Book Review: Captain Marvel Vol. 2: Down by K. S. DeConnick et al.

Captain Marvel Volume 2: Down written by Kelly Sue DeConnick and Christopher Sebela, art by Dexter Soy and Filipe Andrade et al.

This volume has two stories. In the first Captain Marvel (aka Carol Danvers) is helping out a retired superhero friend named Monica investigate some missing boats in the Gulf of Mexico. Ships sailing out of New Orleans have been vanishing. Monica has found the spot where they sank but doesn't want to get in the water. So Carol puts on a scuba tank and finds more than just boats--planes dating back to World War II also populate this sunken graveyard. Like many a superhero story, this ends with a big battle between the two friends and a huge enemy. The best part of the story is the repartee between Carol and Monica, providing both humor and some character depth.

The second story finds Carol with a medical issue. Carol's been having headaches (which she has blamed on calls from Tony Stark!) and has felt her power weakening. Her doctor tells Carol she has a lesion in her brain. So she can't fly, which is a hard thing for an ex-pilot who now has the Superman-like power to fly. Things get even harder when an old, air-born bad gal shows up to fight Captain Marvel. Sadly, the story isn't finished in this issue.

The second story is much more interesting than the first. I like the idea that a superhero would have an everyday doctor. Oddly enough, the art is better in the first story. Happily, Carol doesn't don some skimpy swimsuit when scubaing down to the wreckage, she's in her regular superhero jump suit. The second story does not get visually exploitative, the art is just less polished than in the first.