Warning: contains spoilers for Avengers Mech Strike #2!

Marvel just showed that Kang the Conqueror's gauntlet is far more destructive than Thanos' was in Avengers: Infinity War. In Avengers Mech Strike #2, Kang obliterated a member of the Avengers. Thanos may have snapped half the universe out of existence, but this action was reversible and heroes returned. In Mech Strike, however, there is likely no reversing this deed.

Avengers Mech Strike pits the Avengers against biomechanoids - giant, energy-consuming monsters. Written by Jed Mackay with art by Carlos Magno, the series has severely escalated the threats Earth's Mightiest Heroes are facing. In response, Tony Stark provides each avenger with their own personalized Iron Man suits. The biomechanoids have been attacking more frequently than the Avengers and their mech suits are able to handle. The creatures have the ability to grow and gain new abilities, worse yet, they are part of a larger plan being executed by Kang the Conqueror. And as if that isn't enough, Kang just took out one of the Avengers - permanently.

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While taking over Avengers Mountain, Kang the Conqueror had no hesitation using his annihilation gauntlet. As its name suggests, Kang annihilates Black Panther, disintegrating him instantly. T'Challa doesn't simply fade from existence, he is obliterated in an instant. This reveals not only the heightened threat that the Avengers are facing in this series, it also calls to mind a comparison between Kang's gauntlet and Thanos' wielding of the Infinity Gauntlet.

In Avengers: Infinity War, Thanos uses the Infinity Gauntlet to erase half of the universe's population from existence with a single snap - an event referred to as the "blip." But by the end of Avengers: Endgame, most of the population is brought back. Heroes snapped away were returned to existence and re-joined the fight against Thanos alongside other allies. The way Thanos used the Infinity Gauntlet was awful, but, ultimately, reversible. Kang's annihilation gauntlet may not be as powerful as the Infinity Gauntlet, but he used it more definitively.

Kang arrives at Avengers Mountain and with a blast from his annihilation gauntlet, he obliterates Black Panther and takes over their HQ. This death was unintentional by Kang's own admittance, stating that he would have to recalibrate his gauntlet, but the sheer power it holds is staggering. He fights Tony Stark, but ultimately leaves him to live another day. T'Challa, on the other hand, has no chance at all against this foe. Despite having had a custom-made mech suit as well, he never actually gets to use it. He is taken out of the larger fight before he gets to see any action after issue #1. His main role was to help Tony try to solve the mystery of the biomechanoids - which they largely failed to do.

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Worst of all, in a series like this, the odds of T'challa returning are slim to none. While Infinity War and Endgame were able to wipe out half their characters without worrying they'd be sacrificing heroes they would need later. This is a limited series outside of Marvel's main continuity and is much smaller in scale as a project. There are no do-overs here. Black Panther is gone and that's all there is to it.

Kang's gauntlet has dealt a death-blow that Thanos' gauntlet did not. Iron Man made a noble sacrifice in Endgame to save the day, while in Mech Strike, Black Panther died without having much effect beyond discovering a biomechanoid weakness. Kang is incredibly dangerous not only because of his ability to bring complex, destructive schemes to fruition, but also because he uses his weaponry in more devastating ways than other villains. The Avengers are going to have a hard time defeating him and his minions, even with their new arsenal.

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