The latest teen superheroes of the Marvel Universe are in trouble. They’ve gathered as the New Champions and been getting to know one another, but the nearest thing they have to a leader, Liberty, has vanished, spirited away by supposed ally Monte, and the young heroes haven’t been able to find her. Luckily one of the kids, Emilio, Cadet Marvel, has a connection.
Hearing that teen enchantress Amaranth hasn’t located Liberty, Captain Marvel Carol Danvers is happy to bring in the (other) big guns.
The assembling takes place at Liberty’s parents’ home, where Captain America Sam Wilson goes into reassurance mode.
A tech team-up between Iron Man Tony Stark and the synthezoid Vision leads them to the spot where Monte and partner-in-crime Magnetrix plan to tap Liberty’s hard light power for nefarious purposes.
The experienced Avengers and the promising New Champions vs a magician and a Magneto wannabe? I know who I’d bet on.
Hang on though, who’s that in the shadows?
Here’s a book most everyone is sleeping on. A traditional teen team series but one that’s done very well, thanks to the skill of writer Steve Foxe and here, Northern Ireland’s own Ruairí Coleman.
I’ve enjoyed the relaxed way in which the team has come together over several issues, with mini-spotlights on the likes of Wakanda’s Gold Tiger and the gang’s other teenage witch, Hellrune (whose Scandinavian links really should have her named Norseress… you’re welcome). We’ve also been watching Monte, who basically seems to be helping Magnetrix because he’s sweet on her, become ever more uncomfortable with her madness and methods. Sure, it’s predictable, but it’s also classic, and comfortable. Maybe younger readers have jumped on board this series and haven’t seen heroes betray their friends and regret it.
And it’s not like New Champions is without novelty – new characters such as Moon Squire and Fantasma don’t feel overfamiliar. While the characters have spice, there are no jerks, for example in a crowd, Cadet Marvel presents as cocky, but here we see he’s mourning his mother. It’s very refreshing that the Avengers, who don’t know these kids from Adam, welcome them into the superhero community. Well, most of the veteran heroes do.
Filling in for regular artist Ivan Fiorelli, Coleman does a fantastic job. Having to draw a batch of new characters – the kids were created as a variant cover stunt, as ‘lost sidekicks’ – in an issue also starring the Avengers and three villains can’t be easy. But Coleman makes it look easy, with all the characters totally on model and the storytelling first rate. A couple of times the artist arranges panels across two pages, something I’m not usually a fan of, but here I rather like it.
I’d love to see how Coleman’s work looks with an inker, but this being Marvel, such creatures are rare. Instead, colourist Arthur Hesli helps with the facial modelling while laying down all the tones needed to help propel the story along. A sharp artist, a skilled colourist – can’t be bad!
One of my favourite visual moments opens the issue.
When did Iron Man get this fantastically retro costume, I love its stumpy stylings?
Meanwhile, Travis Latham’s letters add fizz throughout.
Gleb Melnikov’s cover illo, coloured by Hesli, is attractive, it’s just a shame there’s not a single cover blurb to add excitement, urgency.
If you’ve not tried this comic, give it a look – it reminds me of the original New Warriors, and I’ve been hoping for something with that flavour for awhile
Too Dangerous For a Girl 2 
I still can’t believe I love this series. I never read their debut in Spider-Woman, I’ve never heard of the writer or either artists, and a few of their names are the exact lame ripoffs of adult heroes names that you’d expect if a teenager came up with them. It’s also one of my favorite series going right now. The characters feel like teens and teens who want to do the right thing without having a clue what that is and how to do it. I do like the lack of internal conflict but the families all being cool with it is a little weird when I think about it after finishing reading an issue. It doesn’t detract though while I’m reading so there’s that. I hope this book lasts a good long time and I’ll certainly be looking out for Foxe’s name in other credits.
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You like it, I like it, so of course, Rich at Bleeding Cool is now speculating it’s been cancelled due to its non-appearance in the latest solicitations. Hopefully it’s just a mis(non)-print.
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