Siege (spoilers)

[Doc Beechler (mod-MD)]

And here's what you missed in the final issue of Siege...Siege!

 

 

 

[Philip Portelli]

This is MY take on the Avengers since Bendis:
Thor- was dead, came back and wanted not to deal with this until they invaded Asgard,
Iron Man-elitist control freak (see, it's not just Batman), now convientantly doesn't remember any of it,
Captain America- rebel icon, then dead icon, now back, rather not be icon anymore,
Hawkeye- dead, not dead, not Hawkeye, now Ronin, wife not dead, back but not wife, back to Hawkeye,
Scarlet Witch-insane plot device,
Vision-not a person but a *toaster*, destroyed but rebooted, not the same or is he (it)??,
Henry Pym- forever wife-beater (one smack lasts a life time), now divorced widower, now the Wasp (c'mon, call him Dr.Wasp),
Wonder Man ????????,
Ares- reformed god of war, now ripped apart, dead god of war,
Hercules- Stepping up Prince Of Power, so killed at his peak,

Really waiting for a positive change! Inspiration needed, not despair!

[Jeff of Earth-J]

The summary on the first page of this discussion make Siege sound like a comic I would really enjoy, but the discussion afterwards makes me think otherwise. I am pleased to learn I am not the only reader who hates even the very idea of Sentry with the power of a billion, billion exploding suns. (I thought I was.) Regarding the idea of simply forgiving, forgetting and moving on, I honestly think if Marvel's story arcs are so long that readers can't be expected to remember the beginning by the time they reach the end, then the story arcs are too damned long! OTOH, it all depends on how one approaches our little hobby: is it disposable entertainment or serious storytelling? I really must side with Mark and CK on this one.

[Dagwan]

I have a copy of next week's Avengers #1 (for reals!) personalized for my store. I read it last night.

Important bits that are not quite spoilery...Tony and Steve just don't get along anymore. Things may (or may not) be forgiven, but it's going to take these guys (and the rest of them) a lot of work to get back to being as close as they once were.

Also, I saw the end of the issue a freaking mile away. Only the who was unknown.

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"Outside of a dog, a book is man's best friend. Inside of a dog, it's too dark to read." -Groucho Marx

Check out the Secret Headquarters (my store) website! it's much better now!

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[ClarkKent_DC]

Jeff of Earth-J said:

The summary on the first page of this discussion make Siege sound like a comic I would really enjoy, but the discussion afterwards makes me think otherwise. I am pleased to learn I am not the only reader who hates even the very idea of Sentry with the power of a billion, billion exploding suns. (I thought I was.) Regarding the idea of simply forgiving, forgetting and moving on, I honestly think if Marvel's story arcs are so long that readers can't be expected to remember the beginning by the time they reach the end, then the story arcs are too damned long! OTOH, it all depends on how one approaches our little hobby: is it disposable entertainment or serious storytelling? I really must side with Mark and CK on this one.

Thanks, Jeff.

[Jeff of Earth-J]

This was something of a light week for me, so out of sheer curiosity I picked up Siege #1-4. (At least it was a light week until I picked up Siege #1-4 at four bucks a pop! But I digress...) I considered tradewaiting, but it's difficult to anticipate which series Marvel will release in which format and when. A hardcover has already been solicited, but the cost of the four issues was less, so with no guarantee of a tpb in the near future I sprung for the individual issues.

I'll report back here after I've read them.

[Dagwan]

Oh dear God. We've lost Jeff.

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"Outside of a dog, a book is man's best friend. Inside of a dog, it's too dark to read." -Groucho Marx

Check out the Secret Headquarters (my store) website! It's much better now!

Listen to WOXY.com, it's the future of rock-n-roll!

---

[Jeff of Earth-J]

Ha, ha… oh, it’s not as bad as that! I bought it primarily to see Sentry get his arse booted into the Sun! You’re right about one thing, though: it’s less of a siege than it is an assault. To those interested in reading comics of an actual siege, there are several volumes of Hal Foster’s Prince Valiant I can recommend.

