Spinning out of the final issue of Invincible Iron Man, Marvel announced today that they will launch a new West Coast Avengers series. At their Next Big Thing panel at San Diego Comic Con, Marvel revealed that Gerry Duggan will write the series, with art by Danny Kim. In the series, Ultron will return and embark on a redemption arc…and that’s kind of the point. Rather than an all-villain team trying to become antiheroes, this series will see Avengers trying to help villains on a “path to redemption,” according to Marvel. That means, presumably, no bombs in anybody’s skulls and no secret alternate identities.
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There have been several iterations of the West Coast Avengers over the years, with the most recent coming in 2018 with both Hawkeyes (Clint Barton and Kate Bishop) reviving the team. You can see the cover below.
At the end of Duggan, Andrea Di Vito, Bryan Valenza, and VC’s Joe Caramagna’s Invincible Iron Man #20, Tony Stark visits an abandoned Stark Industries hangar on the west coast. Together with James “Rhodey” Rhodes, Tony Stark started making plans to bring back the West Coast Avengers.
After refusing to give anything up at first, Tony relents in the issue, saying, “Okay, and maaaybe we’re starting a new West Coast Avengers. Just don’t tell anyone yet.”
Created by Roger Stern and Bob Hall, the West Coast Avengers debuted in a self-titled series back in 1984. It was the first spinoff of The Avengers and featured Hawkeye forming a team that consisted of Mockingbird, Tigra, Wonder Man, and Iron Man (Jim Rhodes instead of Tony Stark).
The idea of redeeming villains is something that will set the mission statement of the West Coast Avengers apart from most superhero teams. It’s also something that has been played with a little bit at DC, both in Dan Jurgens and Lee Weeks’s Superman: Lois and Clark, and in DC’s Legends of Tomorrow.
You can see the solicitation text and an additional cover below.
West Coast Avengers
- New ongoing series, on sale November
- Written by Gerry Duggan
- Art by Danny Kim
- Cover by Ben Harvey
- ULTRON RETURNS…REDEEMED?
Iron Man and War Machine have put together a new team of Avengers – one that includes villains seeking a path to redemption. Their case study? Ultron – who, against all odds, seems to be walking the straight and narrow…for now. But does the success of one guarantee the success of all? Spider-Woman and Firestar have their doubts. And can any amount of heroics really absolve Ultron of his past?
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Image Credit: Marvel Comics
