Winter Guard #1

7.5

Critic Rating

7 Reviews
8.1

User Rating

14 Reviews
Writer Ryan Cady
Artist Jan Bazaldua
Cover Price $4.99

WINTER COMES FOR THE WHITE WIDOW & THE RED GUARDIAN!
Russia is cleaning house! And when the Red Guardian starts hunting down state secrets, he puts himself right back in his home country's crosshairs - dragging the White Widow along with him. But the motherland has new heroes now...and not even the Red Room could have prepared Alexei and Yelena for the Winter Guard's retribution. Bold twists and bombastic action abound as Jason Aaron's Winter Guard tracks down two of Russia's dirtiest secrets! Don't miss the chills and thrills of Ryan Cady and Jan Bazaldua's new epic thriller!  
RATED T+

Reviews (7) User Reviews (14) Rate / Write A Review

CRITIC REVIEWS

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  • 10

    But Why Tho? - William Tucker

    Jan 01, 1970

    Winter Guard #1 is an awesome, action-packed start to the series. From their first introduction in Aarons Avengers, this team just had to have their own comic. The characters are brilliant and engaging. Cady takes this team full of sub-plots and conflicts and gives them a story that feels specific to them. The art is superb, and the battles are some of the best available to be read in comics. For this first issue, a brief knowledge of the Avengers series is helpful but not required. However, this book has the ability to stand on its own without being considered a spinoff. Read Full Review

  • 9.1

    Comic Watch - B. Radtz

    Aug 25, 2021

    Political intrigue, a mission behind the Iron Curtain for two ex-patriot Soviet super soldiers, who comes face to face with their former teammates. Cady and Bazaldua gives you all the makings of a classic Marvel tale about some classic Avengers foes who deserve their time to shine. So Spasiba, moya lyubov! Read Full Review

  • 8.5

    AIPT - David Brooke

    Aug 23, 2021

    Winter Guard #1 is a strong start for a series that shows a lot of potential to flesh out Yelena Belova, and may just introduce you to your next favorite super spy. Read Full Review

  • 7.0

    Comic Crusaders - Johnny "The Machine" Hughes

    Aug 23, 2021

    Of course this book is a timing thing; with both the led characters having a huge part to play in the recent Black Widow movie, this is just the sort of synergy that Marvel looks to extoll from its multi-media based franchises. I am just not sure how this will play out long term. Maybe Marvel agree with me, hence the limited issue count. Read Full Review

  • 6.4

    Geek'd Out - Nico Sprezzatura

    Aug 25, 2021

    Jan Bazalduas art is good, with sharp visuals definitely enhanced by Federico Blees colors and shading, giving the linework added dimensionality that it might have lacked otherwise. There are some panels in particular that really have a near-photorealistic quality to them that I found impressive. The prologue of the issue is drawn by Djibril Morissette-Phan, but it doesnt really stick out as looking that out of place because of Blees coloring, once again proving the point of how important a color artist can be for the visual continuity of a book. Read Full Review

  • 6.0

    ComicBook.com - Logan Moore

    Aug 25, 2021

    Although the conclusion is intriguing and makes me want to see where things go in the future, I do with that this first book would've been more cohesive. Read Full Review

  • 5.8

    Multiversity Comics - Brian Salvatore

    Aug 30, 2021

    There's a lot of fun here, but as long as it is bogged down in the Avengers and the look of American heroes, it remains a less than thrilling read. Read Full Review

USER REVIEWS

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  • 8.5

    Fracadactyl

    Aug 25, 2021

    I must be a sucker for spy thrills because I can't stay away from anything related to Yelena Belova (except the Black Widow movie). Plus this really gives more depth to characters who needed more time to breathe. The Winter Guard have pretty decent personalities when it comes to their operations. It comes as a surprise when there's a (spoiler). There's a real sense of camaraderie among some of them to warrant more looks into them all. Also it's pretty good to see the stakes and interactions with some characters. The way some people talk about Red Guardian to the point of Vanguard (his replacement) coming into conflict with him is pretty interesting. Finally there's Red Widow, she always felt like a threat but here she feels like someone more

  • 8.5

    KittyNone

    Aug 29, 2021

    Huh! I nearly didn't read this one, but I'm glad I gave it a chance: it's a taut little thrill ride with an interesting cliffhanger. An unexpected delight!

  • 8.0

    Psycamorean

    Aug 28, 2021

    I was not expecting to like this or to have this be so interconnected with the rest of the Marvel line, but hey, I'm glad there's another good comic to read for the next few months.

  • 7.5

    Merlyn

    Aug 25, 2021

    Pretty interesting for a first issue but I am slightly cautious about it.

  • 6.0

    CrazyforRAMU

    Jan 04, 2022

    The White Widow and the Red Guardian enter Russia in search of plot coupons (sorry, hard drives) from Alexei's past. They emerge from a first scrap with the Winter Guard unscathed. This is a basic story delivered with basic storytelling skill. Far from flawless, but not disappointing. It won't outrage big fans of the main characters -- but I doubt it'll make many new ones. The continuity wank of fitting this into a consistent timeline with Avengers and Black Widow is more interesting than the story at hand. The creators certainly thought so -- thus the annoying prelude. Frankly, the main story would be stronger without it. The visual dissonance between the two artists is rough (I prefer Jan Bazaldua's main story art by quite a wide margi more

  • 10

    Leylin

    Aug 25, 2021

  • 9.5

    Logan X

    Aug 25, 2021

  • 9.0

    Fmernamz0

    Aug 25, 2021

  • 8.5

    Tempra16v2.0Turbo

    Aug 25, 2021

  • 8.5

    Radar

    Aug 25, 2021

  • 8.0

    Bruno Mael

    Aug 25, 2021

  • 8.0

    tonpas1989

    Aug 25, 2021

  • 8.0

    Adsun22

    Aug 26, 2021

  • 5.0

    JMaks

    May 02, 2022

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