Black Panther and the Agents of Wakanda #3: Bark at the Moon

The plot of this issue seems like the start of a bad joke that you might overhear at a convention somewhere. “A man-ape and an alien mutant genius walk onto the moon……” Only writer Jim Zub could turn that one-line into an honest to God story with depth and weight to it. It’s a great follow up to the last issue, and an even better first act to the new two-part story, “God Loves, Moon Kills.” Just like the last issue this book continues to impress. It’s got heart, charm, gravitas, humor, and a whole lot more. This is a book that actually features superheroes fighting supervillains. What comic still does that? Zub moves this title forward, by going back to the basic concept of superhero comics. In this book, we see almost everything through the eyes of new recruit, Mockingbird. One, it’s nice to have her back in the Marvel U as a straight-up hero and second, it’s nice to have her back in a team book. Bobbi’s always worked best as a team member and Zub writes her with a kind of fresh take but doesn’t overlook her VERY colorful past. One of the things that I love about Zub’s writing is that you get a surprise on almost every page. Whether it be a character showing up out of nowhere, an attack by a villain, or an object appearing. He’s got a real knack for guiding the reader into a safe space, only to pull the rug out from under them when they’re least expecting. The way that Zub ends this issue, you pretty much know what to expect next issue: another. Great. Comic.

Artist Lan Medina isn’t a household name yet, but he should be, and I believe he will be soon. He’s consistently awesome, knows his stuff when it comes to visual storytelling, and is just simply, great. I hope he gets to stick with this title for as long as he wants, but I can easily see Marvel putting him on a more high-profile book. This is a team book and he’s got a great skill for drawing multiple characters and making them look like they’re all busy doing something, even when they’re not the main focus of the panel. This issue also features a TON of technology and I’m always impressed by an artist like Medina who can draw sci-fi. That’s a talent that’s often overlooked, in my opinion.

And a special tip of the hat to Marcio Menyz and Federico Blee, who are the colorists for this issue. Many times when the action takes place in space or on a planet with no atmosphere the action is hard to see because the colorists always color the book a little too shadowy. These guys escape that trap by playing all the action like it’s on the light side of the moon, but not in the glow of the sun. The result is a book that’s colored beautifully.