Welcome back to Marvel Compendium! This week we celebrate National Hispanic Heritage Month Ghost Rider: Robbie Reyes Special #1! In our quick summary, we quickly find Star Wars: The Battle of Jakku – Rise of the Rebellion #1, Ultraman X Avengers #2, and X-Men #5!
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Ghost Rider: Robbie Reyes Special #1
writer: Carlos Hernandez, Felipe Smith, Melissa Flores
artist: Moises Hidalgo, Daniel Bayliss, Ion Bazarldua
Color Artist: Jorge Cortez, Luis Wences, Luis Zavala
Writer: Ariana Maher, VC
Cover artist: Humberto Ramos and Edgar Delgado
Reviewed by: Beau Q.
In celebration of National Hispanic Heritage Month, Marvel is re-centering Hispanic and Latino creators under their leadership Marvel’s voice Celebrate Robbie Reyes’ mark! The one-shot also serves as the official introduction to Fantasma, who first appeared as an imaginary sidekick in last year’s show. Ghost Rider #19 in their new title variant cover spree. Led by three creative teams, let’s go all out and see what makes Robbie Reyes excited!
Writer’s “Oflanda” Carlos Hernandezartist Moises Hidalgoand colorist Jorge Cortez It may be a page shorter than the other two stories, but this is my favorite of the three. Overlanda centers on Robbie’s brother Gabe and sees Captain America and Captain Marvel dropping by to comedic effect. For a six-page story, this is masterful storytelling by Hernandez—even if there are some high school-level jokes written in it. Knight Cry, and a deeper ninja wolf/sheep nobi metaphor, but all in all it tells the story of unrequited love trying to overcome its burdens. Since Gabe is a wheelchair user, this is how he views his superhero brothers, but the reality is very different!
Presenting such a complex range of emotions in such a short space of time might feel stuffy, but Hidalgo’s visual pacing seems faster and more impactful than Ofrenda’s lightheartedness and comedy require. Cortez’s colors reinforce the over-dramatization of the post-apocalyptic palette [derogatory] situation, but the tone is elsewhere. I wouldn’t mind seeing Hernandez and Hidalgo paired up again, but I believe Cortes reads the vibe differently.
Writer’s “Wolf and Sheep” Felipe Smithartist Daniel Baylissand colorist Louis Wences is a short story about Robbie’s emotional core being connected to his brother Gabe, but also being connected to a pointless car/demon lady for that shoegaze car chase! It’s nice to see a second story reusing the ninja wolf/sheep nobi trope. It’s like two sides of the same bromance coin, adding depth to a one-off short rather than an aimless one. However, I have been critical of Smith’s female characters in the past because they were only shown to have romantic interests [often floosies at that]victim or treacherous vixen, it’s a shock when the only female character in Smith’s pages is brutally murdered after being bound in chains; some things never change.
Unfortunately though, Bayliss’s art was at odds with Smith’s monologue, so when a Superrad muscle car angrily drove over the demon’s head, “…there’s nothing scarier than the thought of not being able to get home for dinner.” Moments like this fall flat – just a mix of narrative and visual intent that drives an immersive wedge into the reader’s experience. Bayliss’s car and fire effects move so well that it makes people feel. Thinking of Smith’s run Trad Moorewhich is a callback, but in a book about having your own creative voice, copying someone else’s style defeats the purpose, even and/or especially if that’s dictated by editorial fiat! Of note however is the difference in Wence’s sweet palette, which essentially represents the real world/memory and the supernatural world without having to explain either!
Writer’s “Dream Roller Skating Adventure” Melissa Floresartist Jan Bazarduaand colorist Luis Zavala This is our introduction to Fantasy, as she enters and exits with a deeper understanding of who she is, where she might appear, and what her deal might be. There’s less Ghost Rider and more fantasy, but there’s also less fantasy because we don’t see her as her heroic role is introduced in the middle of a pointless conflict involving a hellhound. Given the anachronistic origins here, I could have done a more personal framing of Fantasy here [where Robbie is here and not in the God Quarry]. Otherwise, only one iconic superpower event occurs in this short, which is the Phantom jumping into a portal similar to the Phantom Zone, which aside from being visually similar to Robbie Reyes’ Ghost Rider , also adds some interest to her powers [skull mask, flaming mask, chain whip, etc].
For Bazaldua, the issue in these layouts is not movement, but cohesion. There’s a lot of space on the main panel that lacks narrative impact, so it’s like a camera randomly zooming in and out. Zavala’s colors are too glowy to sell Fantasma’s visuals, but when glow interacts with other non-native colors it tends to create millions of other colors, which can overload the page’s palette and Make the visuals cluttered. When “Fantasy” arrives and it’s all about the visuals, it can feel flat to the reader when the narrative, art, and colors aren’t all that engaging.
