Review – Captain Marvel #17 (Marvel Comics)

Introducing The Nexus In Captain Marvel #17

After the dramatic conclusion of ‘The Last Avenger,’ it’s time for something completely different! Captain Marvel #17 brings with it several friends – old and new – as well as a new adventure for them all to take on.

After all, every hero needs to attempt to have downtime, right? Granted, it usually never works out with these guys, at least not for an entire issue. Hence the introduction of a new villain and the challenges he brings with him.

After everything that happened in the last plot arc, this almost feels like a palette cleanser—seeing Carol running around with some of her best friends and just trying to take it easy (for once in her life). It’s refreshing and playful (well, mostly).

Writing

Kelly Thompson is still at the helm of this series, which is great. Thompson understands the need for humor to balance out the raw energy of events, and thus we have Captain Marvel #17. It’s a thrilling issue, with lots of excuses to have a bit of fun.

Sure, there’s a new villain introduced, and his brilliance makes him pretty terrifying, but the real highlight of the issue is the team on display. Some of Marvel’s favorites are all in one issue, bringing with them their unique personalities.

It makes for a lot of sass and even more fun. This is exactly what fans needed after everything else that Carol has been through recently. Likely it’s going to prove to be the calm before the storm or something like that, but I, for one, know I’m going to enjoy the reprieve.

This is just one of those issues that will make you smile. Okay, not the more intense scenes; those will make you concerned. But everything else? Yeah, you’re going to smile. How can you not, given who’s tagging along for the ride?

Art

The artwork within Captain Marvel #17 is as vibrant as the plot. This is an issue packed full of characters with personalities, and it was perfect. Each character immediately rang true as to who they were, even outside of their costumes (with one major exception – who continued to wear her costume).

Francesco Manna was the lead artist, taking over for this plot to portray all of the chaos and humor that comes with six heroes trying to take a break. The variations in their expressions really sell the whole thing, as does the portrayal of their powers during climatic scenes.

Carlos Lopez took charge of the coloring, and you can tell that they probably had a little bit of fun here. The colors are so vibrant, yet they felt perfect for everything that was going on. The characters are bright and their powers even brighter.

VC’s Clayton Cowles is the mind behind the lettering for this issue, and unsurprisingly they did a fantastic job as well. There was a lot going on in this issue, and thus a lot for the lettering to keep up with.

Conclusion

Captain Marvel #17 was the perfect issue to follow the last plot arc in the series. It still threw a serious villain at Captain Marvel (and her friends) while also feeling a bit freer to have some fun. This is likely something that happens to Carol all the time, so it’s a delight to see portrayed here.

Taking a peek at the cover for Captain Marvel #18 hints at something major about to occur. Then again, with Empyre pulling in leading characters like Carol, that’s probably not as big of a surprise as it should be. Still, I’m looking forward to seeing what will happen.

This review was originally written for Word of the Nerd, but has been ported over to Quirky Cat’s Fat Stacks now that the site has shut down.