The New Avengers #48

In the aftermath of the wretched Civil War mini-series, you had two teams of Avengers: the Mighty Avengers, which was a government sponsored and approved set of heroes, and the New Avengers, which was made up of heroes who refused to go along with the mandated registration.

Now, a couple of years later, the Dark Reign storyline is creating a third Avengers title - while two of the three teams go underground. Now, both "Mighty" and "New" will find themselves at odds with the authorities, and the public team of Avengers will appear in the upcoming Dark Avengers series.

This issue of New Avengers sets up the roster for that title, as a group is organized by the new Captain America to carry on the work of the original team.

It's hard to see how effective the team is going to be while trying to avoid the authorities at all times, but we'll see how it plays out. Writer Brian Bendis handles the snappy dialogue well, and the story is full of surprises, as the team tackles its first challenge - tracking down the Skrull who kidnapped Luke Cage and Jessica Jones' baby.

The art by Billy Tan and Matt Banning is mostly strong, though a few scenes are a bit difficult to follow - but then, it's a real challenge to makes page after page of dialogue interesting.

But this issue is a good start on a new path for the New Avengers. We'll see where the next step leads.

Grade: B