CREDIT: Marvel
Rating: 3.5/5 – Generations Isn’t Required Reading.
By ComicSpectrum senior reviewer Shawn Hoklas.
I expected something different when Marvel first announced Generations. I thought it would be more of a ten part series with issues that tied into one another, bringing back the Marvel heroes that have been missing, like the Hulk and Iron Man, while moving us into the new era of Marvel that they’ve announced with all new series and “re-numbering”. So far after reading two issues, that’s not what it is at all. To be fair to Marvel though, those were my own expectations. Like the Hulk issue before it, Generations: Phoenix & Jean Grey teams up the old and the young Jen Grey in a stand alone story that although entertaining, doesn’t carry all that much impact or importance.
Writer Cullen Bunn tells the tale of a young Jean Grey meeting the older Jean Grey during the time she carried the Phoenix force. Their “team-up” takes them to a planet on the brink of destruction, by none other than world devourer himself, Galactus. There’s a particular scene that takes place within the battle between Phoenix and Galactus that rides the fence of being really goofy and really cool, but Bunn pulled it off effectively and because of it, made the fight that takes place for about a third of the book that much cooler. The art by R. B. Silva is strong throughout and the bright colors give the book plenty of life.
This meeting between younger and older Jean Grey takes a while to build up its momentum. Silva’s art makes the most of the downtime with plenty of panels and different page layouts that kept me entertained. Ultimately though, this is a $4.99 book so you have to decide if this is something that you really want to read. Is it entertaining? Yes. Is it required reading for X-Men fans or for people who just want to know what’s ahead for Marvel? I don’t think so. I enjoyed this issue, but so far after two of the Generations one-shots, I’m regretting the choice of pre-ordering them all. I may have been better off finding these in a bargain bin at an upcoming convention, I’m sure they’ll be in those bargain bins within the next year.
Reviewed by: Shawn Hoklas
(shawn@comicspectrum.com)
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