Strange Academy has been one of the most successful new Marvel Comic properties in the last few years. From the first issue, creators Skottie Young and Humberto Ramos crafted compelling characters that stood apart from the other young heroes of the Marvel Universe, while also giving space for established characters to fill supporting roles that didn’t take away time from the main cast. Over the course of the first volume of Strange Academy, the group of main characters, young magic users with varying skills, developed strongly as characters and cemented their place in the Marvel universe. Strange Academy: Finals delivers another stellar chapter in the story of these characters, while also serving as a conclusion for their first arc.
Credit: Marvel Comics
Strange Academy: Finals picks up after events of the last Strange Academy series, where our main cast of students are divided and some at odds. This series does a fantastic job at giving each of our main characters focus, as well as continuing and wrapping up threads from the previous series. We also finally get Doyle’s origin story, which is something I was looking forward to and it did not disappoint. This arc also solidifies my thought that Emily Bright has one of the best hero-turned-villain arcs in all of Marvel Comics.
This series not only has great action sequences, there are also plenty of moments that showcase the various interpersonal relationships between the cast of characters. Some minor characters also return in this series, however they do not get much to do. This makes sense given that this acts as a finale to the main characters’ first storyline, but it still would’ve been nice to get to know them a bit better. Even though she has limited panel time, Zelma Stanton is an absolute delight and shines in every scene she’s in. Ramos excels at drawing characters in a way that makes you truly sense what they are feeling, as well as crafting action sequences that are engaging but do not feel overly crowded.
Strange Academy: Finals by Skottie Young and Humberto Ramos is a stellar finale to the fantastic first arc of a cast of characters that have definitely made their mark in the Marvel Universe. While being a satisfying conclusion, it also leaves the door open for more stories, with the Strange Academy students we’ve come to love and new ones alike. Every character has their moment, and action and personal beats are balanced perfectly. My only complaint is that it had to end.
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