America 1: The Life and Times of America Chavez

There comes a time when reading a book that you are forced to ask yourself: what happened? Why does this story exist? What am I supposed to take from it? The answer in this case is that the Marvel Editorial department all went on vacation and this story got published.

America Chavez is the greatest, bestest person in the world, and she'll tell you about it to know end. In this volume, you can watch her break up with her girlfriend, punch and release Hitler, ignore her job as leader of the Ultimates, and be praised by everyone who crosses her path. Hope you enjoy it as much as I didn't.

This comic opens with a 9 panel grid of both known characters and some random people asserting that America is a great person, one of which appears to be the writer herself. This sets the stage for what is one of the worst comics Marvel has made in recent years. The writer is so entrenched in trying to make America a Lesbian Latina role model she forgets to make a good book. She adds hamfisted references to modern politics like "Punch a Nazi." The Spanish she decides to sprinkle into the book is so surface level and stereotypical coming off as a parody. Any amount of movement towards a character arc made in the Ultimates series was ignored or quickly written out so the writer could move on to making America overpowered and over hyped.

I loved America's portrayal in the Young Avengers (same creative team as The Wicked + The Divine) back in 2013. So I of course picked up here first solo book. Man, was it a disappointment compared to that series. Her outing here, which covers the first 6 issues of an ongoing series, comes off as strangely confused and disjointed. It is almost like the marketing team at Marvel picked the target demographic (Tumblr I am guessing), worked up some bullet points, and dictated every box the writer needed to check off in the story. I'm not talking the big character defining tropes that so many jerks bemoan just because it's impinging on their white male power fantasy. That is all standard backstory stuff. It's the weird pandering that permeates everything else about the first few issues making it almost campy in tone. Like it is a parody of itself. The first few issues are absolutely cringe-worthy but it does settle down near the end.

First, I have to say that I love the art of the first 4 issues. The colors really pop and the line art is beautiful. Character designs are detailed and expressive. Each panel is well rendered and doesn't skimp out on background details. The panel layouts are mostly simple for much of the book (rectangles and squares) but don't distract from the story unnecessarily. Once you hit an action sequence they become more dynamic and really help the action flow. They trade out artists from issue #5. From there the art has a sketchier, less realistic style. The colors are often more muted and scenes often use certain unified color schemes (earth tones, cool colors, etc.) instead of pulling from the whole rainbow as in the previous issues. The level of detail remains high. While I do prefer the art from the first four issues the last two are still good. I dislike it when they trade out artists in the middle of an arch, especially when their styles are so different, but there is no bad art in this book.

The story on the other hand... what the heck is going on? You get yanked around so much in the first 3 issues you end up with whiplash. Things start to settle down around issue four and by the time the arch wraps up they explain much of the major plot motivations but many of the 'little things' that make everything so disjointed are never mentioned again. Even by the end, there are several large holes in the plot, many more smaller ones, and things that are left unaddressed. Then there are the thinly veiled digs at 'the patriarchy' and smug back-patting for being so inclusive and multicultural. The first half of the book comes across almost like some kind of SJW-ploitation comic. The first few issue are completely unenjoyable despite the nice artwork but the story eventually evens out. Sticking through those first few issues, though, is really rough.

Spoilers below!

Issue one starts with some backstory and then we get a dropped into a showdown between some mysterious energy force that is literally slapping around Spectrum and Captain Marvel. America jumps over, pops the big bad in the jaw once and bam, she disintegrates into a field of stars and all the damage she had done magically self-repairs like nothing ever happened. America is a badass, box checked. Soon we're back at base handwaving the whole encounter away. America returns home, spends two pages breaking up with her girlfriend and it's off to Sonia Sotomayor university. America is a strong, independent woman, box checked. Next, we get introduced to the local multi-ethnic college welcoming committee/rhyming dance troop, spend a few more pages on more backstory with more multi-ethnic characters (everyone is female, non-white or both, box checked) and give America a homework assignment to advance the plot (which is never mentioned again). She partners with David 'Prodigy' Alleyne, a former Young Avengers teammate, on the homework assignment and learns he just happens to have just the MacGuffin for her homework assignment: a time machine. Finally, we send American back in time with Prodigy's machine (which we also never mentioned again). Why? So she can punch Hilter, what else? But wait! She's not just going to punch Hitler! She is going to get in Captain America way (his own words) so she can take his place and punch Hitler to recreate the famous cover of Captain America punching Hitler on the last panel! Women can do anything men can do, box checked. Why is Hitler in the middle of a muddy battlefield on the western front? Why did the MacGuffin machine drop here there at that exact moment in time and space? Was this issue specifically written to fail the Reverse Bechdel Test? We may never know.

