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Avengers: Disassembled #2-4
Avengers Disassembled: Iron Man, Thor, and Captain America
The repercussions of the worst day in Avengers history reverberate throughout the lives of the mightiest of them all: Thor, Iron Man, and Captain America The end is nigh for the gods of Asgard, and only Thor and his Avengers allies might be able to stave off Ragnarok - but will the Thunder God be Asgard's savior, or the architect of its downfall? Beset by allegations that Tony Stark has lost his battle with the bottle, Iron Man must face off against his evil doppelganger, which has embarked on a murderous rampage aimed at those in charge of Stark Enterprises Plus: When Tony Stark is ordered to recover sensitive, top-secret materials from Avengers Mansion, his duties as Secretary of State come into conflict with his standing as an Avenger - in the most explosive way possible Reeling from recent events, Captain America is forced to choose between his partner - the fugitive Falcon - and his principles while suffering an enigmatic battle fatigue that replays his worst failure and presents the Scarlet Witch as his only refuge. Meanwhile, all is not right within S.H.I.E.L.D. - what does it have to do with a certain Red-Skulled villain who's been lurking in the background?
Collecting: Thor 80-85, Iron Man 84-89, Captain America & The Falcon 5-7, Captain America 29-32
Collecting: Thor 80-85, Iron Man 84-89, Captain America & The Falcon 5-7, Captain America 29-32
448 pages, Hardcover
First published April 1, 2009
About the author
Michael Avon Oeming
860 books65 followersMichael Avon Oeming is an American comic book creator, both as an artist and writer.
His 1998 comic book Bulletproof Monk was made into a film of the same name.
The previous mentioned collaborations are The Mice Templar from Image Comics, which he draws and co-authors with Bryan J.L. Glass,[1] and Powers from Icon Comics which he draws, and sometimes co-authors, with Brian Bendis. His creator-owned projects include Rapture, on which he collaborated with his wife, Taki Soma,[2] and The Victories, both for Dark Horse Comics.
As of 2010, he is employed as a staff member of Valve Corporation, working on Left 4 Dead, Team Fortress 2 and Portal 2 webcomics.
His 1998 comic book Bulletproof Monk was made into a film of the same name.
The previous mentioned collaborations are The Mice Templar from Image Comics, which he draws and co-authors with Bryan J.L. Glass,[1] and Powers from Icon Comics which he draws, and sometimes co-authors, with Brian Bendis. His creator-owned projects include Rapture, on which he collaborated with his wife, Taki Soma,[2] and The Victories, both for Dark Horse Comics.
As of 2010, he is employed as a staff member of Valve Corporation, working on Left 4 Dead, Team Fortress 2 and Portal 2 webcomics.
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Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
March 7, 2017
Thor: Ragnarök was the reason I picked this book up. Also, Now that I've read Norse mythology by Neil Gaiman, I am an expert in Norse lore.
Alright, stop rolling your eyes. I hardly know anything about Norse mythology.
I've bravely dived into this apocalyptic end of Gods not expecting much, but surprisingly, the story came through! Well, Marvel's Norse gods are vastly different from original ones and we all know that. In this arc, the myth of Ragnarök was indeed re-imagined with many new elements and twists, yet somehow, It's more traditional than the usual Thor stories.
Fenrir swallowing the Sun! So epic!
Well, not too traditional.
But hey, it worked for me.
And then, to cancel out the awesomeness of Thor: Ragnarök, we witness other avengers getting disassembled in their own arcs in a remarkably boring way.
Captain America and Falcon: Interesting. But the catch is, there is neither any beginning nor ending to this story. The collection in this book starts at #4 issue where we find our heroes are already in the middle of a shitstorm. When you at last figure out what's going on through a series of educated guesses, it ends. Not the story, the collection! But there are some incidents that tie directly to the main story arc of Disassembled. Hence, it's worth reading.
Iron man: Turf War - So America developed a weapon during the war to destroy everything if Soviets ever defeat them in war. Wait, didn't they use the same damn idea in Spider-man Disassembled? How many bombs did they make!?
Iron Man: Singularity - Iron man goes on rampage in this arc. Even though there are many things happening in this storyline, it somehow ends up amounting to nothing. Good idea, Bad execution.
Captain America - Bad idea, Bad execution.
