A look at "Marvels"

"Marvels," is one of those graphic novels that snuck up on me. I was at the library one day, and happened to see a book with the art of Alex Ross staring back at me. I liked it enough to actually pick it up, assuming it was just a drawing book of his work within the Marvel Universe. I didn't expect to do much than to leaf through it, be impressed and then put it back. 


My surprise came at the fact that there was a real story here. It wasn't just a bunch of reflections by Ross about his time and effort into doing these pictures, and about how great he is. No, instead, it has a story that is both engaging to read and enduring. This is powerful stuff by author Kurt Busiek, mixed with an amazing amount of art that helps illustrate it. 


"Marvels" is about just that. It's about when the Marvel Universe came to the world. It tells the story from the perspective of Phil Sheldon, a working man who is trying to make it in the newspaper business as a photographer. He is young and just beginning to get into living his life, getting married, moving into a new house, even going to war to do his time required of him. It all changes suddenly one day, however, when the superheroes of the Marvel Universe appear. It starts off small, but before long, they are everywhere. Phil will spend this time taking and gathering pictures about these people, giving him a reputation for having an eye and a gift for this sort of thing. 



What happens over the course of the 4 issues takes Phil from his younger days to his later years. In that time frame he sees the Marvels come together to fight common enemies, try to destroy each other in battle, form teams, kill one another, and be ostracized for being mutants. He sees it all and he sees his world changing every day. Everything from hero worship to distrust is noted by his narration. He sees the Marvels as mysteries that he is not sure how to deal with, so he studies them, becoming more and more caught up in how the world is changing to accommodate these entities. He is not the perfect narrator, not at all. He finds himself hating mutants simply to hate them, only to find out that there are some decisions that he can't take back, nor tell those around him not to fear. He keeps taking pictures of actions, until he finally comes to a point when he realizes that it no longer matters the way that it used to. That the world has changed too much for him to keep thinking the way he did about the world and the Marvels. 


One thing that is striking from the beginning is the art by Alex Ross. Ross does some amazing things, no doubt. He is a giant in the comic book industry, with his drawings instantly recognizable. When you see Alex Ross' name on a cover, you know it's going to be interesting to look at. However, all the beautiful art in the world won't make up for a badly told story. Luckily, Kurt doesn't disappoint. What we have is a repectful look at the "golden age" of comics, told through the lens of one man. It's told with awe and wonder, with sadness and loss, and with regret and redemption. All of this is powerful stuff. 


Most people know Alex's art is very statuesque, with it's figures being well detailed and almost realistic as a photo. His art will almost tell a story on its own, and the amount of respect he shows to these characters is wonderful. He keeps to the old style superheroes, the iconic stances and costumes that fit the time when these books first made their appearance. Namor, for instance, still has the dark shorts, and not much else, Spiderman has his powerfully red outfit, and Thor is caped with his long hair and his hat with wings. The point is that there was a lot of time and respect given to the presentation, and that type of care really shows through.


The character of Phil is easy to identify with, as he is an everyman looking through the lens of his camera, and giving him such a world to live in makes me want to live there, destruction of buildings, endangered lives and all. 


I don't know if a non-comic book reader, or even a person not familiar at all with the Marvel Universe will find this very interesting. Some background is good to have, if nothing else than to have some knowledge of who the Fantastic Four, the Avengers, or the X-Men are, or, even,  who Galactus is. Just knowing this information will help at least to keep track of the different characters who keep coming in and out of the story. After all, this is a story that really tries to be an homage or a caring reproduction of a time of wonder and curiosity, when comics were just starting to hit it big in the bookstores and these characters we have grown to love or hate, were just beginning. 


For the casual or the deeply involved reader, this book is highly recommended. It has so much to tell, and it tells it well. So, seek out a copy of it, sit down and begin to be engulfed.

--MGS

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