WEDNESDAY, 5 AUGUST 2024. EDITED BY J. JONAH JAMESON.
BACK & BETTER THAN EVER, OR, A TALE OF REALITY WARPING & RESURRECTIONS
Gone, but never forgotten. That’s what we’ve repeated to ourselves time and time again in the six years since the Mad Titan Thanos snapped his fingers ( an act we call the Cleanse ) and half the world dissolved into ash. It wasn’t until five long years later that a group of brave heroes reversed what he had done and restored the world to a shade closer to what it once had been. This was, of course, not without great costs having to be paid. When Thanos was finally vanquished for good two founding Avengers were laid to rest: Natalia Romanova, the Black Widow, and Anthony Edward Stark, aka Iron Man. News of their deaths were confirmed by a representative for the New Avengers the day following the New Avengers Facility battle against the Black Order that culminated in the largest hero team-up we’ve yet to see.
Natalia Romanova, more commonly known by the alias Natasha Romanoff started her career in Russia’s infamous Red Room academy, which turns young girls into trained assassins. Romanoff’s ledger was made public in 2014 following the fall of S.H.I.E.L.D. and the revelation that the Nazi organization H.Y.D.R.A. had been embedded in the agency for years. After being recruited to S.H.I.E.LD. by fellow Avenger Clint Barton ( Hawkeye ), Romanoff worked as an agent for years before becoming a founding member of the Avengers in 2012, where she continued to serve until 2016 when the Sokovian Accords were passed and stricter international restrictions were put in place. Although she originally sided with Stark and the government, following the Clash of the Avengers in Berlin Romanoff dropped off the map. She was spotted once in Russia before going on the run with the former Captain America, Steve Rogers, and his associate Sam Wilson ( the former Falcon who has recently taken up the Cap mantle – for more, on this please see Christine Everhart’s article on page 3 ). Despite two years as an international fugitive, Romanoff fought in the Battle of Wakanda against Thanos and acted as the representative to the public during the Cleanse. One of the more vocal Avengers dead set on righting Thanos’ wrong, a New Avengers spokesperson confirmed that Romanoff died on April 26th, 2023 securing the Soul Stone from a classified location alongside Barton. She was laid to rest in a private cemetery with the Romanoff Scholarship for at Risk Girls being created in her honor shortly afterwards.
Anthony ‘Tony’ Stark was always in the public eye due to his father, Howard Stark, being an inventor, scientist, engineer, businessman and movie director. The elder Stark created Stark Industries, which his son later inherited after his untimely passing. As an arms dealer Tony was taken hostage in Afghanistan in 2008 but freed himself by creating a suit of armor. Living with an arc reactor in his chest, Stark became the first superhero with a public identity as Iron Man and became a founding member of the Avengers. After nearly sacrificing himself in 2012′s Battle of New York, Stark remained active even though it was his actions that led to the creation of the villainous robot Ultron and the untimely destruction of a large part of the European nation, Sokovia in 2015. Many considered Stark’s actions to be an apparent disrespect to life and property and urged him make amends. As a result, Stark sided with the Sokovian Accords and urged other heroes to sign as well. Because of this he and Steve Rogers had a falling out that lasted years as Rogers went on the run and Stark started the Stark Internship, whose inaugural recipient was high school student Peter Parker ( who was recently unmasked as Spider-man ). After going to space in 2018 to try and stop Thanos, Stark came home after briefly being presumed missing and largely vanished from the public eye. The failure of the Avengers to stop Thanos from the Cleanse was something not commented on by Stark, who chose to move Upstate with his wife, Stark Industries C.E.O. Pepper Potts, and their daughter, Morgan Stark. He came out of retirement to help retrieve the Stones and was the one to don a specially created Infinity Gauntlet to kill Thanos once and for all. Following his passing Stark was buried a few days after and the Stark Foundation for the Rehoming of those Disrupted by the Cleanse was created.
