the New Avengers #47 - Marvel

This is blog #3000. I was going to try to pick a special book for this one, but then . . I figured I needed to stay on track, so I just went with whatever popped up next in the pile. As it turns out . . it was the New Avengers. I like this book. Through this Secret Invasion story-line, it seems like the stories were getting in this book are the peripheral ones. We see glimpses of the actual conflict and such, but . . mostly we see the stories of how what's going on out there is affecting the members of this group. This issue we focus on Luke Cage and Jessica Jones. Oh yeah, and their baby. We see how Luke and Jessica are trying to be the best parents they can be. They know that their daughter is going to be growing up in a crazy world out there . . especially considering the line of work that her parents are involved in. But, they're desperately trying to make her life appear, and be, as normal as possible. To see Luke freak out over the changing of some diapers is hilarious. We also get a glimpse into how these 2 first met. Well . . I should say, not necessarily how they met, but the time when Luke first fell in love with her. He was searching for his father . . desperately trying to make contact with him and show him that he was someone he could be proud of. He had exhausted many options and eventually went to Jessica's agency. She eventually found him. Reconciliations were not made, but . . I think Luke, with Jessica's help, began to accept his father's decision. He didn't understand it, but . . he accepted it. It was through this process, and Jessica's caring and nurturing, that Luke came to love her. And through all of that, he came to love this new addition to his life . . this little baby girl. So, on the final page, when we find out that the Skrulls have broken into Stark towers and have stolen their baby . . . the anguish and frustration on Luke's and Jessica's face is all that much more profound. You can feel it oozing of off the page. I thought Brian Bendis did a great job with this issue. He really brought us into the characters lives and illustrated how important the are to each other. Then, at the end, we can feel what they're feeling when it's all ripped apart. I thought he expressed the story perfectly. I was equally impressed with Billy Tan and Michael Gaydos' art. It wasn't perfect . . it wasn't flashy. But, I think, it expressed the feelings and emotions of the story perfectly. It ended up being a pretty moving issue. What more could you ask for? I enjoyed it thoroughly.