Captain Marvel #2

Recommendation: “YES!”

First, I have to say - I am really excited about this series.

I love the art! The cover, the interior, all up - I love it. The cover offers a throw-back to J. Howard Miller’s “We Can Do It” poster from 1943 - which is exactly what you get once flip through the pages… an issue full of stylistic art depicting a story that is rooted in the past.

Even though the story starts out in the current Earth-616 present, the theme is all about looking into the past. Carol is determined to prove her mettle and break a record set long ago by Helen Cobb - arguably the best pilot of her generation. Carol aims to confirm Helen’s T6 flight record, as well as claim the “best pilot of the generation” title in the same flight. To this end, we get flashbacks as Carol describes the circumstances of Helen’s record breaking flight and origin story of the T6 itself.

So, does this sound like a Captain Marvel story to you? No? Well that is okay, because it is really about character development, answering the question, “Who is Carol Danvers, and does she have what it takes to transcend from Ms. Marvel and claim the title of Captain Marvel?”. In the end, it is really about Carol’s ability to prove all of this to herself.

This is why I love this story. It is paced perfectly for new and old readers alike. We are learning more about Carol, the best way possible - through her insecurities and human characteristics. Sure, I would have loved a huge “Marvel Cosmic” story right out of the gate, but I am more than happy to “get to know” the character behind the character in a “coming of age” story (of sorts) for a well known Earth Hero as she transforms herself into something much greater - the new owner of the Captain Marvel mantle.

So, not to get into the actual story too much, but the cover really does reveal it all. She starts out trying to break the record of a woman who flew so many years ago - one of her heroes… then, unexpectedly, the flashback becomes reality, as she ends up in the very circumstances where her hero was born. Thrown into the mix of the “We Can Do It!” era women that defined a generation.

As a side (and final) note - everyone talks about her “new look”, her new costume… I am not sure why fashion plays such a big part of the decision to read a story, but to each their own… I did want to give kudos to the design of her “street clothes” though, and point out the consistency of character and “fashion” of her belt buckle. It is nice finishing touches like this that make a book great (as well as everything else I have previously mentioned).

So, as we look forward to the next issues, we can rest assured, the character is in good hands with this creative team. Thank you Kelly Sue and Dexter for such a great and beautiful book.

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