Avengers Assemble #8

Iron Man does indeed venture into space in the same month as this issue, at the end of the last issue of Matt Fraction's IM series #527. However Kieron Gillen has him still on Earth for the 1st 5 issues of IM's next series, only leaving for space at the end of #5. Guardians of the Galaxy #1 then has IM joining them just as he's leaving Earth. This probably represents some editorial mix-up, possibly involving delays to GoG. But in IM#5 I proposed that the drawn-out #527 be spread over the early issues of the next series. The mix-up may also explain why Star-Lord learns about the quarantine of Earth by a galactic council (and informs Iron Man) twice, in #5 of this series and in #1 of GoG. Also in GoG the Asgardian All-Mother is part of this council, so shouldn't Thor have known about it here? The Badoon's decision to invade Earth is nothing new. They've tried several times before, starting with their 1st appearance in Silver Surfer v1 #2. They will attack again in GoG #1-2, but there is some confusion as to whether that will be the Sisterhood of female Badoon rather than the Brotherhood of male Badoon seen here. (And the 2 groups aren't allies.) Over these last 3 issues Star-Lord has appeared to have his original costume, Element Gun and Ship. But these were supposedly all lost before the Thanos (2003) series. Be that as it may, he won't have any of them in the new GoG series.

The assemblage of extra heroes fighting Thanos this issue is basically the same as those gathered in #6. But Human Torch has joined his Fantastic Four teammates. My comment in #6 that this series is set while HT was presumed dead in the Negative Zone is thus wrong. And anyway the issue FF#600 where he came back alive was published about a year earlier. Red Hulk has also been added. Beast, Daredevil, Dr Strange, Jessica Jones, Mockingbird, Storm, Valkyrie, Victoria Hand and Wolverine seem to have ducked out. As mentioned earlier, before this series Thanos and Star-Lord were trapped in the Cancerverse, and to this day we don't know how they got out. The Elders seem unfazed by being there, so presumably they know they can escape, and presumably they bring the heroes with them. How come Collector has access to his collection in the Cancerverse? Maybe he doesn't. Maybe the Elders stop off at Collector's base after they escape. I presume Thor's big gun is 1 of Collector's trophies, modified by Tony Stark. Back in #2 I mentioned the possibility of there being more than 1 Ultimate Nullifier. But probably this is the 1 found by the Avengers then. And Black Widow probably gave it to Reed Richards for safe-keeping in #4.