Guardians of the Galaxy #1
Recap
The Guardians are have settled in on Halfword, and are making a living as a family. You know that's not gonna last.
Review
The Guardians of the Galaxy are back in this all-new title written by mega-talented author Al Ewing, who doesn’t really like taking a slow pace when it comes to the GotG. Everyone is just getting back to “normal” after the giant Universal Church of Truth massacre that laid out the galaxy, and it looks like the Guardians have settled in, as a family, for some well-deserved, peaceful time off. But, you know that never lasts. Before you know it, they’re joining other heroes to take out some bigger than cosmic threat that you’ll really have to see to believe. The story is really original, and not your average sci-fi story, and I really wouldn’t expect anything else from Ewing. From the very first page, this book takes off at lightning speed and doesn’t really stop to the last page. Ewing brings some inner conflict to the group, but we don’t get to see the payoff for that yet, which is nice, because I have a feeling that the longer the conflict stews, the bigger the consequence will be when it eventually comes to a head. The enemies are an almost insurmountable obstacle, and the Guardians and company do have a hard time dealing with them, to say the least. The characterizations are true to the characters, the dialogue is realistic and the story is fast-paced, but never hard to follow.
The art is really fantastic, and I hope artist Juann Cabal gets the respect from the comics community that he deserves. This issue is simply gorgeous. Cabal has a talent for depicting outer space, and he really gets to stretch his “legs” with this book. The way he renders the cosmic elements here is really incredible. He’s able to keep up with the pace of Ewing’s story, with ease. He also does a fantastic job of never losing the reader’s eye from where the main focus lies, but he also gives the reader a TON of great background to look at. Very impressive first issue!
Final Thoughts
A really solid first issue and a great jumping-on point for new readers, It introduces the characters and sets them off on their first great big mission (in this series) into space, while teaming up with some other heroes. You get a pretty good idea of what the series is going to be like going forward.
Guardians of the Galaxy #1: Whole Lotta Shakin’ Going On
- Writing - 8.5/108.5/10
- Storyline - 9/109/10
- Art - 9/109/10
- Color - 9/109/10
- Cover Art - 9/109/10