Okay, so I had to make this my first read off of the pile this week. The huge event of the year finally comes to a close just as the year is about to finish.
I think people's expectations of this series were unatainable. Does this mean that Secret Invasion couldn't have been better? Not at all. But I do think it was pretty good all in all. This final chapter in the self titles series gave the reader a little bit of what they expected and threw in some twists as well.
So we finally get the spaceship scene with the kidnapped heroes walking out that we have been waiting for. Problem is, none of the Skrull prisoners were significant enough to take note of. Maybe I'm wrong and Mockingbird will change the face of the Marvel U. as we know it!
There was however, a death. And despite the fact that it was a character I haven't really cared about in the past, I was a little sad. I mean she was an original Avenger.
Thor did an excellent job of making his feelings for Tony Stark clear. I'll be honest though, I still like him better on a team. SHIELD was disbanded, which leaves a giant question mark above the newly resurfaced Nick Fury and what his role is in this new and improved Marvel Universe. Something that Marvel has made an art out of lately however has to be the way they ended the series. Nobody should be surprised by Norman Osborne taking over the Avengers, as they have been building that up for a few issues now. The cast of people the Green Goblin calls together however has to be a surprise. I didn't see that coming at all! Now it is still unclear whether these people will make up the Dark Avengers, but to see Namor, Dr. Doom, Emma Frost and the Hood all in the same room was awesome. The White Queen's attendance in this meeting really intrigues me as a long-time X-fan.
I really thought that Bendis did a great job planning this series and Yu quieted his critics with some excellent art. All in all, a nice finish to the series.