When we first see Eugene in the second issue, he’s swarmed by other students who praise him for being a genius. Mary is surprised to see that Eugene has suddenly become popular! What do you think it takes to be the cool kid in school?
Just being yourself is what I think is cool. Sometimes in school that can be different as it could also mean not being yourself. In the end depends on the school and kind of a “cool” the school you or group wants.
Everyone lost their powers … except Mary. Because of this, Eugene expresses feelings of guilt for not being able to save their foster parents. Why do you think Billy solely gave Mary the powers? Do you think Eugene and the other kids are justified in their hurt feelings?
With him only having enough fir one Billy had ti make a tough choice. I feel like many little brothers he’ll ask his older sibling for help in a challenging time and with that being Mary that’s who he thought could help.
Do you trust Mary’s new biology professor, Dr. G? Why or why not?
No. The teachers in stories like these can always seem shady but maybe that’s what they want us to think .
Three new antagonists make their debut shortly after Mary investigates the car crash near her campus. They are quick to render her powerless using their scientific knowledge. With her powers being focused on electricity, do you think she stands a chance against them alone?
Maybe. It’s good to have a team and she works well with one but as the only champ I think she can pull it off alone.
Do you think having the public eye on Mary as a superhero will be beneficial in any way?
Not at first. They’ll probably be negative at first because the usual new hero not the old one hate but I think they’ll turn around.
I think that a human is someone that feels emotion
School
When she is talking to hoppy in issue one she is humiliated/embarrassed i think that might play a big part in the story
4.I would probably have a safe person to talk to
5.no
My high school was a decent size, so there were “cool” kids in different areas. There were sport people, student council people, drama people, smart people, overlapping clique people… Some were more broadly visible to the school as a whole, but it was nothing like movies/tv shows.
I thought Billy only had enough to empower one person and reached out in a kind of desperate fashion. (I didn’t read the previous Shazam/Titans Academy stuff, so my assumptions could be off.) Mary is the reliable and responsible one. Billy trusts her, and I think he reacted on instinct. I can understand the others being upset to varying degrees. Freddie makes the most sense as Billy’s best friend, but he’s typically not as careful as Mary.
No
Yes
Not really, or as previously stated, not at first.
Time for issue 3. I really hated this one so did not expect nice answers.
She seemed angry. I am not risking having her crush my head like sparrow eggs between thighs. I am keeping quiet.
Because she feels the need to prove herself as the hero.
Very boring. Matches the rest of the issue.
They are based on her actual thoughts. She really needs to get offline. It is for the best she never made an account here. Some people cannot handle online criticism like I can [Precedes to destroy all the criticism directed at me on the Blue Beetle page like a baby].
Cheese. It’s as good as any other answer. Quit putting that poor bunny (is he a full grown rabbit?) in danger. Bunnies are fragile animals and taste delicious to monsters. They need their own champion.
Following her debut on the Philly 5 news channel, Mary finds herself the victim of some harsh digs on the internet … and less-than-flattering superhero names. If you’d just seen her on the news, what superhero name would you choose for her?
Mary Marvel (I just assume her name is Mary for no reason ) but really I’d probably call her BoltStrike or something electricity related.
“I’ve got this under control.” Typical Mary line, sure … but why do you think she insists on doing everything alone, even when her siblings are perfectly capable of helping without powers?
I think an older sister/sibling thing of wanted to protect her siblings and the mindset of if they’re not involved then they’re safe.
What do you think of Dr. G now compared to when you first met her in Issue #2?
Definitely more suspicious. She definitely up to something.
Babel’s power involves rooting through peoples’ inner-most thoughts to pull out all the negative things they think about themselves. When he uses this tactic on Mary, he claims that he didn’t even have to read her mind because he just used the terrible things people are saying about her online. The more he does this to her, the more shocking the results are. Do you think the things Babel pulls from Mary are still only based on his brief research, or some of her actual thoughts?
Definitely a mix. Probably feelings and doubts she was struggling with but brought more up front due to recent events.
Why do you think Darla took Hoppy with her when she ran away, given that he’s now just a normal rabbit?
Either because she likes the rabbit or maybe thought there was still something in Hoppy that could help.
I re-read the issues, and I have to say… I’m struck even more by how much the story was a pure Mary Marvel story.
It is basically something of a modern “Nancy Drew, but with superpowers story,” which is exactly what Mary Marvel traditionally was and even Bob Oskner drew inspiration from Nancy Drew when he illustrated Mary Marvel. You almost wouldn’t know that this is the Earth-0 version.
