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Avengers #91

Aug 1971
Roy Thomas, Sal Buscema

Avengers #91 cover

Story Name:

Take one giant step ... backward

Synopsis

Avengers #91 synopsis by Rob Johnson
Rating: 4 stars
Last issue Kree Sentry 459 kidnapped Captain Marvel, and the Avengers (Goliath, Quicksilver, Scarlet Witch and Vision) plus Rick Jones went to Alaska to investigate some trouble reported by Wasp whose husband Yellowjacket had disappeared into a mysterious jungle area in the Arctic ice. They went inside and Goliath got captured and turned against his team alongside the Sentry. And we know that Ronan The Accuser is behind it and has Mar-Vell captive. And the Kree plans to devolve Earth and its inhabitants back by millennia to stop them being a future menace to the Kree Empire. And the issue ended with ape-man Yellowjacket menacing his unconscious wife.

Now Ronan watches everything from his fortress in the centre of the jungle where its rotating evo-rays are causing the de-evolution to spread further out until eventually it will encompass the whole planet. He sees Hank Pym hesitate to kill Janet Pym and then carry her off. Maybe he still recognises her, but Ronan believes he just wants a mate. He tells Mar-Vell that the insect-size Yellowjacket quickly succumbed to the evo-ray but eventually even giant-size Goliath will be affected. However robot Vision might be immune, and possibly also the mutant twins.

He sees the Avengers have a certain amount of success. Rick throws a rock at the Sentry's head and Scarlet Witch's hex turns the shattered pieces magnetic so they cling to the head and blind the robot. Quicksilver bounces off Goliath's head and Vision risks the giant's life by thrusting his immaterial hand into his chest and slightly materialising it, causing Clint Barton to black out. But then the Sentry breaks free of the magnetic rock. Vision tries the fist trick on it but it backfires leaving the synthezoid immobilised. Wanda rushes to his side but is felled by an energy discharge from his body. Pietro tries to get to his sister but is prevented by a wall of flame created by the Sentry. Rick persuades him that it's better to run away and make a plan.

The duo see 3 other ape-men who were the government technicians at a science site in this area. Ronan is also still watching as the 3 ape-techs attack ape-Hank over the female. But ape-Hank still has some of his fighting skills and sees them off. Awakened Wasp could shrink and fly away but love keeps her by her husband's side. In the citadel Sentry has brought the unconscious Goliath and the now-awake Vision and Witch who are held captive by Kree science. They are about to give in to their long-simmering affection and kiss, but Vizh pulls away because an android can't love a human. Ronan is just glad that the Kree have evolved past all this love-stuff.

Now he shows Mar-Vell how the Kree plan will go even further, He fires a ray gun at a devolved toad which makes it devolve even further to an amoeba. He says the device will be attached to the evo-ray tower to amplify the rays so that all Earth life will be reduced to that state.

Meanwhile Pietro and Rick have snuck up to the wall of the fortress. Quicksilver grabs a convenient pointed metal bar and spins at high speed with it, burrowing through the obstruction. Inside Ronan is threatening to try the ray gun on Scarlet Witch when her brother zooms in and knocks it out of his hand. He then keeps evading the Sentry and his blasts while Rick sneaks in uses CM's Uni-Beam (on his wrist) to zap a control panel which frees Mar-Vell from his bonds. Ronan has just managed to fell Quicksilver with his Universal Weapon but Vision and Witch are now also free. Rick's shot was luckier than he thought because it causes the whole Kree citadel to start sinking below the ice from where Ronan had raised it.

Then Ronan gets a message from the Kree Galaxy telling him that it is under attack from their long-standing enemies the Skrulls. Because he now runs the Kree Empire he has to get back there smartish. So he goes leaving the Sentry to try to hold the citadel together.

Goliath wakes up and all the humans exit quickly. The effects of the evo-ray are rapidly disappearing, and even Goliath is no longer under Ronan's control. Yellowjacket and the 3 technos are human again but suffering from the cold in their tattered uniforms. Wanda lends Hank her cape and Vision does the same for the other 3. The Kree fortress sinks underground. Henry Pym says his poor performance as YJ in this adventure confirms his decision to leave the team (in #75) so he hereby tenders his permanent resignation from the Avengers. Dutiful Jan follows suit.


 

Review / Commentaries

Avengers #91 Review by (October 15, 2022)
The long-standing enmity between the Kree and Skrulls was 1st mentioned in Captain Marvel #2 when he fought Super-Skrull.

Yellowjacket's resignation is only technically true as he'll be back as Ant-Man, 1st to lend a hand in #93. Then he'll have a solo backup tale in Iron Man #44 and a scientist cameo in our #99 before joining with Wasp in the mega-gathering in #100.

Goliath, Quicksilver, Scarlet Witch and Vision will be joined by Captain America, Iron Man and Thor in Amazing Adventure (Inhumans) #8 before the core 4 return for next issue.

Rick Jones and Captain Marvel will still be around next time. Ronan will be back for #96 but Sentry 459 will have to wait for CM#47 after the Thanos War is over.

> Avengers comic book info and issue index

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Sal Buscema
Sal Buscema
Unknown
Sal Buscema (Cover Penciler)
Sal Buscema (Cover Inker)
Unknown (Cover Colorist)
Additional Credits
Letterer: Art Simek.
Editor: Stan Lee.

Characters

Listed in alphabetical order. All stories.

Avengers
Avengers
Captain Marvel
Captain Marvel
(Mar-Vell)
Quicksilver
Quicksilver
(Pietro Maximoff)
Rick Jones
Rick Jones
Scarlet Witch
Scarlet Witch
(Wanda Maximoff)
Vision
Vision
Wasp
Wasp
(Janet Van Dyne)
Yellowjacket
Yellowjacket
(Hank Pym)
Plus: Goliath (Clint Barton), Ronan (Ronan the Accuser), Sentry 459.

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