MARVEL COMICS – @Marvel
[This review was originally posted on Patreon.]
STORY: Devin Grayson
ART: Marco Failla
COLORS: Rachelle Rosenberg
LETTERS: VC's Clayton Cowles
EDITORS: Heather Antos and Sarah Brunstad
COVER: Helen Chen
28pp, Color, $0.00 U.S. (June 2018)
Marvel Entertainment announced a “new animation universe,” entitled “Marvel Rising.” From what I have gathered, reading articles here and there, is that this is a multi-platform franchise. It will feature a diverse line-up of Marvel Comics superheroes: Ms. Marvel, Squirrel Girl, Quake, Spider-Gwen, Lockjaw, America Chavez, Squirrel Girl, Patriot, and Inferno. I think Captain Marvel will be involved in “Marvel Rising,” to one extent or another.
In a video, Sana Amanat, Marvel's Director of Content & Character Development said, “We wanted to show the world that these heroes are important to the Marvel Universe, that there is a character for every kind of Marvel fan out there.” You can view the video via this link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6HTPCTtkWoA
“Marvel Rising” will include digital animated short films (focusing on Spider-Gwen) and a feature-length animated film, Marvel Rising: Secret Warriors, for release sometime in the second half of 2018. One of the platforms in this multi-platform is comic books, and beginning in June the first of four Marvel Rising comic books, Marvel Rising: Alpha, will debut.
Marvel Rising #0 is a free comic book that previews the Marvel Rising comic books. I found it in my local comic book shop Wednesday, April 25, 2018. It is written by Devin Grayson; drawn by Marco Failla; colored by Rachelle Rosenberg; and lettered by Clayton Cowles. The story focuses on Doreen Green a.k.a. the Unbeatable Squirrel Girl and Kamala Kahn a.k.a. Ms. Marvel.
The story opens in New York City at the “Howard Anthony Stark Institute for Technical Excellence,” where Doreen Green is a volunteer in a teaching programming. Her latest pupils are a group of New Jersey high school students that includes Kamala Kahn. Things go immediately wrong when gun-wielding agents of A.I.M. (Advanced Idea Mechanics) invade the institute, and their targets are the students. Now, the Unbeatable Squirrel Girl and Ms. Marvel will have a chance to discover how much fun the two of them can have working together.
When I first heard of “Marvel Rising,” I wondered if it was Marvel's answer to DC Entertainment's (DC Comics) "DC Super Hero Girls" action figure franchise, which includes a series of apparently popular and (sometimes) bestselling graphic novels. I think “Marvel Rising” is a way to introduce new readers who are not white males to Marvel Comics by offering comic books that feature non-white male characters, for the most part.
Of the eight characters featured on the cover of Marvel Rising #0, six are female characters of various ages and ethnicities. There is one young black male and one young white male. The 10-page story featured in this comic book focuses on two female characters, Squirrel Girl and Ms. Marvel, who is a Pakistani-American. From what I can tell, the four Marvel Rising comic books will feature a group of characters comprised of six females, two males, a dog (the Inhuman Lockjaw), and a squirrel that must be a mascot or something to Squirrel Girl.
As for the 10-page story, it is not something great, but it is what American comic books need more – a fun superhero story that can be enjoyed by young readers and maybe even open-minded older readers. Broad, fun comic books is something writer Devin Grayson does well.
The art by Marco Failla is pretty and features strong compositions and good storytelling. As usual, Rachelle Rosenberg covers the art in pretty colors, and Clayton Cowles delivers effective lettering that sells the pace, tone, and mood of the story.
Dear readers, get thee to a comic book story and get the free Marvel Rising #0. I know I want more Marvel Rising comics and look forward to the summer releases.
7.5 out of 10
Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"
The text is copyright © 2018 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint or syndication rights and fees.
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