"Family"

Now that "Secret Invasion" has come to an end in many of the individual character books, writers can get back into further exploring each character as the next thematic thread line for Marvel's general direction brews. How much of a direct impact the coming "Dark Reign" will have over all of Marvel's books remains to be seen, but in the meantime there is a lot of room for some quality "crossover free" storytelling. Granted, I think "The Initiative" and "Secret Invasion" were built up and executed very well, I also like the way that books like Captain America, Moon Knight and the now cancelled Iron Man: Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. used such events to advance their own plots but not be overwhelmed by said events.

However, one shining gem in the plethora of Marvel titles, tie-in story or not, has been Ms. Marvel. For the past few issues, writer Brian Reed has been doing exceptional work portraying a more personal side to Ms. Marvel and her feelings towards the Skrulls as she proceeded to kick ass and kill them on the streets of New York City. I've done a lot of character study on Ms. Marvel over the summer, even going so far as to read her first appearances, but there's not a hell of a lot of material that covers her personal life or her family life. Brian Reed sets out to change that, starting with this issue as the next story-arc will take on a very "Green Lantern: Secret Origin" type story-line. Personally, I love that Brian Reed is going to delve into Ms. Marvel's past and her family relationship as well as her career as a secret agent and fighter pilot. The coming story-arc is character defining, and for this title, it's going to be ground-breaking and super-important. I personally believe that Brian Reed has made Ms. Marvel one of the most accessible and personable comics on the market. The character is easily likeable, and she's easy to read because Reed doesn't hide anything from the reader. Reed writes her in such a way where the reader knows everything that Ms. Marvel is feeling. Reed has an amazing way of depicting Ms. Marvel's life as a "superhero celebrity," and everything she goes through is kind of like "everyday problems."

With this in mind, Reed perfectly segues from "Secret Invasion" to the exploration into Ms. Marvel's past by bringing in her troubled family life. Opening with a letter from her brother, it's a plea for her to come visit her ailing father, and from the first turn of the cover, Reed lets the reader know this will be an emotional issue. It's a great transition, especially given the action-packed nature of the past few issues. While we no doubt see the personal tolls and emotional responses in Ms. Marvel's life, the pacing slows down and becomes a little more dramatic. This is the first step to opening up the opportunity for heavy character exploration and Reed begins to lay the groundwork.

What's key in this issue are the relationships Ms. Marvel has with her family members. She has a broken relationship with her mother, an uneasy relationship with her brother and a non-existent relationship with her father as he lies on his deathbed. Ms. Marvel, Carol, reluctantly goes home to see her father, and Reed slowly builds the tension between her and her mother until it finally boils over and her mother unleashes. But Carol doesn't open up to her mother, just reminds her about what happened with Rogue back in the day and goes about her business.

As she visits her father, Reed writes Carol's narration in such a way where I was able to pick out two meanings. On one hand, Carol feels nothing for her past; she bluntly states that as a point of fact. Much of Carol's parents' resentment towards her stems from the combat death of their oldest child and her decision to join the military in the days after. As a reader, I read how Carol felt, but there was an unwritten story going on beyond the panels. Carol seems as though she is struggling with her own conscience, trying to justify her life and the exclusion of her family. It is also here that Reed begins to plant the seeds for the coming "origin" story where he is to chronicle Carol's life before she got her super-powers. It's here we see snippets of fighter jets, Chinese villains and a secret mission with Wolverine. The things to come are very exciting, intriguing and definitely important for the further development of the character.

Reed expertly writes this issue, bringing a balance of emotion and foreshadowing both in the issue and for the coming story-arc. I personally was blown away by the emotional weight this issue brought to the table. The way Reed was able to use it as a set-up into the next arc, especially with the bizarre statement from Carol at the end, really has me interested in what's to come.

The artwork from Marcos Marz is actually pretty good, but after last month's ridiculously phenomenal art, I couldn't help but compare. However, Marz brings a strong level of consistency in the faces of each character, and he manages to convey the emotion that Reed is trying to express. I do think Marz's work would have benefitted from heavier inks, and perhaps a little more detail and depth to certain images, especially in the character's faces.

This is a great jumping on point for readers on the fence about Ms. Marvel. There's great insight to the character and the book's style as well as the beginnings of what should be a solid story-arc. There's great emotion and great writing in this issue with decent artwork that is a perfect follow-up to Ms. Marvel's very personal "Secret Invasion" issues.

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