Review: Infinity Gauntlet

Quick Summary

Pros: The main narrative is compelling and gets even more compelling as it progresses. The characters are all great and some have specific moments that allow them to shine. The fighting is exciting and often creative. The artwork looks beautiful and works well with the story being told.

Cons: Some smaller story elements feel unnecessary and distract from the main story being told.

Overall: This is a memorable comic book event that easily holds up to a more modern read. The story that unfolds here is interesting and exciting, from the first chapter to the last. Plus, it is backed up by a few standout moments, some great artwork, and continuously captivating writing. Anyone interested in seeing one of Thanos’ most significant appearances, witnessing a new era in Marvel’s cosmic storyline, or just reading a good, classic comic should consider checking this one out.

Story

Infinity Gauntlet is one of the most well-known comic book events out there. This climactic battle between the Mad Titan, Thanos, and the universe’s multitude of heroes is a large-scale and memorable encounter. It has also bled into mainstream pop culture through the massive success of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. However, is this still a worthwhile event to read from a modern standpoint?

The answer is: of course. Infinity Gauntlet, by Jim Starlin, is a wonderful comic book event that delivers on a number of fronts. It has a compelling narrative, with twists and turns that may be completely unexpected by readers with a more cursory knowledge of the event. It also has great characters, as Thanos and Adam Warlock take center stage but are complemented by the performances of other characters, like Captain America. It also has action scenes that are just plain-old fun and offer up plenty of excitement. The event is not perfect, as there are a few story elements that end up distracting from the appeal of the main narrative. However, the vast majority of this book is great and is definitely well-worth a read.

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Infinity Gauntlet primarily centers itself around a compelling narrative about Thanos’ attempt to rule the universe and the sum total of the universe’s heroes’ attempt to stop him. What makes this narrative so compelling is the way it is approached. The entire time, the reader is reminded that Thanos is essentially all-powerful but the reader is also constantly reminded that Adam Warlock has some plan for dealing with this. These two pieces of knowledge conflict with one another and make it so that the flow of this narrative is hard to guess, which turns the resolution of this conflict into a compelling mystery.

Then, expectations are twisted as Nebula gets control of the Gauntlet. This unexpected surprise forces Thanos to team-up with people who were his adversaries just minutes ago. It is a solid twist that leads the volume into an equally solid conclusion.

Infinity Gauntlet‘s main narrative also works as a tremendous showcase for its main characters. Readers see that Thanos is willing to do anything for Death but also see that his self-destructive tendencies betray his own goals. They also see Adam Warlock’s new approach to reality, which is focused on achieving results and less focused on weighing emotions and morality. Meanwhile, a triumphant moment of defiance from Captain America and Nebula adds a lot to these characters’ personalities.

It also helps that the action contained within this narrative is just plain fun. I am not typically a fan of comic book fights where the result of the fight is pretty much a foregone conclusion, but the way it is written here is excellent. Starlin describes creative battles with narration that emphasizes their importance. They contain moments where individual efforts are praised, like Captain America’s ability to stand up to Thanos, and where the fight erupts into something far larger, like the clash between Thanos and the cosmic entities. It makes for a great series of encounters that keep things exciting as the narrative progresses.

Despite the volume’s many successes, there are some problems here and there. I found the first few chapters to be rather slow, as the volume spends just a little too much time describing what is happening on Earth. These portions of the read feel a bit inconsequential, as the reader is aware that almost all the damage on Earth is going to be undone at some point during this event. In addition, the portions of the read focusing on Gamora and Pip felt unnecessary and added little to the reading experience. These extra story elements are not bad but end up being a little distracting from the appeal of the main narrative.

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Art

The artwork in Infinity Gauntlet looks beautiful throughout the volume, especially in its opening half. In these chapters, George Perez does some amazing work. He is able to accurately depict a vast array of Marvel characters and bring them together in a way that looks as exciting as it should. Meanwhile, a high level of creativity is expressed in the book’s cosmic scenes, making the objects and locations from these scenes look fresh and interesting. On top of all of this, the pages are laid out well and the panel designs are also creative. Later on, when Ron Lim takes over on art, the quality of the visuals drops slightly but for the most part retains most of the same positive features. Characters and locations still retain their appealing depictions and a high level of creativity is still present. Overall, the visuals in this book are very appealing and make this a more enjoyable reading experience.

Continuity

Infinity Gauntlet is an event extending from issues of the Silver Surfer series and from the two issues of Thanos Quest. The vast majority of these issues are collected within Silver Surfer Epic Collection: Thanos Quest (Review).

This event has a number of tie-ins relating back to it. These tie-ins are explained in our “Infinity Gauntlet Reading Order“.

The immediate aftermath of Infinity Gauntlet is felt most directly through the Warlock and the Infinity Watch series. In addition, Infinity War (Review) (Reading Order) is the sequel to this event.

This event is also a part of the “Infinity Trilogy” series of events. See our reading order for the trilogy here.

This volume also makes references to other comic books, detailed below:

• Adam Warlock “died” back in Marvel Two-In-One Annual #2, collected in Marvel Masterworks: Adam Warlock Vol. 2 (Review) or in Marvel Masterworks: Avengers Vol. 17 (Review).
• The “coming of the Beyonder” is mentioned. This is a reference to the Secret Wars (Review) (Reading Order) event.
• Thanos tried to take over the universe two times before. The first was in across the “Thanos War” event (Reading Order). The second was across Avengers Annual #7 and Marvel Two-In-One Annual #2, collected in Marvel Masterworks: Adam Warlock Vol. 2 (Review) or in Marvel Masterworks: Avengers Vol. 17 (Review).