Well, I Didn't See THAT Coming: A Review of The Life of Captain Marvel #3

written by Margaret Stohl
penciled by Carlos Pacheco
inked by Rafael Monteriz
colored by Marcio Menyz

flashback sequences illustrated and colored by Marguerite Sauvage

With Joe Danvers Jr. having woken from his coma and getting steadily better, Carol starts thinking about heading back to the Avengers, even as she struggles with how nonchalant her mother seems to be about the fact that her husband, Carols' father had an affair years ago. To Carol's shock, apparently even Joe Jr. knew about the affair. Unfortunately, Carol doesn't have the chance to really talk things out with her mother as the Kree warrior who's been tracking her down since the first issue finally shows up. Things get violent, and then...surprising.

This issue's made a few waves in comic book news circles for the revelation made here, which I won't spoil, but perhaps the real good news is that this is the first time that this miniseries has shown any real signs of life, and I don't just say that because things start blowing up in this issue. No, things get interesting because Carol's mom finally starts getting animated in her conversations with Carol about her dad's secret past, Joe Jr. shares his own recollections about Joe Sr.'s secret love, who may have been something other than human, and everything comes to a head when the Kree warrior hits town with heavy ordnance. In short, this is the kind of pacing that could have benefited the book two issues ago, but hey, better late than never.

Carlos Pacheco, for the first time since this miniseries started, really comes alive in these pages, as do his inker Rafeal Monteriz and his colorist Marcio Menyz. Maybe they're just responding to the fact that this is the first script that's really given them something to sink their teeth into, from the more mundane panels like Carol's mom openly losing her temper with her to the action-packed skirmish between Carol and the Kree drones, to the shocking final splash page. Ironically, it's Marguerite Sauvage, whose work I've regularly been praising, who kind of let me down this issue, which makes it a good thing that Pacheco and crew are doing all the heavy lifting.

There are two issues to go in this miniseries, and that's plenty of time to unravel the mystery that's surrounded Joe Danvers Sr.'s apparent affair AND give readers some Kree-punching goodness. I'm glad Stohl's scripting has finally picked up the pace and I hope she carries the momentum over the next couple of issues.

8/10