Hello Enthusiasts,
Today's review will be of Marvel's 2015 graphic novel, Secret Wars, not to be confused with the Marvel storyline of the same name from the 1980's. Keep in mind, there will be some Spoiler Below.
So the story starts off with the Marvel and Ultimate universes fighting each other to try and be the last remaining universe, as all of the other have already been destroyed by an unknown force. While the main heroes battle it out, some of the others are building a life raft that will be able to keep a few of them alive to rebuild. This raft includes the Fantastic 4, the two Spider-men, Black Panther, and others. However, after the two universes are both destroyed and the lift raft takes off, part of the vehicle breaks off, killing 3 of the Fantastic 4, leaving only Mr. Fantastic from that team.
Fast forward, and we have a whole new world that incorporates pieces of the old world. The vast majority of the characters have been reborn here, though with slightly different roles. Many have become Barons of the various sections of the world, including Mr. Sinister and Apocalypse, while others serve different roles, like the Human Torch being the Sun for that world. There are similar problems as the old world, such as small revolts and power grabs, as well as some new problems, like there being an entire realm of the world populated by zombies of the dead that try to get in. There are regular attacks by a group of Ultrons as well as Hulks from planet Hulk. But this land is ruled by an iron fist, and the head of everything, this planet's God and king, is none other than Dr. Doom (when I say God, I mean he has God-like powers. He is omnipotent, but not omniscient). Queue the life raft full of the old heroes, who hav ebeen kept in stasis for years, and we have a fight between Doom's army and the revolt to either keep the world as it is, or change it to something else.
So it's a bit of a long description, I know, and it gives a good deal away, but that's why I said there would be spoilers. Still, I left out several key details of the story, so you'll be getting something else than what I said if you read it. And it is a good read, I enjoyed myself as I turned through these pages. Doom is the apex of badassery in the Marvel universe, so having him play the role of God is interesting to say the least. And Doom brings up that, while he is enjoying his reign, something he has worked for his whole life, he did save millions and millions of people in the process, something which even Reed Richards couldn't do with his life raft. So long story short, I really liked the plot of this story and the details that had been considered.
Outside of the story, I do have a few good things to say about this book. The art work is right up my ally, just wonderful from start to finish. The action is really well done in these panels as well, with fight scenes (especially near the end) practically jumping off the page. The artwork also does an excellent job of displaying the emotions that characters are going through. Yes, it is playing off the dialogue, but just the facial expressions of some of these characters could convey everything you needed to know. I really appreciated the small twists that were incorporated in there, like how Doom got his powers and who helped him, neither of which will I give away. Suffice to say it's worth discovering as you read through. Finally, the comedy, what little there was, was legitimately funny. I normally don't find the comedy in superhero comics to be great, but it worked well here.
While this book is great, it is not without a flaw or two. My biggest issue in this volume is that some of the exposition, and some important exposition at that, felt really rushed, and was told a spot and in a place that did not seem to fit. I mean, the regular dialogue is above average, but the telling of Doom getting his powers and what had happened just didn't feel like it was set up well enough, there wasn't a reason for that character to start going into these details (other than to hear themselves talk to Doom I guess). Also, while the end of the comic does tie things up nicely, it seemed a bit too perfect for me. After everything that happened, after all of the chaos that had occurred, nothing was lost, there isn't any apparent great change to the Marvel universe on the ground level. Things are different on the cosmic level, but the day-to-day stuff will remain the same.
Overall and despite my few grievances, this is a definite recommendation. The story is fantastic, it's pretty easy for even more casual fans to follow (save for a detail or two), and it all looks great. I went in with some knowledge of what would be in these pages, but I want someone who knows nothing about this story to dive right in. If you have read this, go find a friend who hasn't and make them read this book.
I give Marvel's 2015 Secret Wars a 9 out of 10.
Sincerely,
The Bored Enthusiast
No comments:
Post a Comment