As the Marvel Universe continues to deal with the second Civil War, which is still a few months from completion, today sees the release of the first issue detailing a new team of super heroes – the Champions.
There have been previous iterations of the Champions before, but this new version features the young heroes of the Marvel U, all of whom are takes on their legendary, more established counterparts. Spider-Man is here, but he’s Miles Morales. Ms. Marvel is Kamala Khan, while Nova is the young Sam Alexander. The Champions has a Vision, but not thee Vision. Instead, it’s his daughter Viz. The team is rounded out my the totally awesome Hulk, otherwise known as Amadeus Cho, the eighth smartest person in the world.
While all has yet to be revealed about the course of the second Civil War, this first issue makes it abundantly clear that the world in which the Avengers live in are angry at how heroes operate. Written by veteran scribe Mark Waid and illustrated by the always impeccable Humberto Ramos, Champions #1 is a quick and easy read that puts an clear division between the older heroes way of doing things versus a younger generations view on how to be a hero. Helping doesn’t mean simply winning a battle – for this group it means sticking around after the fight, to help in the clean-up and the repercussions. These youngster are looking to be accountable. Perhaps most exciting about the issue is just how diverse the cast of characters is, and how beautifully and quickly the Champions meld together.
Champions #1 is out today, and for fans of classic comic book teams, it may very well prove to be the beginning of a fun adventure.
