LIGHTS, CAMERA, SUPER-HERO ACTION! Simon Williams has had his ups and down, from being manipulated into villainy by the Enchantress, to being one of the brightest stars in the Avengers! But just like Hollywood, no matter how low the lows, Simon keeps fighting the good fight! But what happens when the past finally catches up to him? Enter Randolph Chancellor: Simon’s former cellmate! A true love letter to L.A. as well as the history of Wonder Man. Wonder Man #1 delivers an interesting start that feels more like a detective whodunnit that your typical superhero comic.
At this point, I have no idea what the status is for Simon Williams/Wonder Man in the Marvel comic universe. He was a hero, he was a villain, he was a pacifist. But, thankfully with Wonder Man #1 you have to know none of that to enjoy it.
Writer Gerry Duggan seems to keep things rather simple and focused with the debut issue, keeping it to the main things that really make Simon Williams/Wonder Man stand out from all of the other heroes. Duggan dips into his past as a villain and the experiments done on him to give him power. Basically, he’s kind of a screw up, that’s never quite clicked. That’s not just being a superhero but also as an actor as well. He’s had some hits, he had his moment, but now he’s more of a fixer for the individuals that manage his career.
That gets him involved with an old friend who is having a sort of good streak for his career but also might have stolen a lot of money meant for a show. Wonder Man #1 feels like it echoes a recent real story of a producer who took a lot of money for a production and delivered nothing except goods for himself.
And that’s partially what makes Wonder Man #1 interesting. It has more to do with inside Hollywood baseball and a wink and nod but also has a feel that’s more like classic detective stories, down to the dame coming into the picture.
The art by Mark Buckingham is good. With ink by Aure Jimenez, color by Rachelle Rosenberg, and lettering by Joe Caramagna, the comic’s visuals are interesting, with a look that feels a bit like a reality show following Wonder Man. There’s a behind the scenes sort of vibe to it that’s interesting visually. That extends beyond the panel with pages whose sides look like a film reel. It all adds to the feel the comic is going for mixing superhero aesthetics with reality television. It works really well for the comic.
Wonder Man #1 is a solid start that isn’t what I expected at all. It has far more in common with detective stories than it does with modern superhero comics and is a great introduction to Simon Williams/Wonder Man. Well worth checking it out for something a little different.
Marvel Disney’s recent TV series is about a struggling actor and I have the perfect guest to discuss it with me: filmmaker, life-long Los Angelino, and Marvel comics fan Brandon Wilson. Wonder Man is delightful and we’ve got a lot say about the show’s portrayals of LA, Simon Williams’s existence as a Black Haitian-American actor, the prison industrial complex, queer readings and more. You don’t need to know about Wonder Man to enjoy the show but Brandon gives us the download on Simon William’s comics history.
Plus: the parallels with Midnight Cowboy run deeper than you think!
SIMON WILLIAMS has had his ups and down, from being manipulated into villainy by the Enchantress, to being one of the brightest stars in the Avengers! But just like HOLLYWOOD, no matter how low the lows, Simon keeps fighting the good fight! But what happens when the past finally catches up to him? Enter Randolph Chancellor: Simon’s former cellmate!
A true love letter to L.A. as well as the history of WONDER MAN, Legendary artist MARK BUCKINGHAM joins Marvel Mainstay GERRY DUGGAN!
He was born to play this role, but the spotlight reveals everything.
We’ve got the first trailer for Marvel Television‘s Wonder Man, which gives us a tease of a rather self-aware series that pokes fun of the superhero genre.
Yahya Abdul-Mateen II plays the title character of Simon Williams who in the comics becomes Wonder Man. He’s no stranger to comic films, having play Black Manta in the Aquaman movies for DC and was Cal Abar in the Watchmen television series. Ben Kingsley returns as Trevor Slattery. That character debuted in Marvel Studio’s Iron Man 3 in 2013 and returned in multi Marvel projects like the All Hail the King one-shot and most recently in 2021’s Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings.
Wonder Man, an 8-episode series, premieres January 27 at 6PM PT only on Disney+.
Simon Williams makes it big in March, starring in an all-new limited comic series by superstar writer Gerry Duggan and acclaimed artist Mark Buckingham.
