Telling a complete, coherent story in a single page is an art form unto itself, and it goes without saying that some teams are more successful than others. The fundamental problem with Marvel Comics #1000 is that there isn't really a cohesive theme or focus over the course of 80 pages, 80 teams, and 80 stories. Some stories follow a set theme, with heroes like Hulk, Thing, and Daredevil responding to a faceless interviewer asking about what motivates them. Others are basically bland origin story re-tellings. A great many others simply seek to tell a fun, quick story in the limited space available.
The latter group tends to be what stands out the most. Some notable examples include Chip Zdarsky's silent Iron Man story, Gail Simone and David Baldeon's Deadpool romp, Joe Hill and Mike Allred's goofy Doctor Strange tale, and Jason Aaron and Goran Parlov's surprisingly touching Wolverine/Punisher team-up. With an unusual format like this, the goal should be nothing more or less than making the most of the single-page format, and those teams set the gold standard.
Writer Al Ewing is the closest thing this book has to a lead writer. Ewing pens roughly a dozen pages over the course of the issue, all of which combine to form a serialized tale about a new cosmic artifact called the Eternity Mask. The mystery Ewing builds is genuinely interesting. As in past Marvel projects, Ewing has a unique talent for finding clever connections among various disparate stories and building a more cohesive and interconnected universe. Even so, this story doesn't really benefit from the choppy way it's broken up and mixed together with so many other unrelated tales. With each page illustrated by a different artist, there's also little sense of visual continuity. It's hard not to wish Marvel had taken a different approach to this issue, with Ewing and a single artist tackling this Eternity Mask storyline and the other creative teams being left to their own devices.Every Major Comic Character Stan Lee Helped CreateEven with so many creators pitching in on this issue, it's difficult to ignore the fact that so many illustrious names from Marvel's past are missing. Erik Larsen and Rob Liefeld are basically the sole representatives for that crop of early '90s superstars who went on to found Image Comics. Also MIA are many of the big-name creators who helped redefine the voice of Marvel in the '00s – creators like Mark Millar, Brian Michael Bendis, Matt Fraction, Greg Rucka, and Ed Brubaker. To be fair, Bendis is currently locked down at DC, but there's an unavoidably hollow quality to an anniversary special that features no input from arguably the most important Marvel writer since Chris Claremont. And that's to say nothing of the relative lack of female creators.
Ultimately, the only real question is whether Marvel Comics #1000 is worth the $10 cover price. For veteran Marvel readers, the answer is probably yes. As disjointed and inconsistent as this book can be, the sheer variety in terms of characters, narrative styles, and creators makes for an enjoyable experience. But casual readers who aren't necessarily moved by seeing Ewing play connect the dots with Marvel lore will probably find their $10 better spent elsewhere.
It’s impossible not to be impressed with the sheer effort involved in bringing Marvel Comics #1000 to life. This issue manages to wrangle 80 different creative teams together and celebrate many seminal moments in Marvel history. Unfortunately, the quality of these individual stories varies wildly, and there’s no consistent theme tying everything together. Hardcore Marvel fans will find plenty to love within these 80 pages, but the $10 cover price may be a bit much for everyone else.
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