Agents of Atlas appreciation 2019

[Hypestyle]

will there be an animated DVD? I hope so. that could be fun.

[Dylan Davison]

Silk's definitely heterosexual, yes, as while the Peter thing was just due to pheromones, she has had another boyfriend.

I think it'll be Aero/Wave, and possibly set up in Aero's solo book.

Well she could be bi, or like, maybe the thing with Peter made her think she had to be straight? I don't know, I just want Luna to be gay haha.

[Lonewolf36]

Issue #3 another Asian character makes their way into the Marvel Universe mainstream.
spoilers:

Codec from Marvel Future Avengers Japanese Anime makes an appearance as leader of the Future Avengers which means it's likely Future Avengers' Charade, Hurricane and Twister will be coming up as well

end of spoilers

[baltiroo]

I am really loving this book! I'm excited to pick up the new solos rolling out of this, plus the exciting news that there is another Agents of Atlas mini coming soon! Yay

[Digifiend]

Issue #3 another Asian character makes their way into the Marvel Universe mainstream.
spoilers:

Codec from Marvel Future Avengers Japanese Anime makes an appearance as leader of the Future Avengers which means it's likely Future Avengers' Charade, Hurricane and Twister will be coming up as well

end of spoilers

Good grief. spoilers:

That almost certainly means that Future WILL replace the cancelled Assemble! No excuse not to if they've introduced the cast in the comics.

end of spoilers

[Tien Long]

Issue #3 another Asian character makes their way into the Marvel Universe mainstream.
spoilers:

Codec from Marvel Future Avengers Japanese Anime makes an appearance as leader of the Future Avengers which means it's likely Future Avengers' Charade, Hurricane and Twister will be coming up as well

end of spoilers

Interesting. Didn't know about these characters before. But I'm glad to see that part of Asia represented along with the other guest stars.

As for me, it was another solid issue. There were a ton of great moments, (especially with Shang-Chi). Characterization is slow, but it's there. Plus, the art is always appreciated. Whether it's a big fight or a simple moment, Gang does the art well.

Here are my more in-depth thoughts:

spoilers:

- I was in complete shock seeing Shang-Chi pull off the one-inch punch. I literally OMG'd when he pulled it off against Sword Master. I was even more OMG when he pulled it off against Sun Wukong. Indeed, that scene gave me some pause. Sun Wukong is supposed to be the greatest fighter in Chinese mythology. He's fought demons, monsters, gods, immortals, and so on. Shang shouldn't be doing a one-inch punch on Sun Wukong, Sun Wukong should be doing a nanometer punch on Shang! But, I wasn't offended by it. Shang may be that damn good as a martial artist. Hence why he's training the Agents. Sun Wukong could be open to new techniques as well. Finally, it was great to see the deep meaning in Shang's words. Him telling Sword Master to learn how to use a sword could mean a lot of things. Still, I was a little taken aback on how Sword Master addressed Shang. Uncle Shang? I don't think there's TOO much of an age difference between the two. At the very least, it should have been "Big Brother Shang." But okay, it could still work. - Speaking of Sun Wukong, the cameos from the other Asian heroes was so appreciated. Red Feather from the Triumph Division, Sun Wukong from The Ascendant, Codec from the Future Avengers, it felt cool to see the rest of the Asian Marvel heroes play a role. I disliked Marvel's Sun Wukong for a while, but here, I'm digging him. He still has that irreverent personality. - We're starting to see the characters' personalities and roles. Jimmy, White Fox, and Amadeus are the planners. Aero, Wave, and Pele are the heavy-hitters. Sword Master, Shang, Silk, Crescent and Io are the street level's. Overall, there seems to be this underdog quality with the group. But somehow, some way, through strategy and usage of resources, they're fighting back against Sindr. - Gang's art really shines, especially in the intimate moments. Again, Pak has food as a means of expression. That big Spam meal was excellent (though I'm not too sure how Chinese respond to Spam. Personally, ugh, you better fried that stuff pretty damn well before I eat it ). Reminded me of the university canteens I ate at when I studied in Beijing, but with a superhero twist.

end of spoilers

SO overall, a great issue. Looking forward to the final chapter!

