Marvel: Civil War Issue 1

As we did with Legion Quest to get you ready for Xmen: Apocalypse, @brothascomics is going to walk you down issue by issue to Captain America: Civil War, looking at the comics that inspired the movie( well, at least the title).

Civil War: Issue 1

Story by : Mark Millar
Pencils by: Steve McNiven

The book opens in the control room of a tv studio and flashes to a neighborhood in Stamford, Connecticut.  The New Warriors are the stars of a hero reality show and the shows is capturing their every move- including any potential battles with super villains.  The Warriors have rolled up on a list of villains on the FBI's most wanted and Speedball, the leader of the team, wants to take them on- against the protest of some of his teammates.  But the New Warriors need positive press for their reality show and against better judgement attack the villains.

It all seems to be going well but the main bad guy of the group, Nitro has escaped and the New Warriors are in hot pursuit.  Nitro, a being who can make himslef explode, is caught by Namorita in front of a local elementary school.  Nitro is not about to be taken down by the cousin of Sub Mariner and explodes himself in front of the school and on live television for everyone to see.  He kills Namorita and between 800-900 other people including most of the children at the school.

The book then shifts to the aftermath and the clean-up as heroes have come to the scene.  Xmen, Avengers, Fantastic Four, and others are all there and each of them has an opinion on what happened, why it happened and what the future holds.  The seeds of discontent are planted early between Iron Man and Captain America with each believing change is coming on how society views and deals with its heroes.

The public's reaction is swift and extreme.  People and the government want the heroes to be accountable for the damage they cause and the lives that are loss protecting them from evil doers.  A funeral affects Tony Stark/Iron Man the most and the movement for super heroes to be registered begins.

This leads to a huge, super hero pow-wow at the Baxter Building-home to the Fantastic Four.  In that meeting, there are large discussions on how to move forward with no real consensus. Some heroes believe in registration, while others are adamantly against it.

Meanwhile, SHIELD is pursuing registration under the watch of Maria Hill and she looks to get Captain America on her side.  Cap is totally against registration and he lets Maria Hill know it and she informs Cap that if he is not working for her, then he is against SHIELD and the US government and moves to have Captain America arrested. Captain America escapes and flees the SHIELD Hellicarrier!

When news gets back to Iron Man that Cap has gone rogue, he decides its his responsibility to bring Cap in!

That's the end of issue 1. Looking back, this series is almost 10 years old and it still holds up well. Even tho they undo much of it over time, when it came out originally, the story was fresh and different and all the side books with the battles between heroes was fun to watch and read.  Captain America taking the side of individual freedom has played out in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and I am curious to how they weave this story around Winter Soldier to pit Iron Man VS Captain America.
Join us back in two weeks as we review issue 2 and get you all ready for the movie Captain America: Civil War!

The Producer

Spider-Man #1 Review

A little insight into The Producer.... My son is ten years old and he is half black and half Puerto Rican so the character of Miles Morales has always spoken to me in a way other characters do not.  My son, looks up to Miles because he sees himself literally in the character so I am very protective of Miles and worry often about his portrayal in comics.  When I heard Miles was going to be "THE" Spider-Man of the Marvel universe I was more excited than my son!  Of course Marvel, being Marvel, did not allow that to actually happen and now I have some concerns again about the character( I will share that at the end). For now, off to the review of Spider-Man #1....






Being Spider-Man ain't easy.. That could be the start of lyrics by Miles Morales with back up vocals by Peter Parker.  In the aftermath of Secret Wars, Miles Morales is now the domestic Spider-Man, while Peter Parker is International Spider-Man.  Miles has to hold it down in NYC, but he is still a teenager, infected with teenage problems and issues like school, girls, and parents who just don't
understand.


Spiderman #1 is written by Brian Bendis, with art work by Sara Pichelli.  The book opens in the aftermath of a huge battle in the city and in the wreckage are the remains of the Avengers who have been layed waste by Blackheart, son of Mephisto.  Now, Spider- Man must face off against the villain who just took out the Avengers.

But before we get to that, we flash back to high school where Miles is not having any luck with a lady friend who he had to stand up to fight crime.  He had an excuse about traffic and he thought she would be understanding, but she was not having any of it and puts him on blast in front of other students and more importantly in front of Miles' best friend, Ganke.

