I want to call up to heaven and request a number from the Choir Invisible to pay homage to the recent effort by Marvel to avoid that old concept that first issues necessitate origin stories.* (I keep contacting Saint Peter, but he says that the choir leader left some time ago, and that no one has of yet filled his vacancy.) Also I have to say that the art by Cheung is on par with any other artist out there, as he is able to make believable such a vast array of personalities and characters.

Without giving away the story, suffice to say that this bunch of youngsters has an unknown origin, and that the Daily Bugle, Jessica Jones, and the freshly disassembled/reassembled-in-secret Avengers are all trying to find out exactly what is going on. The result is a bit confusing, but on the whole is excellent in a young-adolescent/ Teen Titan sort of way.

My complaints are minor: The motive of Captain America, centered on the idea of saving teens from getting in over their heads, which is centered on Bucky’s WWII death at the hands of German soldiers, is a little loose. Toney Stark’s interest is much more believable, as he is a man of money and gadgetry; and Iron Lad’s advanced getup being more advanced than Iron Man’s would obviously spur him into involvement. But, while Jonah Jameson’s pining over his childhood desire to be like Bucky is an ordinary sentiment, his strangely present, still-remaining grief over Bucky’s untimely death along with his apparent concern for not only a story, but the well-being of these new-to-the-scene heroes is straight out of character, in my opinion. There seems to be a message here about the untimely loss of youths in battle, and though our nation is currently at war and witnessing this sort of thing daily, I feel that to change the personality of a main character such as Jameson only hurts the comic’s credibility. Lastly, there is the throwing-stars used with sub-precision by Lieutenant America. When will you people listen?! Throwing-stars? Where is his blow-gun?

Overall this book is so worth reading. Like Superman/Batman, it is sure to draw top-talent, and therefore excellent storylines, art, and availability. Also, if there is an alternate cover, I haven’t seen it yet, and I appreciate that mucho. My last comment has to be that Iron Lad’s armor is awesome. It’s self-defense-morphing capability is a great idea, and its design is a great fit for a make-Tony-jealous sort of outfit. Oh wait, I have another comment. Marvel could go all out with another Weapon sort of thing with Lieutenant America. The fact that he resides with his grandmother could be a setup deal, like the Truman Show, or something. And, they coud pawn him off as Weapon 32, or something which could only make for a frenzied comic industry, and prove me to be a soothsayer.

*Note: I do not apply my dislike of origin stories appearing, and devouring first issues with the following books: Breach, whose origin story has so far been beyond excellent; and Shanna The She-Devil: I know that one sounds odd, but heck, it was a great story.