Posted in: Comics, Recent Updates | Tagged: Comics, entertainment, greg pak, Marvel Comics, storm, Victor Ibanez

There Is A Storm At Marvel And What A Sight She Is

Published Wed, 30 Jul 2014 17:30:00 -0500

By Julz Hendricks

Female-led comics are stealing the spotlight, making us want more glorious issues to consume. By consume, I mean read over and over again. Storm #1 sets the standard high for all the other female led books coming out. Greg Pak had me at Action Comics, so it was obvious that Storm would find a place on my pull list.

[*Mild spoilers for Storm #1 below!]

I haven't read a lot of Storm comics regrettably, but if there ever was a jumping on point for me, it's now with this comic. Storm contemplates where she actually belongs as she saves the entire village of Santo Marco from a tsunami. I liked that afterwords she paused for a photograph, adding such a sweet endearing touch. She leaves with a sour taste in her mouth as Mutants are not allowed there, but Henry tells her that they are working to defeat the Anti-Mutant Bill in place, so she needs to chill. Back at the Jean Grey School, one of the students, Marisol Guerra, was having problems dealing with being away from her people, which caused friction between her and Storm. Storm lets the wind carry her, and she ends up exactly where she should be, helping the villagers clean up, despite not being allowed there. There was a confrontation, to which Storm didn't back down, leading the villagers to reclaim their home.

Pak has captured all of Storm. She is fierce, but soft, strong, and loyal. She is everything that Storm should be while keeping her inner child close to her heart. She still has some struggles within herself, and I like that Pak makes her relatable to the audience. She has many titles…Queen, Princess, WindRider, Ororo and HeadMistress of the Jean Grey School. She is many things to many people and that is what makes Storm so wonderful. She is basically the godmother of the X-Men. There is a political view here as well, and I like that Storm dealt with it in her own way, defying what was supposed to be, for what was right. The story was simply heartwarming in every way.

Victor Ibanez (Adventures of Superman) cast Storm in such a lovely, bold way. Her fearlessness comes across the pages clearly as well as her feisty attitude. I think it's equally important to have her playful side come out too, and it happens to be my favorite panel. Storm's smile could light the world the way Ibanez draws her. The action panel are realistic, with bullets whizzing by, and his lines are nicely balanced to give us the full effect of what is happening. I really like that she is sporting her Mohawk, as it's my favorite look for her. If there are any challenges to drawing a female character Ibanez meets them head on. The creative team is really impressive on this title, and I can't wait to see what they bring us next.

Julz Hendricks is a co-host of podcasts Panel 2 Panel, as well as the all female podcast Chickcast, She is a huge advocate of kids' comics but reads a lot of different titles. You can find her on Twitter as @JulzHendricks.

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