POBB February 1, 2023

Pick of the Brown Bag

February 1, 2023

by

Ray Tate

The Pick of the Brown Bag returns with a seriously belated Happy New Year to all POBB readers.  This week I look at a brand spanking new title from Marvel Comics.

The Scarlet Witch is of course not new.  She's a classic Silver Age character created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby.

Arriving as a member of the Brotherhood of Evil in The Uncanny X-Men, Wanda Maximoff alias the Scarlet Witch debuted as a villain and a mutant with the power to affect probability.  

In other words if she used a Hex Bolt, on say, a table, all the probabilities that the legs would break at the same time amounted to one-hundred percent. 

When the original Avengers disbanded, Captain America formed a new team consisting of Hawkeye, Quicksilver and the Scarlet Witch.  All players on the opposite side.

He intended to reform these individuals and he succeeded.  Wanda became a consistent Avenger for about thirty years real time.

My First Avengers comic book.

At some point, don't ask me when, Wanda transformed into her namesake.  Then she became an arch magic user, though apparently not on Stephen Strange's level.  

I don't even know if she possesses a mutant power anymore.  If she does, she uses it rarely.

I've never really warmed up to the Scarlet Witch, but I never hated her either.  For me she was just basically one of the Avengers in the same way that Saturn Girl was always one of the Legion of Super-Heroes.  

That said.  I love Elizabeth Olsen as the Scarlet Witch, and I suspected her portrayal of the character might influence the new title.  In fact writer Steve Orlando's take is unique.

Wanda always struck me as living in her costume.  Rarely did she dress incognito.  She didn't have a secret identity, nor a life outside of the world of superheroes or sorcery.  Before anybody objects.  Saying that she fell in love with and married the Vision.  I know all that.  Just bear with me.

Orlando gives Wanda an interest outside of capes and cowls.  He creates for her a curiosity shop.  It's in The Emporium that the story proper starts.  The real beginning of Scarlet Witch occurs on page five and does so with no Crash-Bang-Wallop.

Scarlet Witch's Darcy shares similar physical attributes as well as a name with Dr. Darcy Lewis of Thor fame.  Dr. Lewis appeared in Wandavision.  So, you may be inclined to go, hmmmn.  However, the comic book Darcy doesn't exhibit Dr. Lewis' genius.  Just her taste in hats.

Pacing is one of the Scarlet Witch's greatest assets.  Orlando gives his story time to establish.  He grants the characters moments to interact, and he allows Wanda's brother Quicksilver to provide a sounding board for her new venture.  Not to mention distinguish himself from his past self: a hot-headed sphincter that had a creepy attachment to his sister.  

Not so in Scarlet Witch.  Orlando provides playful brother-sister interactions that are positively blissful.  

All of these scenes take place in the generous span of six pages.  These pages combined with five more also allots artist Sara Pichelli with the opportunity to demonstrate her ability to render natural movements and actions.  These fluid every day instances contrast with the nevertheless skillful bombast in the prologue and the second act.  Strong inks by Elisabetta D'Amico facilitate the power in Pichelli's pencils.  In addition, Matthew Wilson's colors mix and match with earthy aesthetics and soothing pastels.  

Those of greater need include Jarnette.

Jarnette hails from the Italian town of Armatrice, which has a pestilence problem in the form of Jackson Day, the Controller.

I don't recall this particular Controller appearing anywhere else.  He's not the Iron Man villain.  His blue skin and white hair may mark him as Kree.  Never you mind.  

He possesses the same power as the Mandrill, the Purple Man and Eros.  This makes him rather skeevy.  And his buttoned down disco shirt doesn't help matters.

Although Day succeeds in getting the upper hand for a moment, this fellow isn't in Wanda's weight class.  So, Scarlet Witch stands out also for being a done in one forty page adventure.  That brevity only enhances the value of the book.