White Tiger: Reborn #1 - Marvel Comics

WHITE TIGER: REBORN No. 1, December 2025

Published by “Marvel Worldwide” to celebrate Hispanic and Latin America Heritage Month, this one-shot special certainly seems to do a good job of assimilating all of the titular character’s dysfunctional backstory, and setting the current wearer of the amulet of power up as a future force to be reckoned with on the streets of the South Bronx. In fact, in many ways Daniel Jose Older’s narrative for “White Tiger: Reborn” arguably reads more like the opening issue of a brand new ongoing series of adventures, rather than just a twenty-page limited release, and doubtless left many a bibliophile desperate to learn more about Ava Ayala’s new found powers, as well has her exploits alongside the private detective Nathaniel Blackbyrd.

Of particular note has to be the way in which the “superstar writer” has the “fifth incarnation of White Tiger” initially demonstrate her naivety to crime-fighting by falling hook, line and sinker for D’Spayre’s spectral shenanigans. Then impressively regain her composure when she realises the Fear God is simply feeding off her dead brother's past sorrows. Such intelligence shows there’s a lot more to this particular human mutate than just being a hot-headed, angry at the entire world vigilante, and provides some conviction to the notion that the woman won’t just be borrowing the mantle of the White Tiger, but actually owning it.

Also helping to successfully sell this yarn is Bruno Abdias, who does a splendid job of showing just how catlike Ayala’s physical movements are. Admittedly, some of the panels showing a disembodied ghost of Hector look a bit cluttered and clumsily composed. However, by the time D’Spayre is receiving his just comeuppance the Top Cow Talent Hunt Winner has clearly gotten into his stride, and does a marvellous job of super-imposing the claws of a great cat over the White Tiger’s far less sizeable fists; “This power surging through me! It’s like nothing I’ve ever felt!”

Far less impactful, though still a fun enough experience, is this publication’s second tale “Song Of The Coqui” by Cynthia Pelayo and artist Moises Hidalgo. Rather simplistic in its basic plot, as a group of Roxxon operatives storm a seemingly harmless talk at the Bronx Zoo, this five-pager shows just how much of a guiding light Hector’s phantom may well be in the future, and also brings Aya closer to her estranged cousin-turned-predecessor Angela Del Toro.

The regular cover art of "WHITE TIGER: REBORN" #1 by Mike Hawthorne & Federico Blee