#415 - Secret Invasion

I remember saying in my last post how I'd intended to ease back into my comic reading on the heels of my (almost) month long hiatus just so I didn't burn myself out again.

Well, straight off the bat I seemed to ignore my own advice. 

This past Saturday I read Secret Invasion, the nine issue Marvel Event by Brian Michael Bendis and Lienil Yu which saw the heroes of Earth come under attack from two sides as the remains of the Skrull Empire launch an attack to invade. However, the Avengers and their allies find themselves on the back foot when they realise that the Skrulls have been replacing many of them for quite some time.

Now, it's been a while (obviously, given it's a 2007 event), but I happen to recall a lot of talk back when this was released to Secret Invasion being something of a bloated mess compared to prior events. I also am under the impression that it may have been the beginning of what is now termed 'event fatigue'.

However, I must admit that, even with this being my first readthrough of it after all these years of it becoming so say redundant/obsolete (in terms of the wider Marvel Universe), I found Secret Invasion to be quite the enjoyable read. I thought it was quite a good blend of a mystery thriller and an action epic which Bendis put together and continued to keep me captivated as it progressed despite my already knowing how it was going to end (in a general sense because, you know, comics). I won't lie that I felt that it was slightly longer than maybe it should have been but I really thought that Secret Invasion had some good pacing and flow to it.

I also loved how paranoia inducing it felt, as I was constantly have to question who was who (because, again, I only knew the end in a general sense) and every revelation felt absolutely brutal to me (Hawkeye seemingly taking the brunt of them). I've read a lot of Bendis' comics and while there is certainly many in both the good and bad columns, this is certainly one I'd place amongst the former.

The art, for me, is a sticking point here. Leinil Yu has some gorgeous art, I cannot lie. However, I did find it a little off personally and not one of my favourite styles (I'll be honest and admit that, while I know his name, I don't think I've seen his work before). That said, I do wonder to myself if that was the point of this style because it seems to heighten this feeling of awkward uncomfortableness to me, as if nothing is truly right or real in this world (which of course it isn't). As such, I can only ponder if Mr Yu's work was chosen for a very specific reason? Still, Yu's work looks gorgeous in places, particularly when it comes to the big splash pages.

I must confess, however, that I am intrigued by this story's place and connection to the ongoing narrative of the Marvel Universe. I truly enjoyed reading this event but, given its dependence on what stories led up to this as well as what will undoubtedly come next, I do wonder if I'd have enjoyed Secret Invasion as much if I would have come into it cold. That said, on the flip side of the coin, watching the fall of Tony Stark would deeply interesting to me and makes me a little intrigued as to what happens next after seeing him burn so many bridges in Civil War to rise.

In the end though, as of this moment in the here and now, I still found Secret Invasion to be a good read. While I'm unsure if I'd ever feel the need to read it again, this event kept me heavily engrossed from start to finish and, having been recommended both the Mighty and New Avengers tie in books, I'd be lying if I said I didn't want to look at a little more background on this (for it's time) universe changing event.

My week hasn't consisted of much else, but then it's barely half a week old as of writing this. However, I do now feel something of a renewed vigour in reading that I hope will continue for at least a good few weeks.

Although I'll settle for just a good end to this one.