A-Force #1 Review: Secret Wars Survivor

Going into A-Force #1, I had just one question: would it make sense?

Not the script, mind you, as G. Willow Wilson is a good enough writer to ensure that wasn’t a concern. I mean the concept of the book itself. A-Force worked within the framework of Secret Wars, where an all-female team of superheroes defending their own slice of Battleworld was just par for the course. But within the Marvel Universe, why would these particular women come together?

As it turns out, one thing A-Force #1 accomplishes with no problem is making sense. Wilson and her artistic collaborator Jorge Molina (with colors by Laura Martin) center the story on Singularity, a new character created for Secret Wars. Somehow, she’s survived the event and even remembers her teammates from Battleworld, though they don’t remember her because they aren’t the same versions of Captain Marvel, She-Hulk or Medusa she met there.

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Because comics! And while that kind of thing is no big deal for readers who are longtime superhero fans, one does get the impression that this might not be the best issue to share with people trying to get into the genre for the first time.

Despite that vibe, Wilson does a nice job making the tale all about the character interactions and personalities. Captain Marvel is cautious but brave, She-Hulk friendly but commanding, and Medusa slightly imperious when she arrives. All of them help put Singularity’s naivete and confusion in context, making the whole thing a very smooth read.

Molina’s pencils help with that as well, though he’s done no favors by the almost literally faceless enemy who show up. If a superhero team is only as entertaining as its villains, the rest of this arc better have some big surprises in store as it goes on.

That probably bothers me a little more than Nico Minoru and Dazzler not appearing, because in 21st Century team books, no one expects an entire team to be put together in a first issue, for better or for worse. I’m not convinced A-Force #1 is going to make fans rooting for the conceit fall in love with it at first sight, but an advanced state of like while hoping it develops into something more? Sure, I could see that.

SPOILERS PAST THIS POINT!

Three Things to Ponder

1. Is Singularity’s survival of Secret Wars going to be explained in the final issue of the event, or is that a tale that will be told in this series?
2. And on that note, might her memories of Battleworld turn out to be significant in terms of the overall Marvel Universe?
3. It’s pretty slick that the “AF” on the coffee mug could stand for both Alpha Flight and A-Force, no?

Next: Squadron Supreme #2 Review

Favorite Moment

Suffice it to say that Singularity’s “reunion” with Captain Marvel doesn’t go quite as she might have hoped. Leave it to Carol, though, to handle being surprise-hugged by a cosmic anomaly in female form with professionalism.