Maya Angelou probably was not the first individual to say this particular quote, or a variation of it, but over the years it has been most frequently attributed to her.
“I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”
That’s just the way I feel about one of my favorite TV shows, from the UK; The Avengers. This stylish spy/thriller drama wasn’t so much about the stories themselves. The adventures were all outlandish, and the supporting characters were over the top, but it was all about how it made us (the viewers) feel.
And as we watched every stylish episode, we couldn’t help but feel the elegance, with panache, of the lead characters. We all wished we could all be more unflappable, more poised, more dashing, more flirtatious under pressure. It was less about if they would get the villains each week, but instead about how they got them.
At San Diego Comic-Con this summer, I was fortunate enough to spend a little time with a very busy man, Andrew Sumner, the Chief Operating Officer of Titan Entertainment Group. He moderated about a zillion panels while also leading his team all week at their Titan booth. It was one of the highlights of the convention’s exhibition floor.
I don’t quite know how this happened. Between with my visits to the Titan booth, and my time with Andrew, I somehow missed the fact that Titan was publishing a new Avengers (the UK Avengers, as noted) adventure in a paperback.
It’s written by David Crichton and is called Death in Downing Street.
The Avengers have a rich history of print adventures, and fandom has embraced this property/these characters again and again.
As I missed the brief SDCC “on sale window” for this book, I immediately ordered a copy as soon as I learned about it. I just finished reading it. It’s a breakneck thriller, filled with all the bits and gags that fans have loved over the years.
There are even a few parts that border on risqué, or ribald, humor. I laughed out loud a few times as a I was reading, in fact (much to my wife’s surprise).
Author David Chrichton is able to bring something new to the party too. As this is a sixties historical thriller, he allows Steed and Mrs. Peel to interact with real people, including the UK prime minister Harold Wilson.
Cheers to Chrichton, to Titan and to Andrew Sumner. And just when I thought that San Diego Comic-Con didn’t have any more surprises. Well done all.
When’s the next one going to be published?
The Avengers: Death in Downing Street
By David Crichton
• Publisher : Titan Books
• Publication date : July 14, 2026
• Print length : 256 pages
• ISBN-13 : 978-1835416204
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Need more of the Avengers? I did write about their many publications, and a Herbie J Pilato’s new Diana Rigg book recently here.
