AVX: VS #5

Issue Date: 
October 2012
Story Title: 
untitled
Staff: 

(1st story) Matt Fraction (Writer), Leinil Francis Yu (Pencils), Gerry Alanguilan and Leinil Francis Yu (Inkers), Sunny Gho (Colourist), VC’s Joe Caramanga (Letters and Production), Jordan D. White (Assistant Editor), Nick Lowe (Editor), Axel Alonso (Editor in Chief), Joe Quesada (Chief Creative Officer), Dan Buckley (Publisher), Alan Fine (Executive Producer)

(2nd story) Jason Aaron (Writer), Tom Raney (Artist), Jim Charalampidis (Colourist), VC’s Joe Caramanga (Letters and Production), Jordan D. White (Assistant Editor), Nick Lowe (Editor), Axel Alonso (Editor in Chief), Joe Quesada (Chief Creative Officer), Dan Buckley (Publisher), Alan Fine (Executive Producer)

Brief Description: 

(1st story)
Hawkeye vs. Angel. Hawkeye is hiding in the forest of Wundagore Mountain, watching Angel fly over him. Angel tells Psylocke, who is on the ground, to stay safe and he’ll find Hawkeye. Just as Angel spots him, Hawkeye fires some arrows at him. Angel dodges and fires razor feathers, which Hawkeye dodges. A second volley of Angel hits Hawkeye, who in turn stabs Angel. The two have begun a fist fight when they are found by Psylocke, whose Hawkeye turns to his advantage, pointing an arrow at her and thus forcing Angel to surrender. Taking not chances, Hawkeye shoots Angel in the chest and flees. Back on Utopia, Angel tells Emma about Hawkeye and she vows that she isn’t finished with him. Winner: Hawkeye

(2nd story)
Storm vs. Black Panther. Storm charges up a lightning bolt and hits Black Panther, but he has shock absorbent fibers in his suit and redirects the energy back at Storm. As they fight, they both muse on how things between them got to this point and realize that they were never going to be happy. After Black Panther initiates countermeasures that stop Storm manipulating the weather, they begin to engage in hand to hand combat. Both get their hits in, but eventually they are stopped by the arrival of some Wakandan citizens and the X-Men team. After finding out that Hope isn’t there, they leave, but not before Storm takes off her wedding ring and leave it on the ground. Winner: there are no winners here

Full Summary: 

(1st story)

Angel vs. Hawkeye

(Wundagore Mountain)
Hidden amongst the snowy trees, Hawkeye spots Angel flying over and aims his bow. Angel is searching for Hawkeye and he says if he’s still out there he’ll find him.

AvX Fun Fact: Clint Barton aka Hawkeye was rasied by circus folk

AvX Fun Fact: The Angel was raised by people who work for billionaires

Walking through the trees, Psylocke says that he has some psionic cloak, as his mind is invisible to her. Angel tells her to stay safe and hidden and don’t be afraid to get out of there if she needs to. She scoffs at him and says she’ll put her skills to Barton’s any day.

Angel suddenly spots him and Hawkeye fires off a volley of arrows. After dodging them, he dives down to where Hawkeye was hiding.

AvX Fun Fact: Them feathers is sharrrrrrrp

Hawkeye manages to jump out of the way and dodge a flurry of razor sharp feathers fired from Angel’s wings.

AvX Fun Fact: Hawkeye’s quiver contains many improbable and impractical arrows and some regular arrows at most times.

AvX Fun Fact: The facts are researched by a crack team of up to 70 unpaid graduates.

Hawkeye takes out another arrow and aims it at Angel, who has flown down to the ground. Angel tells him he should have left with his team but Hawkeye says he would miss out on all the fun. Hawkeye fires his arrow but Angel fires some feathers and splits the arrow in two. Angel unleashes another round of razor sharp feathers at Hawkeye. He tries to dodge them but he can’t. Struck, he falls to the ground. Angel asks him if he has anything else but Hawkeye tells him to shut up.

Hawkeye gets up and arms some arrows strapped to his wrists. He lurches at Angel, who tries to fly out the way. Hawkeye slashes Angel across the stomach, drawing blood. The two begin to brawl in the snow, each on getting some decent strikes in.

Psylocke suddenly spots the two fighting and comes to help. Hawkeye spots her too and asks Angel who is friend is. Aiming an arrow at Psylocke, he tells Angel to fly away or Psylocke doesn’t get to wear hats anymore. Angel tells him she’s a telepathic ninja; she can trepan him at the speed of thought. Pointing out she’s 300 feet away and his arrow can reach her in a second, Hawkeye asks Angel if he wants to find out who’s faster. Angel says he’ll retreat and backs off, but Hawkeye calls him a sucker and shoots him in the stomach. He runs away into the woods, again calling for an extraction as Psylocke rushes to a bleeding Angel.

