EMPYRE #2

 

The big thing I noticed with this book is that it’s only 20 pages long. And here I thought this was a “big” event comic book. Empyre #4 was $4.99…I know because I bought it the day it came out. Was this issue, #2, $4.99 for only 20 pages of art? I’m not sure, as I just downloaded it awhile back and can’t remember. And since this issue is only 20 pages, obviously not a lot happens. Captain Marvel dies…and comes back to life literally on the next page. Way to go, drama! The big bad in this series is the leader of the alien group the Cotati (yep, stupid name). His name is Quoi, and he can control plants. So he ends up sending these killer vines to Earth where they attack. The Avengers try to stop him but he teleports somewhere. And that’s about it. I noted while reviewing #1 that Empyre consists of 53 books (although I thought I had read somewhere that a few of them have been cancelled because of the pandemic). How is an evil plant guy enough story for 53 books? Granted, this is only #2 of #6…so maybe it gets bigger and better. If every issue is only 20 pages, though, I kind of doubt it. So far the Kree and the Skrulls haven’t really done too much. Maybe they’ll get more involved. As for the writing and art, it’s the same team from #1. I was kind of hoping Dan Slott would write this issue as he’s a better writer than Al Ewing, even though I was glad Slott was booted off The Amazing Spider-Man and I stopped reading Slott’s Fantastic Four after two or so issues. That tells you how much I like Al Ewing’s writing. This issue, and this series, is just super bland. There’s nothing remotely exciting or fun about it. I’m trying to think if any Marvel books are any good these days. Hickman’s X-Men is probably the only one that’s any good, and that’s lost a ton of steam since last summer when it started. Danny Coates, Marvel’s hot new writer, has been writing Venom and Thor lately and those are pretty good, although I have the last 3 issues of both stories still sitting on my Ipad…which means those books are so great I haven’t even bothered to read them in 3 months. Oh, well. 1/2*