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Avengers #673

Jan 2018

on-sale: Nov 1, 2017

Mark Waid, Javier Pina

Story Name:

Worlds collide: part 3

Synopsis

Avengers #673 synopsis by Rob Johnson

Rating:

Continued from CHAMPIONS #13.

In that issue an emissary from the High Evolutionary used vibrations to prepare Earth for 'Ascension'. Falcon and Viv Vision were the 1st affected and suddenly found themselves on Counter-Earth where they were attacked by Ani-Men (evolved animals) riding small dinosaurs. (This might be Counter-Earth's version of the Savage Land.)

There are also things flying in the sky so that cuts off Falcon's mode of escape. The pair split up to run through the long grass. But Falcon is caught in a net and stunned with an electric prod. Viv phases through the net, but a thrown prod still gets her.

Back on Earth all the other Avengers and Champions are in Lexington (teen Cyclops, teen Spider-Man (Miles Morales) and Vision must have flown here quickly from where Falc and Viv disappeared in New York) grilling HE's minotaur about where the duo have gone. He explains about Counter-Earth which exists on the opposite side of the Sun but is also on a different vibrational frequency. Spidey (MM) guesses this means the 2 planets can't affect each other and are mutually undetectable - except when a denizen of 1 visits the other they become temporarily attuned to it. Wasp (Nadia Pym) realises this explains why C-E doesn't have a detectable effect on the orbits of other planets (causing her to deny the possibility of it's existence last issue).

Thor (Jane Foster) guesses that Ascension means that Earth's vibrational frequency has been shifted towards that of it's Counter-part. She expects an invasion, but the bull-man tells her to expect destruction. The High Evolutionary is his god, who has told them of the evil planet Earth. On their world he has purified them of evil. Young Nova (Sam Alexander) translates this as crossbreeding humans and animals to create the Ani-Men. Cyclops' suggestion is the more usual 1 - HE used genetic modification to upgrade animals to humanoid form and intelligence.

Minotaur continues that HE-God has accelerated Counter-Earth's orbital speed (and presumably used his godly power to stop that changing its orbital distance from the Sun) so that it now orbits so fast that it passes through the Earth every 20 minutes. Hulk (Amadeus Cho) deduces that as the worlds' vibrational frequencies get closer it will become easier to move between them when they cross. Wasp adds that this explains where Sam Wilson and Viv have gone, and why the meteor the minotaur arrived in disappeared for a second last issue. (Hercules doesn't mention his disappearing mace, but that was probably the 1st such event we saw.)

Minotaur doesn't know what Evolutionary's plan is. Angry Vision wants to know how they can get to C-E to rescue his daughter Viv. Minotaur says that although crossings will increase they will remain random, so he can't help them to go there. And sometimes the crossing will be from there to here. And even as he speaks some Ani-Men pop up.

On Counter-Earth Sam and Viv are dragged into the High Evolutionary's citadel. They pass pickled bits of old experiments, unsatisfactory Ani-Men in chains, and the bones of many others. They are dumped in front of Herbert Edgar Wyndham sitting on a throne atop a pile of skulls - and he steps down across the backs of live Ani-Men. (They're really making sure we know HEW is a villain.)

Our duo have awoken. Viv phases out of the grasp of her captor, but doesn't run away. She won't leave Falcon, and she's naively sure the Evolutionary can't hurt her immaterial body. So she says she'll stay to discover what's going on.

Wyndham boasts how he's made his own body immortal. That and the scale of his power and plan qualifies him to call himself a god. But he can also work on a smaller scale. He notes Falcon's artificial wings and comments that he can 'fix' that. The Ani-Men drag Sam of to Herbert's lab, to make him ready to be evolved.

Viv protests but a containment tube slams down around her. And she finds she can't pass through the wall. HE explains that some of his own creations have had a similar power. He knows how Vision created Viv as part of a synthezoid family for himself (during Vizh's recent series). But he thinks Vision's effort crude, and he can upgrade her. Viv protests again, but nanobots have already invaded her system and she loses consciousness.

On Earth Thor leads the Avengers against the new arrivals. But Ms. Marvel (Kamala Khan) stops her, saying that if the transfers are random then this won't be an invasion force - just some confused man-beasts. Spider-Man (Peter Parker)'s spider-sense tells him she's right. And most of the Ani-Men drop their weapons, except 1 who fires at Vision - who lets the beam pass harmlessly through him.

As Hercules relieves him of his weapon the belligerent Ani-Man berates the others as heretics who aren't worthy of Ascension. 1 of the others claims to not know exactly what this means, but Evolutionary's most zealous followers are on a sacred mission to cleanse 2 worlds. And Wasp picks up news of beast-men attacking all over the world.

Vision suggests the Avengers go to Counter-Earth to rescue Viv and Falcon while the Champions deal with the attacks on Earth. Nova protests saying (again) that he's *been* to Counter-Earth, so Wasp agrees to stay here and let him take her place. Thor will use Mjolnir to transport the team when the next conjunction arrives.

Meanwhile Viv wakes up again in Wyndham's lab. He has completed her upgrade. She looks in a mirror and sees a dark-skinned human.

Continued in CHAMPIONS #14.

Review / Commentaries

Avengers #673 Review by Rob Johnson (November 17, 2017)

This is part 3 of the Worlds Collide Avengers/Champions crossover.

Another cover which depicts something that doesn't happen inside. But this 1 is possibly part of the subset which shows something that will happen later (as eg the cover of Dark Avengers #8 showed a scene from the next chapter in the Utopia crossover Dark Avengers/Uncanny X-Men: Exodus). In this issue High Evolutionary suggests giving Falcon real wings. Maybe he'll enhance the other Avengers too, and we'll get the return of the 6-armed Spider-Man.

This issue refers to High Evolutionary's followers as Ani-Men. However the usual term is New Men. 1 small group of New Men was called the Ani-Men in Scarlet Spider Unlimited #1 (in 1995). However there were at least 2 previous teams called the Ani-Men that were nothing to do with HE. It remains to be seen whether the use of Ani-Men here is significant.

High Evolutionary was last seen in Ultimates² #8-9&100 where he schemed with the Ultimate Universe's Maker. He was last seen with his New Men in Uncanny Avengers (2015) #1-5 on Counter-Earth where he revealed (yet again) that the origin of Quicksilver and the Scarlet Witch wasn't what they thought.

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Main/1st Story Full Credits

Mark Waid

Javier Pina

Rachelle Rosenberg

Alex Ross (Cover Penciler)
Alex Ross (Cover Inker)
Alex Ross (Cover Colorist)

Additional Credits

Letterer: Cory Petit.
Editor: Tom Brevoort.

All stories. Listed in alphabetical order.

Avengers

Champions

Cyclops
(Scott Summers)

Falcon
(Sam Wilson)

Hercules
(Heracles)

High Evolutionary

Hulk
(Amadeus Cho)

Ms. Marvel
(Kamala Khan)

Nova
(Sam Alexander)

Spider-Man
(Miles Morales)

Spider-Man
(Peter Parker)

Thor
(Jane Foster)

Vision

Viv Vision

Wasp
(Nadia Pym)

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