Shazam! #2 Review

 

Writer: Mark Waid 

Artist: Dan Mora

Colorist: Alejandro Sánchez

Letterer: Troy Peteri

Cover Artists: Dan Mora; John Timms; Chris Samnee & Matheus Lopes; Steve Lieber & Nathan Fairbairn; Megan Huang

Publisher: DC Comics

Price: $3.99/$4.99

Release Date: June 7, 2023

 

Shazam recently shocked the world by going all Sean Penn on the paparazzi. Can Billy Batson ever trust his older, stronger alter ego ever again? Let's fly into Shazam! #2 and find out!

 

 

 

Story

Billy's friends can't understand his public outburst. They bust in on his confusion and plague him with questions he can't answer. On the plus side, his social media profile has risen. But when a dinosaur from space arrives to complete some business related to the assistance he rendered his kin in the previous issue, Billy decides he needs some time alone.

 

Sadly, quiet time will have to wait. A man called the Psycho-Pirate is holding up the local museum. Helping people in danger trumps concerns over another public media meltdown. So it's time to let the Captain take control.

 

 

 

Mark Waid gives us plenty to read in this story. He also delivers a lot of action. He communicates why people regard Shazam as a hero. It's an involving self-contained story that welcomes first-time readers while leaving them wanting to know more.

 

Art

Dan Mora populates Shazam! #2 with dynamic characters that communicate their feelings and look good from every angle. Aside from a few closeups, nearly every panel crackles with power and convincing backgrounds. He loads pages with panels and works page by page rather than across pages. A few scenes failed to communicate the author's intent and forced me to flip back to explain later dialogue. Still, any artist who draws Tyrannosaurus Rex in a top hat gets high marks in my book!

 

 

 

Alejandro Sánchez brings rich, vibrant colors to Shazam! #2. Views of the city, inside Billy's house, the museum, and the subway are full-spectrum colors. Billy's transformation into the Captain crackles with energy. He helps convey why a world-famous painting is so beloved. Psycho-Pirate stands out in the subway scenes: he makes me love him, even without being ordered.

 

 

 

Troy Peteri populates white dialogue balloons with large uppercase letters that go bold to emphasize raised voices and shrink for murmurs. Dialogue switches to red when the Psycho-Pirate turns on his hypnotic voice. I also like the Captain's rectangular yellow narrative boxes and Billy's spherical ones and how both have a lightning bolt. His sound effects help me hear Billy’s energizing transformation, bullets tearing through the museum, and Shazam’s big hero moment.

 

 

 

Final Thoughts

Dynamic art, vibrant coloring, and an involving story convey Billy Batson’s trial of identity in Shazam! #2.

 

Rating 9/10

 

To preview interior art see my review at Comic Book Dispatch.