written by Jason Aaron
penciled by Ed McGuinness
inked by Mark Morales
colored by Justin Ponsor
Apparently Earth's Mightiest Heroes are too busy conquering the cinemas this weekend and fighting Malekith's forces over in War of the Realms to put in an appearance in their own monthly title. In their stead, an oddly familiar group of heroes based in Washington, D.C. set out to fight the Frost Giants from Jotunheim, who have laid siege to America's Capital. They are Mark Milton, aka Hyperion, Kyle Richmond, aka Nighthawk, Princess Zarda, aka Warrior Woman, Joe Ledger, aka Doctor Spectrum and Jeff Walters, aka Blur. Together they are the Squadron Supreme of America, America's premier protectors ready to both kill and die for America, working under the watchful eye of S.H.I.E.L.D. Agent Phil Coulson.
After an engaging four-issue run with David Marquez, writer Jason Aaron re-teams with the artist with whom he launched this title, Ed McGuinness, and I gotta say I'm really quite happy to welcome Ed back, especially for this issue in which his protracted stint as a DC artist back in the noughties serves him well as he renders the Squadron Supreme, long acknowledged to be parodies/analogues of the Justice League, in action for the first time since Coulson "debuted" them a few issues ago. It's pretty much a done-in-one tie-in to War of the Realms, but it drops quite a few juicy tidbits as to what's to come as the issue showcases the Squadron Supreme's brutality in dealing with the Frost Giants, their strangely insular mindset, and their apparent state of mind. It's also particularly interesting to see who Coulson is having dinner with at the end of the issue. Given that this team has been around for some time, and that at least one version of Hyperion has even been one of the Avengers at one point, it'll be interesting to find out exactly what the deal is with this new team, and with Coulson for that matter, who seems to have gone from being a sympathetic character to a villainous one.
It's been a while since I've enjoyed a good one-shot that knows how to tease what's coming, and it seems clear to me that, after this War of the Realms brouhaha has run its course, the Avengers will have their hands full with the Squadron Supreme. Aaron did a good job with the vampire saga he teased a few issues back, delivering a solid, satisfying story while leaving the door open for much, much more, and while this issue seems a little too vague for its own good at some points, I still find myself looking forward to the eventual resolution of this ongoing Squadron Supreme storyline, and the unraveling of the many mysteries involved.
8.5/10
No comments:
Post a Comment