"Siege" Mini-Series & Crossover Talkback (Spoilers)

[Xurk]

The newest of Marvel's events starts today (albeit a shorter one than we've been used to in recent years)!

SIEGE #1

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http://images.tfaw.com/covers_tfaw/200/no/nov090419.jpg (http://images.tfaw.com/covers_tfaw/400/no/nov090419.jpg)

WRITER: Brian Michael Bendis
PENCILS: Olivier Coipel

THE STORY: Beginning with the ravaging affects of Avengers Disassembled and following the aftermaths of House of M, Civil War and Secret Invasion, culminating with the evil Reign of Norman Osborn, the Marvel Universe has been left with its greatest villains holding more power and control than ever before.

On the brink of madness, Osborn, in his final bid to take total control, targets the final obstacle in his mission...Asgard. Events are set in motion forcing our heroes to put aside the deep rifts that have grown over the past seven years.

Opposing them stand a horde of evil that has begun to take down the gods of the Golden Realm! SIEGE will rock the foundations of every super hero, villain and team in the Marvel Universe. As an era ends, one word will ring above all others...'SIEGE.'

Thoughts? What are your comments?

[rggkjg1]

how come we didn't see the president when we all know obama is president in the marvel universe?

[Xurk]

That was odd. They didn't even hint at Obama by using a silhouette, like they have done before in MU comics.

A quick summary of the good stuff in this issue, which was otherwise kind of slow, like all first-issues-of-an-event are:


All of the "Dark Avengers" being scared out of their wits of having to battle the Gods of Asgard - the way it should be!
The president getting very upset about Osborn's decision to invade Asgard; I hope he has finally lost his patience with him, something I have been waiting to happen ever since that "Thunderbolts" issue at the start of "Dark Reign". Here's hoping he does something about it!
The moment when Thor transforms and enters the battle, they succeeded in pulling off the "epic" feel they were going for with that sequence :)
Steve Rogers clenching his fist in front of the TV... yeah!!

Who I can't wait to see go down the most, asides from Osborn? Evil Sentry. If you thought he was annoying back when he was good, you'll really be appalled by him at the moment.

[Jin Kazama]

I've never been a big Thor fan, but since this is going to shake up all the Avengers titles, and I read "New Avengers," I figured I may as well give it a shot. Probably just the main mini, though, and at only 4 issues, it's not that crazy of an investment.

That said, I did like this first issue. It reminded me a little too much like "Civil War," what with the one big "Spark" moment on live TV starting the whole thing. But it was a neat bit how it was all happening while Loki was talking to Norman.

Like I said, I'm not big on Thor, but if they keep him like he was here, I can get into him. I love Donald Blake. He's been interesting in "Invincible Iron Man," and I liked him here. I dug Hill's comment of "You'll Need a Bigger Stick." And seeing him smack Sentry across the field with his hammer put a nice little smile on my face.

So far so good.

[TheVileOne]

Is Dark Wolverine supposed to be some sort of fake hallucination?

[GWOtaku]

Yikes. Well, that's one way to get Steve Rogers motivated to get involved...

I like the sound of this new heroic era after this little event is over. Here's hoping they stick to it and actually do lay off the crossovers for a little while.

[Xurk]

The siege on Asgard continues!

SIEGE #2

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http://images.tfaw.com/covers_tfaw/200/de/dec090432.jpg (http://images.tfaw.com/covers_tfaw/400/de/dec090432.jpg)

WRITER: Brian Michael Bendis
PENCILS: Olivier Coipel

THE STORY: The blockbuster Marvel event of the year goes full-blown carnage and madness as the biggest and most brutal battle in Marvel's history brings together heroes from all sides. Lines have been drawn, and an unlikely hero will save one Avenger, but they can't save them all. The Siege has begun and it claims its first victim as AN AVENGER WILL DIE!!

Thoughts? What are your comments?

[Shawn Hopkins]

I hate these "OMG you have to buy this, someone will die!" issues. It's almost always a total B-Lister like Black Goliath, the Wasp or the Scott Lang Ant Man. If a major hero dies he/she is going to die in their own book and we know it. And they always come back by the time of their next "milestone" issue anyway. Anyone have the spoilers on who is going to buy it? There's so many Avengers teams now it could be anyone, it could even be a Dark Avenger, which would be a curveball.

Edit:

Looks like that was a decent guess, because Ares gets ripped in half. Still, I can't see that being permanent, we're dealing with a god here.

