I liked this a lot. It didn't make the teen heroes into caricatures and it was scary because they were inexperienced and being faced with civilian casualties and high-powered villains out to actually kill them. There was also a smooth-talking future villain trying to win over the young recruits. ( )

I had mixed feelings about the first two volumes of Avengers Academy. The characters come from such a dark place that that it's difficult to see them as heroes, or to root for them as a team. So, I was somewhat surprised to find that changed in this volume, during an event like Fear Itself.

This volume is completely non-essential to the Fear Itself crossover; it doesn't expand on the event in any meaningful way. However, it is an excellent continuation of the AA series. As chaos spreads across the globe, every hero is needed. The Academy teens are called in to help evacuate civilians because all the Avengers are on the front lines fighting the Worthy. Faced with a mission where lives are actually at stake, this team finally gets it together and acts like the heroes they have been training to become. Fortunately, the writers don't chicken out on showing the consequences of being a hero: such as having to take a life, or being unable to save one. These kids see war first hand, and it changes them.

The first half of the book focuses on the team helping civilians while battling Nazi drones. The battle sequences are very well done, and it was cool to see these kids wielding their powers. The second half of the book finds the team trapped in the Infinite Mansion with two of the Worthy who are trying to kill them. I thought this was the strongest part of the book because it forced the teens to think through the problem and work together, rather than being independent heroes who just happen to be involved in the same battle. What I found most surprising was that one of the teens quits the team as a result of Fear Itself. It was a bold and very realistic move - not every person with powers is necessarily cut out to be a hero.

Overall, this was an excellent installment of the Avengers Academy which cemented my interest in the series. Those reading just for the crossover won't find anything revelatory, but the story is worth reading anyway. Highly recommended. ( )