| Avengers Arena | |
|---|---|
 Cover ofAvengers Arena #1 (December 2012). Art byDave Johnson. | |
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | Marvel Comics |
| Schedule | Monthly |
| Format | Ongoing series |
| Genre | Superhero |
| Publication date | December 2012 – 2013 |
| Creative team | |
| Created by | Dennis Hopeless Kev Walker |
| Written by | Dennis Hopeless |
| Artist | Kev Walker |
Avengers Arena is acomic book series published byMarvel Comics that debuted in December 2012 as part of theMarvel NOW! relaunch. The series shows 16 young heroes from theMarvel Universe and pit them against each other in a kill-or-be-killed, reality-show-like scenario in Murderworld run byArcade.[1] The series ended with issue 18,[2] and was followed by a sequel titledAvengers Undercover, in which the surviving characters infiltrate theMasters of Evil.[3]
In September 2012, Marvel Comics announced thatAvengers Arena would debut with a December 2012cover date, by the creative team ofDennis Hopeless andKev Walker.[1][4] The series ran 18 issues, and was followed by a sequel series,Avengers Undercover.
The comic has abattle royale theme, notably inspired by the Japanese novel/manga/filmBattle Royale and the Americanyoung adultdystopian novel/film seriesThe Hunger Games.[5]
Sixteen teenage superheroes are abducted by supervillainArcade, brought to his latest version of Murderworld, and forced to fight to the death for Arcade's enjoyment.
As the games begin,Red Raven tries to escape from the arena, only for her to be killed when an invisible force field breaks her neck.Rebecca Ryker faces off againstHazmat and then fightsCammi soon after. Cammi gives her the nickname Death Locket. Throughout the first day, Death Locket remembers the past events that led to her being transformed into a cyborg.
As the young heroes sleep for the night, they are stalked by an unidentified cybernetic creature.
After several days pass, Arcade shuts off the food supply and makes the weather conditions hazardous in Murderworld, but notes there are safe zones at the edge of each quadrant for the competitors to rest, as well as food and medicine in Quadrant 2.Reptil is injured by an explosion. Hazmat andX-23 take him to Quadrant 2 to get medical supplies for Reptil's burns. Nara,Anachronism, andCullen Bloodstone discover that Apex is manipulating Death Locket and Kid Briton to her own ends. The trio is then teleported by Arcade to the supply cache at Quadrant 2 just as Apex, Death Locket, and Kid Briton arrive. The heroes begin fighting among themselves.
Juston Seyfert is revealed to have survived the attack from the cybernetic creature, but is paralyzed below the waist due to the injuries sustained when hisSentinel crashed. Distraught at the loss of the Sentinel, Juston salvages its remains and creates a suit of battle armor which he uses to attack Death Locket. After being injured by Apex,Nico Minoru sacrifices herself by staying behind to get the survivors to safety. She is killed byChase Stein and Juston Seyfert's Sentinel, both of whom are under Apex's control.
Reptil turns into a sea dinosaur in order to hunt some sharks for him and Hazmat to eat. The remaining teenage heroes catch up to them and are invited to have shark steaks with them before returning to Murderworld.Molly Hayes notices that Nico and Chase are missing and turns toHank Pym for help.
Cullen Bloodstone attacks Anachronism, forcing Cammi to try to calm him down. Hazmat and X-23 encounter aMettle robot with Trigger Scent, causing X-23 to go on the attack. X-23 seriously injures Hazmat, leaving her fate unknown. Cammi attempts to stop X-23, but her attempts are useless. Cullen decides only he can stop her. Upon removing his family's ring, Cullen transforms into a monstrous form in order to save them. As Cullen continues to fight X-23, Cammi, Nara and Anachronism look for Cullen's ring. Nara ends up diving into the ocean to find it. Nara emerges from the ocean with the ring, but is killed by Cullen.
Apex uses her ability to take over Death Locket's systems and plans to become Queen of Murderworld. As Hazmat is close to exploding, Reptil swims her out to sea so that the explosion cannot harm anyone. The explosion causes everyone to stop fighting each other. Death Locket kills Apex and shuts down Murderworld. Afterwards, the surviving teenagers are rescued byS.H.I.E.L.D.,Wolverine, Hank Pym, andCaptain Britain.
| Character | Real name | Team Affiliation | Death |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hazmat[1] | Jennifer Takeda | Avengers Academy | |
| Mettle[1] | Ken Mack | Killed by Arcade inAvengers Arena #1. | |
| Reptil[1] | Humberto Lopez | ||
| Darkhawk[1] | Christopher Powell | N/A | M.I.A. inAvengers Arena #3. Corpse was later shown in issue #12. Revealed to be alive in issue #16. |
| Anachronism | Aiden | Braddock Academy | |
| Apex | Katy Bashir and Tim Bashir | Killed by Death Locket inAvengers Arena #18. | |
| Cullen Bloodstone | |||
| Kid Briton | Brian Braddock | Killed by Anachronism in issue #6. | |
| Nara | Killed by Cullen Bloodstone in issue #15. | ||
| Cammi[1] | Camille Benally | N/A | |
| Chase Stein[1] | Runaways | ||
| Nico Minoru[1] | Killed by Apex controlling Darkhawk inAvengers Arena #10. Resurrected by her Staff of One in issue #12. | ||
| Death Locket | Rebecca Ryker | N/A | |
| Juston Seyfert[1] | N/A | Killed by Apex inAvengers Arena #9. | |
| Red Raven | Dania | N/A | Killed upon colliding with the invisible force-field in issue #2. |
| X-23[1] | Laura Kinney | X-Men | |
| # | Title | Material collected | Pages | Publication date | ISBN |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kill or Die | Avengers Arena #1-6 | 144 | May 21, 2013 | 978-0785166573 |
| 2 | Game On | Avengers Arena #7-12 | September 24, 2013 | 978-0785166580 | |
| 3 | Boss Level | Avengers Arena #13-18 | 136 | February 4, 2014 | 978-0785189282 |
| The Complete Collection | Avengers Arena #1-18 | 408 | September 11, 2018 | 978-1302911850 | |