After Avengers: Endgame, Marvel Studios launched a new era with the release of the MCU's Disney+ shows, which returned to the comics’ serialized roots. The reception varied, but series like Loki and WandaVision are beloved for their unique concepts and their high degree of care for each character and each arc. While Daredevil and the Punisher only appear as supporting characters in MCU movies, their own Disney+ shows give them enough screentime to rival or even surpass the Avengers themselves in depth and popularity.
As groundbreaking as the live-action movies and shows may be, however, the comics continue to be the source material that keeps the MCU alive and evolving.
Kurt Busiek and Yildiray Cinar's The Marvels Is A Quiet Masterpiece
The Marvels; Written By Kurt Busiek; Art By Yıldıray Çınar & Richard Isanove; Covers By Alex Ross
Penned by Thunderbolts co-creator Kurt Busiek and illustrated by X-Men Red artist Yıldıray Çınar, the twelve-issue miniseries The Marvels delivers a gorgeous panorama of the Marvel Universe that celebrates its vast scale across multiple decades, starting with a routine military operation in Southeast Asia. The Marvels continues through the perspective of an ordinary human tourist alongside obscure historical figures like the Black Marvel and fresh contemporary heroes like Aero. Busiek uses his encyclopedic knowledge of Marvel's expansive mythos to link multiple decades eras together, with a slow-burn mystery in the fictional nation of Siancong pulling together characters who never previously shared a single panel.
Unlike its eponymous MCU movie counterpart, The Marvels' team shines a spotlight on the quiet spaces in between major Marvel crossovers and focuses on how regular civilians and obscure characters perceive a sky filled with gods. Çınar’s clean line art complements The Marvels' patient tone, as it renders highly detailed metropolitan landscapes and vintage military gear with equal care. Although not as widely known as Kurt Busiek and Alex Ross' 1994 masterpiece Marvels, The Marvels is also a love letter to continuity itself, treating the long history of the Marvel Universe as a grounded playground where every minor choice is just as important as the world-changing events happening in the background.
The Marvels Features Several Overlooked Marvel Characters
Several of the new and minor characters introduced in The Marvels have yet to return in major roles in the Marvel Universe's main continuity despite the potential they showed in Kurt Busiek and Yıldıray Çınar's 2021 miniseries. Warbird III, Aarkus aka the Golden Age Vision, and Kevin Schumer were all depicted as intriguing figures who could bridge Marvel’s past and present, yet none have returned in meaningful ways since the series ended. Aero, who starred in her solo series in 2019, hasn’t achieved the same traction as contemporaries like Luna Snow, whose multimedia presence grew more rapidly.
Fortunately, there’s still time to correct this only a few years after the release of The Marvels. Warbird III, Aarkus, Aero, and Kevin Schumer can still return in anthology titles, team books, or as supporting cast in new flagship series. Bringing back The Marvels' breakout stars would honor Busiek and Çınar’s vision and help new audiences discover The Marvels' story and art. Just like Busiek and Ross' 1994 Marvels miniseries turned the human photographer Phil Sheldon into a rare yet memorable part of the Marvel Universe's mythology, The Marvels can still do the same to several overlooked characters if their 2021 appearances were reinforced.
Which Marvel Comics miniseries deserves more love?
The Marvels is available from Marvel Comics.
Release Date
May 4, 2012
Runtime
143 minutes
Producers
Avi Arad, Chris Brigham, Jon Favreau, Kevin Feige, Louis D'Esposito, Victoria Alonso, Jeremy Latcham
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Steve Rogers / Captain America
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English (US) ·