Review: A-Force Volume 1 - Hypertime

Having been jettisoned from her world, the being known as Singularity finds herself in a new universe and has unknowingly brought the malicious entity Antimatter with her. She recruits She-Hulk, Medusa, Captain Marvel, Nico Minoru, and Dazzler to help combat this threat. Together this new team must overcome their unfamiliarity with one another in order to protect Singularity and save the people of Earth.

A-Force Volume 1: Hypertime collects A-Force #1-4, Avengers #83, A-Force #1 and material from Avengers #0, written by G. Willow Wilson and Kelly Thompson with art by Jorge Molina.

Hypertime picks up after the events of the A-Force mini-series, which was a tie-in to Secret Wars. Singularity, who made her debut in that series, serves as the catalyst that assembles A-Force and becomes the emotional nucleus of the arc. She’s lost in our universe and faces the difficult challenge of both finding a new home for herself and of facing off against the villainous Antimatter. Thankfully, she has the (sometimes reluctant) help of She-Hulk, Medusa, Captain Marvel, Nico Minoru, and Dazzler. Wilson and Thompson do a respectable job of penning this organic origin story for A-Force. They give them a cosmic threat that helps to emphasize the importance and sheer firepower of this team.  It’s an action-packed narrative with plenty of character development that takes us all around the world and into space.

Each character in A-Force has a distinctive voice and purpose, though some more than others. Singularity is an obvious standout. Beyond her absolutely adorable look and behaviour, her dialogue is unique and helps us to view her as childishly endearing. She-Hulk and Medusa are equally as dynamic, with the former serving as the courageous leader and the latter as the haughty monarch. Admittedly, Nico Minoru isn’t as much of a standout as she was in the mini-series and Captain Marvel feels unnecessary. As a Dazzler fan, I have some issues with her characterization, particularly the scene where she punches Singularity for no reason and the snarky dialogue throughout. That said, Wilson and Thompson can’t be held wholly responsible for it seeing as it was Brian Michael Bendis who set the character on this darker path. Fortunately, the creative team here is taking the appropriate steps to bring lightness back to this typically optimistic heroine. The other issue I had regarding characterization stemmed from the clichéd tendency to dumb down the cast in order to make the science expert (Dr. Tempest Bell) sound smart. Her dialogue isn’t that science-y and is easy to understand even for a layman (at least as far as this non-STEM oriented human is concerned), so it’s disappointing that both Wilson and Thompson would be okay with portraying a cast of strong, smart heroines as being unable to understand what Dr. Bell is saying. Dazzler dated a doctor and Beast for crying out loud, not to mention the fact that her powers are super nerdy and she, like She-Hulk, has a postsecondary education! She can follow a little sciencespeak.

Jorge Molina’s artwork is absolutely stunning. Every character is vibrant and unique, which is aided by an unparalleled expressiveness. He captures Dazzler’s sullen attitude as well as he’s able to convey Dr. Bell’s sheepishness and Singularity’s innocence. I also can’t get over how magical hair looks under his careful hand. The work he does on Medusa’s hair alone is awe-inspiring. The combination of Wilson and Thompson’s epic narrative paired with Molina’s art elevates A-Force to a quality that establishes it as A-list worthy. That’s why it’s so heart wrenching that audiences weren’t able to see that.

A-Force Volume 1: Hypertime is a fantastic read. It’s a breezy, globe-trotting adventure that proves itself worthy of being considered as important as the Avengers or Spider-Man flagship titles. The characterization and dialogue is strong throughout, while the art is gorgeous and suits the writing perfectly. The only complaint I have regarding this particular trade is what it collects. Since it’s only a four issue arc, the trade is padded with the first issue of the A-Force mini-series and the issue of the Avengers that introduced the Lady Liberators. The inclusion of these issues is unnecessary and seems like Marvel’s way of justifying charging people $17.99 (and a whopping $23.99 Canadian) for this trade. You’re only getting four new issues! Given its cancellation, they would have been better off waiting to collect issues 5-7 with this set.

