Captain America has been revealed to be an agent of Hydra – and he’s coming after Inhumans! S.H.I.E.L.D. Agent Daisy Johnson, a.k.a. Quake, wants no part of Hydra, so she goes underground, teaming up with Ms. Marvel, Moon Girl & Devil Dinosaur, KarnakK and Inferno to set things right – for the Inhumans, but also for the entire country!

Written by Matthew Rosenberg, Secret Warriors #1 delivers the thing that’s been missing from Secret Empire, actual heroes to root for. The comic bounces around time introducing us to the situation and getting new readers caught up. With the issue being so tied into Secret Empire, for those not interested in that event the story might feel a bit bland, but the combination of characters and their interactions so far makes the first issue a treat even for those not enjoying the event it’s tied in to (like myself).

While the story itself isn’t really anything new, a team must free prisoners who can help them, what does feel fresh is who’s doing it. Primarily focused on Quake, Ms. Marvel, Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur, the group creates a dynamic that mixes adults and kids in a way that something feels new and different. Moon Girl in particular interacting with the adult Daisy/Quake creates a child/adult that’s more reminiscent of a big sister/little sister situation including the humor that can bring. It also helps lighten up what is a heavy situation the rounding up of Inhumans to bring them to camps.

Not everything is perfect. Like the main Secret Empire title the lack of a time frame leaves things a bit too open as you don’t know how much time Hydra has had a chance to build upon their plan and reveal and makes some of the different settings in time a bit more nebulous instead of being clear where they fit in the timeline. That’s a problem for the main story as well and seems like a clear choice is being made to not include time frames like “8 months later.” There’s also an issue with a confrontation in the beginning where SHIELD agents now loyal to Hydra aren’t given enough of a motive for us to feel the heel turn makes sense (again an issue with the main series as well).

The art by Javi Garron is solid and the characters look fantastic, especial Moon Girl in her awesome costume (one of my favorites). We also get a bit of a new look for Hydra with some troops which is interesting in a way as they aren’t the standard green uniform. The colorse by Israel Silva help make the art pop too, enhancing scenes where Daisy uses her powers. There’s something that just clicks here.

The first issue is pretty solid and has me looking forward to this team post Secret Empire. It has some of the vibe of the original series but also a bit more light hearted style to it all, which helps eleviate the seriousnous and dour feeling of the main series. This is a team that feels like it’s going to be fun and gives us heroes we can actually cheer on.

Story: Matthew Rosenberg Art: Javi Garron Color: Israel Silva
Story: 8.0 Art: 8.0 Overall: 8.0 Recommendation: Buy