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Mage #2.1
Mage, Vol. 3: The Hero Defined, Book Two Part 1
The third of six volumes collecting Matt Wagner's epic fantasy trilogy. Book Two-THE HERO DEFINED was the series that first saw Wagner join the ranks of Image Comics creators and continues the saga of the reborn Pendragon, Kevin Matchstick. Several years after the events of THE HERO DISCOVERED, Kevin finds himself partnered with a posse of comrades who also embody the powers and personas of ancient heroes. Together they confront and battle a litany of supernatural challenges, all seemingly orchestrated by an unseen malevolence from Kevin's past. Throughout their adventures, Kevin is pursued by a shabby and befuddled old man, Wally Ut, who claims to be the mystical mentor that was prophesied for the next stage of our hero's journey-Kevin's second Mage!
Matt Wagner's classic epic of comics fantasy has been beloved by both old fans and new readers for decades. MAGE was at the vanguard of the independent comics scene and continues as an inspiration to many contemporary creators. With the release of the final part of the MAGE trilogy, THE HERO DENIED, this collected series will be an essential part of any comics library.
Matt Wagner's classic epic of comics fantasy has been beloved by both old fans and new readers for decades. MAGE was at the vanguard of the independent comics scene and continues as an inspiration to many contemporary creators. With the release of the final part of the MAGE trilogy, THE HERO DENIED, this collected series will be an essential part of any comics library.
208 pages, Paperback
Published January 16, 2018
About the author
Matt Wagner
963 books238 followersMatt Wagner is an American comic book writer and artist. In addition to his creator-owned series' Mage and Grendel, he has also worked on comics featuring The Demon and Batman as well as such titles as Sandman Mystery Theatre and Trinity, a DC Comics limited series featuring Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
December 30, 2021
#ThrowbackThursday - Back in the '90s, I used to write comic book reviews for the website of a now-defunct comic book retailer called Rockem Sockem Comics. (Collect them all!)
From the August 1998 edition with a theme of "Reprinted and Repackaged":
INTRODUCTION
I'm feeling nostalgic, folks. Howzabout a few trips down memory lane this month?
When I was a young kid buying comics off the spinner rack at the my small town drug store or the magazine rack at the county seat's big grocery store, missing an issue of ARCHIE, RICHIE RICH or SUPERMAN was a tragedy. There were no comic stores with back issue bins in Shullsburg, Wisconsin. And heck, the only other comic book collector in town bought only those trashy Marvel titles, such as X-MEN and FANTASTIC FOUR, which I snubbed. (Hey, I was ignorant of the concepts of appreciation in value and comic book price guides. Give me a break!) If Jackson's Drug Store or Dick's Supermarket didn't get a particular comic, this little farm boy was plain outta luck.
Nowadays, the comics collector has a multitude of solutions available to him. Somewhere in the midst of all the back issue bins, comic conventions, classified ads, mail order companies, fan clubs, and distributor restocking systems, a missing comic book is sure to turn up with a little effort . . . even for little snot-nosed nerds living on isolated Wisconsin dairy farms. As a grown-up, snot-nosed nerd living in isolation in Colorado, I still agonize over a missing issue of a beloved comic book series, but now I'm flexible enough to consider the one solution that is becoming more and more common and, therefore, much easier to obtain. For those willing to bypass first-edition, serialized comics, the Golden Age of publisher reprinting and repackaging is upon us.
PURE MAGIC
MAGE: THE HERO DISCOVERED #1-15 (Comico)
MAGE: THE HERO DEFINED #0-8 (Image Comics)
I only wrote one comic book fan letter in my entire life, and it was published in the final issue of MAGE: THE HERO DISCOVERED. Writer/artist Matt Wagner (GRENDEL, BATMAN/GRENDEL, SANDMAN MYSTERY THEATRE), with the assistance of inker Sam Kieth (THE MAXX), moved me deeply with a wonderfully funny, superbly action-packed drama about finding the superhero within.
