In super-hero comics, there are few things as cool as seeing an under appreciated character get a new lease on life in the hands of a talented creative team. Johns has done this before, with several JSA characters and of course the Flash, and in this issue, with the aid of guest artist Ivan Reis, he turns that attention to the Falcon. The result is that the Falcon comes off looking cooler and more effective than he has been in years, and the foundation work Johns has been doing with Jack of Hearts and Ant-Man is nothing compared to his take on the Falcon this issue. There's also a spotlight on another surprisingly interesting character, but he's not on the cover, so I'll wait until the next paragraph to reveal that one in case anyone wants to avoid mild spoilers.
So here's the thing with characters like the Falcon: He flies. Like Hawkman or Angel, that's his big power, and while it seems like such a cool ability, it's a dime a dozen in a super-hero universe, and so these characters often wind up as also-rans. Unless you get a creative team that can capture the majesty and speed and power of winged flight, as Johns and Morales have done in Hawkman or as Johns and Reis do here. The word "soaring" comes to mind more than once when you see the Falcon flying between the skyscrapers in New York, and the shot of Falcon riding in front of a great wave of birds is just spectacular. Johns also tweaks Falcon's "bird link" power just a little bit in a very clever way this issue, opening up new realms of possibilities there.
While step one is capturing the power of flight, the rest of the secret of Falcon is getting that he's a social worker and a city planner, a smarter guy than he's generally given credit for. Johns has given Falcon a crucial piece of information that puts him a step ahead of the rest of the Avengers, and so this issue we see Falcon in a role that would traditionally belong to Captain America or someone of that nature, serving as inspiration to do the right thing and the noble hero archetype, contrasted with someone who is a lot more conflicted and uncertain about what the right thing to do is.
That other guy? Henry Gyrich, the government liaison we all love to hate. Johns avoids the easy road of playing Gyrich as an antagonist, giving him a sympathetic side, and that little hint that he's capable of being more than just a government weasel has opened up all sorts of potential for the character. The interplay between Gyrich and Falcon this issue is brilliant, especially when Falcon lets his anger out but also when he gives Gyrich a chance and when we see chinks in Gyrich's hard exterior.
This is one of those perfect standalone issues, and while the closing scenes indicate a continuing story, for the most part this is a spotlight on two characters that anyone could pick up and enjoy. Reis captures not only the big cool stuff like battle scenes or flight but little details like children pointing with excitement at an Avenger on the street or a very important detail in the last panel that hints at something else going on. Johns absolutely nails the characterization. And the result is a fantastic issue of the Avengers.