[Jin Kazama]

Yeah, I kinda figured the death would go down like that. Dark Avengers is the title that's been around the least, it's filled with villains. It's the go-to title for deaths. Making it a God adds impact but still makes it easy to do a resurrection later down the road.

I liked Cap rallying the troops. In that scene, you can really feel the heroes coming back together, to set up the Avengers reunion in a few months. And Ares realizing what was happening and going after Osborn was really cool. You knew he was going down, but his own people turning on him was a neat trick, and turns Ares back to the hero side after his run with the Dark Avengers.

I like the nods to other titles, too. How it picked up on things, but nothing was to the point where you felt you had to know what was going on in those books. Maria Hill's been awesome in Iron Man, and she proved it here. And you got a little nod of how awesome Ares' kid is, which they've been teasing from the start with Secret Warriors. All Hell is going to break loose once he finds out his dad died. And it'll rock.

[Matt Hazuda]

Finally got a chance to catch up and I must say I'm liking the mini. The quick pacing is great and it just feels like we're not being strung along. Guess it helps that it's only 4 issues.

I do hope this leads to the Sentry being removed from the 616 though. He really is too overpowered and just a useless character. I loved his original miniseries, but since then I haven't been impressed by him and his troubles.

Edit: One more thing for those who have read #2: http://random-happenstance.blogspot.com/2010/02/best-thing-about-marvels-siege-2.html

[Xurk]

Heading into the second half and gearing up for the big finale!

SIEGE #3

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http://images.tfaw.com/covers_tfaw/200/ja/jan100502.jpg (http://images.tfaw.com/covers_tfaw/400/ja/jan100502.jpg)

WRITER: Brian Michael Bendis
PENCILS: Olivier Coipel

THE STORY: SIEGE BLOCKBUSTER TIE-IN!!

In the halls of Asgard and on the streets of small town America the entire Universe is gripped in a the greatest battle ever seen: SIEGE!!

Lives have been lost! Lines have been drawn! And the battle for Asgard is in full force. The moment for revelations and life-changing moves is here, and for some, this will be the last choice they ever make in this world. What happens next is so epic, so historic, that it changes the entire dynamic of the Marvel Universe. You're gonna want to be there for this one...trust us.

Thoughts? What are your comments?

[spidl]

The dialog for issue 3 was really really bad. The art was gorgeous so that helped to redeemed the bad plotting somewhat.

[Jin Kazama]

That was an amazing freakin' comic. Loved it.

Adding in the conversation with the President overtop the action was a very nice touch. This was supposed to be about Norman's fall from grace, but I didn't really understand how raiding Asgard would make him loose control of his political power. But having this whole thing be a giant, unapproved mess, and calling for his head under treason was great. And making the call to take down H.A.M.M.E.R. was the icing on the cake.

Laughed pretty hard at Steve's reaction to Taskmaster, and not recognizing him. "I've met a few skull heads." Awesome. Most of the battle scenes were nice. Doing stuff like Marvel/Moonstone and Ronin/Hawkeye added a little bit of closure when you figured stuff like that probably wouldn't have received full-issue resolutions.

Seeing Norman slowly finally loose it was nice. Everything just fell further and further apart, but he just wouldn't accept it. You really felt like everything was just crumbling all around him, and could really see why he was going insane again. They used the goblin serum thing, but it wasn't just thrown in there. After seeing him fight it and loose to it slowly, all of this happening at once just made it more believable that it finally took over. Iron Man reclaiming his armor was a neat nod to Norman stealing it. And everyone's "Told Ya" remark was neat.

Pretty much my only major complaint was the reveal of Sentry/The Void being Norman's "Secret Weapon." Everyone saw it coming. The second they introduced it, everyone called it. It's not terrible, as it's payoff to the entire Sentry story that was building since New Avengers started. But it was still overly obvious.

Great issue, though. Can't wait for #4.

[Paul_Cousins]

I like this comic mini-series so far. My favorite characters have been the Constrictor and Taskmaster.

For those who don't know, unlike most of the villains, Taskmaster are Constrictor are pros. They are not crazy and they usually keep a level head.

My favorite scene is in Avengers The Initiative issue 32, in how Taskmaster is giving the villains a pep talk that most of the Viking Gods are only "Spiderman level" and they can handle them in a fight.

Turn the next page, when the villains hitting the beachhead/Asgard, and Taskmaster's shocked face, complete with his jaw dropping, with him thinking, "Mother O'God!", is priceless. :cool:

And Norman Osborn, talk about a fall, boy did the hammer drop on him in issue Three of the Siege.

