Jeez, talk about something I didn’t expect to hear today. I probably would have been less harsh in my rant earlier about him overstaying his welcome.
But hey, today Brian Bendis announced that he would be leaving the Avengers in 2012. Not just the core Avengers title, but the entire franchise…after about six issues of his upcoming Avengers Assemble ongoing series with Mark Bagley that launches in 2012.
What did the scribe have to say on the matter? Well, this is what he told CBR.
“I’m going to wrap up ‘Avengers’ and ‘New Avengers.’ At the same time the first storyline of ‘Avengers Assemble’ will be done. It’s a good time to move on to other things. Before I go, though, I’m ending things big. I’m in countdown mode. You know when you’re watching a show like ‘Breaking Bad,’ and every episode feels like the second to last episode? That’s where I’m at. I’ve been on the Avengers longer than anybody in the history of the book. When you take everything into account, I’ve written over 200 issues. I’m very, very proud of that, and what we have coming up this summer gives me the opportunity to go out on a high note. I know enough about showbiz to know that’s a great time to go.”
I’m not surprised that he’ll stick around through the launch of the upcoming Avengers movie, but I also hadn’t even thought about just how much he had done. Brian gave us a ton of material, both good and bad, and his legacy is going to be decided based on how he wraps it all up. He has had momentous a run on these books, and while I fondly can remember some stories that he has told, and hope for at least one more before he’s done, I really can’t wait for some fresh blood in the line.
Looks like Avengers vs X-Men may be the last event of his run on Avengers, though I fully expect his leaving the titles to lead him to an event series featuring all of the characters for the Ultron War teased in Point One.
