Original Sin #6 Review: No Outer Space For Old Men

Just in case you were wondering if Marvel was ever going to get around to making Nick Fury Jr. take over his dad since he looks like Samuel L. Jackson, Jason Aaron seems to be getting it done in Original Sin. Though we’ve seen Nick Sr. in some tough spots over the decades, what we find out here (and to a certain extent, the previous one as well) very well could spell the end of the road.

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One thing though: I could have sworn that Marvel said we would learn the identity of Uatu’s killer in this very issue. The fact is that we don’t. It’s very heavily implied, but the shooter is definitely not spelled out in so many words.

I wouldn’t have a big problem with that since there are two more issues to go, except that we were told it was going to happen. At least there’s some action to enjoy after the exposition-heavy #5, including an awesome scene that proves Captain America can multi-task:

That’s right folks, it’s a no-look shield toss to dispose of one Life Model Decoy while he’s talking to another one. Mike Deodato even drew him casually retrieving the shield without looking. Sigh … it’s going to take a while before Sam Wilson is able to do that.

Anyway, since I mentioned LMDs, may as well get to the …

SPOILER ALERT!

Fury is dying. That’s the big takeaway from this portion of the story, which begins with him still confronting the groups of heroes he’s been manipulating up until now (except for Rocket Raccoon, who’s there strictly by chance). Since the Infinity Formula has faded and has left him with little time left to live, he wants one of the heroes on his secret satellite to replace him as the “man on the wall.”

Needless to say, this doesn’t go over well, particularly with Doctor Strange, who finds the killing unnecessary, and Black Panther, who is miffed that Fury won’t give a straight answer about who shot the Watcher. Nick doesn’t have time to waste, as Dr. Midas is on his way, as are the Avengers. An angry Captain America gives the order to assemble after Iron Man successfully tracks the signal from a self-destructed LMD back to its source.

Our heroes manage to dispose of the decoy Nicks pretty easily, but just as the Avengers burst onto the scene, they discover two nasty surprises: one is old man Fury in a battlesuit that looks like a small Gundam, and the other is that he’s got both of the Watcher’s eyes and apparently has figured out — possibly from his heavy-handed interrogation of the Orb — how to make them work as a pair.

So the stage is set for a nice little three-way dance between Fury, the bad guys and the heroes, one that will probably have enough action to span two issues and include another twist or two along the way. We haven’t seen the last of the power of the eyes being used to bring people to their knees through sheer force of secrets either, I’d wager. I feel like Original Sin hasn’t kept the fantastic momentum it began with, but Aaron’s dialogue and Deodato’s art are enough to keep me around until the finale.

Favorite moment: Scott Lang has an inferiority complex moment, but Fury assures him that he’s “got it inside of you.” Dr. Midas’ underwater spaceship was a close second. Because nobody would notice that out there …

Final thought: I hope it’s not just me thinking the Watcher’s eyeballs looked a little … testicular in that final splash page:

That’s the stuff of nightmare fuel, friends.