Finally, about Sentry, he just lacks the villainous charm that Superboy Prime had of being a fanboy and tragic, forth wall break, god like villain.

[wonderfly]

Okay, I'm now caught up, having read all 3 issues of "Siege", and all 3 issues of "Siege:Embedded". For the record, I'm not buying all of the other titles though...

I'm enjoying the battle overall, as I like giant wars in the Marvel universe. But as usual, Bendis' script is not the most appealing for a superhero comic...too much "What was that?!?" and "What just happened" coming from bystanders (and from the President. Don't you have eyes, Mr. President?!?)

I'm also unclear on what happened to Norman, why was his teeth looking all wierd there at the end...


Laughed pretty hard at Steve's reaction to Taskmaster, and not recognizing him. "I've met a few skull heads." Awesome. Most of the battle scenes were nice. Doing stuff like Marvel/Moonstone and Ronin/Hawkeye added a little bit of closure when you figured stuff like that probably wouldn't have received full-issue resolutions.


Okay, I haven't read the "Reborn" miniseries, but unless Cap's got some amnesia, I think there's no way he'd forget the Taskmaster. That's just Bendis not doing his freakin' continuity homework, as usual...

And that wasn't a "Moonstone meets Hawkeye again" scene, that was just the two of them both happening to be in the same panel. They weren't even fighting each other. A true nod to their past history would've involved Hawkeye accusing her of throwing away everything they accomplished in their time together as Thunderbolts (unless this was addressed in one of the "Dark Reign" titles sometime this past year)...

Respect the continuity, dammit, that's all I'm saying.

Also, unlike Issue #1, they were much more clear that the president is Obama in this latest issue. Speaking of the President, is anyone else here reading the "Embedded" mini-series? The plot revolves around a "Glenn Beck"-style character who's TV program bashes the President, and praises Norman Osborn as the true hero, "the only one who can save us!". Off camera, he's a total blowhard. Listen, I've got no love for Beck, but geez, could you be any more biased, Marvel?!?

[Paul_Cousins]

Also, unlike Issue #1, they were much more clear that the president is Obama in this latest issue. Speaking of the President, is anyone else here reading the "Embedded" mini-series? The plot revolves around a "Glenn Beck"-style character who's TV program bashes the President, and praises Norman Osborn as the true hero, "the only one who can save us!". Off camera, he's a total blowhard. Listen, I've got no love for Beck, but geez, could you be any more biased, Marvel?!?What can be said other than those who work at Marvel Comics live in their own little world.

[Shawn Hopkins]

Okay, I haven't read the "Reborn" miniseries, but unless Cap's got some amnesia, I think there's no way he'd forget the Taskmaster. That's just Bendis not doing his freakin' continuity homework, as usual...


I figured that was just sarcasm. Even if he hadn't met him before, Cap has access to Avengers databases and files and high level clearances in Shield and the U.S. Military and he does his homework, he probably has a good grasp on all of the known villains. The scene wasn't trying to say Cap and Taskmaster had never met, obviously, just that Cap is telling him he wasn't worth remembering.

[wonderfly]

I figured that was just sarcasm. Even if he hadn't met him before, Cap has access to Avengers databases and files and high level clearances in Shield and the U.S. Military and he does his homework, he probably has a good grasp on all of the known villains. The scene wasn't trying to say Cap and Taskmaster had never met, obviously, just that Cap is telling him he wasn't worth remembering.

I guess it could be interpretted as sarcasm, but it didn't quite come off that way to me. Bendis' dialogue doesn't flow very well in battle scenes...he's best at quiet scenes where he's got two people debating the plot...

[Fett One]

Okay, I haven't read the "Reborn" miniseries, but unless Cap's got some amnesia, I think there's no way he'd forget the Taskmaster. That's just Bendis not doing his freakin' continuity homework, as usual...

That exact scene is in one of the tie-in books. I can't remember which one. Anyway, the scene gets extended past that point and you find out from a conversation between Steve and Bucky (who are briefly double teaming Taskmaster) that he was simply messing with Taskmaster as a way to throw him off his game.

[Jin Kazama]

That exact scene is in one of the tie-in books. I can't remember which one. Anyway, the scene gets extended past that point and you find out from a conversation between Steve and Bucky (who are briefly double teaming Taskmaster) that he was simply messing with Taskmaster as a way to throw him off his game.

It's the most recent issue of "Avengers: The Initiative." He basically tells Taskmaster that he's "Not worth remembering."

[Paul_Cousins]

Just finished Loki Siege 1. Whoa, Loki knows how to play all the angles.

