MARVEL COMICS – @Marvel
[This review was originally posted on Patreon.]
STORY: Mark Waid
PENCILS: Barry Kitson
INKS: Mark Farmer
COLORS: Jordan Boyd
LETTERS: Ferran Delgado
COVER: Barry Kitson with Jordan Boyd
VARIANT COVERS: Alan Davis and Mark Farmer with Matt Yackey; Alex Maleev; John Tyler Christopher
28pp, Color, $3.99 U.S. (January 2017)
Rated “T+”
Avengers created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby
The Avengers are a Marvel Comics team of superheroes. The team made its debut in The Avengers #1 (cover dated: September 1963) and were created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby. Known as “Earth's Mightiest Heroes,” the Avengers had an original line-up of Iron Man, Thor, Hulk, Ant Man, and The Wasp. Captain America, a 1940s character from Timely Comics (Marvel's precursor), joined the team in The Avengers #4 (cover dated: March 1964).
With The Avengers #16 (cover dated: May 1965), every member of the Avengers, except Captain America, quit the team. Replacing them were three former villains: Hawkeye, Quicksilver, and the Scarlet Witch. Marvel Comics revisits those early years of the “new” Avengers in the new comic book series, Avengers 1.1. It is written by Mark Waid; drawn by Barry Kitson (pencils) and Mark Farmer (inks); colored by Jordan Boyd; and lettered by Ferran Delgado.
Avengers #1.1 opens with “Avengers Assemble” as Thor, Iron Man, Giant-Man (formerly Ant-Man), and the Wasp take on the members of the Masters of Evil: The Black Knight, The Enchantress, The Executioner, and The Mysterious Melter. After that battle, the remaining original Avengers decide to quit the team. Now, Captain America is left alone to deal with three new Avengers who have controversial pasts. Now, an enemy is prepared to take advantage of this awkward moment in the history of “Earth's Mightest Heroes.”
I am a fan of Silver Age comic books, especially those published by Marvel and DC Comics. However, I am not necessarily a fan of modern comic books that try to retell those stories in a faux-retro style. [After all, Marvel and DC Comics often retell stories they originally published in the 1960s with a modern spin via remakes or re-imaginings.]
I am a fan of Avengers #1.1 for two reasons. The first reason is writer Mark Waid, who always seems to have the Midas touch when writing comic books that retell stories from the 1960s or at least tries to recapture the spirit of those comic books. I can't quite describe it, but Waid gets it right with this first issue.
The second reason is artist Barry Kitson. His clean compositions recall the classic mid-century modern and “New York slick” aesthetic of classic 1960s Marvel Comics. It helps that Kitson's inker for this issue is Mark Farmer, known for inking the pencil art of Alan Davis. Davis' comic book art has a timeless quality that looks like it could belong in any comic book era, and here, Farmer makes Kitson's storytelling resemble Davis's.
I am excited about Avengers 1.1 (or Avengers .1) As long as Mark Waid is writing and artists like Barry Kitson are drawing this Avengers title, I will read it, although I generally avoid Avengers comic book series...
A-
Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"
The text is copyright © 2017 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog for syndication rights and fees.
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