AVX: VS #3

Issue Date: 
August 2012
Story Title: 
untitled
Staff: 

(1st story) Jeph Loeb (Writer), Ed McGuinness (Pencils), Morry Hollowell (Colours), Dexter Vines (Inks) Comicraft’s Albert Deschesne (Letters), 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) Christopher Yost (Writer), Terry Dodgson (Art), Rachel Dodgson (Inks), Guru eFx (Colours), VC’s Joe Caramanga (Letters), 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)
Colossus vs. the Thing. On the Moon, Colossus is fighting Red Hulk but gets thrown away and the Thing takes up the fight instead. Both side deals devastating blows and tosses boulders against each other. Eventually, the fight leads outside the oxygen-rich atmosphere of the Blue Area of the Moon. Not needing oxygen himself, Colossus punches him the Thing one last time and knocks him out. Winner: Colossus

(2nd story)
Black Widow vs. Magik. Black Widow offers Magik a chance to give in but she doesn’t take it. Instead, Magik creates a portal to Limbo and the demons within grab Black Widow and pull her through. Before the portal closes, however, the Black Widow uses a rope line and pulls Magik through too. In the demon realm, Black Widow tries to force Magik to take her back but to no success. Black Widow starts shooting the demons around her, angering Magik, who tries to cast a spell. However, the Black Widow slams her head into a wall and then beats her up. With a gun pointed at her head, Magik is forced to return them to the Moon. Whilst the Black Widow gloats over her victory, Magik takes out her soulsword and stabs the Avenger, who is knocked unconscious. As Magik stands over her foe, she watches as the Phoenix Force arrives on the Moon.

Full Summary: 

(1st story)

The Thing vs. Colossus

The Blue Area of the Moon

AvX Fun Fact: The Blue Area is the only place on the Moon with Oxygen to breathe.

As Colossus charges at Red Hulk, he introduces himself as Piotr Rasputin, a Russian, a mutant, an X-Man and now a monster. Red Hulk sneers as asks “you again?” Colossus says he is unstoppable, which prompts Red Hulk to punch him. However, Red Hulk is thrown backwards, so Colossus closes in on him and goes to punch him back. Red Hulk stops his fist, so Colossus head-butts him. Red Hulk says he is getting tired of using him as a punching bag, so he thinks he’ll let someone else have all the fun. With that, he punches Colossus, sending him flying backwards through a wall.

As he lies on the floor, he says that he embraced the power of Cyttorak to save the world, but it took his soul. He suddenly sees a figure standing over him and realizes that it’s the Thing. He smiles, makes a joke and then proceeds to pound Colossus’ head into the stones beneath him. Colossus digs his hands into the stone for a better grip which causes the Thing to stamp on his head. He asks him if they say “stay down” in Russia but Colossus say “no” and flings a lump of stone at the Thing’s head.

The Thing is sent catapulting backwards and, when he lands on the ground, Colossus picks up a bigger piece of masonry and drops it on him. Colossus wishes it would end but the power in him hungers. He tells the Thing that it is he who should stay down… but he doesn’t. He smashes apart the rock on him and shouts “It’s clobberin’ time.” They end up in a fist fight until Colossus hits him so hard he is thrown backward into some rocks. The Thing picks up a stone off the floor and throws it at Colossus. It goes in his mouth and he starts chocking. He spits it out as the Thing rushes at him. He tackles Colossus but the Russian stands strong. He then grabs hold of the Thing and runs forward and slams him through a stone outcrop and out onto the desert of the Moon.

AvX Fun Fact: The Moon has about 1/6th the gravity of Earth.

AvX Fun Fact: If you weighed 200 lb on Earth you would weigh 33 lbs on the Moon.

Colossus says that outside the Blue Area the Thing needs air… but he doesn’t need anything. He’s unstoppable. After they come to a stop, the Thing punches Colossus so hard his helmet comes off. Colossus uppercuts him back so hard he knocks him out. As Colossus stands over the Thing, he muses on the fact he won but he had to become a monster to do it. Why does he feel as if he’s lost?

Winner: Colossus

(2nd story)

Black Widow vs Magik

AvX Fun Fact: The Blue Area of the Moon has a breathable atmosphere.

AvX Fun Fact: What? You already knew that?

The Black Widow tells Magik to stand down as it doesn’t have to be this way. Magik smiles and says that it does… if she wants her then come get her. The Black Widow fires at Magik from her bracelets but she teleports out the way. A portal opens up next to the Black Widow and demonic hands reach out from it and grab her.

AvX Fun Fact: Demons are real

As the demons pull her through the portal, the Black Widow yells in Russian. Magik appears and replies that she will very much care what she has seen. She then tells the Black Widow to enjoy her time in Limbo. Before the portal closes, though, she uses a rope line to snag Magik and pull her through too.

AvX Fun Fact: Magik’s “stepping discs” teleport her from Earth to the magical realm known as Limbo.

The Black Widow grabs Magik and demands that she take them back but Magik swings her head back and hits the Widow. Magik throws the rope off herself and tells the Black Widow that she knows who she is and she deserves to be in Limbo. All around her, snarling demons advance.

AvX Fun Fact: The Widow’s sting is not her only weapon

The Black Widow fires a gun and starts shooting the demons around her. Magik angrily asks what she’s doing, to which the Black Widow replies in Russian. She tells Magik that she has been to Hell before and it was called the Red Room.

AvX Fun Fact: Magik is a demon sorceress

The Black Widow dives at Magik but the young girl casts a spell. Before she can finish, the Black Widow slams her head into a rock and tells her “no magic.” She engages Magik in hand to hand combat and easily beats her. Magik tells her that a thousand demons come for her but the Black Widow says she is ready to die for what she believes in. She points a gun at Magik’s head and asks if she is ready to die. She tells Magik to take her back, so the mutant teleports them both back to Moon. Magik lies on the ground, bloodied and bruised and the Black Widow gloats and asks who’s next.

She turns away from Magik so she doesn’t see the girl get back up. She asks the Black Widow if she thinks broken bones and torn flesh were the worst things that happened to her. She had her soul ripped out of her body… so she made a weapon out of it. With that, Magik summons her soulsword and plunges in into the Black Widow.

AvX Grim Fact: Magik’s soulsword is a manifestation of her life force and is lethal to magical beings. But is has been known to render non-magical beings unconscious.

As Magik stands over her, she says it had to be a game… because if it wasn’t she’d be dead. Suddenly, Magik looks up into the sky and sees the Phoenix Force arriving at the Moon.

AvX Grim Fact: Magik has no soul to cry mercy for.

Characters Involved: 

(1st story)
Colossus

Red Hulk, the Thing (both Avengers)

(2nd story)
Magik

Black Widow

Limbo demons

Story Notes: 

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

This issue takes place during Avengers vs X-Men #5.

(1st story)
Colossus took on the power of the Juggernaut in Uncanny X-Men (1st series) #542.

Avengers: 3
X-Men: 3

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