Marvel Comics 2020
Written by Al Ewing
Illustrated by Juann Cabal
Coloured by Federico Blee
Lettered by VC's Cory Petit
Once, they were a team of misfits. Now they’re a family, and they’ve earned their peace. But the universe is not a peaceful place -- and it’s only getting worse. The Great Empires are in turmoil. The rule of law is dead. And amidst the chaos, the Gods of Olympus have returned -- harbingers of a new age of war, reborn to burn their mark on the stars themselves. Someone has to guard the galaxy - but who will accept the mission? And will they survive it?
This was on my radar because I saw that Moondragon was a part of the team. She's one of my all-time favourite Avengers, I know I am weird, but when I saw my shop had the blank variant then I knew I had to take one home with me. It didn't hurt that Al's writing this and that the interiors at first glance were really impressive were a bonus as well. Now way back when I loved how the original team was set in the future and I wasn't all that thrilled to see that this was a new iteration using just the teams name. Still it has been a great team and that has become of the more versatile and interesting franchises that Marvel has and with so much out there and there is still so much to explore and as we see things now I look forward to what is still to come.
The opening here is utterly sensational, dramatic and attention grabbing. There are a few things of note in this that as a reader I want to see more of, the little sprout for one as I wanna learn his name and that his visions of destruction make him gifted in a way that could benefit the Guardians. The other points you'll see for yourself and decide what I am or am not talking about. So I like what Al is doing with the team as it was or has been but I don't like Groot speaking not one bit, I am Groot has always been that catch-all for whatever he was saying so I really don't like seeing him talk, don't care why it needs to go back to how it was.
The story & plot development that we see through the sequence of events and how the reader learns information is expertly laid down. I mean this is how you start a new run and how you take the established team and mix things up. What I see makes sense, it feels right and natural so massive kudos for having the wherewithal, talent, skill and ambition to do it this way. The character development is phenomenal! It may have been quite some time since I have read a Guardians title but I feel like what we see from the dialogue and how the characters act and react really are incredibly accurate. The pacing is as solid as it gets and as it takes us through the pages revealing the twists and turns along the way it helps create and maintain this crazy ebb & flow to the book.
I am massively impressed with the interiors here. The linework shows this strong hand that can do such delicate work. The way that we see the varying weights utilised to showcase this quality of attention to detail is stunning. From the stubble on Peter's face or that chest and abs to seeing how Olympus travels among the stars the work is amazing. The utilisation of the page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels show a marvellous eye for storytelling. How we see the backgrounds being utilised could be stronger but the way we see depth perception, scale and that overall sense of size and scope is sensational. I want that maze style two-pager! The colour work oh my stars and garters, outer space and how the colours are seen is just awe inspiring, as is seeing just any page you turn to, the 2nd/3rd or the dinner scene through the last page. Federico is a true colourist who understands how colour works and how to utilise the various hues and tones within all the colours to create the shading, highlights and shadow work.
Holy crud, I mean dayum people. I keep saying up the game and I'll come back to Marvel, well guess what I am coming back to Marvel. I do fear that this title will get mired in those current asinine crossovers but I will wait and see, however, in the meantime with that ridiculous last page cliffhanger, of which I jumped up and down like a child on their birthday, I cannot wait to see what's in store.