Present Books Supposing The Death of Captain Marvel (Marvel Graphic Novel #1)
| Original Title: | The Death of Captain Marvel |
| ISBN: | 0785100407 (ISBN13: 9780785100409) |
| Edition Language: | English |
| Series: | Marvel Graphic Novel #1 |
| Characters: | Captain Marvel (Mar-Vell) |
Jim Starlin
Paperback | Pages: 64 pages Rating: 4.19 | 1215 Users | 95 Reviews
List Epithetical Books The Death of Captain Marvel (Marvel Graphic Novel #1)
| Title | : | The Death of Captain Marvel (Marvel Graphic Novel #1) |
| Author | : | Jim Starlin |
| Book Format | : | Paperback |
| Book Edition | : | Anniversary Edition |
| Pages | : | Pages: 64 pages |
| Published | : | September 1st 1994 by Marvel Comics Group (first published April 1982) |
| Categories | : | Sequential Art. Comics. Graphic Novels. Superheroes. Marvel. Comic Book |
Narrative To Books The Death of Captain Marvel (Marvel Graphic Novel #1)
As far as I’m concerned, Jim Starlin never has to pay for a drink again for architecting what was, for my money, the first really great (and still one of the all-time best) crossover event comics in Infinity Gauntlet, a story from which the moderately fiscally successful Avengers cinematic franchise has mined more than a few plot nuggets.I’ve been on something of a Starlin kick lately, consuming a bunch of his mid-80s Batman work, and it occurred to me that though I’ve been meaning to read it for literally decades, I’ve never gotten around to The Death of Captain Marvel. So, I finally read it. To quote the inimitable Cheech Marin in Ghostbusters 2 when he witnessed the ghost of the Titanic (and its dead passengers) arrive in New York, “Well…better late than never.”
This is intended to be a powerful, emotional story, one that pays homage to a falling (and ultimately fallen) hero, one felled not by villainous laser blasts or mighty fist blows, but, rather, and unusually for comics, the ravages of cancer. And I’m sure it would have been a powerful, emotional story…if I had ever really read Captain Marvel comics.
(One note: this is NOT the Carol Danvers Captain Marvel of more recent fame; this is the original Captain Marvel, a Kree defector who chose to save Earth rather than helping his people destroy it.)
All comics require a willing suspension of disbelief, but never more so than when they address real-world issues. To Starlin’s credit, rather than sidestepping or glossing over it, he drives straight at the obvious question of why the greatest minds on the planet—whose genius seems to surpass even that of our own Einsteins and Hawkings—aided by futuristic alien technology, no less, can’t figure out a way to cure Marvel or, at the very least buy him more time.
(I recall a similarly uncomfortable question arising when Marvel, with its heart squarely in the right place, tried to wrestle with 9/11, because superheroes stopping bad things from happening in New York is a daily occurrence in the Marvel U, so it seemed strange that they couldn’t stop a couple of non-superpowered fanatics from crashing planes into buildings, or at least have contained the damage. Then again despite heroes’ best efforts, it seems like there’s a 9/11-level event happening in New York every month in Marvel U, somewhat blunting the emotional impact of each event. So, when they attempted to show the raw emotion the heroes felt that day, a day that they failed and could do nothing but mourn alongside the rest of the country, it felt odd, though J. Michael Straczynski handled the story beautifully.)
Starlin’s rationale is that the nega bands that give Marvel his miraculous powers and have for so long kept the cancer at bay, combined with his Kree physiology, thwart all scientific and magical attempts to cure the disease. Why not remove the nega bands, then? Well, dummy, because those are the only thing keeping him alive, and the moment they come off, he’s deader than Rebecca Black’s pop idol aspirations.
In addition to Starlin’s titular (heh heh…I said “titular”) tale, this collection contains Captain Marvel’s first appearance (a typical Stan Lee joint, though heavier on the repetitive exposition and ham-handed character development than Stan’s much more stellar work on Spidey, Doc Strange, X-Men, etc.) and a couple of other stories, including the one that exposed Marvel to the radiation that ultimately caused his cancer. It’s…weird.
Even with those for context, I felt about as emotional as I might watching the sad sack patient of the week on Grey’s Anatomy flatline while an earnest ballad by The Fray crescendos in the background for the 714th time in its one billion-episode run. I wanted to feel the pain of Rick Jones and an all-star cast of Marvel heroes, but having never really seen ol’ Marv in action, I struggled to feel the loss with them. It was like walking in on someone else’s grandma’s funeral.
Starlin is almost always worth a read, and that’s the case here—those who were longtime Captain Marvel fans will undoubtedly be deeply affected, and others will appreciate this somber approach to a different kind of story.
Rating Epithetical Books The Death of Captain Marvel (Marvel Graphic Novel #1)
Ratings: 4.19 From 1215 Users | 95 ReviewsCrit Epithetical Books The Death of Captain Marvel (Marvel Graphic Novel #1)
Still incredible and heart breaking after all these yearsI read this in my teen years and as always you expect a hero to come back. This one didn't and after all these years Marvel has not brought him back. One of the best comic stories and in the top tenA very touching and human story, that unfortunately too many people have to face in their own lives. Although dead is never really dead in comics, this story helps show that one can either acquiesce or rage against the end. The way Mar-Vel's chose to confront his end further demonstrated why he was one of the finest heroes in the early Marvel Universe.
One of my all time favourites!Loved this as a kid. Loved it with every single one of my re-reads through the years.You like cosmic stuff? It's a MUST!You like Captain Marvel? It's a MUST!You like Starlin? DUH!It's about the life and times of Mar-Vell. And of course the death of Captain Marvel as well.Really miss Mar-Vell... wish they'd bring him back, yeah Carol is great and all, but I miss him and always wanted him to be back. I loved every single issue of his when I was a kid and re-reading
When I first read this in 1982, I had no idea that they were reprints, so they were new to me.Some of Marr-vell's friends and a couple of his enemies show up to pay their respects to a dying Super-Hero struck with cancer.Now, this was back in the day where when an hero (or more likely one of his supporting cast) died, they stayed that way... well for a least a while, unlike in these days, when they die and are back in action a couple of months later in a big "Ressurection" story. So yeah, I had
Um.this comic is a bit like a lifetime movie, a sparse plot, plenty of sappy moments, weepy characters, and someone dies.of cancer. Pretty much nothing happens in this story beyond the death of Captain Marvel.which doesnt come as much of a surprise SINCE IT IS THE TITLE OF THE BOOK! The only real redeeming quality is the all-star appearances and the great art which really go hand in hand. The full page spreads of a multitude of famous faces are beautiful.
As far as Im concerned, Jim Starlin never has to pay for a drink again for architecting what was, for my money, the first really great (and still one of the all-time best) crossover event comics in Infinity Gauntlet, a story from which the moderately fiscally successful Avengers cinematic franchise has mined more than a few plot nuggets. Ive been on something of a Starlin kick lately, consuming a bunch of his mid-80s Batman work, and it occurred to me that though Ive been meaning to read it for
Published in 1982 this book made the comic book world almost completely turn in to a crying mess as one of the greatest heroes of the Marvel universe died of cancer. I am still in shock to this day that they have not brought him back. I think the book is one of the best out there if you know what you want.
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