Avengers X-Sanction #2 and Flash Gordon: Zeitgeist #2

So, I'm an Avengers junkie, hence the Avengers: X-Sanction limited series. I picked up the Flash Gordon limited series because I've liked what Dynamite did with The Bionic Man and other titles of old they've revamped in comic book form. Both books are worth a look at for different reasons.

Avengers: X-Sanction #2 continues the story started last month. Cable is alive once more and only has 24 hours to live before the techno-organic virus ravaging his body finally takes its toll and maybe finally claims his life. Before he returned to the current time in the Marvel Universe though, we learn that his old friend Blaquesmith has told him in a far flung future of total devastation that the Avengers killed his adopted daughter Hope (the so called mutant messiah having been the first mutant baby born after M-Day). Cable being the warrior and loving father he is, journeys to the current time to stop it from happening before he finally succumbs to the techno-organic virus. Yes, ultimately, this is a big hero vs. hero book so far with lots of fight scenes, but the things that have me reading are that first of all, I'm an Avengers fan, but second of all, as I recall, the last time we saw Blaquesmith, he wasn't the altruistic person everyone thought he was and he was also killed (by Cable IIRC).

This leads me to the question, can Blaquesmith be trusted and why does Cable trust him again if my memory is correct about the last time we saw Blaquesmith. Issue 2 drives home my belief that Blaquesmith is not to be trusted or just that the future point Cable saw is not the current time line. At the end of issue 2, Cable is fighting Red Hulk and reveals that Talbot has lost to Cable every time they've fought - Cable has checked all possible timelines for this fact apparently. The problem, as anyone familiar with the Red Hulk storylines knows, is that the Red Hulk is not Glenn Talbot but Thaddeus "Thunderbolt" Ross. This indicates in a very stark (no pun intended considering Iron Man is the other Avenger captured in this issue by Calbe) way that Cable is not in the timeline of that future he saw or that he is being manipulated by someone. I'm looking forward to seeing how it all turns out in a couple more issues.

Jeph Loeb is writing this series and although I haven't liked a lot of the work he's done at Marvel since his departure from DC and complete shift into the Marvel stable, the writing on this series is spot on for what a fight between Cable and the Avengers should look like. Ed McGuinness's pencils are fantastic for portraying the imagery of a "war" between Cable and the Avengers. His take on the techno-organic portion of Cable is a little more brutal looking than past versions of Cable, but then the virus is supposed to be in its final stages for Cable, so it makes sense.


Flash Gordon: Zeitgeist is a fabulous series as it reimagines the classic sci-fi hero. The story is reminiscent of the campy Flash Gordon movie from 1980 but is far from that campiness. This is more the hero of the original Alex Raymond work from the 1930's and the comic is set firmly in that time as it should be. There is no re-imagining to a modern age, but a re-imagining for the modern reader looking back. Ming is seen not only as seeking to destroy the Earth in his attack on the planet, but is actually reminding his human pawn that he should bow to Ming's power and submit to him as originally agreed.

Being set in the 1930's, you might wander who would be willing to sell out the human race to an alien conqueror for power and the allowance to be the vassal to rule over the Earth in Ming's name. Writer, Eric Trautmann, draws from our own bloody history for this villain, and Adolf Hitler fits the role of this villain in the story perfectly. Other than that, your favorite characters are still here in the series, Flash Gordon, Dale Arden, Hans Zarkoff, Klytus, Aura, and all the princes of Mongo. The story is enhanced in a way that only makes it classic and more epic. Daniel Indro does the art for the series and his work captures the appearance of everyone in a way that there is no doubt who is who as they appear if you're familiar with the older works or event he movie from 1980.

Flash Gordon: Zeitgeist is an excellent comic from Dynamite Entertainment, and I highly recommend it. You'll be hooked from the first line of the first issue when Ming once again states, "Klytus, I'm bored."

Thanks for reading!