Review: Marvel Superhero Adventures: Spider-Man and the Stolen Vibranium #1
From the moment I saw the cover of the all ages comic Marvel Superhero Adventures, I was super excited for my children to read it. They are both massive superhero fans, and let’s face it, it’s an amazing time to be a kid with all of the Marvel and DC properties in movie theaters, cartoons, toys, but what about the comics? Sure, they’ve existed, but are many parents giving their children the comic books these awesome characters come from? And do parents know what comics are safe for their children to read? As a parent who grew up reading comics as a kid, and them still obviously being a big part of my life, I love to share the joy of reading them with my children, but I understand the medium can be a little intimidating, confusing, and foreign if you’re not as familiar with it. I will say with great certainty that this comic is great for kids of all ages.
There are already titles that work well for children, like Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur, and the numerous Spider-Man, and Guardians of the Galaxy series, and even DC’s Super Powers which my son adored. The list goes on and on from TMNT, to other wonderful series included in the BOOM! Box line. Marvel Superhero Adventures and the upcoming Marvel Rising are Marvel seemingly pushing these titles more than they have in the past, and hopefully they catch on and give a gradual stepping stone to the other existing titles as children grow older.
The bulk of the comic drawn by Dario Brizuela is something close to Marvel’s own cartoon Superhero Squad. The characters are short and stocky, but it’s a great style that really works and kids will grab onto immediately. It never feels like the characters aren’t themselves, and the action is fun for kids of all ages. This comic is really like stills from a cartoon, and that seems intentional. The beginning and ending pages are a more classic style featuring Spidey telling the story that exists in the book to a criminal he catches. I think the more cartoon like style works better for this comic, but this is still a cool effect, perhaps bridging this comic to a style comic readers are more used to. Also, the cover by Gurihiru is awesome. It is truly t-shirt or poster worthy.
If you are a parent or a kid at heart, this book will have something for you. The story by Jim McCann is a quick action filled tale of Spidey working with Black Panther in Wakanda fighting Doctor Octopus. It doesn’t really feature too many words that show slow young children down, and if it does, well then it will be fun to read with their parents or have it read to them. I am always encouraging parents to bring comics into their children’s lives, and this is a great way to start, or continue. I have added this to my pull list at my local comic shop for my children, and they are very excited to have it in their hands.
Story: Jim McCann Art: Dario Brizuela Cover: Gurihiru
Story: 7.5 Art: 8 Overall: 7.75 Recommendation: Buy
Marvel Comics provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review
GENE LUEN YANG is the National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature. He has written and drawn many graphic novels, including American Born Chinese, which was a National Book Award finalist, as well as the winner of the Printz Award and an Eisner Award. His graphic novel set Boxers and Saints won the Los Angeles Times Book Prize. He has also written for the hit comics Avatar: The Last Airbender and Superman. His latest project is the comics and coding series with Mike Holmes, Secret Coders. geneyang.com. Sunday only
JIM RUGG is an Eisner and Ignatz Award winning cartoonist based in Pittsburgh. His books include Street Angel, the PLAIN Janes, the Guild, Afrodisiac, and Notebook Drawings.
GABRIELLE BELL’s work has been selected for Best American Comics and the Yale Anthology of Graphic Fiction, and has been featured in McSweeney’s, the Believer, Bookforum, and Vice among numerous other publications. Her story, “Cecil and Jordan In New York,” was turned into a film by Michel Gondry. Bell’s previous graphic novel, The Voyeurs, was named one of the best books of the year by Publishers Weekly, Kirkus Reviews, and the Atlantic. She currently lives in Brooklyn, NY. Find her online at gabriellebell.com. Saturday only
KICKLIY is the creator of the critically acclaimed Musnet series of books. The Musnet books follow the all-ages adventures of a certain poor Mus Musculous (a common field mouse, for those of you that don’t speak Latin) on his quest to become the greatest mouse painter that ever was.
SLOANE LEONG is a cartoonist currently living in Portland, Oregon who has worked for Image Comics, Dark Horse, Cartoon Network and more. Her Ignatz-nominated short comic, A Map to the Sun, will be expanded into a graphic novel and will be published by First Second in 2019. Sloane Leong’s newest comic, A Hollowing, is a lean grim story about a young girl and her horse, the breaking down of performed domesticity and the realization of the horrors of the body.
GILBERT HERNANDEZ is co-creator of the long-running, award-winning, and critically acclaimed series Love and Rockets, which in 2017 celebrates its 35th Anniversary. His books include Marbles, Bumperhead, Luba, Palomar, Speak of the Devil,Love from the Shadows and Girl Crazy. This year, Hernandez designed clothing based on his Love and Rockets characters for men and women available at Pinup Girl.
KEITH KNIGHT, winner of the Glyph, Harvey, and Inkpot Awards, is a spectacular cartoonist whose Knight Life comic strip is read nationwide in such newspapers as the Washington Post. Keef’s funny yet hard-hitting cartoons in his series (T)hink and The K Chronicles led him to be named one of the 2015 NAACP History Makers. Knight is the illustrator of the critically acclaimed tween book, Jake the Fake Keeps It Real. He also has a new collection of Knight Life strips called the Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Behind.
Born in Palo Alto and raised in Nashville, award-winning, New-York-Times-bestselling illustrator JANET LEE is best known for her decoupage art technique. Self-taught, Lee has been drawing comics since she was old enough to hold a pencil. After working for more than a decade at the business end of publishing, Lee received her big break with the publication of Return of the Dapper Men. Since then, she has illustrated close to a dozen different books and anthologies. This year, Return of the Dapper Men returns in a new deluxe edition from Top Shelf Productions. Lee still lives and works in Nashville, in a house filled with one husband, one son, two dogs, and four very bad cats.
JIM MCCANN is an award-winning writer of comic books, television, and theatre. He wrote several critically acclaimed Marvel Hawkeye series before branching out into creating his own comics and graphic novels, as well as other projects. His first graphic novel, Return of the Dapper Men, won the Eisner Award for Best Original Graphic Album. He has since gone on to create hit series such as the space-heist Lost Vegas and the ongoing top-rated series Mind the Gap, both published through Image Comics. This year, Return of the Dapper Men returns in a new deluxe edition from Top Shelf Productions.
Return of the Dapper Men, the Eisner-award-winning graphic novel by Jim McCann and Janet Lee, will be republished in a deluxe new edition in summer 2017 from its new home at Top Shelf Productions, an imprint of IDW Publishing.
