Dark Avengers #2
Dark Avengers #2 is the second chapter of the opening arc that established Norman Osborn's villainous Avengers as a genuine storytelling force during Marvel's Dark Reign era, immediately testing the fraudulent team against one of the Marvel Universe's most formidable supernatural threats: Morgan Le Fay. The issue introduced a structurally inventive problem for the team — an enemy whose time-traveling nature makes conventional victory impossible, forcing Bendis to think beyond the standard superhero-punches-villain formula in only the series' second outing. It also deepened the Doctor Doom/Morgan Le Fay history through a haunting flashback to a young Victor von Doom, cementing the Doom-Le Fay relationship as a key engine of the Dark Reign storyline. The issue's demand for a second printing within weeks of release reflected how quickly the series captured reader attention after the debut of the team in issue #1.
In Dark Avengers #2, Norman Osborn leads his team on their first mission as the Avengers, racing to Latveria to rescue the fallen Doom from the clutches of the sorceress Morgan Le Fay. After a fierce clash, the Sentry delivers a brutal blow—but Morgan’s magic proves too strong, and she escapes into the time stream, only to possess Mac in the Venom costume. Written by Brian Michael Bendis and illustrated by Mike Deodato Jr., with colors by Rain Beredo and letters by Virtual Calligraphy and Cory Petit, the cover by Mike Deodato Jr. captures the moment of dread and transformation.
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The issue was produced as the second installment of Brian Michael Bendis and Mike Deodato Jr.'s launch arc, which grew directly from the company-wide Secret Invasion event — itself engineered to clear the deck for the Dark Reign status quo. Marvel's editorial strategy, overseen by Tom Brevoort, kept the solicitation copy for the first several issues classified until Secret Invasion #8 shipped, creating deliberate market tension around the team's reveal. Bendis described his approach to the Dark Avengers as assembling 'bad-ass, hardcore get-it-done types' that Osborn could dress up as heroes for public consumption, and issue #2 wasted no time stress-testing that concept against a threat the team could not simply overpower.
Trivia · 8 facts
- Written by Brian Michael Bendis; art (pencils, inks, cover) by Mike Deodato Jr.; colors by Rain Beredo; letters by Cory Petit; edited by Tom Brevoort. In-store date: February 18, 2009; cover date: April 2009.
- Morgan Le Fay serves as the Dark Avengers' first villain, attacking Doctor Doom in Latveria with a demon army to avenge his betrayal of her — establishing her as the antagonist across the opening four-issue arc.
- A key structural storytelling device is introduced: because Morgan is a time traveler, killing her in the present only causes a prior version of her to return, making the Dark Avengers' superior firepower effectively useless without a time-travel counter-strategy.
- The issue contains a flashback set 37 years in the past, depicting Morgan visiting a young Victor von Doom while he sleeps, preparing to kill him before relenting — she wants him to know why he is dying before she strikes.
- The full Dark Avengers roster appears in action: Iron Patriot (Norman Osborn), Ares, Hawkeye (Bullseye/Lester), Wolverine (Daken/Akihiro), Ms. Marvel (Karla Sofen), Captain Marvel (Noh-Varr), Sentry (Robert Reynolds), Spider-Man (Mac Gargan/Venom), and Victoria Hand.
- The issue received a second printing with a new Mike Deodato Jr. cover, reflecting strong early demand for the series.
- Issue #2 was collected in the Dark Avengers Vol. 1: Assemble trade paperback (and premiere hardcover), which gathered Dark Avengers #1–6, as well as in the larger Dark Avengers: The Complete Collection omnibus-style volume.
- The variant cover for this issue was provided by artist Mike Choi, as confirmed by Previews World solicitation records.
Cast · 19 characters
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Full plot ⚠ may contain spoilers
▸ Reveal full plot — may contain spoilers
For their first mission as Avengers, Norman takes his team to Latveria to save the fallen Doom from the powerful magic of Morgan Le Fay. After a brief battle, Norman has Sentry rip her head off but even this can't keep a good sorceress down as Morgan reappears from the time stream and possesses Mac in the Venom costume.
Plot details indexed by the Grand Comics Database (CC BY-SA).