The lettering of all these stories are industry heavyweights, Ariana Maher, VC! While the original Robbie Reyes font looks perfect for the words,”ghost rider,” which makes Y look like V, which greatly hurts a main character named Reyes. It’s not Mach’s fault, it’s the fault of a decision made long ago! Here, Mach is able to graphically wrap up the chapter titles/credits sections with comfort and really set the tone for each story, but as the gap between Mach’s Marvel and DC fonts grows, overall It’s not too complicated to say. But when Maher incorporates stunts into the mix, her full strength shines through, sometimes completely stealing the show. However, as the first letterer to design the Fantasma word balloon, I don’t particularly like how unintelligible the white font on the light blue word balloon is for visually impaired readers.
Look, I read this for you, so feel free to Browse This sound is special during your leisure time. I really enjoyed these specials and loved seeing how they focused on new creators, underdeveloped characters, and even getting away from some of the anachronistic experiments in the 616 continuity!
Destroyed quickly!
- Star Wars: The Battle of Jakku – Rise of the Rebellion #1
- After years of hard workThe Empire Strikes Back The current situation without Han Solo, the specific ending has been determined – Marvel Star Wars The game has finally entered more fertile ground. Pick up after an event occurs A desperate comeback, writer Alex Segura Leading us into a richer new era. It’s a compelling first issue, with Segura immediately capturing the voices of these familiar characters and mining new emotional moments from these old icons. The backup story outlining the general villain’s backstory is a bit useless, but the main story here is strong. It’s a shame that the art, which has always been the hallmark of these productions, lifting them above the licensed comics of old, just doesn’t live up to the standards of the scripts. Leonard Kirk’s Linework is good, but it looks rushed, facial detail is awkward, line thickness is inconsistent, and the page is crowded with panels. Rachel Rosenberg The colors are a little too bland and cartoonish for Kirk’s style, which adds to the disjointedness of the book. Stefano Raphael draw backup Alex Sinclair Color-wise, the end result is equally unremarkable. Sadly it doesn’t look great, but it’s not the worst looking book on the shelf. Joe Caramagna, VC The lettering is well done The whole book. The heart of the story and my excitement about it Star Wars From here on, the line might get past my slight qualms with the visuals. – TR
- Ultraman X Avengers #2
- The Avengers traveled across the universe after deliberately sending Galactus and Spider-Man/Miles Morales to Ultraman by accident to correct the problem. With the tense and fast-paced plot, the screenwriters Kyle Higgins and pad groom There’s a great sense of dialogue with the Avengers, from Captain Marvel to Captain America to Iron Man and Spider-Man, each character’s voice feels unique when paired with Shin Hayata/Ultraman and their team of Super Guards And with purpose. On top of that, they also lead to something interesting: Cap and Spider-Man have a great conversation about what it means to be an Avenger. Support them for being amazing works of artists Francisco Manna and color artist Matt Milla. Together they create rich and fluid vivid lines that blend Western and comic aesthetics beautifully. This issue is a fun read, full of intense action and genuine warmth. – GC3
- X-Men #5
- How to wake up a comatose mutant? You perform spiritual rescue. If this premise sounds familiar, that’s because Issue 5 X-Men go through Jed McKay and Ryan Stegman Called back on purpose New X-Men #121, the famous “problem of silence”. Just like this issue, two psychics, Psylocke and Quentin Quill, enter the body of New Mutant Ben Louis in an attempt to awaken him. Their secondary mission is to find out who is activating the adult’s mutant abilities. It should be said that this issue is not silent. Psylocke and Quill are constantly arguing in someone’s subconscious mind. Because this isn’t a real conversation. Clayton Cowles‘ Choosing to have any dialogue between characters outside of word balloons feels inspired. If you were “speaking” into someone’s head, the conversation would definitely take on a different shape. It’s a reminder that creative fonts can add color to a story like any other tool in a comic maker’s toolbox. That said, the real stars of this issue are Stegman and the colorists Matt Garcia. Stegman’s artistry reaches even higher levels with this series. During this adventure, he experimented with page layout. Quill and Psylocke’s journey into the subconscious seems incredible, and his story speaks to the way memory and time interpenetrate in dreams. Garcia paints it all in sickly greens and pinks, heightening the unease of the internal struggle at the end of the issue. However, McKay’s script is meant to evoke that famous Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely There are so many comics that it reads like a really good cover version or remix, even down to the last page. From The Ashes may be an attempt to get back to basics, but is playing your greatest hits really the best way forward? – D.Morris
next week: By Alex Paknadel and Justin Mason sentinel #1, Steve Orlando, Jose Luis and Ibrahim Robertson Conquer 2099 #1 and more!
