Marvel 1602 by Neil Gaiman

​     It stands to mention I’m not a Marvel reader, I’m not a reader of traditional superhero comics in general. And while I’ve read about Marvel as a company and the creative minds behind it (Stan Lee and co.), Marvel Universe is known to me primarily through the seemingly endless procession of movies. With the notable exception of Jack Kirby’s Eternals saga, which was good corny fun.
    So this is to say I may not be the ideal audience for this book and this review should be considered accordingly. But then again the appeal of Gaiman writing this and taking it all the way back to 1602 was really exciting, so I figured I’d give it a try. And came away mostly disappointed.
      Since I appreciate historical fiction in general, that aspect of it was interesting enough. Staged in a tumultuous time in England during the transference of royal power from Elizabeth the I to James the VI, two very different rulers, two very different sets of rules. Much to navigate for the loyal subjects of various loyalties. And various abilities, enhanced and otherwise. And Gaiman weaved a number of well known Marvel characters into that complex tapestry fairly well, reimagining them as historical figures alongside the real historical figures, superpowered or not. So it’s interesting from that perspective and yet in the end underwhelmingly so.
     For the sheer geographical span of the story and the impressive navigation of both political and actual turbulent waters, one might have hoped for more…something. More emotional engagement? More of a wow?
    And granted some of it is on the artist who furnished the story with art as thoroughly decent as it is thoroughly bland. It’s very competent, but it’s just so…soulless somehow. It looks like a lot of other, lesser, comic books. The covers here are stunning, but those are done in a different style by different artist, you can read all about it in the supplemental materials. The actual art is just ok, the faces especially are so uninspired. Kind of like a cheaper video game graphics in that respect. Maybe I’m not explaining it right, but suffice it to say…there is a very, very generic quality to the art.
    It’s fine, it isn’t disappointing because I’ve had no expectations of the artist, what is disappointing though is the writing. If you didn’t know who the author was, you’d never would have guessed. The writing’s just as bland as the art. Technically proficient, perfectly decent, but flat, with nary a glimpse of Gaiman’s wild imagination or cleverness. Just the same convoluted narrative mess the movies provide without the visual feast and fun of the movies. And takes longer to get through, which considering the length of Marvel movies is no small thing.
    So yes, I’m kind of disappointed. Kind of expected something more…marvelous.