Next month marks the release of the Captain Marvel film – the first Marvel Cinematic Universe solo film with a female lead. In preparation for this occasion, we have a new mini-series looking back at Carol Danvers’ past and what the future holds. When sudden, crippling anxiety attacks sideline Carol in the middle of a fight, she finds herself reliving memories of a life she thought was far behind her. You can’t outrun where you’re from – and sometimes, you have to go home again. But while the Captain takes a temporary leave from duty to unravel her past, trouble comes looking for her. A weapon has been unleashed. And Carol’s sleepy coastal town is about to become the centre of its world. But there are skeletons in Captain Marvel’s closet – and what she discovers will change her entire life!
Over the years, Carol Danvers has become one of Marvel’s most prominent female characters. From her time as Ms. Marvel, she had already become one of The Avengers most popular members and played a pivotal role in many Avengers and X-Men storylines. But it was in 2012 when she took on the role of Captain Marvel from the deceased Mar-Vell that she solidified herself as one of the driving forces of the Marvel Universe. From that time, her series by some of the top female writers in the industry – most notably Kelly Sue DeConnick who was the guiding force during her taking up the role of Captain Marvel and re-establishing her as one of Marvel’s top characters. Margaret Stohl is the most recent writer on the series and The Life of Captain Marvel was her final story before she handed over the reins to Kelly Thompson. And it’s safe to say she’s definitely saved her best story for last.
A mix of family drama, soul searching and a potential alien invasion – this volume is one of the best takes on the Carol Danvers character. Whilst she is one of the most powerful beings in the Marvel Universe, Carol faces the same problems regular people face and Stohl does a terrific job in showing how these two facets of her life overlap. Carol’s past has been explored before but never quite in this level of depth. Her problematic relationship with her father and brother is examined in depth whilst her mother has secrets that leave a huge impact on both her personal and superhero life. Both Carol’s human and Kree heritage are brought into play with Stohl weaving them together seamlessly.
Since signing an exclusive contract with Marvel, Carlos Pacheco has been one of their most dependable artists and he turns out some of his best work to date in this volume. He does a great job as you’d expect with the action and alien material, but he never loses sight of the human drama aspect that plays the main part of the story and really amplifies the emotional journey Carol is going through. The flashback art from Marguerite Sauvage and Erica D’Urso is equally tremendous and fits perfectly with Pacheco’s work.
This is a must read for any Captain Marvel fans and is also a perfect jumping on point for anyone who wants to follow the character following her MCU debut.
The Life of Captain Marvel is published on 19 February 2019 from Marvel
9781302912536 – P/B £13.50
Panini edition also available:
9781846539503 – H/B £15.99