“Cool” is in the eye of the beholder. In my time on this Earth, I’ve been lucky enough to have been a social pariah and considered “cool.” Sometimes I’ve even been both at the same time to different people. As Eugene is discovering, sometimes what makes you a “nerd” in one place actually makes you “cool” in another. However, I’ve found that being “cool” or being a “nerd” has actually no real bearing on your life’s trajectory. So, ultimately, who cares…
Well, Billy only had enough power to give one of his siblings super abilities. Mary is the best choice because she’s the oldest and most responsible. Also, because Mary doesn’t want them. It’s best to give super powers to someone who doesn’t want them because they will be the least likely to abuse them. Eugene and co. are justified in feeling hurt because it hurts to be passed over. However, I hope they eventually acknowledge that Mary was the right choice.
She seems like a cool professor!
Of course she does! With the powers of Shazam, Mary is never really alone. So they can short out her electricity? Whatever. She still has the strength of Hippolyta, the skill of Ariadne, the Wisdom of Minerva, etc… She’ll deal with them.
Probably not. The public eye tends to distort and complicate things. It can be nice to have it as a platform, but… not sure that Mary really needs that.
Issue #3:
…Mary Marvel…
It could be a few things. First, it just could be oldest child syndrome. As the oldest of her siblings, Mary could be used to taking responsibility for things on her own. It could be because she’s an overachiever and overachievers don’t always like to ask for help. It could be because she still feels like an “unwanted child” and wants to prove she’s worthy by taking on everything alone. It could be all those things.
Well, all that stuff about some people being worthier than others didn’t sound great, but… she’s still cool! …Right…?
When someone says or writes something bad about you, it’s difficult to not let that thing live rent-free in your head. The wonderful thing about online commentary is that can become multiple someones with multiple bad things to crawl inside that brain. Maybe Babel was reading her mind a bit or maybe the things said online did get to her. Unfortunately, it could be either or.
Because he’s the Marvel Bunny!
One last thing, this series has a ton of Shazam-family references and Easter eggs hidden within. When I was first reading it, I became obsessed with identifying them all. In particular, the missing posters at the end of issue #2 and in issue #3 actually reference Golden Age Fawcett characters, Shazam-family characters, and creators. I identified most of them and got some help from @KnightOS who got the ones I couldn’t and corrected me on one.
If you’re interested, here’s the full list:
Rosa Vasquez, Mary’s foster-mother
Victor Vasquez, Mary’s foster-father
Roger Parsons aka Golden Arrow
Nyoka Meredith aka Nyoka the Jungle Girl
Susan Kent aka Bulletgirl
Jack Weston aka Minute-Man
Chase Yale aka Commando Yank
Brian Butler aka Mr. Scarlet
Alan Armstrong aka Spy Smasher
Kit Freeman aka Kid Eternity
James Barr aka Bulletman
Hittany Brolzherr- Anagram for editor Brittany Holzherr
Cozie Jambles- Anagram for writer Josie Campbell
Ehan “Cod” Savner- Anagram for artist Evan “Doc” Shaner
Billy Batson aka Shazam (the artist formerly known as Captain Marvel)
Stanley Printwhistle aka Ibac
Mickey Malone aka The Phantom Eagle
Scoop Smith aka… well Scoop Smith from Whiz Comics
Stuart Blake who was the father of Atom Blake, The Boy Wizard
Van Crawford aka Fatman, the Human Flying Saucer (who was published by Lightning, not Fawcett. However, his creators were important Marvel Family collaborators: Otto Binder and C.C. Beck).
Charles Clarence is a reference to C.C. (Charles Clarence) Beck who was the most important Golden Age artist for the Marvel Family.
George Tweedle aka The Arson Fiend
Amentep Prince aka Prince Amentep aka Ibis the Invincible
Flipots is probably a misspelling of the last name of Kurt Filpots aka Mr. Banjo
Dora Keane aka Darkling from World’s Finest Comics #278
There’s a poster that just says Fawcett which was the Marvel Family’s Golden Age publisher, of course!
Horace Hand aka The Horrible Hand (probably… still a little unsure on this one)
Muscles McGinnis from Captain Marvel Adventures #3
Oswald Babs is a reference to the humor strip Ozzie & Babs
I always like the Shazam mythos and Billy one of my top 10 heroes/comic characters ever. But I was very happy that the focus was on Mary actually taking on the Champion responsibilites. She has been a long-standing for decades and it was cool to focus on her.
I know that after Lazarus Planet it seems like it will go back to Billy being the Champion. But I remember the Trials of Shazam story where Billy took the Wizard’s place and Freddie became Champion. Maybe after this Revenge of the Gods story, we can do the same but use Mary
I liked this comic from the start, and I’m enjoying it more and more with each issue.
Here are my answers and thoughts for the second issue:
It’s been a little bit of time since I was in school, but I feel like to be the cool kid in school, confidence and putting yourself out there are probably the most important things.
I feel like if the kids all had powers, they wouldn’t get to be (relatively) normal kids. Mary is an adult so it’s theoretically easier for her to handle that responsibility.
