Comic Vine Review

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Secret Wars 2099 #1

4

The city of Nueva York has changed since the formation of Battleworld. How will these new, company-sanctioned Avengers keep the law?

The Good

The same creative team bringing SPIDER-MAN 2099 out every month now tackles the much larger, yet somehow smaller, Battleworld sector that seems stuck in the future. Right off the bat Peter David does a fantastic job of establishing that, while this is the ultra-neon world of 2099 ripped straight from comics of the 90s, there’s been plenty of progress made in terms of characters and storytelling. David introduces the team rapid-fire, giving at least a decent idea of who everyone is and what their role is, as well as showcasing their unique personalities and powers, but Hercules and Captain America get most of the focus of this issue with Black Widow clocking in at a close second, and right off the bat, David masterfully sets up conflicts both internally and externally involving all of them. This is a far, far more character driven book than might have been expected, and that’s a very good thing as it’s easily one of Peter David’s strongest suits.

Will Sliney provides the linework, making Nueva York look as sleek and shiny as ever with some very subtle, very thin actual lines. But making the character outlines thin helps reinforce the notion that everything in this land is slick and fluid, a city that never stands still for a second and a future that never closes its eyes. The colors, from the duo of Antonio Fabela and Andres Mossa help with that feeling immensely, making everything neon and bright, while not overwhelming the sense too much or ever having it be too chaotic and discordant.

The Bad

There’s no one thing that sticks out in this issue as a negative, but there are a few smaller things that add up to stop it from being perfect. For starters, the Hawkeye of the team is less than an afterthought this go-around as he fails at his one specific task and also reveals that it’s a task he was redundant for in the first place. It’s clear that not everyone gets to have the spotlight every time in a team book, but David actually does a great job juggling EVERYone else and giving them all moments, that this really stands out.

There’s also a very moving scene between Hercules and the CEO of Alchemax that ends about as abruptly as it possibly could. It felt like the team realized they wouldn’t have enough space and just leapt to the next scene.

There are also one or two panels where the art looks off. While it’s tough to tell where one colorist starts and another ends, there are times when the linework looks awkward or characters look just “off.”

The Verdict

While the above complaints might take up a lot of room in this review, but it’s because they require specificity, not because they’re that big of a problem. This is a good, meaty first outing that establishes stakes and introduces characters seamlessly while allowing the reader to connect with, and even care about, them right off the bat, and with how long it took the INHUMAN series to pull that off, it’s really impressive that this issue manages to make it work so well and so fast. There are also a couple of moments that are genuinely novel and should make for some immersive, fascinating story beats.