NOVA #26 Review - Mania.com



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Info:

  • Title: Nova #26
  • Writers: Dan Abnett & Andy Lanning
  • Artist: Andrea Divito
  • Colorist: Bruno Hang
  • Letterer: VC’s Cory Petit
  • Cover Artist: Daniel Acuna
  • Publisher: Marvel Comics
  • Publication Date: June 24, 2009
  • Price: $2.99
  • Series:

NOVA #26 Review

"The best stories in the Marvel Universe are taking place off planet."

By Chad Derdowski     June 30, 2009
Source: Mania


NOVA #26 Review
© Mania

As the War of Kings rages on, Richard Rider once again finds himself as Nova Prime. Last issue, he managed to purge the Worldmind of the evil influence of Ego and rebooted the system. So now the Worldmind bears the likeness of former Nova Prime Ko-Rel.

Meanwhile, the rest of the Nova Corp, poorly-trained recruits sent to police the War of Kings by Ego, are getting their butts handed to them by the Shi’ar, the Inhumans and the Kree. They’re outgunned and outmanned. Oh, and Rich’s brother Robbie is missing in action. All in all, things aren’t looking so good for the Nova Corps.

 

The Good

Abnett and Lanning continue to write one hell of a space opera. We’re not even talking about war on a global scale; this is galactic. But it’s fairly easy to keep this sprawling story straight and not get too confused. Nova ties in nicely with War of Kings, but still stands on its own - it isn’t necessary that you’re following every title in the crossover in order to enjoy this book.

 

The Bad

So now the Worldmind is a sassy lady who likes to bust Rich’s balls at every opportunity? Color me unimpressed. After only one issue, the joke is already wearing a bit thin.

Speaking of personality, while Rich and his brother are fleshed-out characters, a lot of the background Nova Corpsmen are pretty bland. I know there’s a lot of characters to deal with on a regular basis, but it seems like most of them are either devoid of personality or have very basic personalities. (I guess that’s why they’re in the background, huh?)

 

The Bottom Line

Cover art to NOVA #26 by Daniel Acuna

It’s a solid issue that very effectively transitions from the “Worldmind is possessed by Ego” storyline to a “oh crap, what do we do now?” story. If you’ve been thinking about reading Nova, this might actually be a good place to start. Sure, you’re in the middle of a big crossover, but the recap pages at the beginning of the book are really well done and after an issue or two, you’ll be more-or-less up to speed. One of my favorite things about this book is how easy it was to jump into the story: another testament to the DnA writing team.

Once again, it proves that this isn’t a Marvel earth, it’s a Marvel Universe; and the best stories in that universe are taking place off-planet.

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COMMENTS AND RESPONSES

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Wiseguy 6/30/2009 6:32:11 AM

I'm loving this series as well as War of Kings and agree pretty much with everything you said except that maybe I'm a little more forgiving with the new Worldmind at least so far, it's early. And the corpsmen are just cannon fodder so far. I say this haven't only read to #25 since my copies take a little longer to get to me

 

ChadDerdowski 6/30/2009 9:43:58 AM

The beauty of this book is that all of my complaints are easily swept under the rug and forgotten about because the positives far outweigh the negatives. 

The Corpsmen are more-or-less cannon fodder, but there are a few regulars that keep popping up and when they do, it often feels like their word balloons are interchangable.  On one hand, the book is called NOVA, not Nova Corps, but if you're going to have an ensemble cast, it would be better to flesh 'em out a bit.

You're right, Wiseguy, it's early and the Worldmind thing might grow on me, but for now I'll just say that it isn't my cup of tea (and I'm not holding my breath).  It's more dissapointing to me because Abnett & Lanning have shown me just how funny they can be (see Guardians of the Galaxy) so when the humor doesn't work, it seems to stand out a bit more.

lister 6/30/2009 5:18:28 PM

One nice thing about War of Kings is that it has an ending coming up, something to look forward to. Dark Rayne just seems so open-ended. It's a little too big. Funny how WoK is galactic in scale, but I connect to it more intimately. So you're right when you say the best Marvel stories right now are taking place off in the stars (and in Hades).

Guardians was real good this week, too. But do they HAVE to mention that Phylla and Moonie are lez in every issue? And speaking of the gay, anyone else check out X-Factor this week? Rawr! :)

Wiseguy 7/1/2009 3:37:18 PM

One nice thing about War of Kings is that it has an ending coming up

lister, don't be so sure. I love the series but we know that closure is rarely the rule

lister 7/2/2009 3:30:05 AM

Really? 'Cause Annihilation Conquest had an ending and it was Abbnett/Lanning too. Yes, repurcussions were felt over several books (Guardians and Nova mostly), but there was an ending. Darque Rain has no end in sight.

ChadDerdowski 7/3/2009 8:14:30 AM

Yeah, one event always seems to lead to another event that starts before the last one ever got a chance to end.  The nice thing about Marvel's cosmic books is that all that Annihilation business did actually wrap up before WoK started.  I gotta give 'em credit for that.

I think that Dark Reign isn't really supposed to be an event as much as it's just the new status quo, right?  It does seem waaaaaay to open-ended, but if I'm understanding correctly, it isn't really supposed to have a proper ending.

But I wish they'd stop putting that damn Dark Reign banner on every single book.  I guess it sells comics though...

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