‘Avengers Forever’ #12 Review: A Dynamic Blockbuster Of All-Out Action

As a fan I have loved every minute of this series and Avengers Forever #12 is no different; a roaring rollercoaster of a ride from start to finish. But then, as I have confessed before, I love a good multiverse story. And this is certainly one of the good ones. Not all of them are. It’s a title that has dragged me back into Marvel after a good few years away from the publisher, and one that has really won me over to explore more.

The Multiversal Masters of Evil have been mercilessly relentless in their conquest of alternative universes, and all the while we have witnessed the assembling of an ultimate Avengers team. And, if the Multiversal Masters of Evil weren’t a big enough threat there’s also a whole army of demonic Mephistos to content with. This has blockbuster action written all over it as we enter this gargantuan and graphically gorgeous issue! Indeed, the very first scene is a double-page spread of the gathered Mephistos crying out, hurtling into action and towards Avengers Tower at the hear of existence. Only to be met, in equal force, by a whole platoon of superheroes, led by Captain Carter. 

While Jason Aaron provides the sizzling script, Aaron Kuder explodes onto each page, with a good deal of long-shots and mid-shots to better convey the scale of this epic battle of the ages, with much of the action bursting through panel borders. This is a fight that is seems too big to be contained by the constraints of the comic book page. 

As part of a larger storyline, I found I really didn’t have to have read what came before to enjoy this issue. By reading this issue, I am now keen to pick up previous chapters in this, Aaron’s swan-song on The Avengers books. It’s another great issue, and a great advertisement for the whole ‘Avengers Assemble’ event currently unfolding. Exciting, gripping, with a sense of a classic Avengers’ storyline in the making too. Aaron’s masterpiece and legacy played out over a number of years! Not many creators have that staying power these days, and it’s been a wild and, mostly, marvellous ride. A great example of how comics can still outdo cinema with a scale and complexity that would be very, very hard to mimic on screen. Keep that in mind the next time anyone puts comics down. And then point them in the direction of Aaron’s Avengers run. 

For the eagle-eyed fans there’s plenty of Easter eggs to be found in Kuder’s artwork, daring you to linger even longer on the page that the you probably already are, even how much there is to take in and be in awe of. A comic that’s so much fun, for both the reader and the creative team, no doubt. Even the final page reveal is crackling with energy. Literally! 

Avengers Forever #12 is out now from Marvel