AVENGERS #352, #353, & #354

"SON OF DARKNESS" | "TO WAKE THE DEAD" | "THE CONQUEROR WORM"
Writer: Len Kaminski | Penciler: M.C. Wyman
Inkers: Tom Palmer (#352), Ariane Lenshoek (#353-354), Steve Alexandrov (#354)
Letterers: Rick Parker (#352), Chris Eliopoulos (#353), Bill Oakley (#354)
Colorists: Tom Palmer (#352), Ariane Lenshoek & Rob Tokar (#353), Mike Thomas (#354)
Editor: Ralph Macchio | Editor-in-Chief: Tom DeFalco

The Plot: (Issue 352) The Grim Reaper appeals to the dark god Lloigoroth for supernatural powers, and they are granted him. Soon after, the Reaper causes an airliner to crash, killing everyone aboard. He leaves a calling card in the form of a large stone skull beside the wreckage. The Avengers are summoned to investigate, and take the plane's "black box" back their mansion. Meanwhile, the Grim Reaper next tranports a subway train into another dimension. He then appears at Avengers Mansion and tells the heroes to come to the caverns where he first died. The Avengers travel there and descend underground, battling supernatural creatures conjured by the Reaper. The Reaper himself appears again and transports the Avengers to another realm.

(Issue 353) In a Hades-like world, the Avengers battle the souls of those killed by the Grim Reaper. As the heroes search for their enemy, the Reaper gloats over several living humans he has captured. The Avengers soon find the Reaper's hideout, while within, the Reaper uses his magic powers to turn his prisoners into a new Legion of the Unliving, composed of super-villains who died battling the Avengers. The Avengers enter the Reaper's home, but are attacked by the Legion, and seemingly defeated in the darkness.

(Issue 354) The Grim Reaper watches as his Legion battles the Avengers. The heroes all appear to have met their matches in the various villains, but Vision slips away and confronts the Reaper in his inner sanctum. There, Vision, reminds the Reaper that the Avengers did not kill him -- the Reaper took his own life when he realized how much evil he had done. When the Reaper is forced to acknowledge this, he loses his control over the villains' souls. They attack him, and then Lloigoroth appears, telling the Reaper he is disappointed. Lloigoroth consumes the Reaper, and the Avengers are transported back to their home dimension. They emerge from the caves and return to their Quinjet.

AVENGERS #351

The mighty assemblers learn the awful pain of...
"RETRIBUTION!"
Writer: Bob Harras | Guest Penciler: Kevin West | Guest Inker: Bud LaRosa
Colorist: Gina Going | Letterers: Oakley & (sic)
Editor: Ralph Macchio | Editor-in-Chief: Tom DeFalco

The Plot: As Hercules threatens to kill Raza, the remaining Starjammers, Avengers, and Cyclops and Professor X arrive in the hangar. Ch'od attacks Hercules, bursting through an exterior wall in the process, then he and Raza escape while Hercules lays stunned. Quicksilver and Lockjaw fetch the Inhumans' royal physician from the Moon to tend to the Black Knight, while a group of Avengers, joined by Corsair and Binary, sets out to find Ch'od and Raza. Hepzibah remains behind as a willing hostage of the Avengers.

Hercules, Thor, Vision, and Sersi catch up with Ch'od and Raza in an alleyway and attack. Corsair and Binary arrive, and Binary goes to reason with Raza. Back at Avengers Mansion, the royal physician and the Starjammers medic, Sikorsky, tend to the Black Knight. Meanwhile, Raza confides in Binary that the Kree promised to give him his son, and shows her the boy's medallion. Binary claims the medallion is a Kree memory implant device, which created for Raza the memory of a son he never had. At the mansion, Black Knight is stabliized and expected to make a full recovery. But later in the night, Hepizbah sneaks into his room to finish him off. She is interrupted by Black Widow and Crystal, and then by the returning Avengers and Starjammers.