Ganke knows Miles' secret and has suggestions that he should really be dating someone like him....no not half black and half Puerto Rican... No, someone who has powers. Miles is not having any of it and laments the fact that he really just wanted to make out with the girl that just dumped him.  Side note... I really like the writing in this scene and the humanization of Miles.  Often times writers will make teenagers seem more worldly and sophisticated than they actually are.  Most of the times they are just horny little creatures and being Spider-Man ain't gonna change that!

If girls were his only problem, maybe he could deal, but he also has a mom who just got a copy of his grades and she is not happy.  And when mama calls to let him know, he tries to lie and wiggle his way out but mom ain't having it either.  She gets so frustrated she puts him on the phone with his dad who is much calmer about the situation( bc he knows his son is Spider-Man).

And if that was not bad enough, Miles still has to go to class and get berated by that one teacher who seems to have it in for him.  I think we can all relate to that one teacher who disliked us- no matter what we did.  Well, Miles has not done his work and when his Spider Sense starts tingling, he feels the need to help and even walks out of class- knowing he will have hell to pay later for his insubordination.

When he gets to the scene of the disturbance, he begins to help the innocent caught in the collateral damage of the battle.  Then, as he gets closer to the epicenter of the event, he sees the Avengers fighting their hardest against Blackheart.  Spider-Man joins the battle to assist but once Captain America goes down, he is on his own against Blackheart!

The usual Spidey-banter with villains is there, but Miles is not Peter Parker in that way.  He has way more internal dialogue with himself about the battle than jokes and is looking for a way to defeat Blackheart. He even uses Captain America's shield for a time. When he finally uses a Venom Blast( TM), Blackheart retreats the scene leaving Miles in the aftermath, but also with a disapproving big brother wondering what he did to cause this.

That's the end of issue 1.  I thought it was an okay debut.  The artwork is superb and even tho I don't like the idea of Spider-Man being able to defeat a villain by himself that took out the Avengers, I can look past that part.  My overall concern is with Peter Parker still being around.  Look, I know that Peter Parker as Spider-Man is a staple of comic book history. I get it!  But, to have 2 Spider-Men(?) makes no sense either.  By making Miles Spidey, Jr, you weaken him as a character, no matter how many villains he defeats.  And as long as Peter is around, we are all just waiting for the shoe to drop on Miles. What are you going to kill Miles? Or send him back to the multiverse? I am not understanding what the end game is and just like Steve Rogers coming back to be Captain America, it takes a previously strong character of color( Sam Wilson) and makes them a sidekick either in reality or perception.

So nice debut issue. I am in for the long run, but I do questions moving forward.

The Producer

Extraordinary Xmen #1: Review

Its post Secret War and the remaining X-Men are down and almost out.  The M-Pox and the Terrigen Mist have reduce the mutant population dramatically.  Storm, is the leader of the X-Men and along with Iceman are charged with reforming the X-Men and leading them in this new, mutant hating world.

The book opens with Storm having a conversation with someone and pondering loudly how he did it for so many years.  Iceman comes in with news about Majik and her latest rescue mission in India.

Majik is in India doing a rescue of a mutant in that country.  With all the mutant paranoia and hatred, many mutants have been hunted down and killed.  Storm has allowed Majik to seek, find, and rescue mutants and have them brought back to the school. The crowd in India is fierce and full of hatred and Majik needs to go full mutant to rescue the child.

Once back to the mansion, Storm and Iceman recognize that sending Majik out on these missions is too dangerous for her to do alone.  Storm makes the decision to reform the X-Men to try and save whatever mutants that are left and bring them back to X-Haven.

Now the team needs to recruit the team who are spread out all over the place.  The first recruit is Jean Grey.  Now this is the time displaced Jean Grey from the 60's who was brought back to this time stream along with the Original X-Men team.  Jean is now a college student and wants a normal life.  Jean knows her fate and is doing everything in her power to avoid it. Even after seeing what has happened to mutants after reading Storm's mind, she still declines the invitation to join the X-Men!

The next recruit is Colossus.  He is now back working the farm in his native Russia.  His sister, Majik heads out to recruit Peter who is perfectly fine living a simple life on the farm in Russia.  But he could never say no to his sister and they leave to go look for the next recruit, Nightcrawler.

