evolved cow who nursed Quicksilver and the Scarlet Witch as children, is dying. Bova's friend, a human named Fydor, confides in Quicksilver that the cow-woman's creator, the high Evolutionary, has returned to his lab atop the mountain, and that he might be able to save Bova. Quicksilver and Crystal head up the mountain, where they find a shrine to Quicksilver's late mother, Magda. Present at the shrine is a young Acolyte, recently cast out of Avalon by Exodus. The boy reveals that the Acolytes never visit the shrine anymore, as the High Evolutionary has forbidden anyone to trespass on the mountain.

At that moment, two of the Evolutionary's brutish evolved creatures appear and attack, while the Acolyte boy teleports away. Crystal is taken out first, but Quicksilver holds his own until the High evolutionary appers and blasts him. Meanwhile, at the base of the mountain, Fydor lies to Bova, telling her that Quicksilver and Crystal went into the village. With a sinister smile, he tells her that everything is fine.

Continuity Notes: You'll note above that the series logo has changed. This has to be one of my least favorite Avengers logos. It's just so ugly and... pointy. You could put an eye out with that thing. Sadly, it will stick with the series until its final issue, #403.

Quicksilver collapses upon raching Wundagore, prompting Crystal to remind him that he still hasn't fully recovered from injuries sustained in AVENGERS #369 (when Exodus zapped him in the "Bloodties" finale).

AVENGERS #379

"THE LEGENDS AND THE LOST"
Writer: Bob Harras | Pencilers: Stewart Johnson & Tom Grindberg
Inkers: Tom Palmer & Rich Rankin | Letterer: Janice Chiang
Colorists: Karl Bollers, John Kalisz, & Mike Marts Editor: Ralph Macchio | Editor-in-Chief: Tom DeFalco

Note: AVENGERS #379 - 382 were published as "Double Features" with a GIANT-MAN limited series included as a "flipbook" within those issues. I will cover the GIANT-MAN serial in one post after issue 382.

The Plot: Deathcry and Alabar watch as a Kree ship arrives at the Isle of Crail. Admiral Galen Kor and two of his troops disembark, revealing to the Butcher that they brought his ship to Earth and freed him. Meanwhile, Black Widow, Thunderstrike, Hercules, and Crystal race toward Crail aboard a Quinjet. Deathcry and Alabar are found by Dylon Cir, one of Kor's men. Meanwhile, Kor and the Butcher speak with Vision, who is under the guard of the enthralled Swordsman and Magdalene. Alabar stops Deathcry from killing Cir, instead using the contents of a vial to ensnare Cir's will. Moments later, the Shi'ar duo is escorted by Cir to the Butcher's base, a pub in town. The Butcher is away with Kor, so the group enters the pub, knocks out Swordsman and Magdalene, and frees Vision.

The Butcher and Kor arrive and attack, but Alabar refuses to fight. He reveals that during the war between the Shi'ar and Mephistoids, he and his men were taken in by a Mephistoid abbey run by several females of the species. There, Alabar learned of the Mephisitoids' phermonal powers. He and his men killed all the women in the abbey and Alabar distilled their pheromones into a potion he used to control his men and win the war. The Butcher then kills Alabar, leading Deathrcy to grab Magdalene's weapon and kill the Butcher. Galen Kor and his people escape. Soon, the Avengers arrive and verify the town is back to normal, while Deathcry stands by herself under the full moon.

AVENGERS #378

"ECHOES OF HISTORY"
Writer: Bob Harras | Penciler: Stewart Johnson | Inker: Tom Palmer
Letterer: Bill Oakley | Colorist: John Kalisz
Editor: Ralph Macchio | Editor-in-Chief: Tom DeFalco

The Plot: Vision, Deathcry, Swordsman, and Magdalene arrive at the Avengers tracking station on the Isle of Crail off the coast of Scotland. There, Vision finds the station has been sabotaged. As soon he says so, the group is shot at by the station's caretaker, who abruptly dies when Vision tries to question him. Deathcry discovers a Shi'ar spaceship crashed nearby, and a legendary Shi'ar warrior named T'kyll Alabar reveals himself to the group. Meanwhile, in the nearby village of Ailsa, a young man reports to an alien warrior that the Avengers have arrived, with a Shi'ar among them. The mystery alien kills his informant.

Back at the crash site, Deathcry explains the story of Admiral Alabar to the rest of the group -- twelve hundred years earlier, he was a hero of the Shi'ar war against the Mephisitoids. When the Shi'ar captured their leader, a man known to the Shi'ar only as the Butcher, they exiled him into deep space aboard a stasis ship, with Alabar in stasis as well to guard him. At Avengers Mansion, the rest of the team tries to make contact with Vision's group, but is unable to do so. On the Isle of Crail, the Butcher arrives with the entire town in his thrall, and then takes control of Swordsman and Magdalene as well. Vision is defeated, while Alabar takes Deathcry and retreats. He reveals to her that some force brought the stasis ship to Earth, and says that he and Deathcry must learn who wanted the Butcher to live again.