SHIELD Vol 1: Perfect Bullets by Mark Waid

SHIELD Vol 1: Perfect Bullets written by Mark Waid and illustrated by a bunch of different people is a SHIELD comic based on the characters from the TV show. This first volume mainly treats Coulson as the main character, although many other familiar characters are involved. I bought this as digital single issues when they were on sale and skipped buying issue #2 because it was included in Ms Marvel Vol 3 which I have already reviewed.

High-tech weapons. High-stakes missions. High-octane adventure! Special Agent Phil Coulson and his S.H.I.E.L.D. team bring together the best and the brightest, the gifted and the elite from across the Marvel Universe to confront, combat and curtail dangers beyond the scope of any conventional peacekeeping force! Coulson and Agents Melinda May, Leo Fitz and Jemma Simmons face a possessed Heimdall! Simmons goes undercover at Ms. Marvel's New Jersey high school! When magical terrorists strike, Coulson and Spider-Man must lead a strike team into Dr. Strange's mansion! S.H.I.E.L.D. reveals its most secret agent yet: Sue Richards, the Invisible Woman! The team's super-science is useless when a mystical threat rears its head - luckily, the Scarlet Witch might be able to help! But can a battered and broken S.H.I.E.L.D. team protect Earth from the Mindless Plague? Welcome to level eight!

I didn't enjoy this collection very much. The most interesting thing was probably learning more about Coulson in issue #1, and watching him choose the perfect superheroes to throw at a situation throughout the volume was kind of interesting. But I don't have strong feelings about Coulson and characters I am more invested in, like May, weren't in it all that much. I did realise, when I started writing this review, that Simmons was in the Ms Marvel issue that I skipped and had hence forgotten about, so that explains why I thought it was a bit unbalanced between Fitz and Simmons while I was reading.

However, that isn't really the main problem I had with it. What passed for an overarching story was focussed on Doctor Strange, who I don't really like. Marvel annoys me when they put magic into their superhero stories, possibly even more than when they screw up space stuff. So that didn't go over well with me. It didn't help that one of the Doctor Strange-adjacent issues featured Spiderman being the least interesting that I've ever seen him.

Also, some of the art was dreadfully sexualising of the female characters. There is absolutely no need for us to see both butt and boobs on a tiny figure running away in the distance, WTF. I mean, I've seen worse comic art, but in a comic that was already not doing it for me it was a bit much.

I don't particularly recommend this series. It could've been worse, but unless you really love the TV show of Marel's Agents of SHIELD (or Coulson), probably don't bother. Meh. I obviously won't be reading more.

3 / 5 stars

First published: 2015, Marvel
Series: Yes. This volume contains issues #1-6 and there were more and also the series has been rebooted since so I don't know. Who cares.
Format read: Digital
Source: Purchased from Marvel online store (or possibly Comixology, I don't remember)