Assault on 42 is the 16th episode of Season Two of Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes and the 42nd of the overall series.
Summary[]
Whirlwind's off to prison again after the battle. Captain America, Wasp, Thor and Ms. Marvel escort him from the Baxter Building to a cell in the Negative Zone of Prison 42. 42 is virtually impossible to break out of. Yet when they get there - it seems that something is trying to break in.[1]
Synopsis[]
The episode starts that Thor, Wasp, Ms. Marvel, and Captain America are escorting Whirlwind to a cell within the 42 prison via the gateway in the Baxter Building. As they escort him to his cell, the lights flicker. In the background, the Leader is ranting and in pain about voices in his head.
They deposit Whirlwind in his cell, and encounter Clay Quartermain, who has been assigned to investigate the power fluctuations and the Leader's strange rantings. Quartermain suggests they return to the main control room so that the prisoners won't be disturbed by their conversation.
The Leader has recently taken to ranting about something outside wanting to get in; Quartermain informs the Avengers that 42 doesn't have any external sensors because they hadn't needed them prior to this, but by using Mandroid sensors they did find a few unidentifiable blips on the sensors.
Power fails again, and the emergency backup power kicks in; the prison cells are contained. Quartermain goes to investigate, accompanied by Captain America and Ms. Marvel. Down at the affected junction, they find that something has eaten through the power conduit.
Wasp and Thor investigate a scream; a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent has found the creature, who has trashed the control room, breaking the gateway controls; the door won't open until the next shift of guards arrive from the other side. The warden has been taken prisoner, and the bug is trying to escape to the outside.
Before the Avengers can recover the warden, more bugs attack. As Thor and Ms. Marvel follow the escaping bugs outside, the observe that the station is under attack by a swarm of hundreds of the bugs. Trapped outside, Thor and Ms. Marvel fight the incoming swarm as the others make preparations. The doors open, revealing Thor and Ms. Marvel, who survived the first wave of the bug attackers.
The Avengers and Quartermain regroup at the control center. Sensors have been restored, revealing a huge swarm of the bugs outside the super-prison, completely surrounding them. The bugs seem to be waiting for something. If the bugs take the station, then nothing will stop the bugs from swarming into Earth when the shift change arrives in less than an hour. Captain America stipulates that they will blow up the gateway from this side rather than allow the alien bugs to escape into Earth. In order to make their last stand, the Avengers take volunteers from the prisoners, as their lives are also at risk; the Leader, several AIM drones, the Abomination, the Radioactive Man, the Absorbing Man, Whirlwind, Blizzard, the Executioner, and Captain Marvel join the defenders. Baron Zemo tries to join the team to fight the bugs, but Captain America denies it; and it's all because of meeting his Skrull Impostor and trusted him in the Acts of Vengeance of stopping the Enchantress.
While they prepare, Thor tells the Executioner about the Enchantress being controlled by Surtur after Wonder Man broke the Norn Stone. Thor promises that if the Executioner fights honorably here without his axe, that Thor will see that he has a chance to help him rescue the Enchantress.
Captain America deploys the defenders, with Wasp, the Radioactive Man, and the Absorbing Man acting as a strategic reserve to cover their retreat, if necessary. The control room is the final stand, if worse comes to worst, where Ms. Marvel and the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents will make the last defense before blowing the gateway to Earth.
The bugs arrive, swarming the defenders. Annihilus shows up, controlling the bugs with a control wand of sorts. Several AIM drones fall, as does Blizzard. The Abomination carries the stricken Leader clear.
The front line falls back to the second choke point, where the Radioactive Man, Wasp, and the Absorbing Man cover their retreat to the cell block.
In the cell block, the bugs swarm the defenders in wave after wave. Captain America sends the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents to the control center, and the Abomination and the Leader head there with them. The Avengers attack Annihilus, but are unable to damage him.
In the control room, the Leader attempts to disrupt the energy shields Annihilus is using. The defenders take advantage of that to down Annihilus, and separate him from his control wand; without it, the bugs turn on Annihilus instead. The bugs flee, leaving the 42 prison heavily damaged but with the inhabitants intact.
Captain America greets the S.H.I.E.L.D. shift change at the gateway. "Welcome to 42", he said as the episode ends.
Cast[]
- Colleen O'Shaughnessey voices Wasp
- Jennifer Hale voices Ms. Marvel
- Jeffrey Combs voices The Leader
- Rick D. Wasserman voices Thor, Surtur (Mentioned), Absorbing Man, and Shield Agent 2
- Roger Craig Smith voices Captain Marvel and SHIELD Agent 1
- Robin Atkin Downes voices Baron Zemo, Abomination and Prison Warden
- Troy Baker voices Clay Quartermain, Blizzard, and Whirlwind
- Brian Bloom voices Captain America
- Wally Wingert voices Ant-Man (Recap)
Continuity[]
- Thor mentions Enchantress being enslaved by Surtur since the episode "Acts of Vengeance".
Trivia[]
- Blizzard, Radioactive Man and Whirlwind are all killed by the Annihilation Wave.
- First and only appearance of Annihilus.
- Baron Zemo offered to help fight the bugs, but Captain America didn't trust him and left him in his cell, because in the episode "Acts of Vengeance" of a plan to defeat the Enchantress, Zemo met the Skrull Impostor of Captain America.
- Zemo's final appearance on the show.
- Number 42, the prison, and the episode Attack on 42 both share the same number as the episode.
- The premise of this episode is based on the 1976 film Assault on Precinct 13.
- The Mandroids are now the new guards of prison 42 instead of Ultrons by the aftermath of defeating Ultron-5 and Ultron-6.
- Iron Man, Black Panther and Hawkeye are absent in this episode.
Errors[]
Quotes[]
Zemo: I will fight these bugs.
Captain America: Keep dreaming, Zemo. I'd rather face a million bugs in front of me than risk having one of your daggers in my back.
Zemo: Oh, please. Do not tease me with such beautiful imagery, Captain.
Blizzard: Those bugs did this?
Thor: Aye.
Blizzard: I think I want back in my cell.
Whirlwind: If we live through this, I'm gonna cut you to pieces, Wasp.
Wasp: Well, lucky for me, we probably won't live through this.