Later, back on Utopia, Angel is in the infirmary and is telling Emma what happened. After hearing what Hawkeye did, Emma smiles to herself and says it’s to be continued.

Winner: Hawkeye

(2nd story)

Black Panther vs. Storm

(Wakanda)
It starts in the skies high above as a path of ionized air. Storm says she shapes the electrical field like a potter shapes clay. As milliseconds pass, the current builds and then she can feel it zigzagging down at 100,000 miles an hour. The air around it heats rapidly to six times hotter than the surface of the sun. A sonic shockwave begins to rumble and a billion volts zero in on their target… heading right for the man she loves. She always knew marriage had its ups and downs but she never imagined this.

AvX Fun Fact: S single bolt of lightning can have up to five billion joules of energy.

Black Panther is struck by the lightning bolt as the energy surges over him. However, he remains unharmed and he fires the electricity back at Storm, who is flying up in the air. She dodges and realizes that of course he is insulted against electricity. He is the Black Panther, after all. As he redirects the electricity through the gauntlets, she doubts he even felt it at all.

As he fires the lightning back at his wife, the Black Panther thinks the pain is unimaginable. But it’s not pain from the lightning; it’s from the look on her face. He will hate himself for years to come. If only there was another way. He either saves the world or his marriage… No matter what happens, one of them is doomed. His wife controls the weather and he is just a man. A man who has studied every fighting style in the world. If there’s one thing he has learned, a punch can be blocked. Every weapon can be countered.

As Storm uses the winds against him, he uses his radio and initiates counter-measures for mutant X-85. Above his head, an unmanned drone sprays the atmosphere with a super-absorbent powdered polymer. Out on the Indian Ocean, a swarm of phytoplankton eats the heat from a burgeoning storm. Microwaves shoot down from Wakandan satellites to reduce the onrushing snowstorm to a light breeze.

AvX Fun Facts: Black Panther has lots of plans

As the skies clear, Storm is left confused. Black Panther apologizes and says he blocked her punch. She says that, after all this time, he had a plan on how to fight his own wife. He points out that he didn’t start the fight and Storm says he won’t finish it either. She goes to punch him but he blocks her. She tells him not to blame it on the Phoenix, Cyclops or anyone else. It’s about her and him. She kicks him but he regains his balance. She tells him she’s sorry it took her the end of the world to see he’s a terrible husband. With that, she punches him square in the face.

As they fight, she thinks he was always cold and he thinks she was always too hot-blooded. He pins her to the floor and remembers when he proposed. He realizes she was never going to be happy there. Storm remembers her wedding and thinks she could have been happy there. Storm elbows him in the legs causing him to cry out in pain. He thanks the gods that they never had children but she wishes they had.

Black Panther gets her in a hold from behind but she swings her head back and hits him in the face. She throws him backwards into a wall and kicks him in the head. She muses that she will always love him and he will always regret what could have been. He grabs her cape and rips it off her. Storm tells him it ends now and charges towards him.

Instead of fighting, they passionately kiss but then Storm punches him. Storm’s attention is suddenly caught by some Wakandan citizens, confused as to what is going on. Before she can do anything, Rachel Grey and the rest of the X-Men team appear and say that Hope isn’t there. Storm and Black Panther look at each other for a moment, after which Storm looks at her ring. They both go their separate ways, with Storm leaving her wedding ring on the ground.

Winner: There are no winners here…

Characters Involved: 

(1st story)
Hawkeye

Angel, Emma Frost, Psylocke (all X-Men)

(2nd story)
Black Panther

Danger, Dr. Nemesis, Rachel Grey, Storm (all X-Men)

Wakandan citizens

Story Notes: 

The is a tie-in to the Avengers vs. X-Men event.

This issue takes place sometime after Avengers vs. X-Men #6, when the Avengers take Hope.

(1st story)
Psylocke and Hawkeye have met before, so it seems weird that Hawkeye wouldn’t know who she is… especially given his penchant for beautiful women.

Emma will go on to personally incinerate Hawkeye in Avengers vs. X-Men #7

(2nd story)
Storm and Black Panther were married in Black Panther (4th series) #18.

Avengers: 4
X-Men: 4
Draw: 1
Other: 1

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