Ah, the trials and tribulations of domestic disputes amidst alien invasions. It’s a tale as old as time; whether you’re watching Independence Day or Transformers or any nth number of movies within the genre, nothing contextualizes the fraught nature of families quite like a little existential extraterrestrial action on the side. Sorry, I’m getting ahead of myself a bit here, because that’s truly what this most recent issue of Queen in Black is about.
While the last issue also moved at a brisk pace, you didn’t really get as much character drama to work with compared to here in issue #3, although this time around there’s literally no sign of the two big cosmic baddies whatsoever – relegating them to their tie-in books for the time being. But at least this time, we don’t have to worry about being constantly told to read other books, with the action and the drama being solely centered on the issue in your hands. And boy, is there a lot of fun to be had this time around, even if things do feel very rushed and chaotic just for the sake of it while more interesting plots are still going on in the background.
Putting the Plot on Hold
Issue #3 once again splits the narrative across multiple fronts, with the Avengers teams battling a variety of symbiote-infected aliens across the globe, while Spidey, Venom and all the symbiote friends are back in New York trying to save Dylan from Hela’s machinations. You’ve got kaiju-sized aliens vs. Pym-powered heroes going at it, while Nova, Human Torch and Captain Alliance take on symbiote-powered Kree heroes and even a former Herald of Galactus for good measure (not the one you’re thinking, but the OTHER brighter one).
Meanwhile, Dylan gets the rescue of a lifetime from the Symbiote Super Intelligence, thanks to assistance from his dad: The now returned Eddie Brock, sporting a brand new look courtesy of Sleeper, his other symbiote son. Honestly, you’ll need a flow chart to keep track of who’s related to who with Venom’s whole family and all. And speaking of Venom: there’s a bit more trouble in the wings, as Venom and Dylan both disagree with Spidey’s “no kill rule” when their lives are at stake, making for a little bit of an interesting family tussle here and there too as Peter has to contend with the domestic headache of it all alongside this alien invasion. So, just another Tuesday for Parker then, I guess.
Keeping the Formula Simple As Possible
The brisk pace of this issue in particular makes it a really short and fun read in the interim. Al Ewing, for the most part, uses this piece as a bit of a breather before things potentially heat up again as we go into further issues. But while there is a lot of banter, drama and action to enjoy, I can’t help but feel it’s a cover for the fact that the story doesn’t seem to be moving at all. Doubly more concerning was the complete lack of Hela or Knull (who was absent in the previous issue entirely as well) in this particular issue as well. For a prime event book like this to essentially come to a standstill is a bit strange, and I’m honestly not sure what to make of it just yet.
Al Ewing instead chooses to use the page count here to focus on the more human (also alien?) drama at heart of Marvel’s symbiote family. Dylan, who was captured in the previous issue, is now just as quickly freed by his father and brother appearing in true 90s hero fashion. Venom fans will certainly rejoice at that bit, but he’s just as quickly pushed to the side here to do his own thing (his own thing being better explored in Venom: Unchained, for the interested).
The real meat and potatoes of the conflict happen between Spidey and Dylan, though, with a little bit of Venom input thrown in. It’s amusing watching Peter trying to parent Dylan while alien executioners are chasing them through the city, but definitely within character for him to overmoralise about Dylan being more gung-ho about lethally protecting himself. It’s an understandable situation for both parties, and you kind of see both sides. Peter respects all life, while Dylan is also fighting for his survival, so no one’s really in the wrong here at all.
Venom/MJ taking Dylan’s side in the matter also offers up an interesting wrinkle to the debate, because Peter still is wary of Venom supposedly taking control of MJ, refusing to acknowledge the reality of both her and the symbiote being on the same page for once. It’s that denial that will certainly come back to bite Peter in the butt, but with future Marvel solicitations having already showcased the status quo to come, I have little hope for how any of these more interesting threads will play out.
The Art’s Getting A Little Funky Now
The art team once again continues to deliver great work between Iban Coello and Guru-eFX, making all the action look great as they always have with their lines and colors, respectively. Paco Medina also returns to provide line work for this issue’s non-NY-centered action set pieces with the Avengers. But as mentioned in the previous reviews, his art style really feels at odds with Coello’s, making for another jarring shift when you’re pulled there. This time, however, Paco’s work only opens the book for a few pages, ensuring that you’re not tugged constantly between different art styles as frequently.
Coello once again does symbiote action like it’s second nature in this issue. He gets to show off Eddie’s new look in all its vicious glory, as he gets down to lethal protecting like he never missed a beat. There’s still a wide range of symbiote-centric characters Coello draws exceptionally well, including Dylan in his Codex form. Some particular transitions between Venom and MJ are also great to look at, while other shots of her face are a little disturbingly garish. In fact, there are some pages that, whether due to some strange shifts in the line work or color, tend to look unusually unlike Coello’s usual output. But for the most part, Coello’s art makes the action-driven nature of this issue really shine.
Medina’s art for the big Avengers set pieces is also fairly bombastic and heroic, but as mentioned before, his style does tend to clash with Coello’s. There’s just something about the more kid-friendly style that seems to feel at odds here. That being said, his art is still great to watch, and seeing giant kaiju-sized aliens fighting giant men while the Leaning Tower of Pisa is in the background as a punchline is worth a chuckle. And of course, there’s Guru-eFX with his vibrant colors working great for this book as usual, making every fight and action piece feel larger than life. The color work and lines really go a long way in pushing the action as the focal point for this issue.
Drama Over Depth
Ultimately, Queen in Black #3 isn’t trying to re-invent the wheel or do something exceptional. It’s a standard issue of action-fare and family drama that serves as Ewing giving the readers a bit of a breather. But that’s also the problem, because it feels like a waste of an entire issue where you seemingly get no major plot advancement for the titular character or anything highlighting WHY this symbiote invasion should be the worst one yet.
It’s just another day at the office where our heroes are split across the planet and cosmos dealing with a big threat like last time, and that’s kind of just…boring, I guess? When you’re trying to build a world-ending event that’s been solicited as such, you really do have to maximize the issues you have to work with. That being said, I do think this issue is an improvement over the last one solely because of the good mix of action and drama, and the lack of any heavy lore-dumping that might intimidate readers. As for what comes next, here’s hoping the event gets back on track to the apocalyptic stakes we’ve been promised and teased with.
Final Verdict: Queen in Black #3 is lightning-paced action brawler that races you through quick battles while also providing some interesting character moments between Spidey and his erstwhile symbiotic allies.