[Beetle]

spoilers:

I don't think Sun Wukong is the actual Monkey King from Chinese mythology. iirc he was a Chinese gangster who tried to steal the original's staff, and the mythological one let him take it and some of his powers but the gangster ended up being sent to the Eighth Capital City of Heaven (which was basically their hell) until he was released

end of spoilers

[Tien Long]

spoilers:

I don't think Sun Wukong is the actual Monkey King from Chinese mythology. iirc he was a Chinese gangster who tried to steal the original's staff, and the mythological one let him take it and some of his powers but the gangster ended up being sent to the Eighth Capital City of Heaven (which was basically their hell) until he was released

end of spoilers

Got it bro. Thanks for the info!

[cranger]

I enjoyed it. Was definitely not the mess that issue #2 was. It just needed some more story to it, not plot but character focus. As someone who has no idea who all these new characters are, they either needed more involved interactions or some sort of narration to let the reader get to know them more as there were several feats that whatever they were did not get portrayed well.

[mugiwara]

Kudos to Pak for not ignoring the previous asian super teams and even using them.
Their absence was my major issue with AoA. Nom I'm happy.

I just don't get why Silk and Fox laugh at Luna Snow's terrible puns. Maybe it's funnier in korean?

[Ravin' Ray]

That scene is getting so much talk and Pak started a thread on Twitter (with the actual panel):

https://twitter.com/gregpak/status/1136416353441779713

I read the issue over dinner at a coffee and tea café last night and had to tweet to him when I saw what Wave had. I had difficulty not yelling out loud because for me it was a very very good read.

[U.N. Owen]

I just don't get why Silk and Fox laugh at Luna Snow's terrible puns. Maybe it's funnier in korean?

I think it's just the sheer difference in cultural humor. I'm not Korean, but I am Chinese. Western humor tends to be more witty and quippy. Asian human tends to be a bit more on the wordplay side of things. Don't know if that was Pak's intention or not.

[Tien Long]

I enjoyed it. Was definitely not the mess that issue #2 was. It just needed some more story to it, not plot but character focus. As someone who has no idea who all these new characters are, they either needed more involved interactions or some sort of narration to let the reader get to know them more as there were several feats that whatever they were did not get portrayed well.

I understand. It feels like each character is somewhat interchangeable, right? For me, I contextualize it in the fact that it's an emergency and everyone is in emergency mode. I like what I'm seeing, that Asians are being depicted as heroes and want to defend, but that only goes so far. Still, there is characterization, but it's slow. It's revealed in their actions and the art. For me, the biggest stand outs are Jimmy, White Fox, and Amadeus, since they seem to be taking the leadership roles. Pak even mentioned in an interview that Amadeus would be a focal point. Still, I can get some things. Shang is the calm and deep and Sword Master is impulsive. The rest, yeah, more characterization needs to be done.

That scene is getting so much talk and Pak started a thread on Twitter (with the actual panel):

https://twitter.com/gregpak/status/1136416353441779713

I read the issue over dinner at a coffee and tea café last night and had to tweet to him when I saw what Wave had. I had difficulty not yelling out loud because for me it was a very very good read.

Yeah, I checked Pak's Twitter. Wow, never realized how important Spam was in Asian culture. I knew it was important for Hawaiians, but not the rest of the Pacific countries. More power to Span getting the highlight, but again, Spam has to be fried up pretty well before I eat it. For me, there were a couple of food parts I liked. One, Shang taking out the bag of rice from underneath the cabinet. Done that (and spilled that) WAAAAYYY to many times. Also, I liked the fried eggs on rice. We had that a lot in Hong Kong.

*Edit: And just for the sake of posting, here is that Spam scene:

[Tien Long]

Some other interesting tidbits from Greg Pak's Twitter:

- Looks like another issue of Agents of Atlas has, once again, sold out!

https://twitter.com/gregpak/status/1136687780325666817

Starting to think that this is the breakout title of the whole War of Realms event!

- Really digging the preview he had with the upcoming Shang Chi and Sword Master series:
https://twitter.com/gregpak/status/1136416969576632320

We're seeing the student/mentor relationship develop already in Agents of Atlas.

[Lonewolf36]

Some other interesting tidbits from Greg Pak's Twitter:

- Looks like another issue of Agents of Atlas has, once again, sold out!

https://twitter.com/gregpak/status/1136687780325666817

Starting to think that this is the breakout title of the whole War of Realms event!

- Really digging the preview he had with the upcoming Shang Chi and Sword Master series:
https://twitter.com/gregpak/status/1136416969576632320

We're seeing the student/mentor relationship develop already in Agents of Atlas.

Hopefully after the next limited series this spins off into a full series.