The five-issue Avengers Assemble series launched last September and ends this month after assembling an all-star team of heroes known as the AVENG.E.R.S., the Avengers Emergency Response Squad.
Among those reporting for duty have been Captain America (Steve Rogers), The Wasp, Hawkeye (Clint Barton), Hercules, She-Hulk, Photon, Wonder Man, and Shang-Chi, a group of Avengers that feels very MCU-inspired. However, they've also been joined by obscure heroes like Night-Thrasher, Lightning, and Lightspeed (Julie Power).
Inspired by the team he pulled together during Blood Hunt, Avengers Assemble has seen Captain America take on a new initiative: recruiting new and classic Avengers for an all-new squad. Cap's team will operate out of Avengers Mansion and tackle one crisis after another on globetrotting superhero missions.
The fourth instalment ended with a major cliffhanger when it was revealed that the Serpent Society had created a deadly toxin known as the Serpent's Tears. Rather than allow it to hurt innocents, Cap threw himself on top of the gas canister and, in the process, was transformed into Cap-Snake.
Now a servant of the Serpent Society, this first look at Avengers Assemble #5 shows him leaping into action against his former allies and teammates.
"This is a great time to assemble!" Orlando previously said of launching the title. "Avengers Assemble is bringing a murderer's row of classic Avengers back to the Mansion, and classic comics storytelling is coming with it! A team of icons and new recruits alike, but heavy on the icons! And in every issue, a barnburner of an entire story packed into twenty pages!"
"West Coast Avengers was the first comic book I ever bought, full stop. So, to be part of a return to form, heavy on personality, rich in action, is more than exciting - it's an honor! Avengers Emergency Response Squad is always on duty!" he added.
Cap-Snake now joins Cap-Wolf as one of Steve Rogers' barmiest Variants and it's a shame we probably won't get to see him in live-action. After all, the Multiverse Saga is nearing its end and the Serpent Society has been left on Captain America: Brave New World's cutting room floor.
Check out this preview of Wednesday's Avengers Assemble #5 below.
CAP-SNAKE VS. THE AVENG.E.R.S.! The Serpent Society has harnessed Mephisto's power to create a serum capable of raining destruction on civilization - and their first victim is Captain America! Is Cap-Snake what this team of villains finally needs to defeat the Avengers and reign supreme?
AVENGERS ASSEMBLE #5
Written by STEVE ORLANDO
Art by JOSE LUIS SOARES PINTO
Cover by LEINIL FRANCIS YU