Strange Academy #1 is out March 4, 2020. — **Strange Academy #1** is out March 4, 2020.

By d. emerson eddy — This week saw the release of a new magical series, Strange Academy #1, from Skottie Young, Humberto Ramos, Edgar Delgado, and Clayton Cowles…which sits just ahead of another major superhero new book, Strange Adventures from the Distinguished Competition. Now, I’ve seen commenters online taking a cynical view (shocker!) of all of this, suggesting that Marvel fashioned the title and timed the release to muddy the waters here, which is a bit of a shame and a disservice to this series because on its own merits it's pretty damned good. I especially enjoyed the work here of Humberto Ramos, who may well be delivering some of the most beautiful artwork of his already historic career.

Reigniting a youthful flame for magic across the Marvel Universe, spinning out of events from the parent Doctor Strange series, Ramos and Edgar Delgado get to go wild with imagination when it comes to character designs, antagonists, and even little bits of flair that pepper this first issue. The cast is incredibly diverse, drawing students from all corners of the universe and beyond, with kids from Asgard, the Dark Dimension, Otherworld, and more. Just in the opening few pages we get treated to a demented take on Shel Silverstein's The Giving Tree that kind of gives you an idea for the sort of experience this book is likely to be. There's something magical here with Delgado's colors, giving the art a somewhat painted effect while glowing. There's a rich and vibrant choice to the color palette, emphasizing the more fantastical, with some specific emphasis on greens, purples, pinks, and blues that just look gorgeous. Just visually, Ramos and Delgado are delivering full force here.

Which basically means adding Skottie Young make the entire affair look like Marvel put together a gang of ringers to knock this out of the park. Young excels writing fantasy, humor, and all ages fiction, just look at Middlewest and his recent Deadpool run. And he brings that bag of tricks here, as he and Ramos manage to create magic and humor out of what's basically an “introducing the team” story. There's an incredible hook in our point of view character, Emily Bright, as we're hinted that there's a deeper, darker secret for the school essentially being founded to watch her. And hilarious Loki dialogue. Very hilarious Loki dialogue.

Clayton Cowles rounds out the creative team providing letters, again lending credence to the idea that Marvel set up this series with ringers. Cowles' letters here match the vibrancy and energy of the artwork, especially among some of the more unique characters' dialogue. I was particularly impressed that the Asgardian font style preceded the appearance of an Asgardian character.

Overall, this is a wonderful start for Strange Academy #1 from Young, Ramos, Delgado, and Cowles. There's an incredible vibe that is both youthful and fun in this first issue, and I hope it will continue as the story develops further.

Strange Academy #1
Writer: Skottie Young
Artist: Humberto Ramos
Colorist: Edgar Delgado
Letterer: VC's Clayton Cowles
Publisher: Marvel
Price: $3.99
Solicit: A SORCERER SCHOOL FOR THE MARVEL UNIVERSE! The Marvel Universe has mysteriously changed in such an alarming way that Doctor Strange has done what he's avoided for decades; he's opened a school for young sorcerers. Young people from around the world with aptitude in magic have been brought together in New Orleans to study the Mystic Arts under Strange, Brother Voodoo, the Ancient One, the Scarlet Witch, Magik, Hellstrom and ALL your favorite Marvel magicians. But with all the new magical threats, is it too late?!

d. emerson eddy is a student and writer of things. He fell in love with comics during Moore, Bissette, & Totleben's run on Swamp Thing and it has been a torrid affair ever since. His madness typically manifests itself on Twitter @93418.