The Good

It's always unfortunate when a great series comes to its conclusion. The good thing here is we do get some closure and conclusions to different plot threads. The fate of the world was on the line and this group of Avengers were tasked with saving the day. What costs would there be? Who would have to sacrifice themselves? This final issue does allow the follow up to be seen. As S.H.I.E.L.D. is a government agency, you can imagine what the process might be like after a high profile mission. We do see the cast debriefed as well as get a glimpse at what's next for one character in particular. We also get to see some insight into Maria Hill and possibly what drives her. Other characters are allowed to move on, take on new ventures or simply sit around a fire naked for some extra bonding moments.

Ales Kot has delivered a pretty strange series. The fact that it's been allowed to run its course on the fringe of the Marvel Universe has been fantastic. This could be attributed to the team being a "secret" one and the rest of the Marvel U being unaware of what's been happening. We've had plenty of great moments but unfortunately it's time to say goodbye to this incarnation of the Avengers.

Michael Walsh has done a phenomenal job on the art. We've had many great layouts with varied perspectives. And who else could draw M.O.D.O.K. wearing an apron with a mixed look of humor and seriousness? His depiction of Maria Hill, Hawkeye, Black Widow, Spider-Woman, Nick Fury Jr, and Phil Coulson will be missed.

The Bad

Obviously it's bad that this series is ending. There was a slight feeling of this big crazy and epic story getting a rushed ending. Events from the past several issues had been building up and they were resolved in an almost sudden fashion. I felt one more issue could have wrapped things up a little better.

It's also bothersome how well Coulson has been fleshed out in this series and feels like a completely different one in the pages of the S.H.I.E.L.D. ongoing series.

The Verdict

Every so often, we get a pretty amazing series bestowed upon us. SECRET AVENGERS almost felt like it came out of no where. The combination of Ales Kot's multilayered stories and Michael Walsh's fascinating character designs and layouts easily propelled this series into my heart. In many ways it has felt like the greatness of it was a secret to many others. With this being the final issues, there is a slight feeling that the conclusions and aftermath were reached a little suddenly. If you haven't read this series before, I truly do envy you for now you have a complete (brand new) series you can devour. I will miss this series. It was really a fun ride.

Question: was Lady Bullseye in this issue or last issue? She's listed in the wiki as being in the last issue, but I paged through the whole thing and didn't see her or Widow. What happened after they were trapped by the monsters in #12? Did that ever get resolved?

@owie: No, you're right. It was rushed and brushed over. They mentioned needing to escape in #12 then in #15 She got name dropped by Black Widow as having escaped this issue with her. Case of tell, not show :/

Was nice to get this many issues

Thanks for letting me know!

Sad to see this end. How many series can say they kept an artist on every issue? Hopefully they can get another volume or just this creative team back together after secret wars for another book.

I thought that was Jake from Adventure Time on the cover.

Glad it's over. Can't believe they ended Spencer's run for this goofy business...