Fear Itself (Spoilers)

I thought we already had a thread started about Fear Itslef but I couldn't find it.

This thread can be for discussion of Marvel's Summer Event, Feat Itself and it's many tie-ins and miniseries.

So far the daughter of the Red Skull, Sin, has uncovered a hammer that unlocks the god of fear. Sin is now the avatar of fear and she unleases the Serpent who helps Sin unleash fear on the planet. The Asgardians under Odin's command leave earth to fend for itself. Thor is unwilling to leave and is taken prisoner. A bunch of hammers drop all over the planet and various characters pick up the hammers becoming avatars of fear. Sin with hidden Nazi technology attacks the U.S. The Avengers have yet to attack.

So far the main series is pretty good, a lot of set up but still good.

There are going to be several Fear Itelf miniseries focusing on different characters. I read the first of the miniseries, Spider-man: Feat Itself. I wasn't planning on picking it up but I had a small batch of comics so i decided to one to the stack. I read it this afternoon and wow, was it good.

The issue starts six hours after the attack. We see New York griped in total fear. People are lashing out without realizing what they're doing. Spidey is at his wits end rescuing his fellow New Yorkers. The series ends with a character who Spidey fears and who fears him, Vermin. This issue really focusing on fear gripping people. While the main series focuses on Fears physical attack on humanity, this mini focuses on the emotional and mental attacks of fear. This is the first time we see the god of fear's power being unleashed. I highly recommend Spider-man: Fear Itself.

I didn't really like the way it was handled either. I think at some point we were let on that Thor would defeat this Seprent but die in the process. I didn't think much of it because that was May when we were told and now it's October. This event went on entirely too long with a lot of filler. When Thor did, it seemed like the rest of the characters were like "oh, Thor's dead".

I liked Fear Itself at first but as the months wore one I found myself not as interested. There were some bits that were good like the Spidey mini series. It didn't add anything to the overall storyline other than being a good Spider-man story. The art in the main Fear Itself book was really good and was even better the last issue.

JeffCarter said:

I'm really truly trying to be less snarky, but I can't help the fact that Thor's death seemed entirely pointless, given the fact that there is an Avengers movie coming out next summer--a mere seven or eight months away. We all know that Thor will be back by then, which is a crazy-short amount of time, especially in the world of comics, which nudges along at the pace of 22 pages a month. I wasn't phased at all, and there has been very little internet buzz about it. (Actually, none that I've seen. I'm just assuming it's been mentioned out there somewhere...)

Replies

Philip Portelli May 9, 2011 at 6:59pm

I decided not to order any of the Fear Itself minis except for FI: Fearsome Four because c'mon, Nighthawk, She-Hulk, the Frankenstein Monster AND Howard the Duck, with Mike Kaluta artwork and FI: The Deep. Namor and Doctor Strange arguing for four issues, Count Me In!
Jason Marconnet (Pint sized mod) May 9, 2011 at 7:44pm

I might give Fear Itself the Deep a chance. Not for Namor or Dr. Strange but for writer Cullen Bunn. He writes the Sixth Gun for OniPress, which is a great horror comic. I'm eager to see what he does with Marvel.
Eric L. Sofer May 10, 2011 at 6:07am

Another summer crossover event, to go with Avengers books crossing over into Avengers books, FF crossing into Spider-Man (at least), Spider Island, and all these books requiring mini-series...

Wow, I am SO glad I'm not collecting this crap anymore. And from the look of the posted panels above, I'm obviously not cool enough to get them anyhow. Good luck to Marvel Comics, the house of idea.
Jason Marconnet (Pint sized mod) May 10, 2011 at 6:22am

That's pretty funny, TP. I love reading the old comics and seeing the Hostess Pie ads. Those were always great.
Jason Marconnet (Pint sized mod) May 10, 2011 at 6:57am

I forgot that Fear Itself: Youth in Revolt comes out this week. This is a 6 issue mini featuring a lot of the characters from Avengers the Initiative. I usually don't buy the miniseries that tie into an overall event but several of these Fear Itself minis have interesting setups. Once I get back on the Avengers Initiative reading project, which I plan on doing this week, Youth in Revolt might be a good series to add on once we get through the rest of the series.
Dagwan May 10, 2011 at 9:21am

Fear Itself: Spider-Man was really good. I think the best Spidey stories are the ones where he is dealing with inner conflict, and in this case it's his sense of responsibility vs. the overwhelming fear.

The Speedball story in Homefront is also terrific.

I also look forward to more people who refuse to read this event complaining about it.

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Jason Marconnet (Pint sized mod) May 10, 2011 at 1:09pm

What I liked about Fear Itself: Spider-man was the reveal of Vermin. Yeah he gets old but the choice to include him in a series about fear is a good one. It goes back to Kraven's Last Hunt. Spider-man was afraid of Vermin because previously he could not defeat him alone, he had to have help (Captain America). Spidey's fear then was that he wasn't enough to handle Vermin. Vermin's fear was to be hurt again. He is child-like and didn't know why Spider-man and Captain America beat him up before. It looks like this is being revisited from Vermin's inner monolgue at the end of the issue. With fear sweeping the planet not only superheroes and ordinary citizens are feeling the panic but villains as well. The story was also good featuring average citizens facing their greatest fears as well. Hopefully the series will continue with this as well.
Wandering Sensei: Moderator Man October 23, 2011 at 9:07am

I'm really truly trying to be less snarky, but I can't help the fact that Thor's death seemed entirely pointless, given the fact that there is an Avengers movie coming out next summer--a mere seven or eight months away. We all know that Thor will be back by then, which is a crazy-short amount of time, especially in the world of comics, which nudges along at the pace of 22 pages a month. I wasn't phased at all, and there has been very little internet buzz about it. (Actually, none that I've seen. I'm just assuming it's been mentioned out there somewhere...)
Jason Marconnet (Pint sized mod) October 23, 2011 at 10:56am

I didn't really like the way it was handled either. I think at some point we were let on that Thor would defeat this Seprent but die in the process. I didn't think much of it because that was May when we were told and now it's October. This event went on entirely too long with a lot of filler. When Thor did, it seemed like the rest of the characters were like "oh, Thor's dead".

I liked Fear Itself at first but as the months wore one I found myself not as interested. There were some bits that were good like the Spidey mini series. It didn't add anything to the overall storyline other than being a good Spider-man story. The art in the main Fear Itself book was really good and was even better the last issue.

JeffCarter said:

I'm really truly trying to be less snarky, but I can't help the fact that Thor's death seemed entirely pointless, given the fact that there is an Avengers movie coming out next summer--a mere seven or eight months away. We all know that Thor will be back by then, which is a crazy-short amount of time, especially in the world of comics, which nudges along at the pace of 22 pages a month. I wasn't phased at all, and there has been very little internet buzz about it. (Actually, none that I've seen. I'm just assuming it's been mentioned out there somewhere...)
Philip Portelli October 23, 2011 at 4:01pm

Thor was "dead" between Civil War and Siege and that wasn't that long ago!

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