The Epic Continues

I’m holding in my hands the latest issue of Marvel Comics' The Marvelous Land of Oz, adapted from creator L. Frank Baum's 1904 novel of the same name. The miniseries is a sequel to The Wonderful Wizard Of Oz by Eric Shanower (Age of Bronze) and Skottie Young (X-Men), which is probably the best comic book adaption of a novel I’ve ever seen.

For those not familiar with the sequels in the Oz series, The Marvelous Land of Oz is the only book in the series in which Dorothy Gale does not appear.

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In the sequel, we meet Tip, a young boy who is under the guardianship of a witch named Mombi in Gillikin Country. One day, Tip makes a man out of wood and a pumpkin for a head, who he appropriately names Jack Pumpkinhead, in order to frighten Mombi. The witch, however, is not to be fooled with and uses her Powder of Life to bring Jack to life.

With Mombi threatening revenge on the pair, Tip and Jack steal the Powder of Life and make their way to the Emerald City. There they meet General Jinjur and her all-girl Army of Revolt. The army plans to overthrow the Scarecrow, who famously became ruler of Oz at the conclusion of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz.

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As the battle ensues, we meet old friends like Glinda the Good, the Tin Woodman, and the Field Mice. We also meet new characters, such as Ozma and the Highly Magnified and Thoroughly Educated Wogglebug.

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Young and Shanower have again created a side of Oz that you have never seen before, and, in my opinion, the possibilities for this saga to continue are endless. The series is limited to 8 issues and promises to be an artistic masterpiece.

Issue #7 is available on June 16.

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