Reviews

MARVEL's Avengers: Infinity War: The Cosmic Quest Volume One: Beginning by Brandon T. Snider

cocainebear's review

adventurous fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No

2.0

 THOR MENTION 😫🤌

fantasynonsense's review against another edition

4.0

"What kind of egotistical maniac calls himself the Exalted Overseer?"

☾ Listen, all these things people are saying about how this story is fun but not anything new when it comes to info dumping are all valid and fair, but consider: this book is tremendous fun. It's easily a one-sitting read, I think I powered through it all in a couple of hours, but I'll let you in on a secret... that just means you can enjoy it so much more before the end of this year. No one said your 2018 reading goal of 50 books can't be half rereads of The Cosmic Quest.
☾ I've been a fan of The Collector since his appearance in Guardians of the Galaxy. I'm a passionately casual fan of the Marvel universe, as I think you kind of need to be when it spans as far back as the 1960s and has rewritten its own canon a dozen times. But Taneleer Tivan is the weird fancy man anyone could (and should) love, so naturally I hunted down all his appearances in the comics. But nothing—nothing—was as much fun as reading about him in this novella. My biggest complaint with the MCU is that we were robbed blind of any and all conversations between The Collector and The Grandmaster and Brandon T. Snider gently takes the fandom in the safe embrace of Cosmic Quest and says "it's okay, you strange children, I will give you this weird sibling rivalry that spans eons and relies heavily on thick sephora brand eyeliner."
☾ Both of the main characters are so vain and self-absorbed and that is exactly why they're appealing. Nothing in the book is trying to make them likable by making them heroes, and instead makes them extremely likable through scenes like:
Keelan, Tivan's Stressed Out Assistant: Master, your brother is here to see you.
Tivan, waking up from a four hour depression nap in his absolutely trashed home, wiping drool off his cape: telL HIM I'M ON THE PHONE, DON'T LET HIM IN MY HOUSE.
☾ The scene where the brothers, hot messes that they are, steal a bike from someone and have to tell him that they're incredibly popular, is better than the entirety of Doctor Strange, and don't let the critics tell you different.
☾ This story can be seen as a "where in the universe are the infinity stones" for the new Avengers movie, but since that movie was a hot mess and this isn't a film review, who really cares about that? The more important thing is that it's just a lighthearted romp through a gross dumpster planet that feels like a comical blend of Marvel and the dirty cantina planets of the Star Wars universe.
☾ Want all the fun of the Marvel comics with none of the exhausting gravitas of the films? This is the right book. Want to read the equivalent of eating sorbet while relaxing with a face mask and listening to a John Mulaney comedy special because you love yourself? This is the right book.
☾ Ages 8 - 12, only if you're a sad adult who has no concept of fun.

bookswithbets's review against another edition

adventurous funny informative fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

gswizzel's review

3.0

This is a great way to recap the MCU before Infinity War from a different perspective.
Instead of rewatching all the previous movies (which I still recommend), you can hear it all from this story following 2 of the elders of the universe.

I liked this, but it didn’t really teach me anything new.

I appreciate this book and I just love every bit of info I can get from the MCU. It was a quick read, not life changing but definitely worth my time :)