Lead character and regular guy Kevin Matchstick awakens one day to find he has supernatural powers and is caught up in a war with creatures from mythology. Assisting Matchstick in his fight are a legless mentor mage named Mirth, a tough teenage girl named Edsel, and an uptight lawyer named Sean. Opposing Matchstick is the deliciously evil Umbra Sprite, his sympathetically frustrated henchman --the intelligent and curious Lazlo -- and a host of demons, dragons and other beasties.
It's cheesy, but I'm gonna share my fan letter with you today. For the sake of not spoiling the ending, I'm replacing the names of the characters whose fate I disclose with "Character A" and "Character B."
"Dear Matt,
Round about nine months ago, I saw you on your Mage Tour at Superhero Universe in Cambridge, MA. I bought and won (Hooray for door prizes!) sketches of Character A and Character B. I'd chosen those two characters because they were my favorite characters in MAGE. Heck, they were two of my all-time favorite characters in comics.
And in the span of two issues you fried one and shot the other. Killed 'em. Dead. Kaput.
You made me love these characters. You brought them to life through your beautiful art and great writing. Then you killed 'em.
But you wanna know something? I'm not complaining about what you've done. I'm not demanding you bring 'em back. I'm not cast into emotional turmoil. As a matter of fact, I'm proud. Proud that their deaths were meaningful and in character. Proud that you "executed" the scenes so well.
Character A and Character B died. But they died -- if there is such a thing -- the good death.
Thank you for the excellence which is MAGE. Thank you for the time you've given us with two great characters. May they rest in peace. And may magic always be green.
'Bye,
Rod Brown
Shullsburg, WI"
After an agonizingly long ten-and-a-half years, the sequel to MAGE: THE HERO DISCOVERED finally began to appear in 1997. Kevin Matchstick is in full control of his powers and has begun a systematic quest to rid the world of all evil presences. Joining him this time are a homeless man claiming to be a second mage and a large array of super-powered folks who are reincarnations of mythic heroes from a variety of cultures, e.g., Hercules of the Greeks, Coyote of the Native Americans, and St. George of the British. Trying to organize the opposition is the enigmatic Pale Incanter.
MAGE: THE HERO DEFINED has gotten off to a rocky start, as far as I'm concerned. With only Kevin Matchstick carrying over from the first series, I find that I miss all the old characters tremendously. Nostalgia over those characters and the absence of the sheer joy of discovery which permeated the first series may be making it hard for me to give the successor series a fair break. I'm irritated that the action and humor has been pumped up at the expense of the drama which was the core of the first MAGE. MAGE: THE HERO DEFINED is slowly starting to gel into an interesting story on its own right, however, especially since the introduction of a possible romance for Matchstick. Also helping is the fact that Wagner's artwork (he's doing pencils and inks this time) has made stellar jumps in quality since the first MAGE series.
I loved MAGE: THE HERO DISCOVERED back in 1986, and I still love it today. It's one of the few comics that I reread every couple of years. If you've worn your copies out doing the same, or if you've never had the pleasure of reading MAGE before, I recommend you pick up the newest editions a.s.a.p. Then watch for next issue of the sequel, MAGE: THE HERO DEFINED, a series which is quietly growing on me. Once you've let Kevin Matchstick and his friends into your life, you too will be enchanted.
MAGE: THE HERO DISCOVERED Grade: A+
MAGE: THE HERO DEFINED Grade: B
From the August 1998 edition with a theme of "Reprinted and Repackaged":
INTRODUCTION
I'm feeling nostalgic, folks. Howzabout a few trips down memory lane this month?
When I was a young kid buying comics off the spinner rack at the my small town drug store or the magazine rack at the county seat's big grocery store, missing an issue of ARCHIE, RICHIE RICH or SUPERMAN was a tragedy. There were no comic stores with back issue bins in Shullsburg, Wisconsin. And heck, the only other comic book collector in town bought only those trashy Marvel titles, such as X-MEN and FANTASTIC FOUR, which I snubbed. (Hey, I was ignorant of the concepts of appreciation in value and comic book price guides. Give me a break!) If Jackson's Drug Store or Dick's Supermarket didn't get a particular comic, this little farm boy was plain outta luck.