With no one quite certain what Hepzibah was up to, and with Raza's actions explained, the Avengers let the Starjammers go. Aboard their ship, Raza tells Hepzibah that he really does have a son, and that Binary lied to the Avengers for him in order that he might go free and search for the young man.

AVENGERS #350

"REPERCUSSIONS"
Writer: Bob Harras | Penciler: Steve Epting | Inker: Tom Palmer
Colorists: Tom Palmber & Sarra Mossoff | Letterer: Bill Oakley
Editor: Ralph Macchio | Editor-in-Chief: Tom DeFalco

The Plot: On a remote planet called Seti Tatola IV, a former Kree admiral meets with Raza and Hepzibah of the Starjammers. He convinces them to travel to Earth and kill the Black Knight as revenge for the assassination of the Supreme Intelligence. On Earth, Professor X and Cyclops of the X-Men, as well as Quicksilver and Doctor Valerie Cooper from the U.S. govenment's X-Factor, visit the Avengers. Xavier warns the group that Magneto's Acolytes are back in action, and they may be targeting Luna, daughter of Quicksilver and Crystal. Meanwhile, in space, the Starjammers elude Shi'ar patrols and set course for Earth, with Hepizabah and Raza having convinced the rest that they need to check on Carol Danvers.

Absent from the X-Men meeting is Black Knight, who skipped it for a workout session. Afterward, he heads to the roof, where he bumps into Sersi and the two witness the arrival of the Starjammer. Soon, the Avengers, their guests, and the Starjammers gather in a reception room -- but Raza slips away and sneaks up on the Black Knight, repairing the Avengers' skycar in their hangar. Raza attacks and duels the Knight, until the nursemaid Marilla enters with Luna. Raza grabs Luna and holds her hostage, until the Knight lunges at him. Raza runs the Avenger through. Seconds later, the remaining Avengers respond to the sound of battle, arriving to find Black Knight seemlingly dead.

AVENGERS #349

"DEATH WAGER"
Writer: Bob Harras | Penciler: Steve Epting
Inker/Colorist: Tom Palmer | Letterer: Bill Oakley
Editor: Ralph Macchio | Editor-in-Chief: Tom DeFalco

The Plot: Black Knight, Crystal, and Hercules are testing a skycar recently received by the Avengers from Wakanda, when the craft goes out of control and crashes. The scene is observed from Mount Olympus by Hera and Ares, who make a wager over who can bring more pain and sorrow to Hercules. Two days later on Earth, Black Knight has determined that the skycar was sabotaged. Meanwhile, Hercules is invited to make a charity appearance at a children's hospital. Crystal and Thor accompany him -- but while there, Ares possesses Thor's body and attacks Hercules. Hercules eventually realizes that Ares is in control of Thor, and turns Mjolnir against him, summoning lightning, which Crystal amplifies with her power to stun both Hercules and Thor.

The lightning strike separates Ares from Thor, and Hera then reveals herself. Hercules berates his stepmother and half-brother as they teleport back to Olympus. There, Ares asks Hera why she didn't make any attempt to win their wager. As she scryes over an image of Hercules and a volunteer from the hospital, Taylor Madison, Hera says that her manipulations are subtle and far-reaching.

Continuity Notes: In the opening pages, Black Knight notes that he and Hercules spent three days in Marissa Darrow's apartment, trying to determine how she vanished, with a footnote pointing to last issue. Later, Black Knight states his suspicion that Marissa's disappearance and the skycar sabotage are both related to Swordsman and Magdalene. The former of these makes sense; Marissa was Magdalene's spitting image. But it's unclear why he believes, with nothing to clue him in, that the skycar sabotage has anything to do with the new mystery villains.

