Meet Emperor Quill and his Imperial Guard. What brings the Guardians into their crosshairs?

Guardians of the Galaxy #2 answers a bunch of questions I had and also catches up new readers on some important events pre-Secret Wars.

Writer Brian Michael Bendis runs us through where the Kree empire stands. It’s good to know as it’s someting I’ve been wondering about the new Marvel status-quo. The Kree homeworld is destroyed and the Accuser Hala is out for revenge. She’s going after the Guardians to make them pay for the state of of the Kree empire. Don’t worry, Bendis does a good job catching you up without overwhelming readers with too much information.

The comic is enjoyable but something hasn’t clicked in the first two issues. The characters each have their signature catch phrases and personalities, but the group as a whole doesn’t quite have the rapport I really enjoyed back in the Abnett and Lanning days. So, while it’s enjoyable, the comic doesn’t feel super deep. It’s like when characters say their catch phrases on television shows, the audience laughs, and that’s it. It also doesn’t quite feel “cosmic” yet in scale, something Abnett and Lanning did really well as well. Right now, we have Avengers in space.

The art by Valerio Schiti is really good and the action is presented with some cool panels and motion. There’s a mix of character types and Schiti is able to present so many different characters and make them all look like they fit together.

So far, the two issues are ok, and entertaining, but it’s not quite as good as some of the classic runs we’ve seen. It’s not bad, but there’s just something missing.

Story: Brian Michael Bendis Art: Valerio Schiti
Story: 7.1 Art: 7.9 Overall: 7.7 Recommendation: Read