All-New, All-Good-PR Avengers #125 – ‘Now Who Inspires You’

In the Midtown High AV classroom, Tony Stark leans back on the couch, while speaking on a livestream video interview to the AV club’s faculty sponsor, Mr. DeMatteis (“played” here by an action figure of Andrew Garfield from Spider-Man: No Way Home, and named for legendary comics creator J.M. DeMatteis). “Everyone knows palladium powers Iron Man’s arc reactor!” Tony says. The title of this comic strip, “All-New, All-Good-PR Avengers Presents… ‘Now Who Inspires You?’,” is visible at the top of the image.

Tony and Mr. D discuss the potential environmental and fiscal upsides of bringing a massive quantity of palladium to Earth from the Negative Zone.

They continue to discuss the cost and effort that a project like this might require, as they’re streamed on cameras operated by Midtown AV club members Max Allen and Ben Reilly (“played” here by action figures of Zendaya and Tom Holland from the MCU).

Offstage, Sue Storm-Richards and S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Maria Hill continue to argue about the degree of the role they each believe S.H.I.E.L.D. should play in the palladium extraction. On-camera, Tony and Mr. D. introduce Reed Richards, who’s coming on to talk some more about the palladium discovery that he and the other members of the Fantastic Four made.

Reed brings his new intern Miles Morales onto the set with him. Miles is visibly nervous.

Sue and Agent Hill increase the intensity of their argument, while in front of the cameras, Miles can’t help but ask Reed if he knows what the environmental impact of the palladium mining operation will be on the Negative Zone.

Reed is unhappy with Miles’ unscripted question, and Miles apologizes, but sticks to his guns. Sue and Miles’ fellow AV club member, Lyla Lorman (“played” by an action figure of Xochitl Gomez from the MCU) are aghast at what they’re seeing, though for different reasons.

Reed tries to explain to Miles that he thinks the Negative Zone will not be negatively impacted, but Miles continues to argue his point. Out in the school hallway, Tony gets a call from James “Rhodey” Rhodes (AKA War Machine).

Rhodey tells Tony that Daily Bugle editor-in-chief J. Jonah Jameson is reporting on the staged romantic entanglement between Iron Man and the android Jocasta, just as they hoped he would. Tony’s annoyed that Jonah took the bait on the night of the palladium announcement, but he’s still willing to move forward with the next phase of their plan to discredit Jonah.

As Tony and Rhodey talk, several members of the Tracksuit Mafia fan out across the city, apparently with a plan to cause chaos. Snow begins to fall in New York City.

The credits for the comic strip, citing the Unsplash users whose photographs were the background art, the ownership of Marvel by Disney, the creation of Marvel characters by actual human beings, and the figure photography/script/graphic design/lettering by me, Phil Wrede.

Well, after a brief detour to the studios in the iconic Daily Bugle building, we’re back here at Midtown High, as Tony Stark and Reed Richards continue their bombshell palladium announcement to the world!

Miles’ questions for Reed are, it’s probably obvious to anyone who read the post that accompanied the comic-before-the-last, another attempt to engage more directly and sincerely with the impacts that the actions of our beloved Avengers might have on the world around them. So what if the Negative Zone is dangerous to every human who’s ever set foot in it? They didn’t ask us to come there, and the Annihilation Reavers might be living perfectly fulfilling lives, in between the times that the Fantastic Four breach the dimensional barrier.

And hey, look, the Tracksuit Mafia guys are back! That… can’t be good news.

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3 thoughts on “All-New, All-Good-PR Avengers #125 – ‘Now Who Inspires You’”

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