For the last year, the world mourned the losses of both Stark, Romanoff and other deceased heroes, such as the synthezoid known as the Vision who was killed by Thanos in 2018 when the Titan stole the Mind Stone from his forehead. Rumors began flying recently, however, when Avenger Wanda Maximoff ( the Scarlet Witch ) appeared to be spotted with a man who resembled the Vision. This set in motion what appears to be a new era in which what we lost has been returned to us. The New Avengers were able to confirm that it was, indeed, the Vision returned by means not yet confirmed. Mutants have been known for their resurrections as of late, but that seemed limited to their nation of Krakoa. It never seemed like something that we’d see in our world at large. Not until recently, that is.
On August 3rd, 2024, President Norman Osborn held a press conference that promised a sign of hope and change. Osborn’s Avengers, known as America’s Avengers, have been received with various degrees of public support. Along with him Osborn brought team member Star, who was recently revealed to be reporter Ripley Ryan. A controversial member, it has been revealed that Ryan possessed the Reality Stone from her home world of Earth-616 in her chest. “I don’t want to dip into the cliché and say that I live to serve,” she stated at the press conference. “but my goal is to be an Avenger for the people, and that means doing everything in my power to make the world a better place. Thankfully, I happen to have a lot of power.” This sentiment was echoed by Osborn, who pointed out that in the past the Avengers had failed as public servants and had instead caused more harm than good. He went on to add, “Instead of trying something futile like banning them once more, we’ve taken a new route. We’re leading by example, making good of our gifts. We’re making America a place you can feel safe and secure in. Consider this the first step.”
The ethics behind President Osborn’s following announcement have already been debated on popular social sites like Twitter as the public weighs on that which was once considered impossible: resurrection. That’s right, folks. You’re hearing it first here from the Daily Bugle that President Norman Osborn along with the help of Star has resurrected Natasha Romanoff and Tony Stark. The two were present at the conference and expressed gratitude for their return but remained, for the most part, silent and let Osborn speak. A call to the New Avengers confirmed that they were unaware of the President’s plans or the return of their teammates. We have reached out to Stark’s widow, but so far Ms. Pott’s has been unreachable.
“The last thing we wanted to do was dishonor Stark and Romanoff’s respective sacrifices, but this was a wrong that we knew we could right. Under careful supervision Star was able to achieve a great feat and there’s no ulterior motive or fear that reality will crumble. We’ve worked with multiversal experts to see what it’s possible to achieve. We also won’t be pushing Iron Man or Black Widow to join America’s Avengers. They’re welcome to rejoin their old team or retire and enjoy the world they helped save. This is the power that heroes who work in the best interest of the people possess. This is a world that we can live in, and America’s Avengers are dedicated to continuing this notion. We hope you accept this offering and remember that we live in a world of possibility.”
As soon as the dust clears the Bugle plans on reaching representatives for Romanoff and Stark to try and get individual statements. Osborn spokeswoman Lily Hollister, who handles statements for America’s Avengers, has promised that more details will soon be revealed and that an exclusive interview with Star will take place. In the meanwhile, sources have reported that Stark and Romanoff have been taken to the New Avengers Compound in Upstate New York to reacclimatize. The Bugle will continue to update the story as it unfolds, but in the meantime we wish the best to our fallen heroes and hope they’re happy to see the world they died to protect. If we live in a world where the dead walk again, what will we become when life is no longer fleeting?
— Ben Urich, Daily Bugle News Senior Reporter
TOO MANY COOKS IN THE KITCHEN: CAP’S, THOR’S AND MORE. OH MY.
