Book Review: The Death of Captain Marvel by Jim Starlin

The Death of Captain Marvel written and illustrated by Jim Starlin

The original Captain Marvel was a Kree warrior named Mar-Vell who was scouting out the Earth as a possible conquest for the Kree empire. He became enamored with Earth (what alien in Marvel Comics doesn't?) and turned against the Kree. He adopted the name "Captain Marvel" and fought with many of Earth's heroes. He even joined the Avengers for a while. This book tells his final tale, the battle he has with an unbeatable enemy: cancer. He'd been exposed to toxic radiation years before but ignored the signs that he was getting sick. And it turns out that cancer is the one illness that no race in the universe has cured. Mar-Vell returns to his home on Titan (Saturn's moon) where he records a final testament for the Avengers. Many of Earth's most brilliant heroes come to Titan to work on a cure; the scientists of Titan also get in touch with the other species in the universe, looking for some way to preserve Mar-Vell's life.  As the title of the book suggests, things do not turn out well.

The book is surprisingly somber. Mar-Vell reviews his life, hitting the highlights of his partnerships, his loves, and his enemies. Thanos was a recurring enemy. As someone in love with death, Thanos (as a ghost or memory) becomes a key sounding board for Mar-Vell's internal monologues. Mar-Vell struggles between fighting his illness and accepting his fate, i.e. his mortality. He also wants to help his friends, especially Elysius the woman he loves, through this dark time. Even though he doesn't die in battle, he dies with his friends around him. The story is surprisingly moving and honest.

Highly recommended.