Marvel Zombies: Red Band #1 Review

 

Writers: Ethan S Parker & Griffin Sheridan

Artist: Jan Bazaldua

Colorist: Erick Arciniega

Letterer: Travis Lanham

Cover Artists: Greg Land & Rachelle Rosenberg; Scott Koblish & Val Staples; Clayton Crain; Ryan Brown; Juan Shavrin; Ryan Meinerding, Amelia Vidal & Sung Choi

Design: Sarah Spadaccini

Editors: Emerald Bensadoun, Jordan D White & EB Cebulski

Publisher: Marvel Comics

Price: $4.99

Release Date: September 17, 2025

 

Aunt May worries about her nephew. He's an impressionable young man, and the TV shows such dreadful things these days. Uncle Ben also frets about how TV will hurt his young nephew. But Peter Parker can't help it. He wants to see the return of Reed Richards, Sue Storm, Jonathan Storm, and Benjamin Grimm. And there's another TV show he's not sure he wants his aunt and uncle to see. How will pop culture's penchant for sensationalism transform Peter? Let's thwip into Marvel Zombies: Red Band #1 and see.

 

Story

While Uncle Ben and Aunt May want to shelter their nephew from the world, Peter yearns to be a part of it. He's already taken steps to become someone noteworthy. But while he has garnered notoriety, someone else has grabbed the spotlight. Four people have stolen a NASA spaceship and launched it into space. Mission Control communicated with the rocket for a while. But as it returns to Earth, the astronauts’ status is a mystery in Marvel Zombies: Red Band #1.

 

Ethan S Parker & Griffin Sheridan’s story returns readers to the origins of the modern Marvel universe. It honors the evolving relationships between heroes like the Fantastic Four, Spider-Man, Daredevil, and their friends and families. But while Peter Parker dreams of attaining popularity and wealth, the Fantastic Four are thieves.

 

 

 

 

 

Marvel Zombies: Red Band #1 reminds us that it's vital to do things for the right reasons. Reed Richards may be brilliant. But his interests outweigh those of others. The Fantastic Four recognize they have changed. Still, they have attained power by breaking the rules and defying the system. And that will cause a lot of people a lot of pain, as the Fantastic Four raise a zombie army to overtake the world.

 

 

 

 

Art

Glowing windows defy the darkness descending on the Parker home as Peter, May, and Ben gather to watch TV together. After the Spider-Mask covers half his face, Peter rises to obscure the TV set and a framed print of Vincent Van Gogh’s “The Starry Night.” But Peter makes way when a broadcaster appears before the NASA logo. The Parker family watches as technicians in blue overalls work on equipment, while armed men in black uniforms and armor await the VTOL rocket’s return. 

 

 

 

 

As Jan Bazaldua fills Marvel Zombies: Red Band #1 with art that harkens back to an earlier era, Erick Arciniega imbues it with all the vibrance, nuance, and texture of modern coloring. Iron Man gleams in his golden armor, while Hulk radiates green. Joined by black, silver, and gold Thor in his red cape, the trio shines amid the glowing yellow buildings. Daredevil shows he belongs with the heroes when he arrives in black, red, and gold. But they must face off against the Frightful Four. Reed and Sue’s blue suits link them together, while Johnny’s flaming skin and Ben’s orange hide likewise bind the friends. All four demonstrate the decay afflicting them, as red fills areas formerly covered by skin.

 

 

 

 

 

Travis Lanham fills white dialogue balloons with black uppercase letters that grow bold for intonation. Yells enlarge words until they threaten to burst balloons, while zombies’ utterances fill cloudy balloons. The narrator speaks into yellow narrative boxes and often enlarges and colors the first letter of a sentence. Iron Man’s words fill yellow hexagons with red borders. Sound effects help readers feel the urgency of the rampaging horde. They also enhance the electrifying action as heroes and villains chart a course that will profoundly affect their world. Thanks to Marvel Comics for providing a review copy.

 

 

 

 

Final Thoughts

It's not just life-changing events that empower us. It's also what we do each day that determines if we are heroes or villains. Fueled by humorous dialogue and an insatiable hunger for Human flesh, Marvel Zombies #1 revisits the origins of the Marvel Universe and asks, "What if the Fantastic Four were villains?"

 

Rating 9.8/10

 

To look inside see my review at Comic Book Dispatch.