Issue two is more utter confusion. We return to Hitler being dragged off the field by some German soldiers, the Americas standing 10 feet away doing nothing about it, and then Peggy Carter pops out of a hatch in the ground *in the middle of the battlefield* and invites America down into their secret base, that is inexplicably 30 meters below, to give her some sage advice. A few panels later a German sapper team drills through the wall, Peggy exits stage left and America punches a portal into the floor to escape. America pops out the other side right into her bed, no time MacGuffin needed. A few panels to handwave away not destroying the space-time continuum and she then cries a bit about breaking up with her girlfriend. America is a complex, multi-dimensional character, box checked. The next day we are back to school. America saves some 'overprivileged ding-dong' frat boys from themselves and then attends a lecture from Moongirl. Moongirl spends a few pages talking about how 'the system' is designed to keep her down and make her behave instead of empowering her. We then get some echo chamber feedback from America and the rhyming dance troop leader (X'Andria) about how awesome and insightful Moongirl is for saying down with the patriar-, I mean the system. The patriarchy sucks, box check. A little more disrespectful nonsense from the fratboys (men suck, box checked) and then another plot advancing homework assignment (which is also never mentioned again). This prompts America and X'Andria to partner up on the assignment. This segues into a 'study tip' from X'Andria about how she likes to commune with her ancestors to learn new dance moves and improve her biotech designs. Super awkward foreshadowing, box checked? Next, the 'overprivileged ding-dongs' make a final return to stereotypically tear up the campus frat party style. Cue America to start punching college kids into fountains. But it's all good because they were just cyborgs trying to and steal some technology from the university the whole time. A little Deus Ex Machina off screen to shut the cyborgs down and we move on to our next careening plot shift: a group of America Chavez fanatics have sprung up and kidnapped America's Ex to use as leverage to make America their leader. Everything is crazy and makes no sense, box checked? Then we are blessed with America's nonsensical response: she flies through a window like Superman.

Issue three starts with America flying in the clouds. A flashback to her youth explains her disadvantaged, wandering, Hispanic-American upbringing on earth (person from a utopia dimension now has an explanation for somehow also being a downtrodden American minority, box checked) while she makes her way to... nowhere in particular? She then punches a hole between dimensions and ends up in the X-men's Danger Room sometime in the 1980s. Why did she need to bust out a window and fly off to do this? How is this still not breaking space-time? Will she ever finish a homework assignment? We don't have time to ponder these plot holes! America needs to get a pep-talk from Storm so she can find herself, commune with her ancestors (more awkward foreshadowing), and finally control her ability to punch between space AND time. America then drops in on the Chavez fanatics only to find that they have been sitting on a rooftop watching Buffy with her Ex for the last several hours. They explain that the energy being from issue #1 has returned to wreak havoc and that their response to this was not to call for help from the someone that can get the job done but to form a guerrilla cell and kidnap the Ex of the person that failed the first time around. Cue the energy being to start raining from the sky as a bunch of mini versions of itself. A fight ensues and things start to look grim but the cavalry arrives! Everyones favorite multi-ethnic college welcoming committee/rhyming dance troop jumps out of a flying dimension hopping craft and they promptly help crush the miniature energy beings despite having no superpowers to speak of. You know, the same energy being that fought Spectrum and Captain Marvel to a standstill.

Issue 4 provides a little more backstory on America's Moms and then its back to the fight. America figures out that you can't solve everything with punching and instead decides to use time travel. She opens a portal to the first fight with the energy being in issue #1, convinces her past self to help her, forces the being into a portal to the future she just left, and right into the flying dimension hopping craft that just happened to have a containment unit perfect to store this energy being in its cargo area. How this also doesn't break space-time is never brought up nor do they explain why the being would still be causing havoc in the present if it was removed from the past. We get a few hugs, some closure on the break up with her Ex, and then a cloaked flying female luchador named Madrimar appears to explain that she has been the one orchestrating the time traveling and people she has been meeting to give her advice. After Madrimar's big reveal, America tells her to butt out and portals away.

After 4 issues of near-constant insanity, the series finally gets its act together with issue #5. This is also when they switch artists. America visits Kate 'Hawkeye' Bishop, another former Young Avengers teammate, and they decide to go on a road trip to help out one of America's other ex-girlfriends, Magdalena. They meet up with her on the road as she is being pursued by some cyborgs in black helicopters. After a quick fight, Magdalena and America go for a talk and Hawkeye stays behind and starts putting the pieces together. She figures out that Midas is the connection between the energy being, the cyborg frat boys, and, a few seconds too late, Magdalena. The previous fight turns out to be a setup, Magdalena betrays America, knocks her out with some kind of mystery injection, and she is captured by Midas goons. She wakes up in a boxing ring and is forced to face off against Magdalena, who is being blackmailed by Midas, in a fight to the death. Arcade appears to be the orchestrator of the event but he cryptically references another as being the real power behind the whole operation.

