Comic Review: ‘Mister Marsh’ Issue #1

Mister Marsh is the debut comic from 819 Comics, owned and operated by husband and wife Nathan and Stacie Pinsoneault. Nathan explains at the end of Mister Marsh that the idea originally came from a dream he had as a teen about a superhero with a marshmallow head. Through the comic series, he’s finally exploring that character and the character’s universe.

In the first issue, we meet Madeline “Maddy” Maple and her farmhand Macon Marshall. The duo are caught in a raging barn fire on Maddy’s property. While Maddy manages to make her way out, Macon gets trapped and seemingly succumbs to the fire. However, he completely disappears so Maddy doesn’t give up hope that he’s somehow alive. During the fire, we see that Macon goes through a transformation and, shortly after, Maddy comes face to face with his new form. Basically, he is now a flying metal man with a head shaped like a marshmallow.

The issue introduces us to the main characters quickly, including Mister Marsh. Within just a few pages, we get a good idea of who the two main characters are and, more importantly, their chemistry together. He works for her, yes, but a trusted friendship, and perhaps more, shines through. In addition to Macon and his new identity, there were multiple story lines going on that were all tied in. While it effectively sets up some beefy content for the upcoming issues, there was so much from the middle of the issue on that it felt rushed. There are reasons for each story line to exist within the issue, I just didn’t feel like I had enough time to soak one idea in before getting introduced to another.

That being said, the story lines are interesting, especially when we’re shown a mysterious man in a place called Eighth City. Somehow he is connected to the events taking place with Macon, which looks to be a fun expansion in this universe. We also see Mister Marsh’s main abilities, and I’m curious to see what other powers he’ll unlock, including his vulnerabilities. There are a lot of great ideas here, the pacing and execution just need some fine-tuning.

The cover of Mister Marsh has a very classic style, with the lettering on the cover drawing me in immediately. The coloring is whimsical, bold and elevates the artwork throughout the issue, while keeping within a sci-fi theme. It is impressive that Nathan and Stacie Pinsoneault do all of the coloring, artwork and writing themselves. The passion and ability to have fun with the series shows throughout.

Check out 819 Comics here!