AVENGERS #385-388 and CAPTAIN AMERICA #440-441 (1995): Taking A.I.M.

While he is dying, Captain America participates in a minor crossover with his buddies in The Avengers. The A-Team plus Cap and his entourage decide, together, to take out MODAM’s AIM base once and for all. Note that this is armored Cap.

Ugh.

This “event” seems like it has been a long time coming. Why has A.I.M. been allowed to run around doing bad stuff for so long!?!

It starts with Black Widow’s Russian partner, Ivan Petrovitch, tipping her off about AIM activity before he is captured. At Ivan’s request, Widow leads an Avengers contingent on an international investigation, which peeves SHIELD.

They find Red Skull has taken Ivan prisoner and fight him.

He’s got armor that makes him a major force.

Skull is apparently at the base investigating–just like The Avengers–and although he seems to be beating them, he leaves. Widow takes the wounded back to Avengers Mansion, where she meets up with Cap and his folks.

(Cap spends much of CA #440 recruiting people to help, enabling appearances by D-Man and others).

It’s also the first time Cap tells the Avengers that he’s dying.

Together, they all figure out the AIM connection and invade MODAM’s island, which is protected by a bunch of AIM Adaptoids. Cap gets wounded during the battle and Superia sneaks on the battlefield…

She injects Captain America with a formula that restores his Super Soldier status and stops the serum from slowly sicking him. (Alliteration tongue twister!)

But it wears off.

Meanwhile, MODOK returns!

He’s able to return from the dead because MODAM was trying to create a new Cosmic Cube and accessing the power turned the entire AIM island into a wish-fulfillment place. Red Skull is also on the island–looking for the Cube’s power–and he meets Super Adaptoid.

Lots going on–this is partly a Mark Gruenwald jam, after all. I like the story, and I will also admit that the ending is confusing–but has great Deodato art. The island–which seems to be blessed with Cube power–is actually a fragment of the original Cube and a spaceship. MODOK seeks out the source of the power, which is the Cosmic Cube’s relative The Beyonder (or “The Beyond,” which I think is basically the same thing as Beyonder(?!?)).

We don’t see what happens to him after that.

And apparently MODAM is (dead? missing?).

And that’s it.

Oh, except for this…