Marvel Is Overusing an Old Plot Device And Honestly? It’s Getting Really Old.

[[{“value”:”

Warning: Contains SPOILERS for Avengers #22

While the occasional plot twist can lead the way for an enthralling dynamic story, Marvel
is proving that the overuse of one trope is eating away at its stories’ uniquenesses. When the heroes have their backs to the wall or the villains are up against the rope, a surprise reveal could change the game entirely. However, characters’ choices have little impact when the reader knows too much.

Avengers #22 – by Jed MacKay and Farid Karami – starts on a strong bat. The Avengers finally believe they’ve found the
advantage over Kang
and Myrddin, leaving them one step closer to finding proper intel on the Missing Moment.

As Marvel endures back-to-back tribulation moments, first the “Fall of the Impossible City,” the “Unending Night,” and soon the “King of Magic,” it’s easy to forget everything that has happened or will happen is only just a piece of someone else’s game. Overshadowing the last two years of Marvel’s frequently enticing events, glooms a plot line that is frankly underwhelming.

The Secret Mastermind Trope Is Overused

The Avengers #22 – Written by Jed MacKay; Art by Farid Karami; Color by Federico Blee; Lettering by VC’s Cory Petit; Cover Art by Valerio Schiti & Federico Blee

When Marvel first introduced
the Timeless anthology series
, a creative tease for the following year’s comic releases and events, it gave readers not just important issue comic covers but genuine glimpses at some of the most climactic moments of the year without the context to spoil them. However, 2022’s edition of the anthology introduced an overarching plot, the effects of which are still being felt. After introducing Myrddin and his quest for the Missing Moment, Marvel has continued to enforce that, no matter what happens, it’s always been part of Myrddin’s game of 4D chess.

Now, in Avengers #22, the other player in Myrddin’s game has been revealed – the Grandmaster. It feels like, once again, the fate of
the Marvel Multiverse
has been boiled down to a pointless game between two inconceivable powers. This trope can be fun, but it’s better served as an occasional twist, not the primary plot. Unfortunately, Marvel has begun to depend on this cliché almost to the point of consistency within their larger events. No longer do the decisions of heroes or villains matter when all of their struggles are merely moves in some egotistical being’s game.

The Trope Makes Character Development Pointless

It Threatens to Remove Character Choice Completely

While this isn’t by any means a new plot device, it’s Marvel’s overuse in recent years that has made the trope feel exhausting. Starting with
the Blood Hunt event
, there was a genuine moment where a hero became the enemy. Sure, it was too out of character for Blade to go full villain alone, but he was still a villain. A hero that people could trust became so vile that even Dracula was forced to stand against him. Instead, the event’s very hook was undermined by the puppeteering machinations of Varnae.

This happened again
during the Venom War
. The emotional weight of what was supposed to be the ultimate conclusion to a story arch that began with Knull, a war between father and son for the sake of the future, became yet another game. Behind the scenes, Kang and Doom were playing their own time-traveling game of 4D chess. The stakes of the war never relied on Eddie or Dylan, it relied on entirely different players. Even if characters develop throughout the story, when the weight of their decisions is placed into another’s hands, the impact of their actions falls flat.

The Story Isn’t as Fun When Readers Already Know the Ending

Marvel’s Tease Revealed Its Hand Too Soon

As Marvel moves into the next tribulation moment, One World Under Doom, it’s becoming harder to stay invested in the story. When Doom tactically seized the
title of Sorcerer Supreme
, it felt like a major victory for the anti-villain. This won’t be his first attempt at world domination, but it’s a well-earned opportunity. But what does it matter? There’s already another plot that overshadows the comics, softening the stakes of the upcoming event. Yes, it’s a comic book; the heroes will almost always win. But it’s the stakes of the fight in the moment that define the emotional impact.

To the heroes, every fight is a fight for survival. They don’t know the larger schemes at hand. But as readers, we know what’s happening and why.
Doom’s rise to power
is just another thing to get through because we know what comes next. Since Timeless #1 (2022) we’ve seen the pawns on Myrddin’s board. Kang is out for the moment. Mister Sinister, as Enigma, is no more. Next is Doom. Whether it’s the remaining known tribulation moments or the final two villains in Myrddin’s arsenal, readers already know who’s pulling the strings when those events come to happen.

Marvel Still Has Some Room to Incorporate Intrigue

Is Myrddin Supposed to be Marvel’s Modern Thanos?

Yes, there are plenty of mysteries still at hand, and it looks like Marvel is going to be riding this overarching plot for some time. This very well could be
Marvel’s modern Thanos
. But unlike Thanos, Myrddin and the Grandmaster’s game isn’t by mystery. Their intent is already known. Everything that has happened in the last two years and almost everything moving forward is “all to Kang’s greater torments.” By continuously relying on an already tiring trope in such a short amount of time, Marvel is slowly sapping its characters’ impacts before the stories ever begin.

Avengers #22 is now available from Marvel Comics.

“}]] Character development can no longer thrive.  Read More