Classic Review: Marvel Masterworks- Adam Warlock Vol. 2
Quick Summary
Pros: The opening story arc is a wonderful cosmic odyssey that revives Warlock as a character. The following stories are also fun and unique. The closing chapters are fantastic and work well as a conclusion. The entire volume is filled with meaningful questions and interesting metaphor. The artwork looks great and enhances the story.
Cons: Some of the shorter stories aren’t that entertaining. There are places where storylines are hinted at but never developed.
Overall: This volume is an incredible example of Bronze Age storytelling and an entertaining collection overall. It rejuvenates Adam Warlock’s character, sends him on an epic adventure, and defines entirely new concepts within the Marvel Universe. All of this is further backed up by impressive visuals and minimal flaws. Anyone looking for the definitive take on Adam Warlock should read this volume.
Story
In Marvel Masterworks: Adam Warlock Vol. 2, writer Jim Starlin takes an overwhelmingly mediocre character and turns him into someone worth reading about. It starts by diving into the deep end of Marvel’s cosmic side, with a story rich in metaphor and philosophy. Then it goes on to continue Warlock’s journey through stories that vary in quality but still end up being worthwhile. Finally, it concludes with an arc that essentially continues Starlin’s work on Captain Marvel but does so in an entirely new and wonderfully satisfying context. In general, the entire trip through this volume is entertaining and only has a few places where it slips up.
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The first third of Adam Warlock Vol. 2 beings a epic cosmic odyssey that has Adam Warlock going up against the Magus, an evil version of Adam from a dark future. The Magus commands the Universal Church of Truth and is using their power to force his will upon the cosmos.
The conflict sparked by these opposing characters is incredible and takes a number of entertaining twist and turns. It starts out with Adam dodging death as he faces off against one of the Church’s leaders. Then, in an incredibly satisfying twist of fate, he is forced to team-up with Thanos in order to achieve the means necessary to defeat the Magus. From here, the Magus and the Universal Church are defeated, but Warlock is forced to sacrifice his own future in order to do so. The entire ordeal is a wonderfully entertaining, multi-part story arc that feels similar to the awesome work Jim Starlin has previously accomplished in Captain Marvel Vol. 3 (Review).
This story arc is also steeped in meaning. The majority of it is a condemnation of hypocritical religious people and the corruption that organized religion can bring about. Even for a religious person, these messages can resonate because they point out flaws that need to be fixed, rather than condemning religion in general. In addition, one of the chapters contains a satirical take on Marvel’s creative process at the time, which is simply interesting to see.
From here, a few chapters deal with shorter and more isolated conflicts. One is a pretty mediocre misadventure from Pip. This comedic interlude doesn’t fit in well with the rest of the narrative and, in general, I didn’t find the humor to be that effective. The “Star Thief” chapters are better but still aren’t as engaging as the rest of the volume manages to be.
Fortunately, there are a few solid moments to be found within these chapters. Adam Warlock’s struggle with defining morality is compelling and shines an interesting light on humanity. His physical struggle against the soul gem and against the Stranger also show his ingenuity and ability to handle a range of foes. Plus, many of these chapters help develop an upcoming conflict with Thanos.
This conflict plays out in the final two chapters of Adam Warlock Vol. 2. Thanos makes another attempt to destroy all life in the universe but is opposed by Adam Warlock, Captain Marvel, and the Avengers. It is an exciting battle and a worthwhile sequel to events that took place in Starlin’s previous epic, the “Thanos War” (Reading Order). These final chapters also end with a satisfying, positive note that allows Adam Warlock to move past his suffering and finally achieve some measure of peace.
The only serious problem with Adam Warlock Vol. 2 is that there are a few places where plotlines are hinted at but never developed. Drax the Destroyer is shown but never does anything of note, and it feels like Gamora’s arc was supposed to be more significant. These are likely problems related to the actual publishing of these comics and not the writing, but they still have a small negative impact on modern day readings.
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Art
The artwork in Adam Warlock Vol. 2 is consistently positive and really works with the style of the story being told here. The vast majority of the volume has Jim Starlin working on either pencils, layouts, or both. Starlin’s specific approach to page structure typically ends up being more compact and diverse than most comics from this era. This allows him to fit more dialogue, narration, or reactions into each page, allowing a single chapter to tell more of a story than it would typically be able to.
Jim Starlin and his artistic collaborators, including Steve Leialoha and Al Milgrom, are also able to produce visuals that wonderfully complement this volume’s subject material. First off, the change in Adam Warlock’s appearance is appreciated; it makes him feel less like a strange homage to the original Captain Marvel and more like a unique character in his own right. The entire volume then places him in cosmic landscapes that feel as far out as they need to. Skies packed full of stars, planets with strange architecture and wildlife, and creatively designed aliens ensure that this book is the cosmic epic it is supposed to be. In the end, the visuals here are impressive and make the reading experience even better.
Continuity
Marvel Masterworks: Adam Warlock Vol. 2 continues the story started in Marvel Masterworks: Adam Warlock Vol. 1 (Review).
Adam Warlock’s solo adventures end here. However, his story continues in Silver Surfer #46, collected in Silver Surfer Epic Collection: Thanos Quest.
This volume also makes references to other comic books, detailed below:
- Adam Warlock’s history is mentioned a number of times throughout this volume. This history includes:
- His “birth” in Fantastic Four #66-67, collected in Marvel Masterworks: Fantastic Four Vol. 7 (Review).
- His fight against Thor in Thor #163-166 collected in Marvel Masterworks: The Mighty Thor Vol. 8 (Review).
- Thanos’s last and only major appearance was in the “Thanos War” story arc, which is mentioned a number of times throughout this volume. The majority of this arc is collected in Marvel Masterworks: Captain Marvel Vol. 3 (Review) but the Avenger’s contribution to the War is shown in Avengers #125, collected in Marvel Masterworks: Avengers Vol. 13 (Review). See our “Thanos War Reading Order” for more details.
- Marvel Team-Up #55 directly follows the events of Marvel Team-Up #54.
- The Blue Area on the Moon was discovered back in Fantastic Four #13, collected in Marvel Masterworks: Fantastic Four Vol. 2 (Review).
- The Stranger’s story from Marvel Team-Up #55 continues in The Champions #12, collected in Marvel Masterworks: Champions Vol. 1.
- Starcore first began appearing in Avengers #102, collected in Marvel Masterworks: Avengers Vol. 11 (Review).
- Iron Man’s solo fight against Thanos took place in Iron Man #55, a part of the “Thanos War”, see our Reading Order for more information.
- In Avengers Annual #7, Iron Man makes a passing reference to fighting a Skrull fleet. This fight took place during the “Kree-Skrull War”. See our “Kree-Skrull War Reading Order” for more information about this war.