I picked up a small stack of these dinky comic paperbacks at a garage sale recently and only just got around to reading the explanation for the title, Marvel Adventures, on the back which turns out to be a line of books for younger readers. That explains a lot! This book is four issues of done-in-one stories featuring some of Marvel’s most famous teamed up with Marvel’s least famous characters having mini-adventures.
Paul “Bandette” Tobin is the writer and, having read his other recent work-for-hire books for Marvel and Dark Horse, he seems to be the go-to guy for writing light-hearted, jokey comics for younger readers and this one is no different. Spider-man, She-Hulk and Tigra go on a shopping spree and encounter The Leader (big green headed dude with a ‘tache) who’s using robotic animals to steal information from SHIELD; Hawkeye and Blonde Phantom stop some bank robbers claiming to have the real Bruce Banner hostage; Hulk and Tigra go to a Hollywood award show only to end up fighting Mysterio; and in the final story, Beast, Spider-Woman, and Giant Girl track down Hercules who’s on a mission to take down a secret Hydra HQ – and woo every attractive woman on the way!
It’s interesting to read some of the lesser-used Marvel characters in a comic, like Tigra and Blonde Phantom (literally a blonde woman in a red dress wearing an eye-mask! Her superpower? Um…), and there are some amusing moments like Mysterio throwing a hissy fit when he loses the Best Special Effects Award or Hercules using jewellery he picked up in bulk at a crafts fair to hit on the ladies. But… they’re very forgettable and disposable stories.
It’s nice to see the characters doing less-dramatic stories – every Marvel comic these days seems to involve the end of the world – and the writing is fine with decent characterisation. The art is nothing special but it’s not terrible either and suits this undemanding book. Maybe these comics are more effective on younger readers but for older readers like me they’re a bit too simplistic and throwaway to fully engage or leave much of an impression.
Marvel Universe Avengers: Spider-Man and the Avengers
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