I’m really curious as to whether Marvel is counting all previous Captain Marvel issues or all previous solo books headlined by Carol Danvers in their assessment that this book is #127. Regardless of numbering, though, Captain Marvel is lost in space, with no hope of return… Your Major Spoilers review of Captain Marvel #127 awaits!
CAPTAIN MARVEL #127
Writer: Margaret Stohl
Artist: Michele Bandini
Colorist: Erick Arciniega
Letterer: VC’s Joe Caramagna
Editor: Sana Amanat
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Cover Price: $3.99
Previously in Captain Marvel: Carol was contacted by the energy projection of the missing Bean, a Kree child she had befriended. Carol set off to help her friend, but founds herself on the trail of the shape-shifter known as Mimi, who stole a mysterious device and a sample of Carol Danvers’ blood and headed into space to rendezvous with the sinister Dr. Eve. Just as she was closing in, Captain Marvel found herself in a blinding flash that separated her from both her crew and her targets. When she came to, she found Alpha Flight space station restored and her crew on board, but a bit… different. Before she could get to the bottom of that, they were attacked by a fleet of Quinjets led by her (deceased) ally Natasha Romanoff! Elsewhere, Mim and Eve reached their target, a glowing red stone, but before they could make off with their loot, they were gunned down by none other than Peter Quill!”
THE OL’ STRANGE MIRROR UNIVERSE TRICK, EH?
We open with Carol awakening in her strange new world, still hearing the voice of Bean in her head. She awakens and we quickly find Captain Marvel and her weird crew (including a Sasquatch suffering from a bad case of male-pattern baldness and Puck with a hipster lumberjack beard) negotiating with an alternate Black Widow about helping her regain a Maguffin stolen by Peter Quill, who in this weird dimension calls himself Lord Starkiller. (That’s not the only roundabout ‘Star Wars joke in these pages, either.) They set out on the heist, only to get waylaid by Quill’s Ravagers (twisted versions of the Guardians Of The Galaxy; their Groot analogue has to be seen to be believed) and thrown in a holding cell. Quill, who is certain he is Captain Marvel’s nemesis, regardless of how much that makes her laugh, ends the issue with a big surprise by offering to sell the captives over to an even greater threat… Thanos!
REALLY LOVING THIS ART
For all the “everything you know is wrong” in the plot (done quite well, by the way), the real star of this issue is Michele Bandini’s art. It balances tons of detail with a clean line that is truly lovely, and makes both the action sequence and the moments of character interaction fascinating. Puck’s facial expressions when Carol dresses him down to maintain her cover is perfect and worth the price of admission. All in all, this chapter gets by on the strength of that character work and the fun/funny moments as Carol discovers her new world, with the mystery of the hows and whys set aside for the most part, and the final-page reveal making it clear that the stakes are about to get much higher…
THE BOTTOM LINE: REALLY WEIRD, BUT A LOT OF FUN
In short, this issue works for me on many levels, putting the focus on Carol and her ability to blend into this fun house mirror world, all the while trying to figure out the greater mystery. Captain Marvel #127 is well-drawn, clever and has a few truly inspired gags in it, earning a much-deserved 4 out of 5 stars overall. If nothing else, it’s treating Carol Danvers as a first-tier hero of the Marvel Universe, and may help to heal the damage done to her character by the stupidity of Civil War II.
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