Marvels: Eye of the Camera
Busiek and Alex Ross’ original Marvels has become a modern classic of superhero comics since 1994, and this direct sequel continues news photographer Phil Sheldon’s tour of Marvel history. As he observes the arrival of the vigilante Punisher, growing mutant (i.e., race) hatred targeting the X-Men, and a general mistrust of the selfless heroes he has always admired, the aging newshound sees the world he knew slowly being encompassed by a darker, harsher attitude. The heroes are seldom more than glimpsed at a distance here even as their influence inadvertently rocks the world. Anacleto’s painterly strokes echo the unfortunately absent work of Ross and ground the proceedings with a sense of realism, but it is Busiek, playing to the same strengths on display in his award-winning Astro City, who sells the human story on the outer edge of the heroics. A family man struggling to leave an adequate legacy in the face of terminal cancer, Sheldon’s quiet, simply human doggedness and courage help bring his story to an emotional humdinger of a close. --Jesse Karp