Best/Worst Bait and Switch

[T Hedge Coke]

Bullseye being built up as the guy to watch out for in Thunderbolts and then one/two he's down for the count between Songbird and American Eagle.

Heroes Reborn Iron Man spending ten issues building up The Mandarin as this scary something, sometimes he's an evil old asian dude, sometimes he's dragon, he's running Hydra, he's insane, he's powerful, he's... Victor von Doom using the Mandarin identity as a front to act without drawing attention to himself.

Phoenix is scary in New X-Men. It's big. It's massively powerful and it kills infections. But, by the end, the Phoenix entity is only helping.

Dr Strange chasing after Eternity, he must talk to Eternity, seek Eternity's help. And then Eternity's all, "I am Eternity. Handle your own problems." And it's amazing.

What're your favorite (or least fave) bait and switches? When the comic seems to be building up to a particular reveal and does something else, or it presents us a clear, obvious mastermind who, in the end, is not the power behind it all?

[Prince Of Orphans]

The New Avengers AvX tie-ins did a number of bait and switches. For one, they built up Fong-Ji into being able to control the Phoenix Force, and then she left the planet, never being heard from again.

Not to mention all the focus on Iron Fist mythos, only for the arc to end up being a set-up story for Spider-man training Hope instead of Iron Fist.

[FLEX HECTIC]

Well... As a Black Panther fan I could claim Doomwar, The Wedding of The Century/Annulment of The Century and this new Hickman run on New Avengers is still pending until the final conclusion but who's keeping track!


Carry on...