AVENGERS #348

"FAMILIAL CONNECTIONS"
Writer: Bob Harras | Guest Penciler: Kirk Jarvinen
Inker & Colorist: Tom Palmer | Letterer: Bill Oakley
Editor: Ralph Macchio | Editor-in-Chief: Tom DeFalco

The Plot: Black Knight and Crystal find the Vision projecting his memories of initmate moments with his former wife, the Scarlet Witch. Vision explains that he is trying to understand emotion once more. Soon, Marilla, the Inhuman nursemaid, arrives to tell Vision he has a guest -- a woman named Laura Lipton. Later and elsewhere, Black Knight and Hercules are out at a bar when Hercules catches sight of a woman he believes to be Magdalene. In the Avengers' infirmary, Crystal and Black Widow visit with Carol Danvers. Crystal leaves the room and overhears Vision and Laura discussing the fact that the memories and personality of Laura's late husband, Alex, are stored in Vision's mind, and that her father-in-law, who is dying, would like Vision to pay him a visit. Crystal convinces Vision to go.

Meanwhile, Hercules accosts "Magdalene" on the street, but she claims to be a woman named Marissa Darrow and then goes on her way. On Long island, Vision, Crystal, and Laura arrive at the home Laura shares with her father-in-law, Professor Lipton. Lipton explains that he has developed a device that can briefly put Alex's personality in control of Vision's body -- and that he would like to speak with his son one last time before he dies. Crystal again appeals to Vision and convinces him to do it. Meanwhile, Marissa returns to her apartment to find Magdalene and Prcotor waiting inside. Magdalane recognizes Marissa as herself, and Proctor declares that there can be only one of her. Hercules and Black Knight, having followed Marissa home, hear her scream from inside the apartment. They burst in, but find the place empty and demolished.

At Lipton's home, Vision emerges from his machine with the personality of Alex. Vision speaks with the professor and then sits by his bedside as he passes away. He then goes outside to speak with Laura, and the two share a kiss. When the kiss finishes, Vision is himself once more. He bids Laura farewell. As Vision and Crystal leave, Crystal tells Vision that she knows Professor Lipton's device failed, and that Vision was only acting like Alex for the benefit of the professor and Laura. Vision sheds a tear, unseen by Crystal, but does not confirm or deny her suspicion.

AVENGERS #347

Plus CAPTAIN AMERICA #400 & 401, AVENGERS WEST COAST #82, QUASAR #34, and WONDER MAN #9.

Note: While I am summarizing the entire "Operation: Galactic Storm" crossover in the "The Plot" section, the "Contiuity Notes" reflect only AVENGERS #347 unless otherwise indicated

"EMPIRE'S END"
The epic conclusion to the Kree/Shi'ar war brought to you by:
Writer: Bob Harras | Penciler: Steve Epting | Inker: Tom Palmer
Colorist: Gina Gong | Letterers: Bill Oakley & Michael Higgins
Editor: Ralph Macchio | Editor-in-Chief: Tom DeFalco

The Plot: CAPTAIN AMERICA #400: "MURDER BY DECREE!" by Mark Gruenwald, Rik Levins, and Danny Bulandi -- Captain America is caught up in an explosion in the Kree capitol building. Meanwhile, Iron Man, Black Knight, Hercules, Crystal, Sersi, and Goliath chase after the nega-bomb in their Quinjet, and wonder about Cap's fate. Back on the Kree homeworld of Hala, Cap suddenly finds himself confronted by several of his greatest enemies: King Cobra, Batroc the Leaper, Flag-Smasher, Viper, Crossbones, and the Red Skull. Cap battles the villains, but they prove too much and get the upper hand. But just as the Skull is about to execute Cap, Batroc's sense of honor prevails and he helps his enemy escape and fight back. Cap defeats everyone, then comes to the conclusion that these villains are simulacrums pulled from his own memories by the Supreme Intelligence. The Intelligence ends the charade and tells Cap this was a test to judge him worthy of assimilation. But Cap's sense of independence is too too much for even the Supreme Intelligence to overcome, so he declares that he will not absorb Cap into his collective mind.

