Marvel Adventures Avengers #27 (Story 1)

Background

Two stories in this month's issue: Jeff Parker's last, and Paul Tobin's first. Parker's story features Storm, Ant-Man, Spider-Man, Hulk, and Giant-Girl.

Story 'Soooo-Wheeee!!!'

Five of the Avengers are judging a county fair. They aren't happy about this, but Captain America made them do it, to "build trust and goodwill with rural America." Storm, clearly annoyed, adds that "you'll notice he isn't here today."

While investigating one of the entries in the invention competition, Ant-Man's helmet goes haywire. A complicated series of events ensues, which results in the other Avengers being shrunk to tiny size, and Ant-Man's helmet stuck on the head of Eustace, a runaway pig. The little Avengers head off in pursuit of the pig, and encounter all of the dangers one would expect to find at a county fair: line-dancers, shooting galleries, and petting zoos. Finally retrieving the helmet, the tiny Hulk signals Ant-Man by ringing the bell on one of those strength-testing-scales-that-you-hit-with-a-hammer-to-ring-a-bell. This alarm allows Ant-Man to restore the other Avengers to the proper size, but not before Spider-Man commemmorates the adventure. He spins a web in Eustace's stall with a message in it—"This Pig is Really Hard to Catch"—which bemuses the other Avengers, but delights those readers who know their Charlotte's Web.

General Comments

It's a great shame that Parker's run on this title must come to an end, but I suppose he'd had his fill. I can't blame him; all good things must come to an end.

It's a greater shame that his run had to end with this story. It doesn't have much to recommend it, I'm afraid. Perhaps because there's no villain, perhaps because there are only a few Avengers, perhaps because Parker's well of inspiration has finally run out; I don't know. But the story isn't exciting—the Avengers are never in any real danger—nor is it amusing: jokes about rednecks and line dancing are too broad and too easy.

Overall Rating

There are a few good lines, which redeem it somewhat. Two webs. I'll remember Jeff Parker's run on this title, but not this issue, I'm afraid.

Footnote

Your final Jeff Parker stinger, from the scene where the Avengers are chasing Eustace the pig across the dance floor:

GIANT-GIRL: "It's always been my darkest fear that I'd meet death by line-dancing!"

SPIDER-MAN: "Watch out! They're dosey-doing!"