Judging by his continued success in partnering with the best comics artists working today, writer Mark Millar must be doing something right. Netflix think so too, having made a blockbuster purchase of his intellectual properties last year.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wLbvqioTrxA]
I personally run a bit hot and cold with Millar’s work; I really enjoy the early storylines that fully embraced the absurdity and scope of comic storytelling (Wolverine: Enemy of the State, The Ultimates, Red Son), but lately I have been less enthused by his more cynical tales (Kick Ass 2, Nemesis, Empress), which almost seem to sneer at their own medium. This is a trend that continues with two of his most recent publications.
The Magic Order (2018-2019) falls into the latter of those groups. It’s basically a gangster thriller about a clandestine conflict that is raging between two different ‘families’ of magicians. Think of it as The Godfather meets Doctor Strange. Which, now that I think of it, sounds pretty awesome, except that the characters and infrastructure introduced here are paper-thin, and Millar has already flogged-to-death the secret organisation trope (in Wanted, Jupiter’s Legacy, Secret Service, etc). The artwork and character design by Olivier Coipel are stupendous, with some cleverly constructed set-pieces that really allow him to flex his storytelling skills. But the plot which strings them together is decidedly feeble and un-involving, and by the time the climax is reached, what should have been a flourish of showmanship instead feels like an unearned and disappointing reveal.
Reborn (2016-2017), I’m glad to say, is vintage Millar. The high-concept here is that when anyone dies in our world, they are transported to a fantastical plane of reality called Adystria (think Eternia from Masters of the Universe); where they have powers and abilities proportionate to how virtuous, or how cruel, they were throughout their life. The main character is an elderly widow, Bonnie, who dies of natural causes and upon arriving at Adystria, finds herself reformed as a young powerful warrior having to lead the final charge of good souls versus evil.
It’s not particularly subtle, but the themes of mortality, reunion, family and moving on, make for one of the richest plots that the writer has produced in years. The artwork from Greg Capullo manages to top the already high standards of a Millar collaboration, making this one of the most handsome comics I’ve read in years. Capullo’s designs blend high-fantasy with dystopian sci-fi, equal parts Tron and Lord of the Rings. The end result is thrilling, original, and unexpectedly optimistic; giving me hope that Millar still has a few more classics left in him.