MARVEL GENERATIONS
Face front, true believers, for our rollicking review of Marvel’s latest! Excelsior! Etc.
released OUT NOW! Publisher Marvel
Writers Various Artists Various
Marvel may still be ruling the roost in terms of superhero movies, but right now their comics aren’t looking as healthy. Secret Empire generated lots of controversy thanks to its “Captain America is a fascist” plotline, but the series wasn’t the sales juggernaut it needed to be, and considering DC’s robust success with their Rebirth line, Marvel is in definite need of a win.
With Secret Empire having concluded, the next move is Generations, a 10-issue series that’s actually a collection of linked one-shots paving the way for the Marvel Legacy relaunch (which will have kicked off by the time you read this). Part of this plan involves bringing back most of the “classic” versions of heroes we know and love, such as Captain America, Thor and Iron Man, though without also retiring the new, more diverse “legacy” incarnations of these characters.
Generations acts as a showcase for both versions, with each issue featuring a team-up between a classic Marvel character and the younger counterpart they inspired. The idea is simple, but the time-travel set-up for each meeting is convoluted, especially since these team-ups actually all happen during the events of Secret Empire’s final issue – not that there’s anything in Generations that actually tells you this.
As a result, this is a poor jumping-on point for new readers, instead aimed mostly at winning over existing Marvel comics fans. The comic is a mixed bag too, veering from charming fun to messy incoherence. Of the first six issues, the strongest instalments offer resonant superhero action like “The Best”, in which female Wolverine clone X-23 meets her now-deceased “father” again, and “The Archers”, which features an island encounter between the Kate Bishop and Clint Barton incarnations of Hawkeye.
Unfortunately, there’s also the rambling, aimless tale of Riri Williams (aka Ironheart) travelling to the future for a brief reunion with Tony Stark, and a jumbled showdown between the Bruce Banner and Amadeus Cho versions of the Hulk. The visuals are largely strong – especially RB Silva’s intricate, cartoony artwork on “The Phoenix”, a meeting between the teenage and grown-up incarnations of Jean Grey – but the tales follow a formulaic narrative structure, and Generations quickly becomes repetitive in its approach.
Hints at future storylines are frequently dropped, but these often play like clumsy adverts rather than truly satisfying moments. Despite some highlights, this simply isn’t feeling like the confident, agenda-setting new direction that the Marvel universe needs right now. Saxon Bullock
As part of the Legacy relaunch, Marvel has revived ’70s fan magazine FOOM! and the “Marvel Value Stamp” programme.
The visuals are strong but the tales are formulaic and repetitive