Recent Reading: Captain Marvel

Marvel Superheroes #12, 1967

As we are so close to Marvel Studio's release of Captain Marvel, starring Brie Larson and Jude Law, I thought I'd put post a small tribute to one of my first comic superheroes of memory. Revisiting the Coming of Captain Marvel from Marvel Superheroes #12 was more a labor of love than literature, but still a time capsule of Marvel Comics' cosmic coming of age, setting the stage for a character with potential. Mar-Vell makes his first appearance in his green Kree soldier outfit!

Captain Marvel #29 (Nov. 1973)

While I have no surviving issues, I did recently snag a sweet Jim Starlin poster, featuring his cover art for Captain Marvel #29, from November 1973. I must have seen this drawing as a child because it's so familiar and personifies Mar-Vell in my mind. It's arguable that Starlin's run on Marv doesn't stand the test of time. Paul O' Connor from Longbox Graveyard affirmed my vague feelings after retreading the material recently, stating that while Starlin expanded the largely unexplored Marvel Universe on the pages of the book, creating lasting characters & backstory, Captain Marvel seemed flat against it. Still, he was a young, ambitious pioneer of Marvel the Cosmic, and made an impression on my Bronze-Age childhood. You can read The Life & Death of Captain Marvel (Marvel 2002) in trade paperback form, containing his complete solo title from 1972 until his death in 1982, reprinted from Marvel's first graphic novel, The Death of Captain Marvel. It left me awash in nostalgia back in 2011, but I suspect in part for how I idealized the character as a child.

Generations #1 Captain Marvel/Captain Mar-Vell (Nov. 2017)

Below, Generations #1 Ms. Marvel (Nov. 2017)

Backtracking to the end of 2017, some of the last physical comics I purchased since subscribing to Marvel Unlimited were a few of the Generations #1 issues, including Capt. Marvel/Capt. Mar-Vell. It was fun to see Mar-Vell back on the pages, though the book was criticized for it's generic writing. This is probably well-founded, and the characters seemed thrown together, the art uneven throughout, but not without some cool drawings. Another Generations book I picked up was Ms. Marvel. I wanted to get to know Carol Danvers better, taking the mantel over from a childhood hero of mine, and Kamala Khan taking over Ms. Marvel in turn. Read more about that from my Dec. 2017 post on the Marvel Legends action figures of Carol & Kamala- these aren't great comics, and were woefully overpriced, but I couldn't help but try.

More Later- Make It FUN!