Kaare Andrews takes your favorite Marvel characters and takes them to an island of intrigue and darkness. Can our heroes return home? Find out in Amazing Fantasy #1 by Marvel Comics!

Amazing Fantasy #1 Review — **You can purchase this issue via the comiXology affiliate link**

AMAZING FANTASY #1 (OF 5)

Writer: Kaare Andrews
Artist: Kaare Andrews
Colorist: Kaare Andrews
Letterer: VC’s Joe Sabino
Editor: Tom Brevoort
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Cover Price: $4.99
Release Date: July 28th, 2021

Previously in Amazing Fantasy: World War II Captain America, Red Room Black Widow, and teenage Spider-Man arrive on a weird mysterious island filled with new dangers. Now they must find a way to return home… if they are able!

THE END

Amazing Fantasy #1 gives us three separate storylines. The first is Captain America on a boat in German territory. As he tries to calm his fellow soldiers’ nerves, the ship is attacked! The next thing he realizes is that he is on an island and is attacked by a creature with the body of a lion but the wings of an eagle. He then notices a dragon snatch his assailant out of the air. Captain America throws his shield at the dragon, allowing the lion-creature to escape. He then ventures further into the island to find his shield but instead finds a woman and a boy being attacked by orcs. Captain America saves the woman and kid and rides off on the lion-eagle’s back before more orcs arrive.

Black Widow is training in the Red Room but plans to escape. As she leaves, she finds out that this escapade was there to test her loyalty, and she failed. She is then shot and left for dead. When she wakes up, she is on the back of centaur! Lastly, Spider-Man is in a deadly battle with Green Goblin but takes a direct hit from a pumpkin bomb. Next thing he knows he is in a pot of boiling water about to be eaten by frog people! Luckily some bird-men come and take him prisoner. After they reach the bird-men’s camp, they set him free where he sees Uncle Ben and realizes the horrible truth; Spider-Man has died!

THE AFTERLIFE

The first read-through of Amazing Fantasy #1 gave me a sense of excitement. These trio of heroes are on this island, and they must use a different set of skills then what they are used too. I figured out that they were dead before the “reveal” but I find myself disappointed that this was the story choice. I think I was hoping for clever fantasy reimagining of these characters rather than our heroes dying. The premise of a primal island afterlife just doesn’t engage me. I guess that is my fault for not reading the solicitations closely enough.

With that all being said, it doesn’t make the story choice a bad choice. The story is well written, and I liked how the art style was tweaked for each character. Captain America looks very different then the island storylines, which looked different to Red Room Black Widow. These elements give us a visual change in the storyline which I enjoyed tremendously. I am curious to see how the story approaches life and death, and maybe the return to life in the upcoming issues. Great work by the Kaare Andrews!

BOTTOM LINE: NOT WHAT I EXPECTED

I admit that it was 100% my fault that I didn’t look up the premise of the story before reading it. I facilitated my own disappointment. Amazing Fantasy #1 does what it set out to do well and tells us an engaging story. For that I will give this comic book a 4.5 out of 5 and I suggest you pick it up if you want something that is of different vein then your modern Marvel Comics.

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