The "U-Decide" stunt, for all its stupidity, had at least one good side effect, and that is a reinvigorated Captain Marvel with sales that might help it stake out a claim on the marketplace and a more super-heroic direction that will appeal to a wider audience as well. While Rick Jones and Captain Marvel are still the leads of the book, and the humor of Peter David's writing remains intact, the tone and style of the book has completely changed, more of an explanation of what it means to be a super-hero than what it means to be the guy physically bonded to a super-hero. Surprisingly, given how much I enjoyed the focus on Rick Jones, I'm enjoying this new direction quite a bit, and though the digital painting effect being used sometimes makes the artwork a little unclear, I'm enjoying the look that Chris Cross gives the book as well.
I've always said that I'm not a big fan of cosmic adventure, and that's still true, but Peter David continues to blend these cosmic story elements with a more down-to-earth element that I can enjoy. However, he's flip-flopped the role of the protagonists, so that Rick Jones is actually more involved in the cosmic stuff, and Genis is more involved in the down-to-earth, and their different viewpoints make each one reacting to their environments fascinating. Rick Jones's usual sarcastic humor makes for a fun narrator of the issue, and his interaction with the Microverse is painted in fine detail by Chris Cross and Chris Sotomayor.
It's the Captain Marvel part of the story that really shines, however. I was wondering how Peter David was going to work a Punisher guest appearance into this book, and he does it in a way that makes absolute sense and is unlike any vision of the Punisher I've seen before. In general, the vigilante type hero is one who uses guns or martial arts or other low-level powers, not to mention mundane detective work, to get their work done. A vigilante with a larger power level could be truly frightening and effective, and though I don't expect Captain Marvel to stay in this line of work, it's fascinating to see him applying his cosmic awareness and energy manipulation abilities in a ruthless war on crime.
There is still a comedic element to this book, but the more serious tone has forced it into a bit more of a darker tone. We chuckle at Rick's frustrations in the Microverse, or at the Punisher's nonplussed reaction to Captain Marvel, but at the same time we're aware that Captain Marvel is executing people because of his cosmic awareness, and that he has clearly gone insane. The overriding story here isn't Rick Jones's attempt to escape the Microverse, or Captain Marvel's vigilante war on crime, but why both of these elements have become necessary. I must confess that I'm very interested in who or what is behind it, and more importantly why.
Chris Cross has always been an artist whose work I have enjoyed, and his work on the first two issues of this book has been spectacular. Though the digital painting effect sometimes drops out detail, and I still wish for a traditional inker on some parts, when the style works, it really works. The vistas of the Microverse, the energy effects that Captain Marvel uses and the general look of Rick, Captain Marvel and the Punisher are all very impressive.
