May was a huge month for the Guardians Of The Galaxy. The new movie came out and made Marvel a nice chunk of money, and a wave of new comic series spotlighting the team and it’s solo members hit stands. All-New Guardians Of The Galaxy by writer Gerry Duggan, artist Aaron Kuder, and colorist Ive Svorcina led the charge with three issues (#1, #2, and a Free Comic Book Day one-shot), and after delivering stunning cosmic superhero visuals for each story, Kuder and Svorcina are taking a short break. As much as I’d like to see Kuder and Svorcina do an uninterrupted run on this series, that’s unrealistic for a monthly series, let alone a biweekly series. When the line-up of fill-in artists includes Frazer Irving, Chris Samnee, and Greg Smallwood, it’s a lot easier to accept the main art team stepping away to get ahead on future issues.
Frazer Irving is jumping on next week for a single-issue story delving into Gamora’s past and the secret she’s keeping from her teammates in the present, and his style is a major departure from the regular art team that reinforces the darker elements of Gamora’s origin. Kuder and Svorcina’s work is bright and hyper-detailed, but Irving’s visuals are foggy, smooth, and very minimal. This exclusive preview of next week’s All New Guardians Of The Galaxy #3 begins with a striking summary of Gamora’s first meeting with her adopted father, Thanos, and while it may look sparse, Irving is able to pack a lot of information in each section of the page. The most powerful in this entire preview is the shot of Thanos holding a baby Gamora in the palm of his hand, and the simplicity of two white eyes piercing through darkness that is literally clutching Gamora resonates on a primal level. That baby is in danger, and things only get worse for her from there.