And the reason Loki has done all this is that he no longer wants to be forced into the role of Loki, God of Mischief. Now free, he wishes to create mayhem.

This Loki seems to have early shades of the Loki at the beginning of the Earth X trilogy. Only, this Loki is not as nice.

[Xurk]

Here it comes...

SIEGE #4

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http://images.tfaw.com/covers_tfaw/200/fe/feb100421d.jpg (http://images.tfaw.com/covers_tfaw/400/fe/feb100421d.jpg)

WRITER: Brian Michael Bendis
PENCILS: Olivier Coipel

THE STORY: SIEGE - THE MARVEL BLOCKBUSTER OF THE YEAR!!

This double-sized finale brings the Dark Reign to a shattering conclusion and brings with it the bombastic new HEROIC AGE. Every single page of this book is a shocker: Lives are changed. Heroes fall. Deaths. Revenge. Villain comeuppance. And when the dust settles, who will be in charge of the Marvel Universe?? You will find out here and only here. This is the one they will be talking about.

Thoughts? What are your comments?

[wonderfly]

Finally read Siege #4 and Siege: Embedded #4 the other night.

What a mess.

I like these epic battles (which is why I signed up for reading this), but Bendis' narrative just doesn't flow well at all. First of all, the Sentry (or rather, the Void), gets taken out by having a Helicarrier dropped on him? Huh? This is the Sentry, the guy who nearly cracked the world in half fighting the Hulk back during "World War Hulk", remember, Bendis? Having a helicarrier dropped on him shouldn't have caused him any concern.

2nd, after having devoting so much time and energy these last few years into building up the Sentry character, I find it a shame for them to just kill him like that (and again, Thor blasts him with a mega dose of lightning, and THAT'S enough to kill the Sentry?!? Huh?!? How about a little perspective, Bendis?!? The Sentry nearly toppled the Hulk)!

Also didn't like that the heroes had to resort to killing. It's been done in Marvel history before Bendis came along, but killing characters whose powers slip out of control (making them a danger to the world) has been overdone by Bendis. Remember how Thor "took care of" the Wasp at the end of Secret Invasion, when the Skrulls turned her into a bio-weapon? And the threats by some New Avengers about killing the Scarlet Witch back when "House of M" was occuring, instead of trying to help her, it's all too cavalier for Bendis. Like I said, this type of plot point did occasionally occur before Bendis came along, but here, all of the heroes seemed strangely comfortable with killing the Sentry. Not even a word of "Are we really following through with this?" by Spider-Man...

Meanwhile, over in the "Embedded" mini-series, the narrative becomes a mess as Ben Urich and the others just stand around being rocked by the explosions occuring all around them. And why did Sif start to have a conversation with Ben only for her to strangely walk away as Ben took notice of Todd Keller (the "Glenn Beck" substitute).

Speaking of which, why in the midst of all of the sugary goodness of the ending (with Ben Urich talking about how there's hope for the first time in ages) why is it that the "Glenn Beck" wannabe is still allowed on TV? After going on TV night after night proclaiming how Norman Osborn is the most patriotic American...with Osborn exposed, why isn't he off the air? I mean, he pulled a gun on Urich last issue, won't that ever come to light?

I guess the writer was trying to make a point that blowhard TV personalities will always be amongst us, but if you're going to draw thin comparisons to Glenn Beck, and have him do criminal actions, then have the stones to follow through on the metaphor and have the character arrested. If you think Glenn Beck is really that bad of a person, have your fictional counterpart called to task for it.

If that makes sense...

So yeah, Embedded was a waste of space, but Siege was okay...just incoherent at times, due to Bendis' writing.

[Jin Kazama]

Having this thread come back up, it made me think about the event as a whole. I didn't dislike it, but it didn't really do much for me, either. It had moments, but it didn't really feel like it accomplished something.

Which, frankly, sucks, because it was the only reason I bought the thing. Well, that and because it was only four issues. But, I'm not a big Thor fan. The event, on paper, didn't appeal to me at all. But they claimed that this was the big conclusion to everything since "Avengers: Disassembled," which is really when I started being seriously interested in The Avengers.

How was this that? Aside from the Sentry thing, how did this resolve anything? Norman had only been in power for, like, a year. That's the only other thing they resolved. Heck, I got more of a feeling of resolution from "Secret Invasion." That thing pretty much wrapped up everything except the Scarlet Witch stuff (Nick Fury's Secret War stuff, who attacked the prison in New Avengers #1).

This? Not so much.