It turns out that Valkyrie used to be a Doom Maiden after all. The Maiden of Rage. And rage is what she was full of in this issue. She took down all the Shield Maidens, most of them with her bare hands. Keep in mind the Shield Maidens are the some of the strongest female superheroes in the Marvel universe, so that should tell you how strong and powerful she is.

But there was one Shield Maiden in particular that was strong in a different way. Knowing that Valkyrie was possessed by an unknown evil force, Annabelle Riggs stood against the Maiden of Rage to save Valkyrie. But at a hefty price. I won’t spoil what happens, but I will say that the sassy, but feisty Misty Knight sucker punched the heck out of Valkyrie for what happened to her friend, Dr. Annabelle Riggs.

And yes, Caroline Le fay is still in the picture. She fled the battlefield to develop more evil plans which includes choosing new Doom Maidens. So I don’t think she’s going anywhere for a while.

I am still enjoying this Marvel NOW! series and I list all my reasons in prior posts of this title. I am surprised at the outcome of Annabelle. I knew that Annabelle was going to play an important role in Valkyrie’s life, but I didn’t know for how long. And I was just beginning to really like her. But this series is set up for characters to come and go. Remember this is not a team. And I can only imagine what’s going to happen to the rest of the Shield Maidens. Who’s next to leave? Who’s next to join? I want them all to stay because from looking at the pictures of female villains on Caroline Le Fay’s monitor, it’s going to take the entire group of badass Shield Maidens (remember Misty Knight hired more than the required amount) to take them down.

Cullen Bunn is the creative and talented writer. Superb dialogue and the interactions among the diverse characters are breathtaking. Fast paced but not hard to follow. I like how the names appear next to the heroes. That’s especially good for readers that are either new to comics, or for those who may have forgotten a name or two (tapping foot, looking around whistling). I can’t wait to see what Bunn has in store for us in future issues. RED SHE-HULK WAS CANCELED SO I HOPE TO SEE HER MAKE AT LEAST ONE APPEARANCE IN THIS TITLE. (yes I was a reader of that title)

Excellent artwork by Will Sliney (art) and Veronica Gandini (colors). There are several images, since the first issue, that I would love to have either the original art or a print. The characters are so realistic and I especially love the fight scenes, brutal punches and choke slams. The lighting on those panels is intensifying. And I LOVE the cover art by Mark Brooks. This comic ALWAYS has great artwork and covers. A good scripts needs good visuals. This title has not disappointed me yet.

VERDICT (drum roll please)

This is a great series and if you haven’t read it yet, then you need to start because I HIGHLY RECOMMEND IT.