Hello friends and readers! We’ve got the comics, much as you’ve come to expect from Marvel Files! Power Pack makes an Outlawed affiliated return and Justin Partridge is giving us the goods. Then, our own Liz Large is punching it into a galaxy far, far away with Star Wars: Doctor Aphra #6, and Tony Thornley heads back to an age undreamed of to give us his thoughts on Conan the Barbarian #16!
Power Pack #1
Written by: Ryan North
Art by: Nico Leon
Colors by: Rachelle Rosenberg
Letters by: Travis Lanham
The Power family get a cute, if a bit clunky re-debut in Power Pack #1.
Spinning out of the long languishing Outlawed! event, Power Pack #1 finds Alex, Julie, Jack, and Katie Power reunited after years on other teams and spread across other titles. It is their parent’s anniversary and Katie wants to give them the gift of news regarding their powers. But when their new neighborhood is threatened by an old enemy, specifically The Boogeyman, Power Pack is unwittingly in violation of Kamala’s Law, leaving them at odds with the police and risking exposure.
But as a dyed-in-the-wool Power Pack person, I can only admit that this opening plateaus at Just Okay. Even with some tremendously charming art and colors by Nico Leon and Rachelle Rosenberg (one of my favorite colorists of the modern era), Ryan North’s script doesn’t offer any great shakes. His take on Katie is pretty sweet, coming across as a hybrid of Louise Belcher and superpowered Madeline, and his Julie is also particularly charming, slotted as the defacto “smart one” of the quartet and running interference in front of their parents as they prepare for the battle.
North also brings back a bit of the wry Hellcat energy to the title, making it a broader superhero comedy than I was anticipating. But it never fully gels, especially around Jack and Alex who are just kinda crammed into a slightly wooden “Oh, you boys…” like attitude that slightly undercuts some of the genuinely funny and charming beats from the issue like Katie’s homemade anniversary present and her take on “unstable molecules”.
I really love the Power Pack and am happy that they are back on the shelves, but I also love Power Pack enough to confidently say that Power Pack #1 clocks out at Fine (but the potential for more is there).
Star Wars: Doctor Aphra #6
Written by: Alyssa Wong
Art by: Ray-Anthony Height and Robert Gill
Inked by: Victor Olazaba
Colors by: Rachelle Rosenberg
Letters by: Joe Caramagna
We’re off on a new misadventure as Doctor Aphra #6 starts the series’ second arc. This issue does a great job tying together the fallout of the last arc with the setup for The Engine Job. Aphra’s a character who constantly pinballs from one mess to another, which runs the risk of getting repetitive. But here it makes sense—if you kill one of the lesser members of a powerful family, you’re going to get some attention from the rest.
After the death of Ronen Tagge, there’s a bounty on Aphra’s head, but for a nice change, it stipulates she be brought in alive. Much of the issue is told through flashbacks—the bounty is huge, and it seems like everyone Aphra knows is out to get her. Even Black Krrsantan, Aphra’s longtime friend, considers turning her in before being taken down by someone else after the bounty. When Aphra is caught, it’s by Just Lucky and Kharrek, who drag her to Domina Tagge.
Domina is yet another scene-chewing villain from the Tagge family. With a ship literally named The Acquisitor, she’s the epitome of an evil capitalist. Being a good businesswoman, she doesn’t want Aphra dead. She wants Aphra to track down information on an artifact a rival company has found that could end the war—and ruin her business prospects. Aphra agrees, with one condition: she can hire a professional to assist her. And the professional Aphra has in mind is one that fans of the earlier series will definitely appreciate!
Conan the Barbarian #16
Written by: Jim Zub
Art by: Roge Antonio
Colors by: Israel Silva
Letters by: Travis Lanham
Conan the Barbarian is an easy character to write. He’s a very difficult character to write WELL. Jim Zub made his name in comics by writing fantasy from his creator owned Skullkickers, to officially licensed Dungeons & Dragons, so he definitely was a natural fit to take over the core Conan title after Jason Aaron left the series.
We find Conan in this issue in a very Conan set-up. Broken, bruised, bloody and chained in a prison, the situation seems pretty hopeless for the Cimmerian Barbarian. Naturally, that has never stopped Conan before.
Zub gets Conan. He fills the pages with narration that’s just on the right side of purple. His dialogue is sparse and impactful, and the story is brisk and full of action. It’s an extremely enjoyable bit of popcorn action comics.
Antonio does a solid job overall. He paces the action really well, and frames the moments with a POV that gives the best perspective on the action, which Silva makes come to life with his color work. He also has some really great sight lines on the page, guiding the reader’s eyes through the layout. At times though, he does skip on detail, resulting in pages and panels that look unfinished rather than stylized.
This is a very fun issue. It’s a great one just to sit back and enjoy the ride.
Liz Large is a copywriter with a lot of opinions on mutants.
Tony Thornley is a geek dad, blogger, Spider-Man and Superman aficionado, X-Men guru, autism daddy, amateur novelist, and all around awesome guy. He’s also very humble.
