Secret Invasion #3 (OF 8)

Here's hoping for something happening and getting out of the savage land. Go Bendis!

yeah... it'd be REALLY cool if something actually happened in this one. That said, I'm still enjoying it, I just want it to move forward so I can enjoy it more

Well, it's only 8 issues so they have to get off the island soon, right?

 Right?

*head hangs in despair*

I would love for the story to move along more.  I understand it's an 8 issue run but I would love for more to happen each issue.

I'm digging the cover image, if that is it's real name.

I wonder if that's Tony's new armor... because that's not the Extremis armor.  It looks more like the Tin Man armor Tony had before he took Extremis.  Or maybe it's just an artistic flub and I'm looking too much into things.  Who knows?

@Tork Probably the armor he created at that old lab since the Extremis armor got messed up with the skrull virus. Hoping to see advancement here, maybe even figuring out some more of the Skrull sleeper agents and I'm bored with the Savage Land too.

Yeah, that's what I'm saying.  Maybe that's Tony's new armor that he built in Brainchild's lab after his old armor went belly-up.

Huh, 3.99. Isn't this a regular sized issue?

Welcome to the world of Marvel events, Muady.  To be fair, though, Final Crisis was the same price with just 8 extra pages.

This whole 'event' is just missing the mark for me.  I hope it picks up with this issue.  As I've said elsewhere I am far more into the Avengers/Invaders series than this one.

I'm dropping this. #3.99 per issue is too much for me to keep waiting for it to get interesting.

And knowing my luck, this issue will rock the house, and I'll regret jumping off & everyone will laugh at me & point while holding thier copies.

How can anyone drop this book!!!!  If its the cost that is the problem, just cut back on food...eat cereal for lunch and dinner!!! According to the box...Lucky Charms has several essential vitamins and minerals!!! Do it for the book WadeWilson!!!

I actually think quite a bit has happened the first two issues. It wasn't particularly interesting stuff, but it's happened. I think no matter what, this story suffers from the fact that the main enemy are the Skrulls, who have little credibility left after so many years of getting trounced.

I thought #1 was great. #2 definitely dipped but hopefully #3 will pick things up again.

I hope this issue really hits it outta the park. I think marvel was smart though in getting two issues out before the Final Crisis started. Both stories were good but i think that SI has a leg up with more established at this time!

I never expected this event to spend so much page time wandering around the Savage Land...heading into snoozer territory

@shogunt - I don't think the problem is the Skrulls, they're cool.  If you used "always getting trounced" as a metric for credibility, there would be no villain anywhere with credibility.

I think the savage land will be playing an important role in a next few issues. This is going to be a long event, with 8 months of NA, MA, SI main tilte, and the other ties ins, there is plenty of time to develop the plot line and to kick up the action. Readers these days have such a short attention span, if the story doesnt get right down to it people start complaining, let the story play out before we start whining.

@conor-True, but the Skrulls are defeated soundly everytime without accomplishing much of anything. They don't feel like a serious threat. I think of the Phalanx as more of a threat right now. Maybe this storyline will change that for me, though.

@shogunt - The selling point of this book for me was the Skrulls.  I'm pretty old school and was happy to have a real Marvel villain as the big bad instead of some X-Men thing or people acting completely out of character as in Civil War. 

But while I'm digging the return of the Skrulls this series just isn't doing it for me for some reason I can't put my finger on (too many crossovers?).  Now I don't hate the book but I'm not loving it either.  I have yet to read Final Crisis as I'm still waiting for my Mail order books to come in.  By the way I recently switched from TFAW as my comic supplier, to DCBS!!!!  I heard it mentioned on ther Ifanboy podcast snd now I'm saving tons! See? Advertising works!!!!!

Obviously, we're not through with the Savage Land, Ka-Zar still has to swing in and make himself known.  Unless that's all happening in New Avengers.  Either way, I (as a huge X-Men fan) can't get enough of the Savage Land.  Love it!!!  So there.  And stuff IS happening.  First two issues saw the skrulls making their play for earth, duplicate heroes crashlanding in a jungle, a superhero on superhero fight scene, and lets not forget the freakin dinosaurs!  Of course stuff is happening!  I'm so sick of people saying that it isn't!  Oh yeah, and Bendis writing Spidey is always awesome, so stop complaining and looking for problems, people.  It's not worth it.  You spent four bucks on this book!  ENJOY IT!