Captain America. Thor. Captain America. Thor. The names are likely to be familiar to anyone who follows the Avengers, but lately things have become a bit convoluted. Following the final battle against Thanos on April 26th, 2023 our beloved Captain America, Steve Rogers, retired and passed the shield off to friend and former Falcon Sam Wilson. In the year since we’ve reported the trajectory of Wilson’s attempt to get his footing as the public pushed back with the unfortunately popular hashtag #NotmyCaptainAmerica. Some have accredited the hesitation to embrace Wilson as Captain American as a racist statement due to Wilson being an African-American man, while others attribute it to an inability to let go of the old and embrace something new. Rogers, meanwhile, has voiced his support for his friend but has remained out of the debate for the most part. Old rumors have placed Rogers and the deceased Romanoff in a romantic relationship, and his withdrawal from the spotlight could be a direct result of her death and the two years he spent on the run as an international fugitive. An issue some have had with Wilson is that appears to be too ‘bipartisan’ to be Captain America, and they prefer the United States Government’s option to #takebacktheshield: John Walker. Walker stated that he was flattered to be considered but doesn’t step on any toes. Still, if Rogers picked Wilson as a replacement he must see something in him that the rest of the us should believe in.
Similarly, there’s a new Thor in town. Although we love Thor Odinson whether he’s rocking long hair or short, he seemed to fall on hard times during the Cleanse and has only recently resurfaced as a hero. In the meanwhile a new blonde, helmeted, Mjölnir wielding Thor has made an appearance. Although dubbed the Mighty Thor by some, public reactions to a female Thor has been mixed as preciously repeated. Despite this she has served as a New Avengers as of late even though it appears that no one knows her true identity. When asked if she had any inclination of who it could be, Asgard’s current King, the Valkyrie, scoffed and stated, “No, but she’s worthy so that must mean something. Asgardia needs the help she can get, and we seem to have a preference for beautiful sparkly blondes.” It not the most illuminating statement, and while it may be concerning that their leader doesn’t even know the name of one of their champions the Asgardian’s need a break after all the sorrow they’ve faced between Thanos and the mutants during the Avengers v X-Men conflict of last year. As for our original Thor, he’s been spotted in both Norway where Asgardia is located and around New York with a very large axe. As it stands we’re not totally sure of the relationship between the two Thor’s and why they share a name, but it only seems like a matter of time before some answers come to light. Some wonder if Thor Odinson will try to take the throne back, especially as reports about the Valkyrie’s drink continue to pop up. Welcome to Earth, Asgardians. Hope you like speculations.
I’m sure everyone has their preference on which Avenger they prefer, but I personally am open to trying something new. After all, we as people aren’t stagnate beings. Some things change and people do as well. It’s natural to see mantle passed from one hero to another as time goes on. Hero work is, in a strange way, a job and sometimes positions need to be filled. Of course, time will only tell how well these new faces hold up against the daunting legacies of those who came before them. If it counts for anything, they have the good luck of this reporter.
— Christine Everhart, Daily Bugle News Senior Reporter
Despite the passing of Kamala’s Law within the last few months, underaged superhero activity has remained at an all time. The black-suited web crawler Spider-man was recently spotted with his team, the Champions, in Brooklyn despite the fact that their teammate, Ms. Marvel, remains at large for her part in a recent incident at Coles Academic High School that left civilians injured. Recently registered underaged heroes include Ghost Spider, the two children of Reed and Susan Richards ( Franklin and Valeria Richards ), Billy Kapplan ( Wiccan ) and Nadia Van Dyne ( the Wasp ). The majority of the public has so far responded positively to the idea of underaged heroes requiring some form of accountability but response from the heroes has been negative.
Go away, Guardians of the Galaxy! Not really, but most are scratching their heads over the fact that the intergalactic team that consists of aliens, talking trees and raccoons are still residing on Earth a year after Thanos was defeated. Members Rocket Raccoon and Nebula acted as honorary Avengers to help reverse the Snap, and when the Cleanse was undone their teammates Drax the Destroy, Groot, Mantis and Peter Quill ( Star Lord ) were returned to life. They are joined by former Daughter of Thanos Gamora and seem quite comfortable on our planet. Maybe it’s just part of our apparent alien invasion as the Shi’ar, Skrull and Kree still have dignitaries present. Looks like Earth is getting a little crowded!
