Silver Surfer #2

By Dan Slott, Mike Allred & Laura Allred

From amazing art to a cute Star Wars reference, Silver Surfer #2 just might be better than the first. In just two short issues, this new Surfer series is really putting itself on the path to becoming one of the best Silver Surfer solo series—say that ten times really fast—since his creation by the great (if that title does this man justice) Jack Kirby way back in 1966.

Writer Dan Slott does a great job giving this an old school vibe while still keeping it fresh and fun. At one point the Surfer stops and announces his board is sending him a mental message (or something very close to that) and you can’t help but feel a retro vibe mastered by Stan Lee and Kirby. Whether intentional or not, it’s a nice touch even if it’s completely imagined. Another great touch is creating a character, in Dawn, that’s actually interesting. It’s easy to create a fluff character to use for an arc or two and then discard, but this one really feels like she might have some staying power—especially if pretty much any of those potential futures the Never Queen saw come to pass.

And then there’s the art. The English language doesn’t have proper verbiage to describe just how good it truly is. It’s old school while still being pure Mike and Laura Allred; it’s Kirby with a dash of something else; it’s something entirely different, but familiar and welcoming all at once. In one word: it’s fantastic. There really isn’t another artist team that is more suited to working on a Silver Surfer book than these two and for anybody that might have to follow them up if and when this series or their time on this series ends… well, good luck. From the fantastical space scenes to simple, up close character moments, it has it all. Truly, every panel is a work of art in and of itself.

This series is fun, has an interesting co-lead character to the Surfer and, of course, has the Allreds doing art duties, all of which combine to make something immediately special. As a fan of the Surfer, it’s great to see something like this being allowed to thrive in the All-New world that Marvel is constantly tinkering with. Surfer is a great character and with the limitless potential for fun and adventure in Space, we can only pray to Galactus that we’ll continue to get this series, with these creators, for a long time to come.