Philippines Invaded! Film at 11!

the following takes place before any of this Civil War nonsense happens in the Marvel Universe.
way, way before.

you'd best believe it when Nick Fury, the famed director of S.H.I.E.L.D., says that A.I.M. has set up a secret base in an island in the Philippines, and its in the best interests of the freedom-loving nations that the Avengers go in and beat them up.


these events happen during the early days of the Avengers, just when the Vision joined the team (after Captain America and his 'Kooky Quartet' era - Hawkeye, Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver, and the Black Panther). the Vision is under clouds of public suspicion, especially the powers-that-be, whose paranoia mirrors the McCarthyism of the times. Fury plays the obedient soldier, putting the Avengers thru protocol but giving them enough leeway because he knows its a team to be reckoned with - loony members aside.

note: for a man who currently has gone underground, Nick Fury pops up in a lot of books these days.

of course, he also needs their help because the Super Adaptoid - a robot who can mimic any superpower it comes into contact with (including the power to fart uncontrollably) - has been hijacked from S.H.I.E.L.D. custody by A.I.M. (Advanced Idea Mechanics, those science geeks dressed as beekeepers whose goal is MMORPG domination - cough, cough - i mean, world domination). they intend to clone the Adaptoid and use them as extras for Pierce Brosnan in that museum scene in The Thomas Crown Affair. ok, seriously, they want an army who can be a match for any bunch of superheroes. i mean, just imagine if it ran into the Hulk! (well it probably did, though i have to look up what the hell happened).

so, of all places to hide, A.I.M. decides to set up base in the Philippines! wow, that never happens! wooohooooo! do they pay competitive rates? i want to know.

with the temporary vacation leaves filed by the Big 3 (Cap, Iron Man, and Thor), this Avengers team is led by soon-to-be-loony Hank Pym (a.k.a. the original Ant-Man, a.k.a. Goliath, a.k.a. Yellowjacket, a.k.a. Wifebeater, a.k.a. Who Am I) and the upcoming battle sows the seeds of his getting unhinged. here, he ponders his qualifications and worth as team leader, as they take a Quinjet to kick some beekeeper ass.



first of all, Fury says the bad guys are hiding in a tiny island north of the Philippines. okay, that would be the Batanes islands. i could buy that. then here they say its the Bataan islands. there's no such thing. the Batanes' biggest island is called Batan. ok, let's just give Mr. Casey a pass and say he made a typo.

despite their mandate to kick ass, Avengers know their priorities. they have to protect the Ivatan. i wonder if their notion of 'native' is the same as they see their fellow Americans. i mean i could call the locals in my Brooklyn neighborhood 'natives', no? or 'native' means 'uncultured people as compared to the White Man' so that word would only apply to the American Indian tribes.



and whoah! Hank Pym knows Ilocano! holy shit - stop Page 1!!!




although i'd be more impressed with Mr. Casey if he wrote it like:

ukininayo! kugtarac ti bukel yu sica!

okay, not that. let's try it again:

naimbag nga malem, gagayem ken kakabsat. siyac ni Goliath! pummanaw kayu apo! agtaray kayu idyay aplaya sica! ay-ayaten kayu amin!


well, not bad. there was some effort there *lol*. the brilliant Kingdom Come had a Tagalog snippet but Mark Waid mangled that one.


after scaring the 'natives' (none of whom wore leaves) into uh, leaving the area, Hank confronts the Adaptoid clone army, rushing on to engage him from amidst the rice terraces. i never heard of rice terraces in Batanes. its hilly, even mountainous to be sure, but the distinction belongs to Banaue. Mr. Casey and Mr. Rosado seems to have skimped on research. but if anyone can provide photographic (not photoshop-ic) proof of such in Batanes, please do.



wait, that could be Bohol! minus the cultivated layers, it could pass for the Chocolate Hills!

long story short, the Avengers stop the Adaptoid clones and destroy the A.I.M. base, although the real Adaptoid escapes. their government handler still considers the mission a failure (as only they could; think of the Ivatans saved by Hank, you jerks!!!).

back in New York, Hawkeye kvetches about the continuing suspicion of the Vision, and the lack of respect the Avengers get from law enforcement.


the Philippines gets largely forgotten in the rest of the series, but Earth's Mightiest Heroes is a nostalgic read with new angles (kind of what Kurt Busiek used to do - finding new ways to tell old stories).
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Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes #2-4
Joe Casey, Will Rosado, Tom Palmer