Scott's Take: Scarlet Witch: Vol. 1: The Last Door by Steve Orlando

 

Scarlet Witch: Vol. 1: The Last Door by Steve Orlando is a new series where the Scarlet Witch has moved to a new town. She has opened up a shop to help people with their problems by way of magical items she sells such as potion, elixirs, and more. There is also some sort of teleportation door affixed to her shop that allows people from all over the world with nowhere else to go to arrive at her shop so that she can help them in addition to her local walk-in customers.

 

Each issue in this collected volume introduces a new supporting character with a new problem or a new guest star. The final issue is mostly a setup for the Contest of Champions Event. As those of us who have read other series already know, and Wanda does not, her former mentor, Agatha, has gone evil. So, the fact that Agatha is visiting in the last issue of the volume is not just because, supposedly, Agatha is worried about her former protégé.

 

The guest stars are drawn from Wanda’s complicated family tree are featured for an issue here and there and are moved on with nothing more said about them. Wanda faces villains that are powerful in their own right, but would not seem to be much of a challenge for her if she was not holding back. She is, in different ways, for the reasons that come clear during the read and does casually performing massive spells.

 

There is humor, action, and drama in interesting storylines accompanied by pretty art. This series is continued with Volume 2: The Magnum Opus.

 

Sometime after that book is released, the series is scheduled to be relaunched as Quicksliver and The Scarlet Witch. This is planned to be a buddy cop style series dealing with Magneto’s death. Before he died, Magneto sent a letter to Wanda that was supposed to read by his children, Wanda and Pietro (Quicksilver), after his death. But, Wanda burned it before Pietro was able to read it. Pietro is peeved about this and there are consequences. This upcoming series is undercut in some ways by Marvel and their marketing choices since we already know sometime next year Magneto will be resurrected. It’s hard to mourn a character when Marvel has already announced his return.

 

My reading copy came by way of the Hoopla App and the Dallas Public Library System.

 

Scott A. Tipple ©2023

Scott's Take: Martian Manhunter: Identity by Steve Orlando and artist Riley Rossmo

Martian Manhunter: Identity by Steve Orlando and artist Riley Rossmo is another Martian Manhunter solo series, but with an all new origin story for him. This latest origin incorporates parts of his previous ones except for the New 52 origin.  The creative team involved here decided to introduce massive changes that are controversial to say the least. Instead of being a good man who lost his family during a civil war between the green Martians and the white Martians, they decided to make him a corrupt cop who uses his position and ill gotten gains to provide for his family. This is just the start of the radical changes the authors incorporate to change his history. I am not sure how long these changes will last as every decade or so DC Comics chooses to change his origin story. Deciding to make a genocide survivor who was a victim of racism into another corrupt cop is a massive change that works for this story but goes against most of his previous origins outside of the New 52.

 

His origin story is told through flashbacks while present day events have him investigating a series of abductions in a small town here on Earth that has ties to Mars. Martian Manhunter and others must deal with their past and embrace who they are if they are going to save the people in this town. The story is all about second chances and starting over.

 

The villains created for this story are interesting and could be used more broadly outside of this series. This book collects issues 1 through 12. These are the only issues of the series because DC decided to turn it into a miniseries. Included at the end of the read is an interview with the creative team as well as a few sketches detailing the art.

 

The creative team do a good job of adding new elements to expand on the mythology of the civilization of Mars before its destruction and expanding on how the Martian Manhunter sees the world. These changes and additions due change Mars society from previous stories.

 

I did enjoy this story and the art is amazing for the most part except for his female partner’s hair design which was distracting for this reader. It is a good story despite my problems with it regarding the basic premise and the aforementioned artwork for one character. There is also the problem that the Martian Manhunter is noticeably weaker than he is usually depicted in the comics for the sake of the plot and is explained by the end.

 

This book is full of action, there is some humor, the art is amazing for the most part, and the story does a good job of exploring different people’s truths and why they should embrace their own truth instead of hiding from it.  I highly recommend this book if one would like to explore the latest origin of one of the lesser spotlighted heroes from the DC universe despite his status as a founding and a major member of most versions of the Justice League. DC’s favorite chocolate addicted alien is ready to tell his story though this version is radically different than what we all know to be true.

 

  

Martian Mahunter: Identity

Steve Orlando

https://www.dccomics.com/talent/steve-orlando

Riley Rossmo

https://rileyrossmo.com/

DC Comics

https://www.dccomics.com/

ISBN# 978-177950041

Paperback

320 Pages

My reading copy came from the Dallas West Branch of the Dallas Public Library System.  

 

Scott A. Tipple ©2020