Brandon Borzelli's Geek Goggle Reviews
S.H.I.E.L.D #1
Marvel Comics
Waid, Pacheco, Taibo & Almara
S.H.I.E.L.D is basically a Phil Coulson solo title without calling it that. The setup for the book is basically Coulson and company working cases without the help of the heavy hitters. It's sort of that man-on-the-front-lines kind of book but this could work if the execution is as solid as the first issue. By showcasing Coulson's personality and sticking to a one-and-done format the comic book was an entertaining and satisfactory read. This is worth checking, but the five-dollar price makes it one that the mildly curious should steer clear from.
The book opens with Coulson's life story as told in three pages. There are some clever panels in here and the setup is definitely entertaining. Eventually we get to a more modern setting and Coulson is leading a super-hero-less mission. The idea is that the man (or is he a God?) who guards the bridge between Thor's realm and Earth is held captive on Earth by a man that has also taken his magic sword. It's a daunting task but Coulson has some tricks up his sleeve.
The book works well because the pace is fast. The story unfolds quickly and the action is heavy but contains enough dialogue to keep the reader interested in the story. The comic book captures that dry personality that Coulson has in the Avengers film and it provides a couple of interesting supporting characters for Coulson to bounce his personality off of.
The downside to the book is that it feels like a throwaway. While it is a good thing to have a comic book that is largely free of continuity, it is hard to read the comic and understand how it fits in. However, the next issue contains the new and superstar breakout Ms Marvel so that will change in a hurry.
Whether its over-sized or not, Marvel is getting a little too loose with charging five bucks for a comic book. DC at least holds that five dollar distinction for random issues of Batman. Marvel seems to be using it whenever there are two extra pages and it's a poor idea because the backlash is going to hit harder than when they went to the four dollar price point. This is not a book that warrants the inflated price and it might scare off the curious and therefore, the book won't get a chance to ever capture a broad audience.
The artwork is good. The comic is of the house style that Marvel seems to use these days. Its light on the line work and uses more shading on the characters. While some of the facial details get lost with this method it allows for a consistent look whether the panel is a close-up or a distance shot. It's a good artistic showing.
S.H.I.E.L.D is a fun book. It's a one-shot that contains about thirty pages of story for five bucks. The mission is an interesting one and definitely seems like one the red shirts could handle themselves. If you like Phil Coulson then this is a comic book you should check out. I recommend taking a look at this book.
3.5 out of 5 Geek Goggles