This was a cool episode--the last page was awesome.  I think once I accepted I had to read all of NA and MA (which I already read) to get the whole story, I am liking the pace.  Spider-woman mind-screw on Tony--awesome.  Also, every week either NA, MA, or SI comes out, so I am loving the pace.

@actualbutt - I can only speak for myself but I am not 'looking for problems' but rather looking for an engaging story that you don't need to buy a bunch of other books to understand.  And I just don't think we are getting that with Secret Invasion... so far.  The fact you summed up the beats of two whole issues in one sentence is a very telling tale about the meandering pace of this book.

Just got done reading this, and to me, this whole thing has been a huge disappointment so far.  I was really excited after SI #1 and that first New Avengers issue with the Spider-Woman reveal, but it has been going 90 mph downhill from there.  BUT, there's a long way to go, hopefully Bendis can turn it around

I actually really liked this book.  I had alot of fun with it,  I may of enjoyed it more due to being disappointed with the let down that was SI #2, but there is still alot of story left to tell and I am aboard.  Plus it's better then Civil War. 

I bought this issue and was shocked to find my family are all illegal immigrants just like the god loving skrulls. Peace be with you and love you pets get them spaid and nututresd

I thought this issue was great. A lot stuff happening all over the place, awesome skrull jarvis, and great new york skrull fight. It went by fast but it was fun.

I need a copy of Guide to the Marvel Universe so I can figure out who 499 of the 550 "heroes" in this book are.

The Skrull reveal (which I don't believe, by the way) with the "I don't know I'm a sleeper agent" concept is very interesting.  I wonder if Bendis has been watching Battlestar Galactica.

This issue was fantastic.  Over in a heartbeat.  I want more every time.

I'm pretty sure I remember hearing on Word Balloon that Bendis is an avid Battlestar fan. 

I think this has been really good. While reading NA and MA helps, I don't think it's necessary.

Great "Oh shit!" last page.  

I feel the paced big up big time obviously, BIG TIME! This issue was huge: 1.) Tony Stark might be a skrull and not know it, which would be a huge upheveal in the MarvelU if its true. 2.) The Skrull NYC invasion is showing zero restraint and lil Vision had his face blown off 3.) We see the triumpent return of Nick Fury and his badass commandos which is a fuckin awsome team in my humble opinion. Overall this book is definatly picking up speed keep it coming.

@joeny - a counterargument.

1) everybody in the book "might be a skrull." if they actually SHOWED tony was a skrull, now we're talking about progress. all the maybes eventually wear me out.

2) killing minor superheroes - like baby vision and headband man from the initiative - doesn't do much for me.

3) nick fury's return was already shown in mighty avengers, thus removing any surprise of his showing up. we already knew this was coming! 

"Headband Man" lol!

Did anyone else notice Sam Kinison's name on the sign on that page where lil Vision was killed? Nice touch. RIP Sam.

 This issue was great. As for those saying the deaths of minor heroes don't matter. That may be true, as I certainly didn't know who they were, but you have to have some cannon fodder. Expecially at this point. Just think if that many Avengers died in one fight. Besides, the major heroes are all off busy doing other things. The only choice they have is to send the rookies, and of course they are going to get slaughtered. Immagine sending a company of privates after Hitler. It just isn't going to work out too well.

"I've had the same car since i was nineteen years old, never had a problem.  Yet this thing falls out of the sky every other Thursday."

Awesome line from Bendis (I'm sure picking up on what was being said all over the net), and I especially enjoyed it because my 1990 Toyota Camry (which was from my own 19 year old days) is still going!

This issue seemed much more like a tie-in than a major issue ... it was lacking in almost every way ... I feel cheated!!!

@ JonBoy 

The reason it felt like a tie-in to you is because you're reading mighty or new avengers or both and you are getting all that back matter, but i have friends who are only reading secret invation and are loving it.

for them it's only action, no history or dealing with all that continuity.

Just re-read the Nick Fury issues of MA--Bendis is doing a great job here, on the whole.  The Sentry needs to go, but other than that, this story is like a season of Heroes, but better.

@tehdave - a counter counter argument:

1.) Tony Stark's potential being a skrull was one of the major theories people have been talking about since SI was announced, he has been the central component since Civil War began and everything went to shit b/c of him. "IF" he is a skrull then a quick and all out reveal would be lame and a waste of so much development

2.) I enjoy seeing the real consequences of a super hero trying to fight something that is way out of its class range. Lil Vision and Headband were minor but perfect examples of that

3.) This was Fury's triumpent return to the characters of the MarvelU no one knew he was returning, and as such it has signifcance and it was an awsome full page spread. We knew the Skrulls were coming from over a year but it was still awsome when they finally showed themselves to the MarvelU

I really liked this issue. It went by quick and was non-stop action! I figured out that the main guy on the last page was Nick Fury but who is the guy in the hood and the guy without a shirt on?

