Micronauts by Bill Mantlo & Michael Golden

In our trailer, when the temperature goes anywhere near triple digits (Fahrenheit), Mrs. Multiverse and I sequester ourselves in our tiny bedroom. It’s the only room where our sad little RV aircon can almost keep up. We can get that room to about 78 degrees when our other rooms are 85 – 90. We’d go outside but it’s too damn hot. Since I have about three to four hours of time away from my computer and graphics tablet. The internet doesn’t exactly reach that far for a stable connection so streaming or playing games isn’t on the menu. This intro leads into the Micronauts… please bear with me, citizen.

Surprisingly this has been a bit of a treat for me, at the very least. I take a book, a trade paperback, a pencil & sketchbook, and my android tablet full of comic files. Sometimes I am too overheated to be motivated by any of those items, but this evening was fairly enjoyable. This evening I was a focus on 1978’s Marvel Micronauts by Bill Mantlo & Michael Golden.

The last time I read these was as a child. Umm… these are pretty awesome! The story is tight, the dialog is readable, and the art is wonderful. Being a fan of the Mego toy line there were times when I caught myself picking out specific toys, some that I had so I would reminisce about that for a moment or two.

For hours I read, and marveled, I cannot convey the joy it was to travel back into the Microverse.

The story was standard fair for the days of Star Wars, be there was an element of super science and a bit of darkness pitting the rich & powerful against the other classes on Homeworld. Some aspects of the tale were painfully relevant. The smattering of a bit of body horror was enough to cement who the bad guys were and what they were willing to do to stay on top.

The Acroyers reminded me of what the Mandalorians eventually became.

The first eleven issues are a perfect arc with the first Annual being a bit of a prequel by Bill and Steve Ditko. The weakest parts for me were their Earthside adventures. Possibly because they felt shoehorned into the arc just to give the toys a place to live in the minds of the reader when they inevitably saw them in toy isle.

If you are looking for an affordable and fun read, pick up these back issues and loose yourself somewhere in Inner Space.