Even if Jupiter’s Circle #3 doesn’t go into the overall conspiracy plot, Mark Millar and Wilfredo Torres demonstrate that married superheroes’ stories don’t have to be boring while developing the character of The Flare and April Kelly in a comic that has a nostalgic superhero aesthetic, but is really about people with actual problems that don’t involve supervillains or alien invasions.
For the most part, Hickman and Ribic keep Secret Wars #1 from being too bloated with timely reaction close-ups of characters, and little jokes or insights into them, like Thanos being disgusted with humanity’s fear of death or the aforementioned Rocket joke. Esad Ribic’s storytelling makes this comic work as a pure work of superhero action with cutting panels for his sharp fight scenes. He also uses well-placed montages as the stakes continue to get higher as the comic progresses. Secret Wars #1 is a true superhero epic with wide-screen action, the occasional character insight, and real consequences even if it may be a little too expansive at times.