With the current lack of new comics due to the worldwide pandemic, this is the perfect time catch up on comics you might have missed.
Gwenpool is one of my favorite Marvel Comics character. Despite her popularity, a successful 26-issue series (The Unbelievable Gwenpool), and appearances in other comicss, there are still many who don’t know who Gwenpool is. The common misconceptions are she is really Gwen Stacy or has something to do with Deadpool (or possibly both).
The fact is, she has nothing to do with either.
Introduced in a back-up story in Howard the Duck #1 Volume 6 in 2015, writer Christopher Hastings didn’t waste a lot of time bogging down the story with an origin. Her name comes from her actual name–Gwen Poole. She comes from the “real world” and realizes she is somehow existing in a comic book universe.
Despite throwing herself into extremely dangerous situations by working as a mercenary, she doesn’t any traditional superpowers or training. What does she have that makes her special? Here are five reasons why you should be reading Gwenpool comics.
Gwen Has Unique Powers
Her résumé is brief but pretty much says it all. Gwen was a massive fan of comics in her world. That means she knows pretty much everything about everyone. This puts her in at an advantage when coming across superheroes or supervillains. Not only does she know who they are, she’s quick to use that knowledge to her advantage.
For example, when Jane Foster secretly gained the power of Thor, this was something virtually no one knew. Gwen was in a situation and needed to distract Thor. She knew the easiest way to catch her off guard was to call out her name.
There was another moment she saw Miles Morales on the subway and couldn’t resist telling him she was a fan. When she started talking about the Ultimate Universe, he thought she was just a little crazy.
Gwen Has A Unique Costume
Knowing she’s in a comic book universe, it’s her belief that if you’re not wearing a mask or a cape, you’re just an extra. That means you can easily be killed in one of the numerous superhero battles taking place in New York City pretty much all the time.
Gwen figured if she could be the hero in her own story, she couldn’t die and be sent to comic book limbo. Gwen went to a costume designer who noticed she had pink in her hair and decided to use the excess pink fabric she had in stock to design her look. “Big boots! No pants!”
Later when Gwen asked if she had received a shipment of new fabric so she could have pants, Ronnie’s reply was the shade of pink wasn’t very popular.
Not just anyone could go about wearing a pink pantsless outfit with really big boots. Gwen does it with style and grace.
Gwen Has Self-Taught Combat Skills
It turned out her costume designer, Ronnie, also helped arrange mercenary jobs. When she took a job to take out a two-sworded killer, she decided it’d be as simple as watching YouTube videos to learn everything she needed to know. In her defense, she did manage to learn a different set of skills on YouTube in order to defeat Orto.
Later Gwen even gets hand-to-hand and shooting lessons from Batroc the Leaper. That might sound a little bad, but Batroc was actually very helpful and nurturing.
Gwen Was Forced to Work For M.O.D.O.K. And Survived The Experience
When Gwen took on a seriously dangerous mercenary gig, another major player was already on the scene. Gwen took him out, basically by the fortune of good luck once again. The problem was he was M.O.D.O.K.’s best man. He forced Gwen to become one of his Agents of M.O.D.O.K. (Which also stands for Mercenary Organization Dedicated Only to Killing).
The Unbelievable Gwenpool Has Unbelievable Art by Gurihiru
Gurihiru Studios is an amazing Japanese illustration team. The art and color in the series is gorgeous and expressive. While Christopher Hastings did a stupendous job crafting Gwen’s adventures, Gurihiru’s art helped take her to a new level.
The times another art team would give their interpretation of Gwenpool were fun to see, but the stories seemed to be missing a little something.
The Unbelievable Gwenpool is available in two trade paperbacks: Volume 1: Believe It and Volume 2: Head of M.O.D.O.K. The series is also available on Marvel Unlimited. Gwenpool also appeared in West Coast Avengers Volume 3 and Gwenpool Strikes Back. If you haven’t read Gwenpool’s adventures or are interested in re-reading the comics, now is the perfect time to spend with Gwen Poole.
What the Heck is going on?!? 