Al Ewing has been on a tear celebrating heroes and their anniversaries for Ant-Man and Wasp, and now it’s Nick Fury’s turn. An extra-sized one-shot, Ewing is joined by Scot Eaton, Cam Smith, Tom Reilly, Adam Kubert, and Ramon Rosanas in a story that features Nick Fury’s son, Nick Fury, as well as stories within stories as we explore the different eras of the character’s existence.
Fury #1 is a well-written comic, dividing each artist between flashbacks told via records (in comic book form) or switching gears to Nick Fury on the moon versus his son on a mission. Pulling a book like this off is difficult, but it all comes together nicely. At the core of this issue is a McGuffin in the form of the Zodiac key, an item that has been dormant for a few years now.
This issue plays with the past well, setting up the future. The Zodiac key, last seen in Amazing Spider-Man, gets quite a bit more history and huge potential for stories in the future. Outside the McGuffin, Nick Fury gets proper play, like seeing him with the Howling Commandos in a key flashback or when Fury goes to the moon before NASA ever did. There’s a good play with history and what we know about Nick Fury that does well to honor the character.
Young Nick Fury is basically the main character of this issue.
Credit: Marvel
Different elements honor Nick Fury and his various abilities. The opening features a fun espionage fight sequence drawn well by Scot Eaton and Cam Smith (on inks). We get gadgetry thrown in in a very James Bond way (don’t miss our exclusive interview with Ewing asking him about James Bond!). This opening also sets up a key villain firmly established as equal to or even better than Nick Fury. She’s a formidable foe.
Next up is Tom Reilly’s moon portion reminding us Fury and his compatriots had technology way more advanced than humanly possible in the ’60s. Things get a little cosmic and weird.
Adam Kubert takes over for the gritty World War II action flashback. This tale helps remind us the Zodiac key was something Hitler wanted, but also the team aspect of the Hollowing Commandos. Kubert does a great job doing some throwback art styles like the Ben-Day dots in full use. Running eight pages long, this portion feels a bit long in the grand scheme of things. It definitely informs readers about the Zodiac key but could have been written a bit tighter.
Closing out the issue is artist Ramon Rosanas, who takes us to the moon. We get to see “The Man on the Wall” and what old Nick Fury is up to. Rosanas’ art style is clean and modern looking, which is a good choice for the part of the comic set in the now. This portion of the book is quite dark, which suits the stand-off situation Fury is in against the villain that was introduced at the start of the book. It also suits the ending, suggesting that young Nick Fury is about to embark on a very lonely journey.
As far as old Nick Fury, his role in the ending leaves a bit to be desired. He’s kind of just decided to stop protecting Earth in the way he has done. Ewing makes a strong case that we humans don’t need a man on the wall to protect us from something outside of Earth, but instead maybe from ourselves and holding everything in place. Still, it’s left obtuse to allow for Nick Fury to possibly do his usual pop in and pop out for future stories.
If you like espionage, spy gadgetry, and stories that show the wide breadth of a hero’s life, pick up Fury #1. It honors the longstanding hero and sets up new villains and a new direction for young Nick Fury to be further explored.
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