Nowadays, the comics collector has a multitude of solutions available to him. Somewhere in the midst of all the back issue bins, comic conventions, classified ads, mail order companies, fan clubs, and distributor restocking systems, a missing comic book is sure to turn up with a little effort . . . even for little snot-nosed nerds living on isolated Wisconsin dairy farms. As a grown-up, snot-nosed nerd living in isolation in Colorado, I still agonize over a missing issue of a beloved comic book series, but now I'm flexible enough to consider the one solution that is becoming more and more common and, therefore, much easier to obtain. For those willing to bypass first-edition, serialized comics, the Golden Age of publisher reprinting and repackaging is upon us.
PURE MAGIC
MAGE: THE HERO DISCOVERED #1-15 (Comico)
MAGE: THE HERO DEFINED #0-8 (Image Comics)
I only wrote one comic book fan letter in my entire life, and it was published in the final issue of MAGE: THE HERO DISCOVERED. Writer/artist Matt Wagner (GRENDEL, BATMAN/GRENDEL, SANDMAN MYSTERY THEATRE), with the assistance of inker Sam Kieth (THE MAXX), moved me deeply with a wonderfully funny, superbly action-packed drama about finding the superhero within.
Lead character and regular guy Kevin Matchstick awakens one day to find he has supernatural powers and is caught up in a war with creatures from mythology. Assisting Matchstick in his fight are a legless mentor mage named Mirth, a tough teenage girl named Edsel, and an uptight lawyer named Sean. Opposing Matchstick is the deliciously evil Umbra Sprite, his sympathetically frustrated henchman --the intelligent and curious Lazlo -- and a host of demons, dragons and other beasties.
It's cheesy, but I'm gonna share my fan letter with you today. For the sake of not spoiling the ending, I'm replacing the names of the characters whose fate I disclose with "Character A" and "Character B."
"Dear Matt,
Round about nine months ago, I saw you on your Mage Tour at Superhero Universe in Cambridge, MA. I bought and won (Hooray for door prizes!) sketches of Character A and Character B. I'd chosen those two characters because they were my favorite characters in MAGE. Heck, they were two of my all-time favorite characters in comics.
And in the span of two issues you fried one and shot the other. Killed 'em. Dead. Kaput.
You made me love these characters. You brought them to life through your beautiful art and great writing. Then you killed 'em.
But you wanna know something? I'm not complaining about what you've done. I'm not demanding you bring 'em back. I'm not cast into emotional turmoil. As a matter of fact, I'm proud. Proud that their deaths were meaningful and in character. Proud that you "executed" the scenes so well.
Character A and Character B died. But they died -- if there is such a thing -- the good death.
Thank you for the excellence which is MAGE. Thank you for the time you've given us with two great characters. May they rest in peace. And may magic always be green.
'Bye,
Rod Brown
Shullsburg, WI"
After an agonizingly long ten-and-a-half years, the sequel to MAGE: THE HERO DISCOVERED finally began to appear in 1997. Kevin Matchstick is in full control of his powers and has begun a systematic quest to rid the world of all evil presences. Joining him this time are a homeless man claiming to be a second mage and a large array of super-powered folks who are reincarnations of mythic heroes from a variety of cultures, e.g., Hercules of the Greeks, Coyote of the Native Americans, and St. George of the British. Trying to organize the opposition is the enigmatic Pale Incanter.
MAGE: THE HERO DEFINED has gotten off to a rocky start, as far as I'm concerned. With only Kevin Matchstick carrying over from the first series, I find that I miss all the old characters tremendously. Nostalgia over those characters and the absence of the sheer joy of discovery which permeated the first series may be making it hard for me to give the successor series a fair break. I'm irritated that the action and humor has been pumped up at the expense of the drama which was the core of the first MAGE. MAGE: THE HERO DEFINED is slowly starting to gel into an interesting story on its own right, however, especially since the introduction of a possible romance for Matchstick. Also helping is the fact that Wagner's artwork (he's doing pencils and inks this time) has made stellar jumps in quality since the first MAGE series.