Wonder Man returns to Hollywood for action both on and off set! Using his ionic—and iconic—powers to keep Tinsel Town in line, Simon gets caught up in a deadly mystery involving an old friend. With Hellcat chasing his tail and studios demanding his head, Simon embarks on the adventure that will make or break his career! A saga sure to make headlines, Wonder Man is a perfect entry point to the multi-faceted character, mining his rich history and setting the stage for his next breakthrough role!
LIGHTS, CAMERA, SUPER HERO ACTION!
Simon Williams has had his ups and down, from being manipulated into villainy by the Enchantress, to being one of the brightest stars in the Avengers! But just like Hollywood, no matter how low the lows, Simon keeps fighting the good fight! But what happens when the past finally catches up to him? Enter Randolph Chancellor: Simon’s former cellmate! A true love letter to L.A. as well as the history of Wonder Man!
Check out Paulo Siqueria’s cover for the debut issue along with a Foil Variant Cover by Netho Diaz, a Headshot Variant Cover by Phil Noto, and a variant cover by Mark Buckingham and be sure not to miss Marvel Television’s own take on Simon Williams in Wonder Man, releasing January 27 on Disney+!
We’ve got a first look at Marvel Television‘s Wonder Man, which gives us a tease of a rather self-aware series that pokes fun of the superhero genre.
Yahya Abdul-Mateen II plays the title character of Simon Williams who in the comics becomes Wonder Man. He’s no stranger to comic films, having play Black Manta in the Aquaman movies for DC and was Cal Abar in the Watchmen television series. Ben Kingsley returns as Trevor Slattery. That character debuted in Marvel Studio’s Iron Man 3 in 2013 and returned in multi Marvel projects like the All Hail the King one-shot and most recently in 2021’s Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings.
Wonder Man premieres January 27 at 6pm on Disney+.
Yahya Abdul-Mateen II is shifting the world of DC’s Aquaman and Watchmen to the lead role in the Disney+Marvel Studios series Wonder Man.
The character debuted in The Avengers #9 in 1964 and was created by Stan Lee, Don Heck, and Jack Kirby. The character has ion based powers including super strength, later joins the Avengers, and has been in a relationship with the Scarlet Witch. The character has been both a hero and villain and generally has been absent from the Marvel comic universe in recent years.
Announced in June, the series sees teh involvement of Shang-Chi‘s Destin Daniel Cretton and Hawkeye‘s Andrew Guest. Cretton will direct while Guest is the head writer. The series will also see the return of Ben Kingsley’s Trevor Slattery.
Yahya Abdul-Mateen II has history with comic properties having won an Emmy in 2020 for his turn as Dr. Manhattan in HBO’s Watchmen. He also plays Black Manta who was in 2018’s Aquaman and will return in Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom.
This installment of Messages from Midgard is dedicated to the memory of Marvel Comics colorist Justin Ponsor, who passed away from cancer earlier this week. He worked on many fantastic comics, includingUltimate Spider-Manand the Avengers comic that led into “War of the Realms”.
“War of the Realms” hit critical mass this week with eight total tie-ins featuring characters as diverse as Spider-Man, Punisher, the X-Men and even Gorilla Man and one of the Jack’o’Lanterns. There were some books this week that screamed “unnecessary” or even “cash grab”, such as War of the Realms: Punisher and War of the Realms: Uncanny X-Men, which did the mean thing of bringing Wolfsbane back after she was fridged a couple issues back in UncannyX-Men #17.
But there were also some hits this week. The McElroys’ and Andre Araujo’s War of the Realms: Journey into Mysterycontinues to be a delight, Jason Aaron and Ed McGuinness play 3D chess by using Avengers to flesh out parts of “War of the Realms” while laying the foundation for future storylines in the book, and Tom Taylor and Jorge Molina turn in a Strikeforce: Land of the Giantsone-shot that has pathos, humor, action, and made me with they were writing an Avengers book. Honestly, that book is how you do a superhero comic with popular, long established characters in 2019.
