Vision is the Avengers' Only Hope in Jed MacKay and C.F. Villa's Upcoming Arc

Marvel previews the next Avengers arc to close out 2023, and it appears as though the Vision might be the Avengers last and only hope to survive

Marvel fans are currently in the midst of the opening arc of Jed MacKay and C.F. Villa’s run on Avengers, which sees the Avengers in a desperate battle with the interdimensional "city-killers" known as the Ashen Combine, but Marvel is already giving fans a hint as to the upcoming SECOND story arc for the series that will begin with November's Avengers #7 and December's Avengers #8, along with a preview of the Stuart Immonen covers for both of those issues.

Marvel quotes Jed MacKay's most recent CBR interview about the Avengers as part of its press release, explaining how the current battle with the Ashen Combine points out some of the limitations of the Avengers' current status quo, "It's less about "stretching themselves too thin" than it is about showing that the Avengers are the ones who have to step up when something like the Ashen Combine hits the world, even when it's on disadvantageous footing. The Avengers don't always have the luxury of assembling, and when you protect the entire planet, you're going to have to make tactical decisions as to how to apply your strength. Because the Avengers' strength isn't solely limited to them standing together. The other side of the coin is that they're a collection of powerful, experienced heroes whose reach is planetary and can deploy simultaneously against concurrent threats. Is it a challenge? Of course, it is. But the Avengers exist to be challenged and to triumph over those challenges."

Why is the Vision the Avengers' only hope?

As a result of the Avengers' battle with the Ashen Combine, the heroes will adopt a new command base, designed specifically to allow them to match the kind of threats that they are now committed to defeating. However, in Avengers #7, we will see the Avengers struggle with their new scope, and whether it has changed them too much.

The Vision is also going through a change, and appears to be getting a bit of a spotlight in this issue (The Vision is one of the few characters in the series who does not have his own title, so MacKay has more freedom with the Vision's character development, something that has been a common aspect of the Vision in the pages of the Avengers for many decades now).

Who are the Twilight Court and what do they want with the Avengers?

It is important to remember that MacKay helped set up his Avengers run with a story in last year's Timeless, and Kang's search for the "Missing Moment" is leafing the Avengers into the Tribulation Quests, and Avengers #8 appears to make sure that MacKay hasn't forgotten that aspect of the story.

This issue features the return of the Twilight Court, who debuted in the aforementioned Timeless story, and their mysterious leader, Myrddin, who put together the Court to find the "Missing Moment" himself, creating his own team of superheroes (who appear to be specific matches for the current Avengers) to achieve this goal. In Avengers #8, one Avenger takes on the entire Court. Luckily, they get a hand from another Avenger in the issue, but only time will tell which heroes have to go two versus eight in Avengers #8.

Avengers #7 is due out November 1, and Avengers #8 is due out December 6.