New Universal #2 - Marvel (2007)

When I think "comics" the first thing that springs to my mind is the feeling I got reading them in the '80s. That was the time that comics felt like mine. Like I was discovering something that was written for me. A big part of that was Marvel's New Universe line which was Jim Shooter's project to celebrate Marvel's 25th anniversary. The setting was a "world like our own" which got superpowers dropped into it overnight when the "White Event" (literally an enormous white light which filled the sky) happened. I was aware of some of the faults even at the time (Kickers Inc., anyone?) but I thought it was awesome.

Warren Ellis continues his "screwing-with-marvel-tropes" kick with New Universal and it feels every bit as awesome as the first go 'round. The first issue started off with a bang (get it, "White Event"? "Bang"? Oh, I kill me!) and #2 just adds to the awesome.

So far, Ellis has taken Justice, Nightmask, Spitfire and Star Brand and he's done some cool stuff with them. Ellis is in "serious" mode on this one (think Ocean) rather than wacky, Nextwave mode. The interpretations are darker and better fleshed out than the first batch and my favorite part of this is that Ellis is weaving all the stories together.

If you like other stuff by Ellis you will probably like this one but it's not without its faults. There are a couple of wordless action sequences in issue #2 which are confusing and there's the patented Ellis Infodump part of the way through but as long as the story remains compelling and as long as it's accompanied by beautiful Salvador Larroca art like the example from #1 below, it will stay in my hold box.