Nightcrawler is working a solo mission looking to capture the Marauders.  In battle with Aries and the others, he is finally defeated and captured and taken away to be a test subject for their master.

As Jean declines the offer to rejoin the team, she informs Storm and Iceman that she has scanned the Earth for mutants in her freetime and she found a mutant who should not be here.  Storm and Iceman head out with the news and in the openness of Canada they find... Wolverine( Old Man Logan version)

That ends issue one.  As a blerd dad, I have been in and out of comics over the past few years.  I would dip my toes in the water from time to time the last  5 years and the X-books are no different. I would check them out and then leave them alone- mostly because there are so many books and its gotten so hard to keep up.  I am taking the starting point after Secret Wars to try this book.  I thought the first issue was solid.  It did a good job of keeping you informed of what has happened and what is to come. I have been a fan of Humberto Ramos' art over the years, even tho he can often be inconsistent.  I like the make up of the team and Storm as leader should always be a part of any X-Men story.

Check back in next week for issue #2 review.  The book is already on issue #5 so go check them out and drop comments after you read them!

The Producer

Original Secret Wars: Part 1

With the conclusion of the Hickman Secret Wars(2015), @brothascomics is gonna take a a look back at the original Secret Wars.  Developed primarily as a tool for Marvel to sell toys, the series winds up having significant impact on the Marvel Universe. It spawns an awful sequel in Secret War 2, but the influence of the original lives on as evident by the homage to the original by Hickman's Secret Wars

Over the course of the next few weeks, we will review issues 1-12 and host a podcast to discuss the series.  So grab a Jolt Cola and sit back and enjoy the recaps.

Prior to the start of the series, all the heroes are drawn to Central Park because of this large construct that has appeared in the park.  One by one, the heroes enter and are transported into space and wind up all together and confused as to how they wound up in space.

Representing the heroes the Avengers, the Xmen, the Fantastic Four( minus Sue Richards), Spider man, Hulk, and for a reason that will become apparent later, Magneto.  For some reason the heroes feel  the need to introduce themselves and Wasp, who is leader of the Avengers at the time, does so in the most arrogant way possible.  It must be noted that Iron Man is James Rhodes at this time and The Hulk is smart and under the control of Bruce Banner.

At the same time, the villains have been transported as well to a different construct.  Its implied that many of the villains were taken from their homes or prison and transported unlike the heroes who went in voluntarily.  At the same time, the heroes are kinda confused as to why Magneto is with them and not on the other construct.  The Xmen, Xavier in particular, are very protective of Magneto even tho he is not trying to be a hero.

While trying to figure all of this out, the power of the Beyonder is revealed.  He begins to destroy one galaxy to make another( Battleworld).  His power on full display shocks and awes everyone.

Once Battleworld is formed, finally the Beyonder speaks.  He speaks of this great battle and that if you slay your villains, you will get whatever you choose.

Galactus is the first to act.  Wanting to end his constant huger for planets, he charges out towards the source of the Beyonder's power.  Dr. Doom, who is curious as well as power hungry, follows shortly after as they fly towards the Beyonder.

Of course the Beyonder has God like powers and swats the both of them back to Battleworld like its nothing.  For Doom, this is his wake up call.  The power of the Beyonder is so great that even he does not think anyone should challenge him directly.  

Meanwhile, the heroes are looking to find a leader for this upcoming battle.   But first they need to decide what to do with Magneto.  No one besides the Xmen want him there and its become a tense situations between the heroes.  Eventually, Magneto feels attacked and decides to fight back and deuces the heroes to do his own thing.

After Magneto leaves, the heroes decide they must have a leader for this upcoming battle.  Many names are tossed around, but eventually they settle on Captain America to lead the team.

As Doom heads back to the villain base after his Beyonder smack down, he is formulating what to do next.  Doom recognizes the power and how very little he could do to challenge the Beyonder on his own. He plans to seek out Reed Richards to formulate some plan to stop the Beyonder.  of course his villain co horts want to challenge the heroes so they can win the prize the Beyonder is offering.  This is insulting to Doom and he attacks the villains and plans to fly to see Reed.  Kang, thinks that is a bitch ass move and shoots down Dooms ship when it leaves the base.

