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Secret Wars #1 of 8 (Spoilers)

I get most of my books via DCBS, but there are a handful of favorites and big event books that I wait and buy off the rack the day they come out. I am doing Secret Wars that way, and as it was the only book I bought at the shop yesterday, I really felt the cover price. Handing over a $5 bill for a single funnybook made me feel like I had lived too long.

Anyway, enough about price onto the content.

It is a beautifully packaged book. Hickman gets not only a writing credit, but also a design credit. And, like his creator-owned series that I believe he designs himself, it is a thoughtfully, skillfully constructed issue. As with his own series, I like the way that the previously page, as well as some of the more designed chapter break pages give the whole issue a little more feeling of weight and gravitas. Sort of a print-based special effect. The whole thing, and I haven't counted the story pages, but it feels like a big, meaty read. Which took some sting out of the cover price. The art is beautiful. Sometimes I wish that Marvel did still prestige format like a lot of late 80s/early 90s DC (and the occasional Marvel book like Wolverine The Jungle Adventure, things like that), as this book looked and felt like something that could be in that format.

I haven't read the last issues of "Time Runs Out" yet, as they are in the next shipment, and I have not been reading whatever books have been telling the end of the Ultimate universe, but I didn't feel lost. In fact I think someone could jump into the beginning of this story and probably be ok. The idea of planetary incursion is briefly explained. Clearly, at the very start of the issue, The Beyonders have come, and sh*t is going down. The two remaining Earths- 616 and Ultimate- are squaring off, and in the midst of this the Richards and T'Challa are trying to launch a ark of specially chosen scientists and experts in case humanity needs to be started over again. Basically the series starts out at the pace of giant, cinematic moment of disaster and escape that is familiar in these genres: A world is ending. A little rocket ship is being fired off just as Krypton crumbles.

From the ads and promos we know that Battleworld is to come, but this issue first makes a meal out of The End. And like those "The End"-branded Marvel books, or various What If issues that show disastrous fates, it is pretty epic. And I use that word unironically. It feels big. And not just big in the lots-of-splash-pages way. But big in a way where the emotional beats ring true, and the details feel right. Towards the end of the issue when the ship is breaking apart-- with Reed in one half, and Sue and the kids in the other-- and he stretches his arm to try to get to them? That is a hell of a moment. Hickman is a writer who, in my reading of him, more often succeeds with big ideas than with human emotions. And that scene was full of both.

And, getting back to the design of the book, the page at the end with the birth and death dates for the two universes is a nice touch. Now, of course, we all know this is a story about a shift into limbo. And a suppose the feeling-- even if it is meant to be temporary-- that the 616 is "dead" is immediately undercut by the preview pages of Uncanny Inhumans which follow (that is one of a number of books that, as far as I know, will continue on telling their story regardless of the Secret Wars stuff happening. So it seems that the Marvel Universe will still be alive and well in a number of books next month (not that I am complaining-- I would not have wanted them to force the entire publishing line into limbo). But it is a shame that those preview pages watered down the effect of that grave marker page.

A couple last observations--

To judge from last week's FCBD Secret Wars 0 issue, and now this one, it seems like the Fantastic Four will be the leads in this story. Or, at least, the story is starting out largely from their point of view. On the 616 side it is Richards (and T'Challa) taking the lead, not Cap and Tony. On the Ultimate side, the character with the most agency and power to wield is the Ultimate version of Reed. The book starts out with Doom staring into the veil, facing off against the Beyonders.

For all the noise about the Fantastic Four's title being cancelled last month, the FF characters, to judge from this beginning, are being given the most prominent roles in a summer crossover that they have had since... maybe the original Secret Wars? At first I was going to say Civil War, but even in that one they were mostly supporting roles to Cap, Tony, and Peter. So even if this ends up being their swan song as a team, I am guessing the FF will be getting a lot of page time in this event.

BOTTOM LINE:

It's a great start. I'm in. Looking forward to #2 next week.

Anyone else read this yet?

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Comments

  • hauberkhauberk Posts: 1,511
    I'm out based on price, but will be interested to follow the discussion. I'm totally jazzed by the inclusion of Shadowline Saga characters in some of the promo art.

