The New Champion of Shazam! #2 // Review
Mary was attending Vassar. Family tragedy has forced her to move back home to Philadelphia and go instead to the local community college. It’s a major obstacle to her success and the challenge of figuring out who exactly she is. She’s a smart kid, though. She’ll make it through. It’s not going to be easy, though, as she quickly discovers in The New Champion of Shazam! #2. Writer Josie Campbell continues to explore the life and adventure of Mary Marvel in another issue brought to the page by artist Evan “Doc” Shaner. Campbell and Shaner carefully balance the fantastic against a drama that is firmly rooted in compelling realism.
Fawcett Community College isn’t...all that bad. It’s nowhere near what Vassar is, but it’s not without its charm. Mary’s got a pretty cool professor for her Bio 101 course. She arrives late to her first class, and then...she has to run out way before the class even gets started. She will have to deal with a bit of advanced biology...hands-on as she faces a giant winged crocodile on I-95 by the Callowhill Street exit. The huge thing is making a colossal mess. So why is it asking Mary for help? And who are the mysterious figures who have shown up to deal with it?
There isn’t a whole lot of room to move around in a four-issue mini-series. Campbell reaches the end of the second issue with a well-crafted pacing. Campbell has also done an exceptionally good job of developing the ensemble in the first couple of issues. The little rabbit familiar that serves as a guide into the world of magic has developed the kind of charm that inspires some well-earned emotional investment. Campbell also gives Mary’s world an impressive amount of depth. The chapter begins with an old videotape promo for the adorably-named Fawcett Community College that serves as a dramatic contrast to where Mary was in the first issue.
Shaner’s detailed, straightforward approach to delivering the action is well-suited to Campbell’s writing. Shaner’s backgrounds all feel remarkably well-researched. The run-down community college in Philidelphia has a deeply immersive sense of atmosphere. A giant winged crocodile on I-95? Looks perfectly normal. Weird and fantastic but perfectly grounded in reality in a way that makes the drama of the story that much more immediate. The energy of the battle has an electrifying presence on the page as well. Shaner does a brilliant job with the kinetics of the action.
There are lots of little details that make this series feel special. The rabbit’s description of advanced tech as “mach and not-magic,” for example, has a concise idiosyncrasy about it that delivers a whole lot more about Mary and her world than most writers’ longer exposition usually manages. Mary’s personal journey feels very deep, even though she’s only been going through this particular journey for a couple of issues now. Campbell and company have made quite a lot out of 2 brief issues.