Issue six bring the arc to a close. America and Magdalena face off in the ring while Hawkeye and Madrimar chase down some Midas goons to discover where the fight is being held. Because America and Magdalena are reluctant to fight Arcade sends in some C-list villains to liven things up for the crowd. Meanwhile, Hawkeye and Madrimar charge into the Midas facility, rescue Magdalena's father, who was being used as collateral to force her to fight and then break into the main hall to interrupt the boxing match. Madrimar then reveals that she is America's grandmother before they do a 'power stomp' together that clears the room of bad guys. The heroes wrap things up and Madrimar and America talk about traveling to the ancestral plane (finally wrapping up that awkward foreshadowing). The final page reveals that Oubliette 'Exterminatrix' Midas has been the one sloppily orchestrating things behind the scenes the whole time. Why? Well, I guess we will have to wait until volume two to find out.

This comic series was disappointing to me, given that I went into it wanting to like it. However, as some other people have said, it just seems to check off "boxes" from a list of things they want to include, instead of writing a solid story about a gay Latina superhero, which is unique and awesome on its own.
The writing in the first several comics is bad. There is WAY too much going on to make it a cohesive story. The "guest appearances" by other supers (like the Cap, Storm, Peggy Carter, etc.) get completely bogged down and muddy what's going on. America is going to a superhero university, but apart from being plot-devicey for things to happen there, it plays little to no significant role, which was disappointing. She gets assigned a project and then promptly never needs to mention it again. Her campus just has zany stuff happen on it and is a propulsion point for a sorority group whose name is supposed to be a cutesy homage to The Fifth Element, but to me, like every other joke in this series, felt forced, unnatural, and fell flat.

*minor spoiler, though it doesn't affect the story, because this story is so out of sorts*
There's one panel in particular where America appears back in time at WWII and steals Captain America's scene where he punches Hitler in the face, and it just feels like complete and total empty fan service. WTF is Hitler doing standing in a field where tanks are shooting, out in the open? What?!

Ironically, the story actually gains some steam by the latter portion of the book, which is when they change artists, and the art goes completely to sh*t. But hey, at least the story starts coming together a little more.
This comic wanted to be too many things, and it put all of those things before good storytelling, which made this a difficult book to get through.
I loved the art in the first four issues, but hated the story. Story got better by the end, but then art got awful, so I never felt like it met anywhere in a happy medium for me.
I would actually love to see America in a better plot-driven story, because I believe she's a superhero that deserves it (and her fashion in those first four comics, what?! I loved it), but sadly, this is not the best intro to her, in my opinion.

America is drawn almost as badly as its written. Scribblings on the bathroom wall at Arby's are more coherent, but hey... if you want to show off how woke you are just buy it and leave it sitting in the living room.

I really wanted this to be better.

Heavy focus on minority and LGBT communities... Let me make clear that I am for having these things expressed through comics, but the heavy focus here without any guiding story makes it feel forced, lazy, and cringey. Its clear the author just forced her wanted to use the Marvel name to throw her opinions around, any glance at a positive review and you'll see that's all they talk about. Rather than praising good writing or a proper plot, they champion the "wokeness" of the comic. Everyone has to be gay and they even went as far as to (Possible spoiler) throw in time travel for literally no reason but to punch a nazi. Not that punching Nazis is bad but its just obvious that it was thrown in as a childish mean to reference her current day political opposition... Who are not even close to being Nazis... This comic is a great example of why those Marvel workers came out and apologized for forcing the sjw agenda down our throats.

[[ASIN:1302908812 America Vol. 1: The Life and Times of America Chavez]] collects the first six issues of this new series, which took me three or four goes to get through, as it was just not very interesting.

Marvel and DC have been recruiting ‘real’ writers to bring in new audiences for their comics, but unfortunately, with a few exceptions, these writers don’t understand writing for comics (the Black Panther being a stunningly good example of how to do it right).

This book is not badly written – but it is overwritten; a comic book, as was demonstrated back in the 1970s when Don McGregor and Steve Gerber began writing novels disguised as comics, should be a balance of dialogue and artwork telling a story, not a cascade of babbling (even well-written babbling) obscuring the artwork.

There may be an audience for this book, but it is not the ‘regular’ comic-book reader, as evidenced by its forthcoming cancellation. Even MS Marvel and Moon Girl found an audience outside the regular comic book one, as they are kept going despite poor comic-shop sales by reprint rights.

The story itself is just whimsical adventuring through the Marvel Universe – which admittedly is what MS America usually does, but it is just so far ‘off’ the regular Marvel path, despite being crammed with guest-stars, that I found it to be almost (but not quite) unreadable; it reminded me a bit of DC’s Bombshells, which I eventually found to be too far off the beaten path to want to read it. I was not the target audience there either; or if I was, they certainly missed me by a considerable distance.

So, this is not a bad book per se, just possibly not one for the regular Marvel reader.

This is SOOOOO baller!!!
So many kickass women of color! My kids and I are so looking forward to more of Chavez’ story!

This first volume of the new America comic is just amazing. This is what happens when you let a queer Latinx writer write America Chavez, Marvel. Brilliant, relevant, authentic stories about justice, soul-searching, and friendship. It's not all about America's identities, but they do seamlessly wind throughout this superhero comic. I love the Kate/America friendship and America's complicated relationship with her roots. Also grinned the biggest when I realized America doesn't gender kids she doesn't know. Love the normalization of gender diversity.