With a new Ant-Man and The Wasp movie on the way in just a few short weeks, it makes sense that the House of Ideas would want to release a new series featuring the film’s fantastic female lead; or, at least, the character who Evangeline Lilly’s character Hope Van Dyne takes her lead from.
Fashion designer, businesswoman, founding Avenger – Janet Van Dyne has worn many hats over the course of her super heroic career. But when an old enemy threatens Janet and her fellow Wasp, Nadia, seemingly against his will, the Van Dynes will have to confront the ghosts in their shared history to get to the bottom of the mystery.
Janet Van Dyne’s Wasp is a longtime stalwart of the Marvel Universe, one of the original members of the Avengers, and a character who has gone through numerous guises, teammates, and sizes. In Wasp #1, written by Al Ewing and illustrated by Kasia Nie, we find Janet and step-daughter Nadia take on a heavy-hitter super villain in Whirlwind, who is out to take down both Wasps at the behest at a ghost from Janet’s past.
Al Ewing has crafted a solid story in this first issue, with some interesting Janet Van Dyne backstory meshed with a fun extended battle between the Wasps and Whirlwind. The real star of the book, though, is the fantastic art of Kasia Nie, whose work to these eyes is a cross between Manga and Mike Allred (hopefully Kasia is good with that comparison). Nie delivers vivid and beautiful character moments and action that will keep your eyes lingering on the page.
The Wasp is a character who is always around, but not necessarily one that I’d immediately gravitate to a series where she’s the star. Wasp #1 changed that though, and I’ll keep on reading to see where this story.