Overall, read this for Thor: Ragnarök!
Alright, stop rolling your eyes. I hardly know anything about Norse mythology.
I've bravely dived into this apocalyptic end of Gods not expecting much, but surprisingly, the story came through! Well, Marvel's Norse gods are vastly different from original ones and we all know that. In this arc, the myth of Ragnarök was indeed re-imagined with many new elements and twists, yet somehow, It's more traditional than the usual Thor stories.
Fenrir swallowing the Sun! So epic!
Well, not too traditional.
But hey, it worked for me.
And then, to cancel out the awesomeness of Thor: Ragnarök, we witness other avengers getting disassembled in their own arcs in a remarkably boring way.
Captain America and Falcon: Interesting. But the catch is, there is neither any beginning nor ending to this story. The collection in this book starts at #4 issue where we find our heroes are already in the middle of a shitstorm. When you at last figure out what's going on through a series of educated guesses, it ends. Not the story, the collection! But there are some incidents that tie directly to the main story arc of Disassembled. Hence, it's worth reading.
Iron man: Turf War - So America developed a weapon during the war to destroy everything if Soviets ever defeat them in war. Wait, didn't they use the same damn idea in Spider-man Disassembled? How many bombs did they make!?
Iron Man: Singularity - Iron man goes on rampage in this arc. Even though there are many things happening in this storyline, it somehow ends up amounting to nothing. Good idea, Bad execution.
Captain America - Bad idea, Bad execution.
Overall, read this for Thor: Ragnarök!
March 28, 2018
Thor is obviously the standout here, Iron Man ok and Captain America the weakest part.
March 1, 2014
I just love these crossover Marvel editions! Three important themes are braided together to form a huge storyline: the dissolution of the elite superhero team Avengers. I like the fact that the title is reminiscent of Captain America's call to arms "Avengers Assemble!".
All three tales are great, but Oeming outdid himself with Thor, blending mysticism, allegiance, and a little supernatural help to save the Avengers and his Asgardian ancestry. The son of Odin steals the show on this one. A great read, highly enjoyable.
All three tales are great, but Oeming outdid himself with Thor, blending mysticism, allegiance, and a little supernatural help to save the Avengers and his Asgardian ancestry. The son of Odin steals the show on this one. A great read, highly enjoyable.
August 28, 2013
When I read the Avengers Disassembled trade, I was left feeling it was incomplete. This collection helps fill out the story by focusing on the titular heroes and what happened to them in and around the event. I do recommend readers start with the Disassembled trade because this book never explicitly addresses what caused the event and that context is necessary to follow along.
The best section of this book - by far - is Thor. When just about every Avenger EVER showed up in Disassembled, Thor was absent. Here we learn why he didn't respond in the Avengers' time of greatest need: Ragnarok. Long-time Marvel fans might roll their eyes at this because Ragnarok has happened before, more than once. Yet, the writers have come up with a fresh take on "the end of the world" and why it keeps happening to Asgard! It was a very clever and truly satisfying story arc. Thor learns of Those Who Sit Above in Shadow. As before, Loki is the "cause" of Ragnarok. Only this time, Thor is going to "help" him see it through to the end. This story stands out not only because it was exciting and well-executed, but also because it is complete and can stand alone. There are several epic battles included, and the one between Loki and Thor has an astonishing and hilarious result. And I have to mention how much I loved Thor's armor as depicted here; it is much more kingly and is the most appropriate I have ever seen on him. The end was a surprise for me as Asgard truly falls and Thor will not rise again until Starczynski's run, post-Invasion.
Captain America was next, and was the second best of the three. Parts of it were fantastic, but one part left me completely confused and with unresolved plot points. There are three small sections that compose Cap's part. The first features Iron Man and how his duties as Secretary of Defense conflict with his role as Avenger when he is ordered to dismantle a weapon hidden in Avengers mansion - without alerting the Avengers. This was a short, action-heavy piece that was fun but felt unconnected with Disassembled. The second part ties directly to Disassembled but is also the weakest part because there is not enough context or resolution. Scarlet Witch figures prominently in a mission (and love life!) of Cap and Falcon where they have apprehended a "super sailor" gone rogue and a biological weapon, which turns out to be DNA. "Cap...you do realize whose DNA that is...?" I think readers are supposed to intuit whose it is - only newbies like me will probably have no clue and the story simply ends there. We don't know what happens to the prisoner or the DNA, or if this even happened or was a delusion of the Scarlet Witch. The last section follows Cap post-Disassembled (I *think*!) and his renewed relationship with Diamondback. Only, her motives are not entirely romantic and she may not even be who she appears to be. This story has the return of Cap's nemesis, Red Skull. This story stands mostly on its own and was a solid way to end Cap's section with action, romance and surprises.