War of the Realms Strike Force: Land of the Giants #1
Tom Taylor, artists Jorge Molina and Adriano Di Benedetto and colorist David Curiel depict Captain America, Spider-Man, Wolverine, Luke Cage, and Iron Fist’s Pegasus-riding, Asgardian armor wearing quest to find Thor in War of the Realms Strike Force: Land of the Giants #1. Taylor makes Spider-Man the narrator and POV character as he processes all the violence, destruction, and fantasy beings around him in narrative captions that are him talking to Mary Jane. He is generally freaked out about what is going, but there is a feeling of real glee when Captain America swoops in on a flying horse to pick him up for a secret mission. The humor, both physical and verbal, is the secret ingredient in this comic from Wolverine messing with Spidey by putting a random helmet on his head to Luke Cage’s deadpan reaction to Spider-Man talking to his horse, Buttercup aka Queen Artorius.
And the character of Queen Artorius is the real emotional linchpin of Land of the Giants #1 as Taylor and Molina show that the death of the Valkyries’ steeds in War of the Realms #3 wasn’t animal cruelty, but mighty warriors fighting to avenge their riders. Also, her description of Spider-Man as a “noble jester warrior” captures his essence. When the team hits Jotunheim, Molina, Di Benedetto, and Curiel’s become quite dark as they must kill all the Frost Giants for Thor to snap out of his berserker rage. This ability to blend a fun superhero ensemble piece with the horrors of war and genuine emotion is why Land of the Giants #1 gets an Overall Verdict of Buy.
War of the Realms: Journey into Mystery #3
Journey into Mystery is the one “War of the Realms” tie-in that I’m glad is a five and not three issue miniseries. Who would have thought that a group of guys (The McElroys) who hang out on a regular basis would excel at writing an ensemble cast that you wouldn’t mind hanging out with? In this issue, the team goes Western and ends up at a literal ghost town populated by old Marvel Western characters. This prompts Death Locket and Wonder Man to debate about their favorite Westerns that culminates in finger guns at dawn. The sassy teen Death Locket’s love of classic Westerns (Nothing after 1970’s Rio Lobo.) is a weird trait, but the McElroys connect it to character background because those were the only movies she had access to as an LMD living with her “Uncle” Dum Dum. (Another LMD).
It’s safe to say that Death Locket geeks out the entire fight sequence against characters like Apache Kid and Phantom Rider, and artist Andre Araujo and colorist Chris O’Halloran use all kinds of grids to make the action easy to follow. Their strong storytelling allows the McElroys to pepper in jokes and character insights like Miles and Thori bonding, or Balder admitting he’s a bad leader and letting Kate Bishop take charge. Kate was already a cool character, but her ability to know where arrows land by looking an archer’s stance and holds puts her on another level. There is still an ongoing story with Thor’s sister Laussa and Ares as the divine Javert, but the McElroys and Araujo continue to give each issue its own distinct flavor of adventure, which earns Journey into Mystery #3 an Overall Verdict of Buy.
War of the Realms: New Agents of Atlas #2
I’m really glad that a New Agents of Atlas miniseries was announced in Marvel’s August solicits, but these characters deserve better than they’re getting in this miniseries. Greg Pak, Gang Hyuk Lim, and Federico Blee fill New Agents of Atlas #2’s pages with action, but the only character whose personality that I have a grip on is Pele, the Pacific Islander fire elemental. She’s much more serious than her compatriots, Aero and Wave, and her connection to Earth allows her to see the big picture. Clayton Cowles stately world balloons for her really drive the point home in this issue that is full of strategic retreats, carefully timed Amadeus Cho teleports, and the takeover of South Korea by Fire Goblins.
New Agents of Atlas #2’s pacing is the opposite of decompression as Greg Pak and Gang Hyuk Lim try to move from battle to battle and show off new characters, like Sword Master’s powers, while using Jimmy Woo to comment on the “team’s” lack of teamwork. They are allergic to establishing panels and locations and want to skip to the cool moments of which there are a few like Shang Chi kicking a Fire Goblin in the face. New Agents of Atlas could be a new team of international heroes with different cultures, personalities, and abilities, but right now it’s just a big old jumble with house style visuals, which earns this issue an Overall Verdict of Pass. Hopefully, the team fares better when they don’t have to be an event tie-in.
