Review – NOVA #13.NOW! (Marvel)

Publisher: Marvel Comics
Writer: Gerry Duggan
Artist: Paco Medina, Juan Vlasco
Release Date: 19th February 2014

Nova is a fun book. I’m not even scared of that term becoming a ‘Nova review standard’, because honestly, there aren’t that many fun superhero books kicking around right now. The short arcs and various team-ups we have seen in this title are actually why I make a point of grabbing Nova as soon as it’s released. It manages to be a solid book without trying too hard to be clever.

With issue 13.NOW, we continue to get more of the same, but we also get to see Sam Alexander develop a little more, as he is beginning to realise, and learn from, his mistakes. The events of last month come back to bite him in the ass in the shape of Beta Ray Bill, and some fun times ensue when Sam mistakes him for an enemy.

Gerry Duggan is doing a great job taking over this title, and although Nova has seen a few writers in a fairly short time, it’s still as entertaining and accessible as it was at issue #1, and as the series has gone on, there has been no huge changes to the feel or dialogue, so kudos to Duggan for keeping the book fun instead of trying to do something completely different.

Huge credit also goes to Paco Medina. His artwork on the past few issues carries on from the great work of Ed Mcguinness in earlier arcs, and the book still looks fresh. his layouts mix things up just enough to keep every page interesting without feeling muddled. I did think, Beta Ray Bill’s face looked a little wonky in a few panels here, but that guy looks weird anyway, so it really isn’t a huge criticism.

As with any teen-hero Marvel book, you get the obligatory power/responsibility reference, and the high-school issues to try and keep the book accessible to its target audience, but it really wouldn’t be missed if those elements were removed and the book just focussed on Sam’s space adventures. It’s also handy that this series keeps itself fairly self-contained.

Nova #13.NOW looks great, provides a fairly accessible jump-on point, and sets up a new arc with an awesome supporting character. If you’re looking to add a superhero book to the pull-list, and you aren’t already reading Nova, then just get it bought already!