Siege definitely tells a transitional story, but whether it’s a transition from seven years worth of stories I found virtually unreadable to sto I like or to another set a stories I will find to be virtually unreadable remains to be seen. So far, I have like the three “Heroic Age” titles I’ve read, but more on that anon.

To begin at the very beginning, a few months ago I picked up Marvel’s “Origins of Siege” promo, mainly because it was free. No explanation is given how Norman Osborn and Loki became so chummy, but that’s what I get for skipping seven years of Marvel Comics. There are 12 pages of origins (very like the ones Alex Ross and Paul Dini did for DC), but what I would have rather seen was Ralph Macchio and Walt Simonson’s origin of the Avengers (as told from Loki’s point of view) from Avengers #300, but no matter; that story is reprinted in the awkwardly-titled Siege: Aftermath - Avengers Prime #1. What I did find useful was Joe Quesada’s “Cup o’ Joe” text feature from Siege #1 which summarized everything I care to know about “the unreadable years” in three brief and painless pages.

Right of the bat, the first unbelievable thing I’m expected to digest before breakfast is Norman Osborn’s role as the [post-Crisis] Lex Luthor of the Marvel Universe. The Green Goblin was a great Spider-Man villain in the early years, but even then he was a big fish in a small pond, and once he was dead (and dead for so long) he should have remained dead. But between Mephisto (Joe Quesada) and the Scarlett Witch (Brian Michael Bendis), the Marvel Universe (of Earth-J) has been in a state of flux for the past seven years as far as I am concerned.

On the plus side, I can relate to the motivation behind Osborn’s support in the MU. I can easily see the populace turning on Asgard due to Volstagg’s blunder during his confrontation with the U-Foes, but isn’t that catalyst almost identical to that of Marvel’s “Civil War” a few short years ago?

President Obama came off well in issues #1, 3-4, and Captain America’s speech in issue #2 was the most inspirational he has been for several years leading up to his (apparent) assassination. On the other hand, BMB’s has a distinctive way of writing dialogue which I find particularly grating to read. His characters never seem to be able to voice a coherent thought with out stopping in the middle of a sentence and starting over again. It wouldn’t be so bad, except that virtually every character he scripts speaks with the same idiosyncrasy! Between that and Iron Man and Moonstone “Woofing” all over the place, the dialogue itself is annoying to read.

I really liked the way Iron Man was able to shut down the “Iron Patriot” simply by use of his classic (some might say “old”) armor, and the Green Goblin face paint Osborn wore under his helmet was just creepy, but does BMB really think “Stones of Norn” is a better name than simply “Norn Stones”? Moving on to Avenger Prime #1, I really liked the way Steve Rogers laid down the law to Iron Man. Shortly thereafter, Iron Man, Cap and Thor are shunted to three of the Nine Worlds (Jutunheim, Nidavellir and Vanaheim, respectively, unless I miss my guess). After defeating a roomful of dwarves, “Captain Rogers” arms himself with a shield (cool), a sword and a quiver of arrows but no bow. In Avengers #1 the first story is off to a good start, likewise the Secret Avengers, but a better and more appropriate title (albeit not for branding purposes) would have been The Secret Defenders.

Those are the only “Heroic Age” titles I’ve chosen to follow for the time being.

[Philip Portelli]

Apparently, "Avengers Prime" #1-5 will take place between "Siege" #4 and "Avengers" #1.

I had to read the "Fallen Sun" story out of morbid curiousity. All of you were right! The Rogue part was unwarranted, Tony the Alcoholic bringing beer for everyone absurd. But the bit I hated the most was the Thing's story. Not that the Sentry stopped Ben from killing the Wrecker, but that the Wrecker tried to kill a bus-load of kids, failed, escaped and DID kill a bus-load of kids. Granted that took place *off-camera*, but if that's what Marvel is saying happened, there is no way the Wrecker can be part of the MU again. Child killers are not super-villains to be featured in comic books. Such heinous acts damage characters and eat away at the crediblity of the heroes by their blase reaction.

It was a nice touch to see Thor in a comforting role with the Sentry's aged mother.

Also, all this grief for the Sentry but none for Ares who the Sentry savagely murdered!! Harsh!

Any thoughts about "Hawkeye & Mockingbird" #1?