The Stand Volume 6: The Night Has Come

I bought this one here in Shanghai, probably at Boocup, but I didn't make a note when I got it.

Title: The Stand
Issue: Volume 6: The Night Has Come
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Date: 2013
Writer: Stephen King, Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa
Artist: Mike Perkins
Colorist: Laura Martin
Letterer: VC's Joe Sabino
Editor: Nicole Boose
Cover: Tom Coker, Laura Martin

The sixth volume of the trade paperback collections of Marvel's adaptation of The Stand is the final volume, covering the final confrontation between Randal Flagg and the forces of the Free Zone, plus all of the aftermath of that climactic scene.

This was a very strong adaptation that stuck closely to the source. I thought the look of the characters was great, the selection of dialogue worked, and the pacing was excellent. It felt familiar in a good way, an excellent revisit to a favorite story of mine.

I didn't read the previous volumes of the adaptation, but would definitely give them a look on the basis of this one.

Rating: 8/10

Shuri #1

Got this one at Double Midnight Comics in Manchester NH USA during our Christmas visit to the US.

Title: Shuri
Issue: 1
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Date: March  2018
Writer: Nnedi Okorafor
Artist: Leonardo Romero
Colorist: Jordie Bellaire
Letterer: VC's Joe Sabino
Editor: Wil Moss
Cover: Sam Spratt

I only knew the character of Shuri from the Black Panther film, and the introductory page of this book did a nice job of bringing me up to speed on the character's place in current Marvel comics continuity. Apparently, she had a stint as the Black Panther, and spent some time Dead-In-The-Marvel-Universe (which as we all know, has very little in common with being actually dead).

Now her brother has gone missing on a space mission, and Shuri is trying to figure out where her priorities need to be. Meanwhile Queen Ramonda has convened the Elephant's Trunk, a secret council of women who meet when trouble threatens Wakanda.

The depiction of Shuri here is good. Her energy and positive outlook shine through even as she worries what has happened to her brother, and whether she could be responsible. The visuals of Wakanda, and of Shuri flying with nanotech wings are excellent, and the Elephant's Trunk is an intriguing group of characters.

My one disappointment was that the final outcome of the issue put the story into what felt like the most obvious and least interesting direction that it could have gone it. Hopefully the plot will get some more unexpected turns as the series progresses.

Rating: 6.5/10

Thor: God of Thunder #1

Title: Thor: God of Thunder #1
Date: January, 2013
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Writer: Jason Aaron
Penciler: Esad Ribis
Colorist: Dean White
Letterer: VC's Joe Sabino
Cover: Esad Ribis
Editor: Lauren Sankovitch, Jake Thomas, Axel Alonso

Thor is often at his best when he's interacting with the characters of Norse mythology, rather than the modern mythology of the Marvel Universe. This story proves to be a fine example of that, as Thor is kept firmly in his own continuity for the duration.

The story is really three stories, taking place in the past, the present, and in the (possible) future. The villain is Gorr the God Butcher, a murderer of gods and entire pantheons.

The opening story, set in medieval Iceland, has Thor encountering some of Gorr's handywork while visiting a Norse village. Thor has defeated the frost giants that were menacing the region, and he's getting the rock star treatment from the locals. Thor is presented here as a brash young adventurers, and when he finds the remains of a slain Native American god, his young confidence is shaken for perhaps the first time.

The second segment, set in the present, but on a distant planet is the best part of the book. One of the things we seldom get to see with Marvel's gods is them actually functioning as gods. In this segment, we get to see Thor actually answering someone's prayer. It's a really interesting scene, and it leads to Thor's second crossing of paths with Gorr.

Now, Gorr himself never appears in this issue, but that is part of what makes the storytelling effective here. The villain is given sufficient time to be built up as a very serious threat, which is necessary to make the final segment, which takes place in a possible future, credible.

That ending segment is a bit Elseworlds-ish (or at least reminiscent of a What If? story), but it was effective on the strength of the first two segments.

Good start to this new series.

Rating: 8/10