Civil War: Choosing Sides – “Non-Human Americans,” New Avengers # 22 (until page 13), Civil War # 2 (until page 14), New Avengers # 22 (rest of issue), Amazing Spider-Man # 532 (pages 23-25), Civil War # 2 (rest of issue), Civil War: Frontline # 2 – “The Program,” Civil War # 3 (page 1), Thunderbolts # 103 (until page 10, panel 3), Amazing Spider-Man # 533, Thunderbolts # 103 (rest of issue), Civil War: Frontline # 2 (rest of issue)
It’s about here where things get a little more complicated continuity-wise. I messed up the placement of Amazing Spider-Man # 532, pages 23-25; it should really take place before Civil War # 2, while New Avengers (until page 13) should be moved into Civil War # 2, probably between pages 11 and 12. Oh well.
Kicking things off, Howard the Duck and his girlfriend Bev (making their second appearance here at the Uncanny X-Periment) make their way to the Cleveland Registration Office. After some mix-up with the DMV (whoops! Ohio has a BMV!), they end up in the right office, where Howard learns that he’s been classified as non-existent . . . which makes him very happy.
With the registration deadline approaching, Iron Man and Ms. Marvel go and see Luke Cage, Jessica Jones, and their baby daughter. Luke and Jess refuse to sign up and Luke has Jess flee to Canada while he remains in Harlem.
Meanwhile, both Cap America’s so-called “Secret Avengers” and Iron Man’s Pro-Reg forces tackle various threats; the former being Reaper and Vulture, the latter being a giant-ass Doombot. At the Baxter Building, the battling of their former friends is wearing on Sue, but Reed is really excited about it and is building something called ’42.’ J. Jonah Jameson and Robbie muse over the Registration Act as it is about to go through; when it does, Tony Stark expresses to Happy Hogan his doubts.
Immediately following midnight, when the act is passed, Luke Cage is attacked by SHIELD and their Capekillers. As capture seems to be within reach, he is rescued by Captain America, Daredevil, and Falcon. They then high-jack a tank and make it out alive.
Twenty-four hours after the Act is signed, SHIELD and the Capekillers capture the Young Avengers, who are then rescued by Cap and Falcon and taken back to their secret HQ (one of Fury’s old underground bases). They are joined by Cloak, Dagger, Cable, Hercules, and a few others.
Peter arrives in Washington DC and is introduced as Spider-Man before peeling off his mask on live television, revealing himself. The point of this was to show that the Registration Act is the responsible thing to follow.
Norman Osborne watches as Peter/Spider-Man answers questions and grows furious. He is then offered a chance to change the game by the government.
The Thunderbolts catch the news during a battle with Quicksand, who they defeat and wonder about how Spider-Man’s revelation will effect their status quo.
With the press conference completed, Peter heads home. Once there, he learns that the Bugle is suing him for damages. Furthermore, Peter catches a news conference that states that he and many others will hunting down those that did not Register.
Back in DC, Yellowjacket, Mr. Fantastic, and Iron Man meet up with Baron Zemo and Songbird, who recruit them into capturing super-villains. This leads to a battle with various college kids that stole old Beetle armors. After the kids are defeated, Baron Zemo relishes in the fact that that villain hunt was going for two weeks before he was even asked to (part of another plan).
Ben Urich manages an interview with Peter while Sally goes after Firestar (who says simply she’s giving up the super-hero lifestyle to get a college education and job). The pair then witnesses the first major engagement of Civil War – Iron Man taking down the former Slinger Prodigy.
Finally, Speedball refuses Registration and ends up in jail.
Lots to cover here. Let’s break it down into the small stuff first.
Howard the Duck’s story was simple and funny and offers an enjoyable angle on the current situation.
Luke’s struggle against SHIELD and his determination to stay both speak greatly of his character. Jess shines through as well. The art is bad, but the writing is well-done.
Civil War itself provides brief, but brilliant spurts of insight. Reed and Sue’s rising tension (and Reed’s apparent denial/blindness of it) really speaks of the way the war is affecting their marriage. Tony’s “I hope we’re doing the right thing” line is one of my favorites. It really humanizes him. The rescue of the Young Avengers is delightfully dynamic.
Frontline continues to be smartly written and provides a ground-level look at the war as it unfolds. Speedball’s story is not as strong, but still remains interesting. Less so than Osborne’s, which was a good fit for the character; it also ensures that the bad guys aren’t just the good guys.
Thunderbolts . . . while I love the role they go onto play in Civil War, I still find their characters to be lacking accessibility and come off as clichéd.
There is a chink in the armor here, though, and that’s with the Registration Act. All of these books deal with it being passed, but there are still some questions that need to be asked. Just because one registers, do they have to be called up into active duty? Is it like the Marines? What kind of training? What if they’ve been at it for years? Are there certain levels and requirements they have to match? And what if they don’t want to be a super-hero? Who takes care of their personal information?
One issue of She-Hulk would have answered all this. Marvel dropped the ball here and had they gone over all the details in canon, then I don’t think that readers would have opposed the Registration Act so much.
Now, as for Spider-Man’s unmasking . . .
I like it, generally. It shakes things up, gets things around. It has a great impact on Spidey’s supporting cast – Aunt May, MJ, Flash, Osborne, Jameson, Urich, etc. It’s a bold step and one that makes Spider-Man’s involvement in Civil War a more emotional thing. It fits his character. There’s a strong case made for it.
There are some other things about Spider-Man that I’d like to go into, but we’ll cover that a few entries later.
~W~
No comments:
Post a Comment