The Iron Man section was short, weak, and pretty boring. I think the main purpose of it was to "put the cat back in the bag" vis-á-vis Iron Man's secret identity. The section opens with Iron Man's mental breakdown before the United Nations; a scene which also occurs in the Disassembled trade, which is the only reason I know it is tied into the event. After that, I am not sure if what takes place actually happens or was a delusion. Someone is framing Tony Stark by stealing his armor and pretending to be him. Many people, including an old flame, end up dead and Pepper and Happy Hogan are married in this world. I could have skipped this section entirely because it didn't add anything to Disassembled and so much was out of context I was lost anyway.
Overall, the Thor section alone was worth the purchase of this collection, but the Captain America section also had some really great material. This was a valuable addition to the Disassembled event and I highly recommend it.
The best section of this book - by far - is Thor. When just about every Avenger EVER showed up in Disassembled, Thor was absent. Here we learn why he didn't respond in the Avengers' time of greatest need: Ragnarok. Long-time Marvel fans might roll their eyes at this because Ragnarok has happened before, more than once. Yet, the writers have come up with a fresh take on "the end of the world" and why it keeps happening to Asgard! It was a very clever and truly satisfying story arc. Thor learns of Those Who Sit Above in Shadow. As before, Loki is the "cause" of Ragnarok. Only this time, Thor is going to "help" him see it through to the end. This story stands out not only because it was exciting and well-executed, but also because it is complete and can stand alone. There are several epic battles included, and the one between Loki and Thor has an astonishing and hilarious result. And I have to mention how much I loved Thor's armor as depicted here; it is much more kingly and is the most appropriate I have ever seen on him. The end was a surprise for me as Asgard truly falls and Thor will not rise again until Starczynski's run, post-Invasion.
Captain America was next, and was the second best of the three. Parts of it were fantastic, but one part left me completely confused and with unresolved plot points. There are three small sections that compose Cap's part. The first features Iron Man and how his duties as Secretary of Defense conflict with his role as Avenger when he is ordered to dismantle a weapon hidden in Avengers mansion - without alerting the Avengers. This was a short, action-heavy piece that was fun but felt unconnected with Disassembled. The second part ties directly to Disassembled but is also the weakest part because there is not enough context or resolution. Scarlet Witch figures prominently in a mission (and love life!) of Cap and Falcon where they have apprehended a "super sailor" gone rogue and a biological weapon, which turns out to be DNA. "Cap...you do realize whose DNA that is...?" I think readers are supposed to intuit whose it is - only newbies like me will probably have no clue and the story simply ends there. We don't know what happens to the prisoner or the DNA, or if this even happened or was a delusion of the Scarlet Witch. The last section follows Cap post-Disassembled (I *think*!) and his renewed relationship with Diamondback. Only, her motives are not entirely romantic and she may not even be who she appears to be. This story has the return of Cap's nemesis, Red Skull. This story stands mostly on its own and was a solid way to end Cap's section with action, romance and surprises.
The Iron Man section was short, weak, and pretty boring. I think the main purpose of it was to "put the cat back in the bag" vis-á-vis Iron Man's secret identity. The section opens with Iron Man's mental breakdown before the United Nations; a scene which also occurs in the Disassembled trade, which is the only reason I know it is tied into the event. After that, I am not sure if what takes place actually happens or was a delusion. Someone is framing Tony Stark by stealing his armor and pretending to be him. Many people, including an old flame, end up dead and Pepper and Happy Hogan are married in this world. I could have skipped this section entirely because it didn't add anything to Disassembled and so much was out of context I was lost anyway.
Overall, the Thor section alone was worth the purchase of this collection, but the Captain America section also had some really great material. This was a valuable addition to the Disassembled event and I highly recommend it.
April 27, 2011
Many stories with big distinction in quality.