RATING: B+

Review: A-Force - Warzones

On the idyllic island of Arcadia, She-Hulk governs as the Baroness and leader of the elite A-Force. When one of the members of A-Force is banished for breaking the rules of the island, She-Hulk and the others launch a mission to bring her back. However, they soon discover that there is a traitor in their midst and must force them out before any further damage can be caused.

A-Force: Warzones collects the five issue mini-series A-Force, written by G. Willow Wilson and Marguerite Bennett with art by Jorge Molina.

Despite the fact that there are so many strong heroines in the Marvel Universe, very few series have been created featuring an all-female team à la Birds of Prey. There was the mini-series Marvel Divas and its thematic sequel Heralds, as well as the female-led X-Men. However, such Marvel releases are hard to keep in publication and even titles starring singular heroines are often swiftly cancelled. A-Force was originally published as a tie-in mini-series to Secret Wars, becoming a teaser for the subsequent ongoing series that debuted in January of 2016. Writers G. Willow Wilson and Marguerite Bennett used this opportunity to throw as many heroines into one book as possible and create a fascinating one-off storyline featuring characters that otherwise get sidelined during major events. It’s a fun, breezy read that emphasizes sisterhood and the power of female friendship.

When reading A-Force, it’s hard not to feel like it’s actually a Wonder Woman story that was re-purposed using Marvel heroines instead. Arcadia is envisioned as a “feminist paradise” by Wilson, which means that it seems like it was created to be Marvel’s version of Themyscira. We see Loki positioned in a role that’s very similar to Circe’s and the Thor brigade is certainly very Amazonian as well. She-Hulk is also devoid of much of her more defining characteristics and instead comes across as a green-skinned Wonder Woman, especially in her role as a ruler and leader. Of course, I can’t blame Wilson and Bennett for knowingly or unknowingly borrowing elements from the wonderful world of Wonder Woman. She is the best fictional heroine and her segment of the DC Universe remains vastly underrated.

I love the conceptualization of this mini-series and really like the cast that Wilson and Bennett use throughout. There are a lot of great cameos, but much of the focus is placed on She-Hulk, Nico Minoru and newcomer Singularity. The latter two are especially well-written and I find Singularity to be quite a scene-stealer. As a massive Dazzler fan, I was pleased to see her utilized as one of the main members of A-Force. However, the writers never really bothered to develop much of a personality for her beyond the somewhat tired “mutant disco queen” role everyone seems to tote out when she makes an appearance. Similarly, Captain Marvel goes woefully underused and Medusa has only one defining moment in the entire series. Even still, I have to give it to the writers for chanelling into the key ingredient that made Birds of Prey such a beloved series for DC Comics – friendship. There’s an electric chemistry that exists between all characters. We’re seeing them not only as comrades in arms, but also as friends and companions. This sense of familiarity between them is often lacking from most mainstream comics, where it seems like most teams can only ever have a maximum of one or two women on it. So where Wilson and Bennett stumble in the character development department, they almost make up for it with character interaction.

Though I hate to admit it, Wilson and Bennett’s work is all but overshadowed by Jorge Molina’s gorgeous artwork. The characters are so vibrant that they practically jump off the page. Everything from the expressions (especially Singularity’s) to the hair is done so impeccably well that I was left staring at the images long after I’d finished reading the words on the pages. In fact, the last time I remember Dazzler looking so beautiful was when Sana Takeda drew her for an appearance during Curse of the Mutants.

A-Force: Warzones is an enjoyable read featuring just about every Marvel heroine you can imagine. It’s a treat to fans of these characters and it’s entertaining. I also love the themes it presents and the overall chemistry between the characters. Most importantly, it sets the groundwork for the ongoing series that spun out of Secret Wars, thus proving that an all-female team of Avengers can and does work. At the same time, A-Force is fairly disposable as a one-off mini-series and lacks depth in its portrayal of many of its characters. It’s trying to capture the magic of Birds of Prey, but falls short of its target.

RATING: B