Ms. Marvel #29 (Secret Invasion) – Capsule Review

Brian Reed, (Writer) Adriana Melo, (Pencils) Mariah Benes, (Inks) Paulo Siquera, (Art Pgs. 11-16) and Chris Sotomayor (Colors)

You know what? I am really digging this new, more badass direction that the Ms. Marvel series has taken. Secret Invasion has given this book a much needed shot in the arm and now it ranks as one of my favorite reads every month. This latest issue is another round of Ms. Marvel Vs. Skrull action, but it’s hard to complain about the lack of true story progression when the writing is crisp and everything looks so nice.

Brian Reed wisely lets the visuals do most of the storytelling, but that doesn’t mean he simply sits on the sidelines. Ms. Marvel’s well written mindset/attitude is proven when Reed throws a nice curveball into the story that made me really look forward to what’s ahead. As for the artwork, Adriana Melo and her team do some outstanding work. Ms. Marvel looks great and the well coreographed action is surprisingly brutal. My only complaint is that Adriana couldn’t handle the whole book – leaving the rest to Paulo Siquera. While Siquera’s work is decent enough, the cartoony style just simply doesn’t work well within the context of the issue.

If the Black Panther tie-in hadn’t gotten off to such an incredibly entertaining start, Ms. Marvel #29 would easily be the best SI related story of the week. While it doesn’t add a whole lot of narrative to the Invasion story (though it might, given how it ends), it brings the goods in the action department. Well worth checking out. (Grade B+)

-Kyle Posluszny