War of the Realms: Punisher #2
The Punisher has fared quite well in the “War of the Realms” event as Freyja made him the leader of her team to invade Malekith’s realm and destroy the Black Bifrost. His background as a veteran of wars, both overseas and against organized crime, fits the series’ themes and has led to some unlikely bonds between him and the Asgardians. But, none of this comes through in War of the Realms: Punisher #2 where writer Gerry Duggan, artists Marcelo Ferreira and Roberto Poggi, and colorist Rachelle Rosenberg tell the story of him and team of prisoners leading a group of people to safety from New York to New Jersey via the Lincoln Tunnel. It’s all (cool looking to be honest) violence, a predictable plot twist, and a non-existent antagonist/supporting cast. Also, Frank is drawn as ugly as the trolls he’s mowing down.
The first issue of War of the Realms: Punisher established the characters of Dr. Baldwin and the criminal Ferrante, but the first does nothing and the other just betrays Frank on the last page. Duggan’s writing of Frank is one dimensional too with the exception of a touching, sepia colored scene where he remembers being stuck in Lincoln Tunnel traffic with his wife and kids during a happier time. Punisher is there to kill and make gritty faces. His using lighter fluid, lighter, and a grenade to blow up a troll is cool, but this story continues to feel unnecessary because Frank is written much better in the main series and the Dark Elf Realm tie-in. The concept of a vigilante teaming up with the criminals he usually executes to protect innocent people is intriguing, if a little 1970s. However, Duggan, Ferreira, and Poggi can’t pull it off on the page so War of the Realms: Punisher #2 earns an Overall Verdict of Pass.
War of the Realms: Uncanny X-Men #2
I despised War of the Realms: Uncanny X-Men #1, but issue two isn’t as bad with Matthew Rosenberg, Pepe Larraz, and Rachelle Rosenberg leaning more into the X-Men’s role as the last protectors of Queens with Citi Field as a base. But, then, there’s the whole Wolfsbane subplot featuring a child and a Norse god plus a wild Sabretooth appears with no explanation of why he’s acting this way and teaming up with Frost Giants. Except Wolfsbane is dead in the main series so the subplot comes across as an arbitrary something to move the story other than team action sequences.
The highlight of War of the Realms: Uncanny X-Men #2 is Larraz’s mostly solid fight choreography from Jamie Madrox and his dupes leaping and slicing Frost Giants with an axe to Havok and Cyclops blasting things and finally a heavy on the reds and claw shaped panels battle royale between Wolfsbane and Sabretooth. But, then, it seems Rosenberg realizes that he has to throw in some kind of a cliffhanger so he introduces Wolfsbane’s ex on the last couple pages and goes full soap opera. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing for the X-Men, which has always been a soapy comic, but comes across as disingenuous in relation to Wolfsbane’s recent death. Like War of the Realms: Punisher, a band of fan favorite X-Men protecting New York from the friendly confines of Citi Field sounded like a cool concept, but it can’t really sustain its own miniseries and earns the Overall Verdict of Pass again.
Avengers #19
Jason Aaron is using the events of “War of the Realms” in Avengers to maneuver pieces in his overall plan for the series as well as show the events of the War from a different POV with the help of wide screen art maestros Ed McGuinness, Mark Morales, Justin Ponsor, and Erick Arciniega. In this case, it’s Gorilla Man, who is an alcoholic with an ancient curse as well as the head of security for Avengers Mountain and an Agent of Wakanda. Aaron uses him to provide some snarky commentary on crossover events as well as share his honest opinions on A-listers like Captain America, Captain Marvel, Black Panther, and Tony Stark (Respect, respect, fear, douchebag.) He also gets to check in on some Avengers ongoing plotlines like Russia’s superhero team Winter Guard and the fate of Dracula and have a chance to be a hero.