I loved MAGE: THE HERO DISCOVERED back in 1986, and I still love it today. It's one of the few comics that I reread every couple of years. If you've worn your copies out doing the same, or if you've never had the pleasure of reading MAGE before, I recommend you pick up the newest editions a.s.a.p. Then watch for next issue of the sequel, MAGE: THE HERO DEFINED, a series which is quietly growing on me. Once you've let Kevin Matchstick and his friends into your life, you too will be enchanted.
MAGE: THE HERO DISCOVERED Grade: A+
MAGE: THE HERO DEFINED Grade: B
June 30, 2022
Excellent start to the 2nd story arc in this very different comic series. Nice art and an interesting story line make this a refreshing and new comic read. Very recommended
March 1, 2026
I was right to give the series a chance – Matt Wagner couldn't let me down – because it's finally taking off.
A small take-off, mind you, we're eight episodes into a build-up of tension with nothing very concrete at this stage, but you can clearly sense that a few years have passed and that Wagner has a better grasp of his plot, his drawing, his narration, his characters... everything, in fact!
Kevin makes friends who are similar to him and he has a hard time accepting his role as leader, but events leave him little choice and a confrontation looms. A bit like the first series, in fact, but better done.
Just for fun: I can't imagine for a second that Wagner didn't know what he was doing when he named the Canadian nightclub "Les foufounes électriques"
A small take-off, mind you, we're eight episodes into a build-up of tension with nothing very concrete at this stage, but you can clearly sense that a few years have passed and that Wagner has a better grasp of his plot, his drawing, his narration, his characters... everything, in fact!
Kevin makes friends who are similar to him and he has a hard time accepting his role as leader, but events leave him little choice and a confrontation looms. A bit like the first series, in fact, but better done.
Just for fun: I can't imagine for a second that Wagner didn't know what he was doing when he named the Canadian nightclub "Les foufounes électriques"
December 14, 2018
I remember being underwhelmed when this first came out, probably by the new characters and the somewhat less focused storyline. The artwork doesn’t have quite the strong lines of the first series (which was probably due to Sam Keith’s inks).
This time around, I wasn’t as enamored of the first series, so I’m a little more open. The art and storytelling definitely display the skill and maturity of Wagner.
This time around, I wasn’t as enamored of the first series, so I’m a little more open. The art and storytelling definitely display the skill and maturity of Wagner.
December 9, 2019
Picking up twenty years after The Hero Discovered, this story has a tighter narrative, and much smoother dialogue.
It's interesting to see how much a writer/artist has grown in two decades, when they write the same character in similar situations.
If you like magic quest stories with modern characters, you should definitely pick this up.
It's interesting to see how much a writer/artist has grown in two decades, when they write the same character in similar situations.
If you like magic quest stories with modern characters, you should definitely pick this up.
May 10, 2023
The epic exploits of Kevin Matchstick continue with a whole new crew of characters. Kevin once again faces threats of the fiendish and fantastic, yet the adventure is a personal journey for the main hero as well as the author. Matt Wagner continues to improve his storytelling techniques while playing with mythical aspects and tropes.
August 3, 2023
An astronomical leap in quality since the first series. I had a lot more fun reading this, the action is genuinely terrific and the characters have more definition to them. However, while it is significantly better I still find that this book doesn't quite connect with me. The art's great but the writing feels like it stops short of being the same.
September 27, 2020
I don't know if a series has ever been published in so many different configurations. Book II part 4, Volume 3, Book 2.7. Damn, if there's ever been a series that'd be good under one cover...
September 23, 2026
A bit more exciting than the last volume. I want Kevin’s shirt.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews