The Silver Surfer saved the Earth, but at great personal cost. Can even the companionship of manic pixie Dawn Greenwood help him overcome the loss of his home planet? Your Major Spoilers review of Silver Surfer #5 awaits!
SILVER SURFER #5
Writer: Dan Slott
Artist: Michael Allred
Colorist: Laura Allred
Letterer: VC’s Joe Sabino
Editor: Tom Brevoort
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Cover Price: $3.99
Previously in Silver Surfer: “Together, The Silver Surfer and Dawn conquered cosmic villainy and Dawn chose to accompany the Surfer on his space adventures. They returned to visit Dawn’s family on Earth, just in time to foil a Zenn-Lavian invasion, spearheaded by the Surfer’s first love, Shalla Bal. But victory came at a tremendous cost: The Surfer was forced to erase all traces of Zenn-Lavian culture across the universe in order to restore the Earth’s culture, and the exertion nearly killed him. In the aftermath, the Zenn-Lavians declared that the Surfer could no longer call what was left of Zenn-la his home, and turned their backs on him. But the people of Earth, grateful for the Surfer’s sacrifice on their behalf, welcomed him with open arms. But will the Silver Surfer ever be able to truly call Earth his home?”
NORRIN RADD, CITIZEN OF THE WORLD
In the wake of his heroic sacrifice, Silver Surfer-mania has taken over the Marvel Universe: The Olympics have moved silver to first prize, Norrin has been given not only the key to New York City, but citizenship in all the nations of the world, and even has the ability to get front-row seats to the hottest show on Broadway. Unfortunately, even the adulation of an entire world doesn’t quite make up for losing one’s home, one’s past and the entirety of one’s culture. In the hopes of finding out if any of Zenn-La survives (even the old Fantastic Four comics have been scrubbed of references to his homeworld), The Surfer makes his way to the moon to find Uatu, The Watcher. Sharp-eyed Marvel readers will recall that Uatu was murdered and replaced by The Unseen (formerly Col. Nick Fury of SHIELD, but since his son replaced him, we don’t talk about that), which leads to a conflict at a cosmic level…
ADVICE FROM A FRIEND, GIVEN BY A STRANGER
Even though this is a book about traveling the cosmos and phenomenal power, the real focus is in the relationships: Norrin Radd is embraced by Dawn Greenwood’s family this issue, with everyone taking the time to let him know that he is officially part of their tight-knit clan. In a wonderful moment, Norrin even interacts with a young man named Jeremy, whose favorite comic book has been cancelled, allowing Slott & Allred to give the in-universe rationale for the loss of the FF title: Reed isn’t around to send Marvel their adventures to serialize any more. It’s a lovely touch, albeit a sad one for Fantastic Four fans, and underlines the care and heart that goes into every issue of this comic book. The art is simply breathtaking, as always, with Allred seemingly effortlessly showing us a world grasped by Surfer-fever, with silver-painted homes, Surfer masks and surfboards everywhere. As the issue ends, Dawn has finally shared the story of her mother leaving, leading Norrin to use his power to take her right to where her absentee parent lives…
THE BOTTOM LINE: UNLIKE ANY OTHER COMIC BOOK
If you’re not reading Silver Surfer, you’re missing some of the best Marvel has to offer, and that’s the truth. This issue works on a story level, it works on a meta level, it contains a number of truly sweet moments and even reminded me that Nick Fury, Sr. isn’t dead, something I realize that I hadn’t retained. All in all, Silver Surfer #5 is another example of how perfectly Slott and Allred work together as storytellers, with a cover full of “Hey, It’s That Guy!” to keep you occupied for the next week or so, earning a total package 5 out of 5 stars overall. If that’s not enough, next issue celebrates the #200th Silver Surfer issue at Marvel, promising a big celebratory moment… I’m in.
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Once upon a time, there was a young nerd from the Midwest, who loved Matter-Eater Lad and the McKenzie Brothers... If pop culture were a maze, Matthew would be the Minotaur at its center. Were it a mall, he'd be the Food Court. Were it a parking lot, he’d be the distant Cart Corral where the weird kids gather to smoke, but that’s not important right now... Matthew enjoys body surfing (so long as the bodies are fresh), writing in the third person, and dark-eyed women. Amongst his weaponry are such diverse elements as: Fear! Surprise! Ruthless efficiency! An almost fanatical devotion to pop culture! And a nice red uniform.