The choice of art team really impacts the story of Avengers #19. McGuinness, Morales, and Ponsor are known for their work on blockbuster comics and for the most part, play Gorilla Man’s entry into the War of Realms straight even if he and Russian double agent Ursa Major meet in a zoo to swap intel. Gorilla Man isn’t an Avenger, but his quick swinging and technical know-how allows Shuri and Tony to score a hit on the invading Frost Giant/Dark Elf army with a Celestial weapon. But, in keeping with the previous issue’s dark and shady tone, this isn’t the triumphant tale of a Z-list hero finding redemption, and Avengers #19’s subversive ending, characterization of Gorilla-Man, and big time art earns it an Overall Verdict of Buy. Aaron’s Avengers run is really the love child of Brian Michael Bendis’ sharp, savvy character interactions and Jonathan Hickman’s long term planning.
Asgardians of the Galaxy #9
Out of all the “War of the Realms” books, Asgardians of the Galaxy #9 does the best job of exploring the emotional impact of the death of the Valkyries in War of the Realms #3. But this isn’t just a sit around and mourn issue. Cullen Bunn, gritty, yet pretty artist Paolo Villanelli, and colorist Federico Blee send the team (Minus Angela and Urzuul) on a magical mission with the Inhuman Ren Kimura to rescue her girlfriend and fellow Asgardian of the Galaxy, Annabelle Riggs, from a limbo-type state.
Basically, Bunn and Villanelli take the myth of Orpheus and Eurydice and make it lesbian and more action-packed. Villanelli and Blee veil the area around Valhalla in shadow and fill it with revenant warriors that are a perfect punching bag for Ren, Clea, and the wholesome boys/frog Thunderstrike, Skurge, and Throg. But this story isn’t just about smiting, and Bunn gives the unique relationship between Valkyrie and Annabelle Riggs real closure and motivates the team to fight back against Malekith and his forces. Also, there’s smooching, Valkyrie’s sacrifice is justified, and the usually standoffish Angela empathizes with Ren because she had just gone through a similar situation with her girlfriend, Sera. Asgardians of the Galaxy continues its great tradition of telling fantastic stories under the constraints of crossover events and gets an Overall Verdict of Buy. Hopefully, it will get more issues after getting name checked in Avengers Endgame of all places.
Venom #14
One of the big continuity boo-boo’s of “War of the Realms” is that currently Venom has his normal symbiote and is a slave of Malekith in the core series while he has a magic symbiote and is doing his own thing in the comic called Venom. However, Cullen Bunn, Iban Coello, and Andres Mossa’s focus on the relationship between Eddie Brock and his son (Who think he’s his little brother) Dylan and monster movie worthy battle between Venom and Jack’o’Lantern made me forget about the continuity issue. Basically, in Venom #14, Venom fights Jack’o’Lantern, who initially is a puppet of Malekith’s War Witches, but then goes off the reservation and starts burning down San Francisco.
If Venom #13 was The Road with elves and magic, Venom #14 is a kaiju movie. Less Dylan means less pathos, but there is more crazy symbiote action and yet another costume change for Eddie Brock that is more Viking berserker than Todd McFarlane. Coello’s loose cartooning is perfect for a clash between a fire character and viscous fluid character, and Bunn continues to tap into the “Lethal Protector” characterization of Venom as a monster who protects innocents from worst monsters that include corporations in a nice bit of political satire. Venom #14 is messy and angsty, but it’s a lot of fun and still has the emotional core of Eddie and Dylan so it gets an Overall Verdict of Read.
Reading through the “War of the Realms” books this weeks definitely felt like going to one of those all you can eat buffets off the Interstate. There were parts of the meal that I definitely savored with Journey into Mystery and Land of the Frost Giants being the yummy, yet healthy salad bar and Venom being that terrible for you, yet addictive fried chicken. And then, there were War of the Realms: Punisher, Uncanny X-Men, and sadly, New Agents of Atlas, which felt like yesterday’s warmed over leftovers. Writing for an event can be handcuffs on some creators, but others, like Tom Taylor, Cullen Bunn, and the McElroys, use it to craft stories that are fun and sometimes even a bit emotional. (RIP Buttercup/Queen Artorius)
Panel of the Week
Spider-Man and a talking, majestic horse is easily the best team-up of “War of the Realms” so far. (War of the Realms Strikeforce: Land of the Giants #1, Art by Jorge Molina, Adriano Di Benedetto, David Curiel)