Thor:Ragnarok
Doubtlessly the best part of book. Epic fantasy about end of the world. This is a story in the style of Wagner's Götterdämmerung. Arguably the best pre-Straczynski Thor.
Iron-Man: Turf War
Boring story of how Tony Stark is dealing with the functions of the Minister of Defense and fights with the robot.
Captain America and falcon
Probably pretty good. But the reader has no chance to find out. There's no beginning and no end. Fight in the offices of the Daily Bugle is a wonderful dynamic, but what's the point, though do not know why they fighting.
Luke Cage cameo delight.
Capain America: Super Patriot
The most idiotic part of the book. The overwhelming futility.
Iron-Man: The Singularity
Average, but relatively entertaining story (I do not believe anybody really thought that Tony is the murderer.). Unfortunately, it's all very ugly penciled.
Thor:Ragnarok
Doubtlessly the best part of book. Epic fantasy about end of the world. This is a story in the style of Wagner's Götterdämmerung. Arguably the best pre-Straczynski Thor.
Iron-Man: Turf War
Boring story of how Tony Stark is dealing with the functions of the Minister of Defense and fights with the robot.
Captain America and falcon
Probably pretty good. But the reader has no chance to find out. There's no beginning and no end. Fight in the offices of the Daily Bugle is a wonderful dynamic, but what's the point, though do not know why they fighting.
Luke Cage cameo delight.
Capain America: Super Patriot
The most idiotic part of the book. The overwhelming futility.
Iron-Man: The Singularity
Average, but relatively entertaining story (I do not believe anybody really thought that Tony is the murderer.). Unfortunately, it's all very ugly penciled.
March 13, 2023
3-3.5 star rating
The backstory around Avengers Disassembled was good for some, great for others. I really enjoyed the stories involving Thor and Iron Man. Iron Man especially was nice with the re-hiding of his Stark and Iron Man personalities. Iron Man was enjoyable with the characters of Pepper Potts and Hap being beside him. And I thought the death of this Rumiko woman showed Iron Man as a person. Cap was fun but nothing really amazing. NEed to read Winter soldier next and see how Cap acts in comics compared to movies.
The backstory around Avengers Disassembled was good for some, great for others. I really enjoyed the stories involving Thor and Iron Man. Iron Man especially was nice with the re-hiding of his Stark and Iron Man personalities. Iron Man was enjoyable with the characters of Pepper Potts and Hap being beside him. And I thought the death of this Rumiko woman showed Iron Man as a person. Cap was fun but nothing really amazing. NEed to read Winter soldier next and see how Cap acts in comics compared to movies.
October 5, 2017
I checked this graphic novel out from the library because it contained the Thor: Ragnarok story in it (Thor #80-85). Not too bad of a story. It also contained a few other stories: Iron Man #84-89, Captain America and the Falcon #5-7, and Captain America #29-32. A lot of stories about difficult times for the heroes. I wanted to read the Thor: Ragnarok story before seeing the movie adaptation of it.
September 18, 2022
While the stories themselves where not bad, they were full of lots of little holes and didn’t connect to each other very well, especially the two completely separate cap stories. I don’t think this is needed to understand the main disassembled arc. No real investigation is done to solve anything, each story just resolves itself and then we get a short reveal thats not really earned.
I would recommend just sticking with the main event unless you really want to read Ragnorock that badly.
I would recommend just sticking with the main event unless you really want to read Ragnorock that badly.
August 13, 2024
im not a big fan of iron man comics, but these one was sooo good. cap is another one that i don't really read, but vol. 4 was very interesting. The only one i didn't enjoy was cap and falcon, but mainly because I was not understanding a single thing that was happening.
thor's was fucking INSANE, can't wait to finish House of M to start reading the whole vol.2 and vol.3 cause I'm invested now.
thor's was fucking INSANE, can't wait to finish House of M to start reading the whole vol.2 and vol.3 cause I'm invested now.
August 3, 2018
Meh. Seems like a money grab. All of these stories can be found in other TP volumes for the individual titles. I actually had already read the Thor volume and at least part (if not all) of the Captain America.
January 5, 2021
Had already read Thor before. Got this book to read Captain America and Iron Man. Nothing special there tbh.
October 13, 2021
Okay but none of them really are pertinent to Avengers Dissembled.
