Nova # 2 NM Chiang 1:25 Variant Cover Marvel Richard Rider Returns Loveness MCU

Description

Nova (2017 7th Series) #2B

Published Mar 2017 by Marvel
Limited 1 for 25 Retailer Incentive Variant Cover
Written by Jeff Loveness and Ramon K. Perez
Art by Ramon K. Perez
Cover by Cliff Chiang
28 pages, full color

THE RUMORS ARE TRUE! Richard Rider is back from the dead! Even better – he’s back in his Nova helmet! But Earth already HAS a Nova as its guardian, and Sam Alexander isn’t one to be replaced so easily…

Featured Characters:
Nova (Sam Alexander)
Nova (Richard Rider) (Possessed by Many-Angled Ones)
Champions
Hulk (Amadeus Cho)
Ms. Marvel (Kamala Khan)
Spider-Man (Miles Morales)
Cyclops (Scott Summers) (Past)
Viv
Eva Alexander
Cosmo
Syk (First appearance)
Many-Angled Ones (Secretly possessed by the Xandarian Worldmind behind the scenes)
Titus (Revealed to be alive)
Death’s Head
An unnamed Chitauri
Alexander Family
Kaelynn Alexander (Cameo)
Uncle Silvio (First appearance)
Uncle Sergio (First appearance)

The series is already off to a strong start, with Richard Rider returning from the dead and Sam Alexander learning how to be a superhero and deal with puberty. The issue picks up where the first left off, with Rich falling out of space and Sam tracking the Nova signal, as he believes his father has returned.

The opening scene shows Sam catching Rich, who has manifested a purple, tentacle monster in his crash landing. Rich soon wakes up and the two Novas take the monster down together. When the dust has settled, Sam is convinced Rich is a clone and a hilarious exchange follows between the two that involves Rich meeting the rest of the Champions.

Rich is confused to see new incarnations of people he’s known his whole life, like Ms Marvel and Miles Morales as Spider-Man. It demonstrates how long he’s been gone and the dynamic between the plucky young heroes and the seasoned Nova is one of the best parts of the comic.

This lead to my favourite exchange, with Sam and Rich sitting on a roof. Rich thinks back to when he stopped The Annihilation Wave to save the universe, yet The Avengers were fighting each other on Earth. He did the same again with Thanos and they’re still fighting like nothing has changed.

“The Annihilation Wave…then Thanos. We almost lost everything. And they’re all down here — still fighting each other. Like nothing happened. Like it didn’t matter. No one remembers. And my dad died…guess you’re never ready for that.”

It highlights how narrow-minded The Avengers are in relation to the rest of the universe, and how much of a hero Rich Rider really is. The two Novas bond over the losses and Sam invites Rich to a family party. In return, Rich takes Sam out to Knowhere, where they reunite with Cosmo the Spacedog. The issue ends on another cliff hanger, with bounty hunters looking to collect on a price.

The art is crisp and alive, with bright colours and darker palettes to set different moods. Loveness and Ramone have a grasp on Sam and Rich and their dialogue plays well off each other. I enjoyed this issue even more than the first because it focused more on Rich and reminded the reader how much he’s accomplished in his life.

The MCU Will Have Two Versions Of Nova, Teases Marvel President
Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige teases the MCU will have two versions of Nova with Richard Rider and Sam Alexander considered for the future.

Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige teases two versions of Nova will be in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Ever since the MCU started to explore the wonders of the cosmos with Guardians of the Galaxy, there has been a lot of interest in seeing Nova. The original Nova is known as Richard Rider and is one of Marvel’s greatest cosmic heroes. However, the comics recently introduced a younger and new Nova, a Latino teenager named Sam Alexander.

In the past, Feige has said that Nova has “immediate potential” to join the MCU. Marvel Studios currently has officially announced 25 movies and TV shows that will make up Phase 4, and possibly beyond. But, there are no confirmed plans for Nova to join. The MCU has already helped lay the foundation for Richard Rider’s debut after the desecration of the Nova Corps and Xandar at Thanos’ hand before Avengers: Infinity War. While he is the longer-tenured Nova, Marvel fans have continued to wonder whether Rider or Alexander will be the MCU’s Nova.

During the press tour for WandaVision, Kevin Feige was asked about Nova’s future in the MCU. After his previous comments about Nova, ComicBook asked Feige if Richard Rider or Sam Alexander will be the MCU’s Nova. He responded by saying, “Well, yes and yes,” which appears to indicate that both Richard Rider and Sam Alexander will be Nova in the MCU. In terms of when either version of Nova will debut, though, Feige was more vague:

Timing is relative, right? I think I’d been talking about Doctor Strange eight years before that movie came out. So, ‘immediate potential’ is relative. But clearly, we are not shying away from the cosmic end of storytelling right in the sweet spot of the Nova Corps and Nova himself.

Feige’s tease that both Richard Rider and Sam Alexander could appear leaves him and the MCU with plenty of wiggle room to figure out the best way to introduce both heroes. It doesn’t guarantee that both Rider and Alexander will be Nova at the same time, but rather they’re both likely to take on the mantle at some point. However, it does seem more likely that both of them will be Nova at the same time at some point. Rider has a storied comic history that saw him grow from a young man called into action by the Nova Corps to a galactic hero who helped form the Guardians of the Galaxy and stop Annihilus. Meanwhile, Sam is incredibly popular with current comic readers and is part of the Champions.

With no confirmed timetable on either Nova’s arrival, it remains to be seen if they’ll join the MCU during Phase 4. Rider could be a character introduced in another cosmic property, like Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. He will most likely come first in the MCU, just as he did in the comics, as Marvel Studios needs to further explain the power and responsibilities of Nova. With an origin story that can be tied to MCU events from 2018, the fact that at least five or six years have passed in-universe already gives Marvel the ability to make Rider a more experienced hero somewhat quickly. This way they can introduce Sam in the not too distant future. It wouldn’t even be that surprising if Rider’s debut as Nova comes on the big screen while Sam’s story begins on Disney+ with a Young Avengers-style project.

Near mint, 1st print. Bagged & Boarded.