Some thoughts about Shazam #1

There's a new team superhero in town.

Billy Batson decided to share his power and responsibility with his family and now all of them will have to learn about the mysteries of magic and what the future awaits for them.

Here it is people. The incredibly long-awaited arrival of Geoff Johns' Shazam series and believe me, "long-awaited" is an understatement because this series has been promised pretty much since the beginning of the New 52, 7 years ago, so yeah, it has been a long time. I remember being incredibly excited for this series since it started as backup in Johns' Justice League and with good reason, Johns reinvented Billy Batson and his world in a way that made them much more interesting than before and fortunately, this series follows that path.

The story is suited one year later after the last Shazam-related story. Billy has grown as a character, sure, he still has the new tougher personality that Johns gave him but he's now closer to his family and appreciates them much more which I believe strikes the adequate balance. The rest of the cast also prove to be enjoyable and their interactions are pretty entertaining. The reason behind is because Johns realize that they're actually kids so they act like kids and argue like kids about silly things like which should be their team's name and how boring school is, all of this without losing the charm of the family theme of the series.

And of course, this wouldn't be a Geoff Johns' book without the classic worldbuilding that characterizes his work. As usual, Johns is trying to expand the mythos in a way that is typical for him because there are apparently different sides of magic in the Shazam universe but at the same time, is a pretty fitting idea and one that intrigues me considering the history of the series.

Dale Eaglesham handles the art and is really solid with expressive characters and clear storytelling although his style might be a little dark for the title.

There's a second feature focusing on Mary and her childhood which allows us to learn more about her struggles as well as her beginning with the family. Best of all, it has the origin of Hoppy, the Shazam Bunny which is a good as you can expect. Mayo Sen Naito handles the art and is really appealing due that the manga-inspired style is much more vibrant and kid-friendly than the one in the main story.

Promising beginning, definitely on-board.