Carol's Dangerous Plan Continues in Captain Marvel #14

Hey friends and readers! Welcome to Captain C’s, the Marvel Files monthly look at Captain Marvel! Cat Purcell and Christina Eddleman are going to take you through the ins and outs of Thompson et al’s run on our favorite Captain.

Carol continues with her precarious plan to thwart the aims of Vox Supreme, with the help of pocket dimension sequestered Avengers Thor and Iron Man in this tale by Kelly Thompson, Lee Garbett, and Tamra Bonvillain.

Cat Purcell: Overall, I have been impressed with this arc. I generally don’t like “good guys gone bad” storylines, but this one has kept me interested with it’s wit and Carol’s plan. I will say I’m not fond of the suit, even if it is kind of a throwback, but as this issue notes, it might hold the key to what’s going on [Ed. Note: It’s extra EVIL].

Christina Eddleman: Thompson has created some nice, manageable-sized arcs within this series so far. The change to Garbett’s art has given the first few issues of this arc it’s own distinct feel from the rest of the series while still having some nice consistency in Bonvillain’s colors. While this arc has rather a dark feeling to it, it’s definitely not the first time this series we’ve seen someone try to manipulate Carol and her powers. I’m excited to dive in.

There’s a Singularity In My Pocket

CE: I loved last issue’s reveal of Carol’s plot to use Singularity to thwart Vox. I’m curious to see if we’ll see Carol interact with her more throughout the series, or if she will remain a convenient plot device. Despite Tony’s claims to the contrary, I think Carol’s plan is just brilliant [Ed Note: Or comicbooky] enough to work. Thompson has pulled off a nice reveal in this issue and I’m anxious to see how it plays out.

CP: I was also impressed with the singularity reveal. Pretty Boy Tony and Burly Viking Thor play off of each other well here. I am glad SOMEONE (Thank you, Stark) finally mentioned the connection between “Vox” and “voice” and I am curious to see where that takes us. The art reminds me of Thor vs Hulk (2017) by Simone Buonfantino and Alti Firmasya in that it doesn’t shy away from the enjoyment of a masculine form. The fact that Thor and Tony trust Carol’s plan even if it leaves them bored in the space pocket brings me joy, but I wonder how long that will last. I don’t know about these guys, but I’d love to hang out in that beautiful singularity.

CE: The view is definitely not bad, and the backdrop of space is nice too. I would agree with you on Garbett’s art embracing “enjoyment of a masculine form.” The pile of naked dead clone bodies however might put me off of spending too much time in Singularity. I don’t know which will be Carol’s biggest problem, not having a Robbie Reyes clone or keeping Thor and Tony complacent to stay in Singularity without any “charming mortal board games.”

CP: You’re right, perhaps I shouldn’t be so eager to fawn over dead clone butts and despite the closet full of them, I could easily see Tony and Thor causing trouble in there. We shall see . . .

Vox Tox

CP: I’m a little disappointed we didn’t get a villains monologue. Are you really a villain if you don’t give into hearing yourself prattle on for a bit? That being said I felt the conversation within Vox’s self? Selves? seemed out of place. But maybe I’m just not picking up on where this is going yet. The colors here are stunning. I really appreciate the blacks, lime green, and bold reds making the scene feel very tense. And, dang, you can FEEL Carol’s determination through the page!

CE: The slow reveals of this arc’s villain are beautifully strung out. In part 2, we discover Vox is the villain from Death of the Inhumans merged with the Kree Supreme Intelligence, Supremor, who supposedly died during the destruction of Hala in the Black Vortex event. While this information is given to us in an editor’s note last issue, I definitely didn’t take note of it until this issue when we see Vox seemingly speaking to the Supreme Intelligence for the first time. I’m a bit salty about getting this info in an editor’s note as it seems a little “tell and not show.” I am less familiar with any history Carol and the Supreme Intelligence may have, but keeping Carol in the dark the Supremor’s role in this plot definitely seems intentional. Also, it seems the Supreme Intelligence is definitely pulling the strings in this duo. Since the Vox were first introduced as super-inhuman soldiers with no humanity, this seems fitting.

CP: Ah, THANK you for that information on the merger going here. I hadn’t read that event and totally missed that note! Thank you, Christi! That makes me even more sure something else is going on besides Vox just wanting to off the Avengers. Despite that missed information, I appreciate that this arc treats it’s readers as intelligent enough to try and figure it out ahead of events unfolding, even if I am terrible at it. Hopefully that’s the case and not just an over use of Deus ex Machina.

CE: While I’m anxious about being in the dark about Vox’s plans, I’m enjoying slowly piecing it all together. Whatever they’re doing to Thor’s head does NOT seem like good news. I imagine two Kree villains will definitely bring an interesting dynamic to this run which has dealt a lot with Carol’s Kree identity.

Friendly Fire

CE: This battle between T’Challa and Carol gives us a great change of pace from her encounters with Tony and Thor. I’m glad that the Avengers have caught on that something’s up, and was a bit surprised that T’Challa didn’t recognize Carol. Hat’s off to Garbett’s work on several dialogue free pages of dynamic fight scenes.

CP: I think it’s totally in character for Black Panther to catch on to something here and to toy Danvers into a set up. I am also interested to see where her realization that suits are a bit of a key goes. I’m going to have to go back and reread how she took down Thor. Between this and the singularity/Supreme Intelligence reveal, this is one of the few times I’m eager to reread a series before it’s even completed. I am most nervous about how her battle with She-Hulk will go and kind of wish it hadn’t been the cover because that would have really pulled a punch of a surprise har har.

CE: That cover definitely took away a bit of the surprise of She Hulk at the end of this issue, but it sure was a gorgeous Mark Brooks cover. In contrast to the cover, however, I love the upper hand that She-Hulk seems to have. Where was she was hiding in the desert? Jennifer looks awfully impressive, but I do hate being reminded that She Hulk isn’t maintaining her intelligence when in Hulk-form right now.

CP: Right!? I feel like if she hadn’t she would have showed up having figured it out and provided a solution immediately. Although hopefully if she gets added to the Singularity, that will give her the chance to come up with the better plan Carol was hoping for before time runs out.

CE: This issue has done a great job of laying some plot groundwork after the mysterious lead in of the first two parts of this story. Thompson has continued to craft a compelling story and Garbett’s art and Bonvillain’s colors are well executed. I’m definitely onboard for this story and am excited to continue covering it next month.

CP: I’m on the edge of my seat and am thoroughly enjoying Thompson’s run. She’s a solid writer in my book and I think she does a good job of pacing the text while leaving room for her artists to do their thing and keeping us engaged.

Marvelous Musings

Fiddly things and board games
“Make yourselves useful and try to think of a better plan than this one” Cat feels personally called out by this and reminds herself to take Carol’s advice here to let others help her!
Black Panther is packing some serious ordinance
“Is it supposed to tickle?” – Carol
Is Barton’s body a Chekov’s gun here? I hope so.

Christi Eddleman is the world’s first Captain Kate Pryde cosplayer and co-host of Chrises On Infinite Earths.

Cat Purcell is a Career Services Librarian, cosplayer, artist, and massive coffee consumer.