The Eternals are an interesting group of characters. Created by Jack Kirby, there’s a certain pedigree about them. But, despite the talent that birthed them, it’s never been a group or characters I’ve cared much about. There’s been some good moments, like Neil Gaiman and John Romita, Jr.’s take, but overall, it’s a group of characters I can’t say I’ve been excited about. And due to that, I’ve been rather excited to read Eternals #1 by Kieron Gillen and Esad Ribić.

For those catching up, the Eternals are beings created to serve the whims of the Celestials. They’re at odds with other beings called Deviants. It’s all interesting but never quite clicked for me.

Well, Gillen may be changing that. Eternals #1 is a hell of a start. It brings the characters squarely back into the Marvel Universe and doing it in a way that it makes sense. The beauty of Eternals #1 is that it catches new readers up. It explains the characters so well it feels like they’ve just always been around and characters and concepts I knew about. But, on top of that, it drops readers into a familiar type of story that it’s easy to enjoy while doing so.

Eternals #1 is a hell of a balance and beginning. Beyond the introduction to the characters, the issue also moves things along with an intriguing murder mystery that also plays into teaching readers about this world. It’s an interesting mix in that it feels like a video game whose opening is both cinematic and geared towards teaching players the fundamentals of it all.

Esad Ribić’s art is fantastic. That’s not too surprising at all. Ribić is joined by Matthew Wilson on color and letterer/designer Clayton Cowles. The designs of the characters are solid but it’s the world that’s really amazing. The locations, the presentation of the world, it’s all beyond impressive. Much like the current X-Men, comics, Eternals #1 uses diagrams and info drop pages to help make the information from being too overloading. The locations presented are amazing and really make the series stand out from the rest of what Marvel’s putting out currently. It’s a unique series in so many ways.

Eternals #1 clearly takes a lot of inspiration from the relaunched X-Men. The inclusion of info dump pages and the tone itself feels very inline of that entire line of comics. That’s not a bad thing because it works and works REALLY well. Eternals #1 is a highly anticipated comic for 2021 launching the year and if this is any indication of what we can expect for the year, it’s going to be a very good one. The comic sets a high bar for what follows in its path and easily meets the expectations for this debut. It’s a must get and a great way to start the new year.

Story: Kieron Gillen Art: Esad Ribić
Color: Matthew Wilson Letterer/Designer: Clayton Cowles
Story: 10 Art: 10 Overall: 10 Recommendation: Buy

Marvel provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review

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