Review: Guardians 3000 Vol. 1- Time After Time
Quick Summary
Pros: The main storyline is interesting and has a compelling mystery. The characters are great and their interactions are fun. The story features a nice balance between complex cosmic concepts and straightforward superhero action.
Cons: Some aspects of the book’s central concept are handled in confusing ways.
Overall: This fresh, new take on classic characters ends up being as instantly likable as one could hope. It has fun bouts of action, a compelling mystery, a fun cast of characters, and a narrative that successfully digs into the cosmic side of the Marvel Universe. The entire adventure is fun and provides a great start to a series that has plenty of potential. Anyone interested in the classic Guardians or who enjoyed Abnett’s previous work on Marvel Cosmic should check this book out.
Story
Guardians 3000 Vol. 1: Time After Time, by Dan Abnett, is a great return to the complexity and charm of the cosmic Marvel Universe that Abnett worked on for years, prior to this comic’s release. The story here details an epic mission to save the universe from mysterious problems with time itself. Along the way, the Guardians showcase their ability to dispatch a variety of enemies and interact with one another in entertaining ways. This combination of factors makes this collection instantly endearing and may actually turn it into a more satisfying read than the mainstream Guardians of the Galaxy (Review) series from this same time period.
(spoilers start here)
The storyline in Time After Time is interesting from start to finish and follows a great cast of characters. It centers around an unknown problem with the timestream and the Guardians of the Galaxy’s attempt to fix this problem. This immediately gives readers a mystery to latch onto and gives the narrative a sense of urgency. This urgency is expanded by battles with random villains, adding some action and suspense into the mix. It also helps that most of the characters are entertaining and add a human element into the journey.
However, one of the best aspects of this volume is the way in which it explores a potential future for the cosmic side of the Marvel Universe. The characters and locations seen throughout this book are all familiar, yet different in ways that make them unique. This includes a reimagining of the controlling powers of the universe and the return of Star-Lord concepts that haven’t been featured in comics since the 70s. All of this helps the book feel fresh and imaginative, while also being accessible to all readers.
The only element of the book I didn’t care for was the way in which time alterations were handled. The first shift is obvious and is completely observed and acknowledged by Geena. However, subsequent shifts happen randomly and are only vaguely observed by Geena. The inconsistency causes a bit of confusion and makes it slightly harder to get on board with shifting timelines as a concept. Luckily, later portions of the book do not rely on this too heavily and, thus, it does not have a major impact on the story quality.
(spoilers end here)
Art
The artwork in Time After Time looks good throughout and is a solid complement to the story. Gerardo Sandoval’s work here is detailed and well laid out. This helps make the creative cosmic concepts that are introduced feel more special and significant. This is important because it turns the book into something unique, something that could only fit on the cosmic side of the Marvel Universe. Sandoval also draws characters with plenty of emotion, allowing personal stories to exist alongside the cosmic odyssey. There are a few moments where body proportions seem slightly off or facial expressions feel weird but these are few and far between. Overall, this is a good looking book with visuals that help tell the story.
Continuity
Guardians 3000 Vol. 1: Time After Time is effectively a standalone series that tells its own story. Technically, this story follows their last appearance, in Guardians of the Galaxy Classic: In the Year 3000 Vol. 3, but little reference is made to previous storylines.
The story here continues in Korvac Saga: Warzones!.
This volume also makes references to other comic books, detailed below:
- The Guardians of the Galaxy mention that they have met the Avengers in the past. This happened during The Korvac Saga.
- A problem with time facing the Guardians of the Galaxy was a concept previously visited in Guardians of the Galaxy by Abnett & Lanning: The Complete Collection Vol. 2 (Review).
- The design behind the Star-Lord in this volume is an homage to the original Star-Lord, from Star-Lord: Guardian of the Galaxy (Review).