January 20, 2019
It’s kind of hard to review a book that takes on personal journies for three characters, so I’ll rate the book as average.
Thor - Ragnarok
This was probably my favorite arc in this collection because it shows Thor’s growth into being an even more worthy god. I assume this Is the basis for the movie due to the death of Odin, appearances by Hela and Surtur, and the realization Ragnarok is “supposed” to happen. It’s not “fun” like the movie but actually pretty serious due to Thor’s struggle to allow his people to die.
Captain America
My least favorite part of this collection and probably skippable in the context of the New Avengers run. The main take away is that Cap is spread too thin and even he has breaking points that lead to him being uncharacteristically aggressive. We see what Cap is up to right before and after the Disassembled event: fighting bad guys, being deceived by an attempted coup of SHIELD, romance with Wanda & Diamondback, his relationship with Falcon, and The Serpent Society.
Iron Man
We see where Tony is pre and post Disassembled. Like Cap, he has taken on too much being the Secretary of Defense and Iron Man. His political role limits his activity as Iron Man to the point where Iron Man is a tool of the government. By the end, he quits is Secretary gig and hangs up the Iron Man suit to focus on scientific endeavors; however, he wants to create the illusion he will not stick to being Iron Man.
Thor - Ragnarok
This was probably my favorite arc in this collection because it shows Thor’s growth into being an even more worthy god. I assume this Is the basis for the movie due to the death of Odin, appearances by Hela and Surtur, and the realization Ragnarok is “supposed” to happen. It’s not “fun” like the movie but actually pretty serious due to Thor’s struggle to allow his people to die.
Captain America
My least favorite part of this collection and probably skippable in the context of the New Avengers run. The main take away is that Cap is spread too thin and even he has breaking points that lead to him being uncharacteristically aggressive. We see what Cap is up to right before and after the Disassembled event: fighting bad guys, being deceived by an attempted coup of SHIELD, romance with Wanda & Diamondback, his relationship with Falcon, and The Serpent Society.
Iron Man
We see where Tony is pre and post Disassembled. Like Cap, he has taken on too much being the Secretary of Defense and Iron Man. His political role limits his activity as Iron Man to the point where Iron Man is a tool of the government. By the end, he quits is Secretary gig and hangs up the Iron Man suit to focus on scientific endeavors; however, he wants to create the illusion he will not stick to being Iron Man.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 18, 2016
This is sort of a composite star rating, since it spans a bunch of comics of varying qualities.
Captain America (plus the couple issues of Captain America and the Falcon) - 1 star
Thor - 4 stars
Iron Man - 2 (more of a 2-and-a-half) stars.
Giving it a 2 overall since most of this is unlikable. Should note that the Thor: Ragnarok plotline is quite solid though; it could've used slower pacing, with moment-to-moment writing that is serviceable but not outstanding, yet ends up being a surprisingly meta commentary on comic book events, readers, and end-of-world stories. Reads like a superhero version of Cabin In The Woods.
Captain America (plus the couple issues of Captain America and the Falcon) - 1 star
Thor - 4 stars
Iron Man - 2 (more of a 2-and-a-half) stars.
Giving it a 2 overall since most of this is unlikable. Should note that the Thor: Ragnarok plotline is quite solid though; it could've used slower pacing, with moment-to-moment writing that is serviceable but not outstanding, yet ends up being a surprisingly meta commentary on comic book events, readers, and end-of-world stories. Reads like a superhero version of Cabin In The Woods.
May 31, 2010
Well special issues of Avengers three stories and I have to say that two of them ( IM and CA) are getting the rating down for me because Thor is simply great for full rating. Omni book is great as usual fo course.
May 6, 2015
Even this have a complex history, its only the prelude for the comming Big crossover in the marvel World. have a los of Tie-ins that you cant say what is the relevance in the big picture, with time you can put this pages in an order.
February 3, 2012
Thor = amazing! Iron Man = adoration, as usual. Captain America = mehhh. I love him, but didn't like the story in this one.
July 1, 2015
It was great. There is an end to everything really
April 24, 2017
The Thor stuff was great. Ragnarock is a solid storyline. The Cap and Iron Man stuff just barely tie into Disassembled and just weren't as fun or interesting and had awful art.
Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews