Note: ANT-MAN #1 is on sale 1/7/15.
The Good
Let's be honest, not many people can or would say Ant-Man is their favorite superhero. This is something the book realizes. Ant-Man may not be the coolest concept for a superhero but Nick Spencer is going to make you care about the character.
Marvel always excelled at the idea of flawed heroes starting back in the 60s. Scott Lang barely has his act together. He's gone through some tough times despite trying to do his best. Luck just hasn't always been on his side. It's his traits that make him more of a human character. Being able to shrink down and control ants might not sound like the coolest thing but seeing Lang in action, you start to realize there could be something to a series focusing on Ant-Man.
Spencer does an excellent job introducing Lang and his complex past to new readers without drawing things out for older ones. I was personally thrilled to see mention of his time with the Future Foundation. The idea of Lang trying to make ends meet by finding a job as well as try to get visitation rights to see his daughter Cassie adds a different element to the regular superhero comic.
Ramon Rosanas’ art is a perfect fit. While Scott Lang has a deep history in comics, the art compliments the tone of the story in creating the feeling of a new story and world. We see other familiar characters that reminds us of the bigger world Ant-Man is part of but you can easily immerse yourself into this story and not worry about other titles. Readers of a certain other series should be especially happy to see one character that appears here.
The Bad
One of the fears I had going into this series was aspects of Scott Lang would be tweaked to accommodate the upcoming movie. Despite the brief recap on his life, there could be some confusion at the appearance of Cassie (who was dead) and her seeming younger than she was before. Her resurrection happened recently in he pages of AVENGERS WORLD #16. There are some changes to Cassie due to her return. Hopefully this will be addressed more but likely makes her fit what her movie counterpart may be like. It’s also a little strange that Scott was seen as still in a relationship with Darla Deering in that issue of AVENGERS WORLD but there’s no mention of her here despite the changes Scott makes in his life.
The Verdict
Get ready to be able to say you are now an Ant-Man fan. Nick Spencer is taking the (often) down-on-his-luck Scott Lang and showing us what he’s willing to do to be Ant-Man as well as a father. New and old fans can jump into this series that sets up Scott’s new direction and place in the Marvel Universe. While this series is rooted in the Marvel Universe, there is a nice distinct feel to the book making it accessible to all readers. Ramon Rosanas’ art is great at depicting both the human moments as well as the action sequences involving a guy that can shrink down and communicate with ants. You’ll be pleasANTly surprised by how much you’ll enjoy this book.
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