It’s hard to tell. What she’s saying about overcoming things that have held you back could apply equally to Mary’s situation of trying to figure out who she is or to a supervillain character like Luthor. Given how much of a focus there is on her introduction, she does seem important.
I think she’s going to have to get more creativity with how she uses her powers. They seem pretty overconfident, so that should be a weakness she can exploit.
It’s hard to tell. I feel like with all the crazy monsters and villains that are popping up, knowing there’s a superhero nearby who is fighting to stop them would be comforting, if nothing else.
And the third:
I feel like given how many different heroes there are using the same name, like Flash, Green Lantern, and even Superman, I feel like just “Shazam” would work, since she has the same sort of costume and powers. Or maybe something Philadelphia (or rabbit) related.
I feel like as the oldest child, especially in a foster family, Mary probably feels like she needs to take on all the responsibility herself. And she definitely doesn’t want to put any more of her family in danger, which is understandable given what happened to her parents.
I absolutely don’t trust her now. Since Mary’s powers come from ancient gods, Dr. G being an expert in ancient mythology seems very weird. Especially since she now studies science, and Mary is facing monsters that seem to combine magic and science. Plus she seems extremely elitist and clearly thinks she’s superior to everyone else.
If Mary read that garbage about herself online, I think the thoughts would still be in her mind on some level. I don’t think she’d normally be thinking that badly about herself, but she does seem to be going through a crisis of confidence in herself, and the negative comments have probably sunk in more than they otherwise would.
I think it could be that she feels safer with him, or that she wants to make sure he’s taken care of.
Warm blooded mammal who refuses to be defined by a simple statement.
I think Mary puts way more emphasis on action than thought contrary to what she says. She seems way more impulsive than Billy.
I typically put more emphasis on action since I can just think my way out of the problems because I’m Batman.
Boring reveal. This wrapped up way too quick.
Solomon messed up Israel so I am going with Stamina of Atlas. That sounds really useful for everything really. Hardly any need to sleep, maximum pain tolerance, and all the energy I can ask for.
Because he favors her. He needs to show more of a helpful attitude for his other siblings. They probably all need him more than Mary.
Good first two issues and then it collapsed for the last two. They should have cut all the humans out and made it all about Hoppy.
Mary again asks the question of how one defines a person. This time, however, she asks the reader directly: How do YOU define yourself? What would be your answer for her?
I’m not sure. I guess I would define me as me. Like everyone we’re our own unique ball of everything mixing life experiences and personal interests and more into who we are.
If you were a hero, do you think you’d follow more in Billy’s fighting style of action > thought, or Mary’s fighting style of thought > action?
Thought action. I overthink a lot sometimes and issue sometimes really helpful. Ultimately though would probably switch depending on the issue.
What did you think of Dr. G’s surprise familial reveal? Were you expecting her to be related to them?
Definitely a surprise. Thought she’d be a new villain but a legacy. Pretty cool idea. Maybe a father daughter team up in the future .
If you could isolate any of the six main powers that make up SHAZAM, which one would you prefer to have?
Not sure. Maybe Zeus or Hercules .
Why do you think Mary was able to catch a glimpse of Billy when no one else could see him?
Because she has the power. As champion she can probably sense these things.
I’m a “thinker” or, really, an overthinker. That’s too bad, really. Mary is much better at the whole thinking/planning style than I am. I just think myself into a hole. I generally do much better when I act without thinking at all.
After issue #3, it became obvious that Dr. G was the villain of the piece. After all the retro references and Easter eggs, I was also relatively sure that Dr. G was a reimagined version of an older character. However, I was in full-on, Golden Age nerd mode by that point and overthought it. My first guess was that Dr. G was based off an obscure Black Terror villain named Dr. Ghoul. They had the same MO of turning people into monsters. A few hours later, though, I realized I was being stupid and that Dr. G is an updated Georgia Sivana because… of course she is. So, no, I was not surprised, but I definitely whiffed on my first guess before getting there in the end.
The Beauty of Aurora…
Probably because she’s connected to Billy through the powers of Shazam. …Or maybe she was just hallucinating due to lack of sleep. She was balancing college classes, taking care of her siblings, and thwarting a nefarious plot. I imagine she wasn’t getting in the recommended eight hours per night of snooze time. But… nah… it’s likely because of the powers of Shazam.
I loved this series and looked forward to it as it came out each month. I look forward to the new Shazam book coming soon and hope that Mary will continue her heroic career going forward!
I agree with y’all that I definitely want to see more of Mary’s Shazam! I liked the art style of this comic and wish it had been a longer series. I think the overall timeline would’ve felt a bit more organic and fleshed out if it had been longer, but you work with what you got, and it was a great read either way!
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)
) but really I’d probably call her BoltStrike or something electricity related.
Were you expecting her to be related to them?
. The art was amazing the story was great. Really enjoyed it. hopefully Mary will have more stories as the new champion.