Review: Infinity Watch Vol. 1
Quick Summary
Pros: The vast majority of this collection’s story arcs are highly entertaining. The fun antics and captivating character development surrounding the Infinity Watch is enjoyable to see play out. This volume heavily contributes to the appeal of the “Infinity Saga” trilogy of comic events. The majority of this collection’s artwork is appealing.
Cons: One of the smaller story arcs is not that entertaining. Some of the artwork is unappealing. This volume works as a companion to other events and, thus, does not read well on its own.
Overall: This volume is a solid collection of story arcs with some serious overall appeal. There are stories about action and suspense, stories about fun and frivolity, and stories that help develop this comic’s already enjoyable cast of characters. The volume also significantly contributes to the larger narrative progressing through Marvel’s cosmic series of events, from this time. Anyone looking to expand their enjoyment of the “Infinity Saga” or who likes the members of the Infinity Watch should not miss this volume.
Story
Infinity Watch Vol. 1, by Jim Starlin, is an awesome collection of stories centered around an awesome cast of characters. This group’s adventures are consistently exciting, as they dive into a variety of threats, but still find time for humor, as a few jokes and ridiculous situations keep things light. Their adventures also significantly develop the group and show how they progress from a ragtag team to something more significant. Readers should be aware that, despite the quality of this collection, it was not designed to stand on its own and only stands out as something truly worthwhile when paired with the Infinity Gauntlet (Review) (Reading Order), Infinity War (Review) (Reading Order), and Infinity Crusade (Review) events. However, when paired with these events it significantly contributes to Marvel’s cosmic narrative in a wonderful way.
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The core narrative within Infinity Watch Vol. 1 centers around a lovable band of misfits, the titular “Infinity Watch”. This group’s activities range from battling local threats, battling galactic threats, joking around with each other, fighting with each other, and generally developing as individuals and as members of a team. Their exploits are often serious but always manage to find at least a little time for levity and fun, which makes them a highly enjoyable team to watch.
About half of their exploits focus on matters directly related to the “Infinity Saga” trilogy of events. These plotlines explain what happened to the Infinity Gems after Infinity Gauntlet, show individual conflicts from Infinity War and Infinity Crusade, and generally reveal more background information about all of these events. In this way, they significantly expand of this era in Marvel’s cosmic history and are an amazing accompaniment to the events from this time period. In fact, I would consider most of these Infinity Watch issues to be required reading for anyone interested in diving into these events.
The other half of their exploits focus on individual plotlines surrounding the members of the Infinity Watch. Readers get to see the group establish a home on Earth, recruit a new and potentially dangerous member, and face a few quick threats. Readers also get to see Moondragon grow closer to her father, Gamora attempt to redefine her purpose in life, Drax reconnect with his past, and Adam struggle with a tumultuous array of emotions. By the end of this collection, it feels like the Infinity Watch has made some serious progress and development but is nowhere near where they need to be, leaving the door open for plenty of exploration in the next volume.
The only plotline that doesn’t match the generally high-quality narrative within Infinity Watch Vol. 1 is the Pip subplot. This subplot, which takes place during the Infinity Crusade event, has Pip vent his frustration against the world’s heroes and has him fantasize about a universe where he is the ultimate power. Though it is decent comic relief, it fits poorly into the overall narrative of this collection and into the Infinity Crusade event. It ends up sticking out like a sore thumb.
The only other problem with Infinity Watch Vol. 1 is that it does not stand well on its own. The chapters within this collection need to be read alongside the entire “Infinity Saga” of events in order to make sense. Though readers could still get some enjoyment from the independent narratives within this volume, this enjoyment pales in comparison to the enjoyment of reading this volume alongside the “Infinity Saga”.
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Art
The artwork in Infinity Watch Vol. 1 starts out very strong. Pencils from Angel Medina, Rick Leonardi, and Tom Raney are laid out well and are satisfyingly detailed. This produces pages where the flow of the narrative and the action within it work well and where the individual characters stand out in positive ways. These visuals also excel in depicting strange, imaginative, and cosmic creations, which often appear throughout this collection. In these ways, chapters like these also complement the visuals seen in the “Infinity Saga” series of events and, thus, further establish the thematic relevance between these connecting comics.
Unfortunately, in later chapters, the quality of the visuals drop in a few places. In these chapters, the art style shifts to one that feels more chaotic than normal and that distorts characters’ body proportions in weird ways. There are points where this style is appealing, such as in a significant battle involving Drax, but, in other places, it is visually unpleasant.
Continuity
Infinity Watch Vol. 1 is the first volume of the Warlock and the Infinity Watch series. However, the entire series is a spin-off from the aftermath of the Infinity Gauntlet (Review) (Reading Order) event and heavily references this event.
The story here continues in Infinity Watch Vol. 2 (Review).
This volume also makes references to other comic books, detailed below:
- Adam Warlock’s “birth” occurred in Fantastic Four #66-67, collected in Marvel Masterworks: Fantastic Four Vol. 7 (Review).
- His pursuit of Lady Sif and fight against Thor was shown in Thor #163-166 collected in Marvel Masterworks: The Mighty Thor Vol. 8 (Review).
- Adam Warlock’s encounter with the High-Evolutionary, his time on Counter-Earth, and his fight against the Magus are detailed across Marvel Masterworks: Adam Warlock Vol. 1 (Review) and Marvel Masterworks: Adam Warlock Vol. 2 (Review).
- The Thing’s role in the events on Counter-Earth is shown in Marvel Two-In-One #63.
- Warlock and the Infinity Watch #7-10 are tie-ins to the Infinity War (Review) event. See our “Infinity War Reading Order” to see how these tie-ins relate back to the main event. Nearly every issue after these tie-in issues references the events of Infinity War.
- Moondragon killed Drax back in Avengers #220, collected in Avengers: The Trial of Yellowjacket (Review).
- Warlock and the Infinity Watch #11 references a number of events from Moondragon’s life.
- She fought Iron Man back in Iron Man #54, collected in Marvel Masterworks: Iron Man Vol. 9.
- She helped Captain Marvel fight Thanos during the “Thanos War” (Reading Order).
- She left the Avengers when the team’s roster was cut in Avengers #181, collected in Marvel Masterworks: Avengers Vol. 18 (Review).
- She took over a world and fought the Avengers across Avengers #219-220, collected in Avengers: The Trial of Yellowjacket (Review).
- She joined the Defenders in Defenders #125, collected in Defenders Epic Collection: Ashes, Ashes… (Review).
- Warlock and the Infinity Watch #18-22 are tie-ins to the Infinity Crusade (Review) event. Our upcoming “Infinity Crusade Reading Order” to will show how tie-ins relate back to the main event.