Thursday, June 2, 2016

Civil War II #1

   I almost passed on Marvel's new Civil War II event.

   After all, I didn't like the original mini-series.

   On the other hand, I loved the recent film.

   (I didn't read the Secret Wars spin-off.)

   At the last minute, I decided to give this series a shot. After all, it's written by Brian Michael Bendis, who's a reliable comics veteran. It's drawn by David Marquez, who provides solid work.

   This is the kind of event that promises big things as it spills out across virtually the entire Marvel line - the story affects almost every title.

   Of course, it doesn't take much to get Marvel's heroes to fight - it's a time-honored tradition - but the impetus here is pretty slim (at least at the beginning), as a new Inhuman gains the power to see the future. But how should that power be used?

   The issue begins with a bang, as a cosmic menace threatens the Earth.

   But then it all jumps the rails, as a couple of big important strum and drang (life-threatening) events take place - but they're almost entirely "off-camera." In other words, the stunning event doesn't take place in this issue  - it happens over in The Ultimates.

   What we see is the aftereffect, which promises to amp up the emotions of the heroes and bring the conflict into the spotlight.

   It just feels thin and forced - and I find I really don't much care about the setup.

   It's going to have to get better fast to persuade me to change my mind, but right now, I think I should have trusted my first instinct and passed on this event.

Grade: C+

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