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In S.W.O.R.D. #11, a team strongly affiliated with the X-Men is responsible for the death of a high-ranking Avengers villain with governmental ties.
WARNING: The following contains spoilers for S.W.O.R.D. #11, on sale now from Marvel Comics.
Over the decades, the Avengers have faced many enemies that span time and space. But one of their greatest foes stems from the simple concept of government oversight. In the earlier years of the team, a man named Henry Gyrich was sent to monitor and keep tabs on the Avengers in exchange for government endorsement and support. However, Gyrich’s controlling nature repeatedly put him at odds with the team. Now, after years of his mischievous and downright despicable business practices, the government official has finally met a grisly fate at the hands of one of the superpowered groups he has schemed to control and manipulate.
The series S.W.O.R.D. (by Al Ewing, Jacopo Camagni, Fernando Sifuentes, and VC’s Ariana Maher), explores the actions of a mutant team designated to protect Krakoa from extraterrestrial threats. The mutant team led by Abigail Brand has made many leaps in relationships with alien civilizations. However, the mutants’ terraforming and subsequent claiming of Mars garnered the unfavorable attention of the government. As a result, Gyrich, who works with both Alpha Flight and the mutant-hating group Orchis, has been employing his trademark machinations to gain information and sabotage the team. However, it’s revealed that their leader, Brand, has her own agenda, that she discusses briefly with Gyrich before jettisoning him off into the depths of space.
Gyrich started in the National Security Council and is best known for his stern and career-driven mindset. Because of this, he is very by the books and leaves no room for interpretation when it comes to orders. More than anything, he strives for control as he believes there are no safer hands than his own. When he is sent off to investigate the Avengers, he throws the book at them for their reckless battles and choices and puts the team under heavy restrictions. However, he was eventually relieved of his governmental duties and opted to work toward more nefarious purposes.
Aside from hindering Earth’s Mightiest Heroes, Gyrich was also a part of Project Wideawake, an initiative meant to control the growing mutant population. This program would also help give birth to the Sentinel program that Orchis would later spearhead. Since then, Gyrich has helped create new versions of the villain Scourge, instigated a feud with the Thunderbolts and replaced Everett Ross as liason to the Black Panther. He was last seen taking over Alpha Flight and its spin-off group, Gamma Flight and he recently sent the U-Foes in battle against the Hulk, nearly killing him..
Like Agent Brand, Gyrich believed that the X-Men were gaining more power than they could handle, fueling his desire to take down S.W.O.R.D. and, by extension, Krakoa. But his sloppiness in doing so appears to have led to his undoing. Making matters worse, he endangered many lives when he recently attempted to destroy the S.W.O.R.D. space station. But even with all of his questionable acts, the circumstances of his murder, and the lie that it was a suicide may still be more than what he deserved.
For better or worse, Henry Gyrich fought for the safety of humankind. He felt that any superpowered being that crossed his path was a danger to everyone. Because of this, he often held no quarter in disciplining and even plotting to kill them. Although he ventured too far into the darkness too many times, the core of his intentions was safety. Even worse, his efforts against Krakoa may actually be justified as the community begins to deal with dissent within its own ranks. Nevertheless, while Gyrich was no saint, his fate is a punishment that was perhaps too extreme for the crime.
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