With the hype machine for the new Captain Marvel movie starting to ramp up, I thought it’d be a good time to go back and read the series that will act as the inspiration for the movie. In all fairness, it’s a bit difficult to follow the sequence of these volumes, as Marvel kept rebooting the series. That being said, I’m covering “Captain Marvel” volume 1 & 2, as well as “The Enemy Within” crossover. This initial run was renumbered afterwards, so there is some confusion if you just look it up as Volume 1. If there’s any doubt it’s easier to look it up by the publication date, as this was released in 2012. Regardless, this introduces Carol after properly taking on the moniker of Captain Marvel, and is much beloved by her fans. This was an interesting experience for me as I had never read any of the Carol Danvers Captain Marvel issues, but I am a huge fan and defender of the Peter David written, Genis-Vell Captain Marvel run. While both series share the same name, needless to say they are very different. For now, let’s see how the Carol Danvers’ run holds up on its own first.
The Enemy WithinWritten by Kelly Sue Deconnick with art by Dexter Soy and Emma Rios
The “Mightiest” of Earth’s Mightiest Heroes is back! Ace pilot. Legendary Avenger. One hundred percent pure bad-^&*. Carol Danvers has a new name, a new mission – and all the power she needs to make her own life a living hell. As the new Captain Marvel, Carol is forging from a challenge from her past! Vicious echoes of the Avengers’ past are cropping up all over Manhattan…but Captain Marvel, grounded since a recent and mysterious power loss, refuses to be left behind. Who is the sinister figure behind these incursions, and what does it have to do with Carol Danvers’ mysterious condition?
The series jumps head first into Carol’s acceptance of the Captain Marvel moniker. As a primer for the uninitiated, Carol has had numerous personas, most famously War Bird and Binary. Given her close past with the original Captain Marvel, Mar-Vell, she is a natural for taking over the moniker. Add in her power base and Kree infused DNA, well, it’s almost a natural association. While she may not be a true born Kree, nor wield the Nega Bands and have Cosmic Awareness, there are few within the Marvel Universe as deserving as Carol. While others have brandished the Captain Marvel moniker, including Monica Rambeau who plays a small role throughout these volumes, few outside of Mar-Vell’s own genetic offspring are more deserving.
Reading these three volumes provides a fair introduction for Carol’s elevated position within the Marvel Universe. It definitely ups her status quo and provides just enough of her background that new readers can get up and running. At the same time this series basically wipes the slate clean, rebooting her character, and physically rebooting her memories. The net effect is a new ultra-powered hero who the rest of the heroes within the Universe can interact with as if they’ve always known her. From an introductory perspective it was definitely very well done. I imagine that the original pitches for her new position within the Marvel pantheon dealt with her transition and how best to incorporate a female into the main iconic Marvel heroes. If that was indeed the goal I’d say that the net effect of these volumes was a great success.
While the net effect was a great success, that isn’t to say that each issue was great. The initial storyline takes Carol back in time where she interacts with an all-female Air Force squadron. To say it was girl power centric would be an extreme understatement. I truly don’t care if my heroes are female, male, alien, whatever… As long as I’m presented with a good story, I’m on board. While I understand that the goal of this initial series was to put the spotlight on Carol and include her into Marvel’s upper branches (with Captain America, Thor, etc…), these first few issues didn’t really give me much outside of the girl power trope. Luckily, once this initial storyline came to an end and Carol returns to New York the storytelling gets much better. There’s still no lack of girl power, but these issues blend it in with the storyline in a way that is meaningful. Carol’s entourage is heavy on the ladies, but it doesn’t came across as a blatant attempt at female inclusionism. They all work together to add to Carol’s persona. Additionally, her male love interest isn’t a tacked on Steve Trevor clone, but an actual individual who acts as both a foil and a enabler for the storyline. The absolute best example of Carol in the hands of writer Kelly Sue Deconnick are her interactions with her kid neighbor. This adorable little child is perhaps the best character in this run, and at no point is Carol a better comic book character then when she is acting as a babysitter and mentor.
Continued belowThese initial volumes cover a number of issues as well as a crossover with “Avengers Assemble,” the artwork can be a bit varied. In general it is perfectly pleasant. Soy’s work fits Carol well, giving her an imposing feminine physique and looks great in her new jumpsuit. Hepburn’s “Avengers” work tends to be a bit stringier, and while that makes characters such as Spider-Woman more dynamic, it doesn’t really comes across as well for Carol. As the series progressed we got to see a number of different artists contribute their talents for Carol and there’s little to complain about. Nothing truly jumps off the page as groundbreaking, nor does it take away from the story, which is all I can really ask for. Her new outfit really fits her well, and it pays tribute to her past with the waist sash, something that should always be kept with her character.
As enjoyable as these twenty or so issues were, the biggest detractor was the lack of a good villain. The main antagonist is an amped version of Yon-Rogg, as he comes back to take revenge on Carol for receiving the gifts of the Psyche-Magnetron instead of himself. The ensuing conflict is fine, and includes a fair amount of needless battles with Carol’s who’s who of enemy’s, but the whole thing kind of detracts from the best points of Deconnick’s run. The strong point of this series is Carol’s interaction with friends and family, and her subsequent decision to allow her brain and memories to be rebooted for the betterment of the innocents around her. There’s a bigger story here that was solved with fisticuffs, which could have potentially been dealt differently to draw out more of Carol’s personality.
These issues are the best introduction you’ll find for the modern Captain Marvel. They bring her past and present together, while creating a clean slate for her future. After reading these I look forward to picking up her continued stories as she has evolved into on of Marvel’s premier characters.