AVENGERS WEST COAST #82: "SHI'AR HATRED!" by Roy & Dann Thomas, David Ross, and Tim Dzon -- Lilandra orders that the Kree Starfroce must die, but the Avengers try to convince her to speak with them first. The debate devolves into a battle between Avengers and Imperial Guard, but when Living Lightning blasts the Shi'ar prime minister, Araki, revealing him as a Skrull in disguise, both sides call a truce. Lilandra frees Ultimus and sends him back to the Kree to inform them of what has transpired. Then she reveals that the nega-bomb has gone missing. Back on Earth, the West Coast Avengers return to their compound in California, having left the Shi'ar prisoners in the care of the East Coast reservists at Project: Pegasus. Aboard the nega-bomb, Vision returns from reconnaissance to inform Wonder Man that the bomb is being towed by Skrulls. And back on the Shi'ar throneworld, Captain Marvel receives a call from Quasar, who informs her that he knows where to find the nega-bomb.

AVENGERS #346

Plus CAPTAIN AMERICA #399, AVENGERS WEST COAST #81, QUASAR #33, WONDER MAN #8, IRON MAN #279, and THOR #446.

Note: While I am summarizing the entire "Operation: Galactic Storm" crossover in the "The Plot" section, the "Contiuity Notes" reflect only AVENGERS #346 unless otherwise indicated

"ASSASSINATION"
Writer: Bob Harras | Penciler: Steven Epting | Inker/Colorist: Tom Palmer
Letterer: Bill Oakley | Editor: Ralph Macchio | Editor-in-Chief: Tom DeFalco

The Plot: CAPTAIN AMERICA #399: "TWENTY MILLION LIGHT YEARS FROM EARTH" by Mark Gruenwald, Rik Levins, and Danny Bulandi -- Shatterax delivers the captured Captain America, Iron Man, Goliath, Sersi, Crystal, Black Knight, and Hercules to the Kree homeworld of Hala, where Ronan the Accuser takes them into custody. But as soon as Shatterax and his men depart, Crystal metamorphosizes the Avengers to look like Kree Accusers. Thus confusing their captors, the heroes escape. Soon, in a safe haven, Iron Man angrily orders Sersi to reverse her sorcery. He and Goliath then depart to conduct recon. Elsewhere, Ultimus arrives on Hala and meets up with Shatterax, Korath the Pursuer, and their leader, Supremor. Meanwhile, Iron Man calls Cap to tell him he's found what appears to be the Kree capitol building. Cap's team heads that way, but Korath intercepts them. Cap manages to defeat Korath, and his group proceeds on their way to meet with Iron Man and Goliath.

AVENGERS WEST COAST #81: "THEY ALSO SERVE..." by Roy & Dann Thomas, Dave Ross, and Tim Dzon -- On Earth, Hank Pym, Wasp, U.S. Agent, Spider-Woman, Gilgamesh, She-Hulk, Mockingbird, and Falcon are on guard duty at Project: Pegasus, where the captured Kree and Shi'ar forces are being held. Nightside and Scintilla of the Shi'ar Imperial Guard arrive and release Warstar and the Shi'ar crewmen. As the Avengers battle this group, Doctor Minerva rouses Captain Atlas and the duo escapes to a parked Shi'ar craft. The Avengers pursue, but the Kree exit Earth's atmosphere and land aboard a massive Shi'ar warship, where Minerva reveals that she is actually Imperial Guardsman Hobgoblin (now calling himself "Shifter") in disguise, with the diminutive Scintilla hiding on his person. The Shi'ar grab Atlas's stolen quantum bands. Meanwhile, the Avengers have recaptured their Shi'ar prisoners, along with Nightside and Warstar, and they find the real Doctor Minerva still inside Project: Pegasus. Minvera uses her mental bond with Atlas to find him, and the Avengers call Quasar to intercept the Shi'ar ship. Accompanied by the engimatic Her, Quasar battles Neutron and Starbolt of the Imperial Guard, while the Shi'ar ship escapes into the stargate.