You have to go the Mighty Avengers 13 (?) when Nick recruits these guys (or actually, Daisy Johnson recruits them).  Bald guy was in prison and it is prison and it is not revealed who he is, and the other guy is the son of Dr. Druid and part monster (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doctor_Druid).  Everyone of the new commandos seems to be related to (son or daughter of) some criminal.  Bunch of kids who never knew their fathers or grandfathers.

I'm not sure why folks think it's important to know who every character on every page is.  I read a lot of DC Books -- old JLA runs, and 52 -- where I don't recognize half the characters.  That doesn't make it a bad story.

There's enough about them to move the story along, and if you just need to know about Headband Guy, you can buy the tie-ins. 

That said, this issue did feel like a lot of filler.  But the last page was a good reveal, and Spider-woman messing with Tony's head is intriguing -- because it has to be mindmessing; Bendis isn't going to introduce such an easy theory in the 3rd issue of an 8 issue crossover and have it be the truth.

unless bendis thinks we think it's mindmessing! a double mindmess!

This was definitely the best issue by far, but the Howling Commandos showed up ruined it. Thigns were happening, things were getting hopeless for the heroes which is what a full-scale Skrull invasion should do and then it's just like "Oh yeah, it's the Marvel Universe so everything will be just fine."

Great book. Loved the pick up in pace after a slow #2. I think you just have to read the NA and MA titles on this to think the story is moving at all.

@steveM you got the best line of the book right there. That was funny stuff. Loved the Skrull Jarvis and loved the movement between story lines moving them all along nicely.

 Propst to you Bendis. They should put your name under a widmer cap!

@RABinRVA I disagree. The howling comandos by no means mean everything is going to be okay. The skrulls beat the hell out of the young avegers and the intiative, which are much more established groups. Basically the only reason the Howling Comandos mean anything to anybody is because of Nick Fury. Anway it's only a hand full of people, many of them untested against a bunch of weirdo-super-skrulls. That moment felt to me like a reinforcements are here, all is not lost quite yet type moment than a everything is okay now moment. Everthing is not okay. In fact things are totally messed up. The skrulls leadership aren't standing by nervously wondering if they're going to win this one, they're on the helicarrier, asking for unconditional surrender. Things aren't going well .

i don't buy the mockingbird thing only because she was last seen in hell with mephisto helping hellcat escape....

of course its a hell demension and they can say it was a demon pretending to be mockingbird....but i don't buy it...

someone should make a list of every hero to die and then return in the last few years

wasn't jessica drew last seen in japan helping logan when wolverine #1 came out way way back... she ran a bar or something...

It's gotta be a trick.  She has to be lying to him.  If not, everyone at Marvel all the way up to Quesada has been lying to us, saying that Skrull reveals wouldn't cheapen Civil War...

Don't let me down guys. 

Event books always suffer from feeling like too much set up.  Especially this book, where it's all the whole Earth 616 in one story.  I'd rather they did most of this thing in setup books that focused on a few characters and then ended with a shorter Third Act conclusion involving everyone, like they did with Annihilation Conquest, only with a more satisfying ending.

What do you guys think about echo? Is she dead? God, I hope so.  I enjoyed this issue but wasnt blown away.  If they end up killing off the sentry i will consider this event fantastic.

I wouldn't mind if the reason Civil War happened was because of the Skrulls.  It would explain why Iron Man and Captain America started doing things the characters I've been reading for the past 30 years would never do.

I have no interest in this book fixing things. Especially not civil war, iron man, or captain america. Kill Sentry if you must, I'm sure nobody will protest that, but would rather have an awesome book that makes things muddier and more complicated than a magic wand to fix all the stuff we'd rather not have. I wouldn't care if the skrulls were secret instigators of the civil war, but tony stark better not be skrull.

I love the mind trips these Skrulls are doing to the heroes, I think it'd be really interesting if even after this event is over you still aren't sure who's a skrull and who's not but you can't do anything about it.

Also I love what Bendis is doing with Spider-Woman. 

@muady

agreed. fuck a 3.99