Scarlet Witch #4
Written By: James Robinson
Art By: Chris Visions, Steve Dillon
Release Date: 3/16/16
Spoiler Free Plot Summary
Wanda enters the Witch’s Road in order to stop the warlock responsible for putting a powerful on Ireland throwing the entire country into chaos. Along the way Agatha’s ghost explains what the Witch’s road is and why it is a dangerous place to travel, even for a witch as powerful as Wanda. Wanda runs into some trouble along the road’s pathways and receives help from an unexpected ally. After assisting Wanda and giving her some advice the ally disappears leaving Wanda to face off against the Emerald Warlock. .
SPOILER WARNING
The Good
- It was really interesting finding out that woman we met at the end of last issue is Wanda’s mother. It was also interesting to find out that the Scarlet Witch is actually a mantle passed down from mother to daughter in the Maximoff family, and her mother was so powerful that only a few people in the mystical community knew that she existed. It was nice to see that marvel is making Wanda a legacy character since marvel doesn’t have that many legacy characters these days. I also really enjoyed the scene where Wanda’s mother realizes who Wanda is as she fades from the Witch’s Road. I thought it was a touching scene especially with all the craziness with Wanda’s family in recent years.
- I think that The Witch’s Road is a really cool concept. I appreciate that James Robinson is taking the time to actually explain how Wanda’s magical abilities work.
- A lot of this issue and this first arc in general focuses on the cost of using magic which is an aspect that I’ve always like, and even if you look at other magic related Marvel comics currently it’s a common theme across the board.
- The action scenes were really well done in this issue, especially the ones involving Wanda’s mother. It showcased just how powerful she was and how powerful Wanda could become.
- Wanda proves in this issue that she is a good strategist and doesn’t go into a battle unprepared even if it seems like her opponent has outclassed her
The Bad
- As much I’m personally enjoying the story. If there’s one constant complaint I have about this series so far it’s the art. The art is really inconsistent. We’ve already had three different artist on this book and we’re only on issue four.
- While I understood why they decided to use a different artist and art style for the Witch’s Road section of the issue I just couldn’t adjust to it. I liked the colors but the art and especially the facial expressions looked sketchy to me. It tried to give off a creepy vibe, but it just didn’t work for me.
- The battle in the end with the Emerald Warlock was cool, but honestly as a villain he was kind of a let down. He was built up in the past three issues as this unstoppable immortal evil ancient warlock and yet all it took for Wanda to beat him was a clever strategy and a magical power boost.
- Another problem I had with this issue was that the ending felt abrupt, and the cliffhanger felt kinda random.
Final Verdict
Overall I really enjoyed this issue and this first arc as a whole. I’ve been a huge fan of Wanda’s character for a long time and James Robinson is doing a great job so far of exploring her character and powers. I like that Robinson is really focusing on the witch aspect of Wanda and he gives her powers real costs and limits. For years a lot of writers have made Wanda into an ex machina character who could pretty much do anything. I have issues with the art sometimes, and I wasn’t a fan of the ending, but otherwise I think this issue and this series itself is an interesting look at a different aspect of the mystical marvel universe. If you’re a fan of Wanda or you’re interested in the magic side of marvel I say check this issue out, and if you’re behind we’re only four issues in so it shouldn’t be too hard to catch up.