REVIEW: ‘Guardians Of The Galaxy,’ Issue #13

With the conclusion of the last arc, where the Guardians of the Galaxy defeated Zeus himself, Guardians Of The Galaxy #13 introduces a new age of heroes. Written by Al Ewing and published by Marvel Comics, with art by Juan Frigeri, colors by Federico Blee, and letters by Cory Petit, this week’s issue gives our superheroes a new look.

Guardians Of The Galaxy #13 sees our Guardians taking on a more professional superhero role. A portion of the team answers a distress signal from Emperor Hulking as the Progenitors attack his people. The other half is sent to find a survey team that has gone missing after discovering a new world. But both teams find themselves with more troubles than expected, and a new enemy is revealed that no one will see coming!

The Guardians take on a fresh look from new headquarters to new costumes to new teammates. They’re more organized than we’ve ever seen them before in this series. These misfits have become a true superhero team, and they appear to wear it well, surprisingly. And while this change might normally indicate more professionalism, don’t worry; the Guardians are still their snarky, playful selves. The writing never fails to upkeep the personalities we’ve come to know and love. With the combination of the likes of Rocket, Marvel Boy, and Quill, there’s plenty of fun dialogue.

The new teammates are introduced seamlessly, and they add to the team with both their interesting powers and personalities. Playing off the long-established characters well, their addition to the already large cast of characters is neither burdensome nor removes any of the limelight from other already established characters. Their powers should provide some interesting scenes in future issues.

We also get some idea of what’s been going on with Quill. After his return, he’s a changed person. But there has been very little light shined on how the other characters are dealing with this new Quill. Guardians Of The Galaxy #13 gives us more insight into this aspect of the team. I hope Ewing continues to expand on how much stress has been put on Quill’s interpersonal relationships with the original Guardians.

With this new team, this issue also introduces a new artist to the series. While the art is certainly a change from past issues, it’s not a startling difference. Beyond the change in costumes, which definitely adds some visual cohesion to the many characters featured, these characters are nevertheless identifiable. In combination with the colors, the artwork is absolutely gorgeous. The wide palette of colors keeps each panel interesting but doesn’t fail to represent each scene well as the issue bounces between its two different storylines. The skill here is especially apparent in the panels featuring the team that goes looking for the survey team, featuring appealing backgrounds and the clash of cool colors with warm.

It’s great to see that the lettering hasn’t changed over the course of this series. Some characters have their own speech balloons, differing in shape and color. The consistency in these balloons makes each issue both cohesive and an easy read. Overall, the dialogue never detracts from the action or characters and is easy to follow from person to person.

With a new look to the classic team, Guardians Of The Galaxy #13 introduces an exciting new antagonist and new characters. Despite the visual change, the Guardians are still their loveable selves, if just a tad less chaotic. This new arc in the Guardians’ story should prove a fun read, and I’m excitedly awaiting the release of the next issue.

Guardians Of The Galaxy #13 is available now wherever comics are sold.