The Guardians of the Galaxy are bored. It's been a while since their last mission, and without an enemy to fight the unconventional team of heroes has been turning their claws towards each other, just like a typical family. However, a new mission comes by way of Graybar, an inhabitant of the Negative Zone planet Baluur. The tyrant Blastaar, the hated ruler of Baluurian Empire, plans to conquer the Milky Way Galaxy with anti-matter. This is a job for the Guardians of the Galaxy.
Guardians of the Galaxy: Bane of Blastaar #1, written by Ralph Macchio, illustrated by Davide Tinto, colored by Yen Nitro and lettered by VC's Cory Petit, is a one-shot issue featuring Marvel Comics' most lovable and offbeat team of heroes in an adventure set just just before the current, fraught Grootfall reboot arc. With their classic ensemble intact, Guardians of the Galaxy: Bane of Blastaar #1 is one last taste of classic Guardians of the Galaxy -- but no mission, no matter how simple, can ever be easy.
Guardians of the Galaxy: Bane of Blastaar #1 reads like a movie. The pacing is perfectly cinematic, beat for beat. The beginning, slow and exposition-heavy, serves as a traditional film opening, providing readers with just enough background information to understand this issue's admittedly simple premise. The storyline of Guardians of the Galaxy: Bane of Blastaar #1 isn't new or groundbreaking; the Guardians are approached to dispose of a hated tyrant, all the while struggling with their own team dynamic, besotted by bickering and mistrust. However, for a single issue, it works nicely and feels in-character for the Guardians to accept such a mission.
The simplicity of the storytelling works in favor for these fun-loving characters, giving them room to do what they do bests. Writer Macchio clearly understands who these characters are, and how the Guardians of the Galaxy franchise balances comedy, action and mild drama with every step. Guardians of the Galaxy: Bane of Blastaar #1 is great fun and delightfully campy in places, and boasts plenty of fight scenes with respectable pacing, choreography and movement, but doesn't flinch away from violence, loss or the characters' human and vulnerable traits.
Although Guardians of the Galaxy: Bane of Blastaar #1 is an excellent and straightforward example of the Guardians of the Galaxy franchise at its best, this issue suffers from clunky dialogue. This isn't a deal-breaker, given how Macchio keeps the storyline uncomplicated. However, his approach to dialogue is inconsistent, with only a few characters given their distinct speech patterns -- most notably Rocket, Nova, newcomer Graybar, and Groot. However, the wit and individuality normally found in the Guardians' speech is downplayed here, especially Star Lord and Drax, which unfortunately detracts from this issue somewhat, coming across as flatter than is normal for these characters.
Artist Davide Tinto's unique style is resplendent with whispery-thin, delicate and intricate line art, adding an element of ethereal lightness to this campy adventure story. The lines are slightly blurred, giving a soft yet slick digital quality to the small and realistic rendering details throughout the pages. This art style is the perfect pairing for Yen Nitro's colors. Nitro shows a deep understanding of the world of the Guardians and Marvel Comics as a whole, balancing old-school sci-fi with the sweeping, slightly grimy adventuring aesthetic that Marvel has cultivated over the last decade. Warm oranges, reds, browns and earth tones -- reminiscent of the series' spaghetti Western influence --are blended and contrasted with classic cosmic and sci-fi colors, such as neon shades, purples, blues, golds, and cool metallics. Each page feels alive, from the seedy Gosnell's Bar to Blastaar's cold, barren and tyrannical lair, devoid of levity.
Despite lacking in complexity and twists, Guardians of the Galaxy: Bane of Blastaar #1 is a solid single-issue story, as fun as it is faithful to what makes the Guardians so beloved within the Marvel canon.