As the heroes move to check out the explosion that took down Doom's ship, the villains move in to attack and we end issue one on a cliffhanger before the first battle between hero and villains.

That ends issue #1.  As much as I love this series, its kind of a mess in parts and it definitely shows its age when you re-read it.  Villains and heroes a like are constantly invoking their own name and the idea of thought boxes all over the place is 20 80's and 90's comics.  I think a major point people miss when looking pack is how sorry the villains are, tho.  I mean the Wrecking Crew? Lizard?  Kang and Dr. Doom are solid and powerful enough to take on the heroes by themselves.  And of course Galactus can hold his own against anyone.  Meanwhile the heroes are stacked with all their most powerful heroes AND the Hulk.  Not a fair fight at all.

But solid effort. Looking forward to issue #2.

The Producer

Legion Quest Part 4: Death of Xavier

The conclusion of Legion Quest which leads to the Age of Apocalypse.  This last issue( SPOILER ALERT) is going to end with the death of Charles Xavier.  Now even tho the internet was a thing when this issue came out, Marvel had already spoiled that Xavier was going to die.  The how he would die was the biggest mystery. Marvel and comic book stores even held memorial services for Xavier so this was a big deal in the world of comics.

Picking up from the last issue, Legion has made his move on Magneto with the intention of killing him so that his fathers dream of peaceful co-existence between humans and mutants could live without the constant battles that Xavier and Magneto would endure over the years.  Legion has attacked Magneto and Magneto has used his mutant powers to fight back and a huge battle is going on in the skies of Israel.  The issue opens with our heroes looking to the sky in an attempt to soak in all that is happening.

Storm, Bishop, Iceman, and Psylocke are witnessing this fight between Legion and Magneto and are paused to what to do next.  In the previous issues, Cable came back and told them events happening in the past are destroying the future as a crystal wave from the M'Kraan Crystal is wiping out much of the present as they know it.  And if they do not stop the events from now, their future is doomed.

As the battle rages on in the sky, Charles Xavier is slowly regrouping after Legion's initial attack.  Charles's knows he is witnessing the birth of Home- Superior and its as frightening as it is exciting for Charles.  The Xmen continue to fight on with the hopes of stopping Legion from completing his mission to kill Magneto.  Charles meets his future Xmen and is awe of their power, as well as the lenghts they have gone to protect his dream.

Back in the present, Lilandra, in hologram form is informing Charles that the crystal wave is making its way across the galaxy and doesn't appear to be stopping.  Charles believes that must mean his Xmen failed and he and Lilandra share a touching moment on how its been difficult for them to ever actually be together.  The other couples Gambit and Rogue and Jean Grey and Cyclops are all pondering what is going to happen next.  Meanwhile, in the past, watching all this unfold is Apocalypse.  He is enjoying the birth of mutants and hints that this plan to take over the world has been in place for many years with his henchman, Mr. Sinister.  He is ready to see who is the fittest to survive.

The battle between Legion and Magneto rages on and the Xmen charge in to fight Legion.  Iceman, whose powers have increased recently, moves in on Legion and freezes all the molecules in his body and turns him into a Popsicle.

The initial thought is they stopped him but its short lived as Legion explodes out in psionic energy knocking everyone unconscious.   He returns his focus to Magneto with the intent to kill.  Magneto is weak from the battle and is powerless to stop what is going to happen.  But Charles is awake, but too weak to use his powers to stop Legion.  In a last and desperate attempt to save his best friend, Charles pushes Magneto out of the way and is slammed by a psionicfist by his own son, killing him.

The death of Xavier has instant ramifications Xavier is David, Legion is never born and the Xmen do not exist.  However, Bishop, because of his time placed history is left in the past with only vague memories of what has happened.  As Charles lays dead in his friends arms, the future becomes crystallized as the M'kraan wave moves over everything and nothing will ever be the same again.

Legion Quest ends and leads right into the Age of Apocalypse.  This alternate universe where Xavier dies and Magneto is the leader of the Xmen and the keeper of Charles' dream.  Many mutants who were heroes are now villains and vice -versa.  The entire series was fun and well done and we will review Age of Apocalypse: Alpha in our next installment.

The Producer