    I'm confident that they will likely be meat for the beast, but still excited that those characters are getting taken off the shelf for something.
  • TheOriginalGManTheOriginalGMan Posts: 1,763
    @David_D

    Great post. Couldn't agree more. I thought it was fantastic! Thought the artwork was stunning throughout, and Hickman, well, he's Hickman. 'Nuff said. I've been keeping up with the whole "Time Runs Out" storyline, so it was fairly seamless for me. Glad to hear you didn't have any problems trying to figure out what was going on. I have almost zero knowledge of the Ultimate Universe and was actually thinking to myself while reading it that I'd be a little lost if I hadn't read TRO. But then again, I'm not the brightest lamp in the living room ...

    In any event, judging by reveals in TRO, Doom is going to be a major, major player in the story. And that scene at the end with Reed and Sue was great stuff. I also loved the "RIP Marvel Universe 1961-2015" bit at the end too. Just awesome.

    I'm definitely "ALL IN* on the rest.
  • bamfbamfbamfbamf Posts: 718
    can't wait for it to be 99 cents an issue on comixology!!!
  • playdohsrepublicplaydohsrepublic Posts: 1,377
    edited May 2015
    Or free on Marvel Unlimited!
  • Mr_CosmicMr_Cosmic Posts: 3,200
    It'll be in my DCBS box at the end of the month. I hate waiting..that comixology app is staring at me but...I...must....resist...paying...twice...
  • Chuck_MelvilleChuck_Melville Posts: 3,003
    I was totally lost looking through the FCBD premiums, trying to figure out just wtf was going on with the overall story and premise. The only fragment I saw that even read comprehensively to me was the FF piece with Valerie and the other Foundation kids, and thus was the only one that was remotely interesting to me. The rest of the preview left me baffled and unwilling to pursue.

    I think that, for me at least, both DC and Marvel this year have finally hit that plateau in event crossovers where I no longer care. And I say that as someone who generally loves the big events.
  • TheOriginalGManTheOriginalGMan Posts: 1,763
    I'd be interested in reading what the mechanics were for setting a storyline like this in motion. I mean Hickman has been building this thing for a couple of years now. Is this something he would have thought up on his own and pitched to Marvel? Or would TPTB at Marvel have outlined what they wanted to do and then pitched their idea to him?
  • DoctorDoomDoctorDoom Posts: 2,586

    I was totally lost looking through the FCBD premiums, trying to figure out just wtf was going on with the overall story and premise. The only fragment I saw that even read comprehensively to me was the FF piece with Valerie and the other Foundation kids, and thus was the only one that was remotely interesting to me. The rest of the preview left me baffled and unwilling to pursue.

    I think that, for me at least, both DC and Marvel this year have finally hit that plateau in event crossovers where I no longer care. And I say that as someone who generally loves the big events.

    FCBD premiums?
  • HexHex Posts: 944
    edited May 2015
    The build up for this has been a loooooong time coming. Too long for my tastes. I've had a hard time keeping it all straight. But I'm looking forward to the event, and had no trouble forking over my $5. Well, for the main book at least, I doubt I'll be getting too many of the temporary Battle World titles.

    Better than expected. Nice to see the FF front and center. Fitting that the "First Family" was the one that kicked the whole 616 off, and are the last we see during the final gasps of that universe. Interested to find out more about choice for characters picked for the life-raft.
  • BrackBrack Posts: 868
    Enjoyed the story, but re-reading it again focussing on the art, there's an awful lot of gormless open mouthed expressions in this comic.
  • popestupopestu Posts: 782
    I loved it.
    As always, I wanted more Doom, but that will come (all hope lies with Doom) .
    I like the foil of the 2 Reeds. One is a savior who lost everything and one is a destroyer who never had anything.

    The section of the ship with Sue and the kids had Franklin on it. Hes made pocket universes and other crazy things when stressed. I wonder...

    Also, it kicks Convergence's ass.

    Random...remember the Beyonder who became a tree? Could that be the new yggdrasil? The maker destroyed it in the ultimate universe.
  • popestupopestu Posts: 782
    popestu said:

    I loved it.
    As always, I wanted more Doom, but that will come (all hope lies with Doom) .
    I like the foil of the 2 Reeds. One is a savior who lost everything and one is a destroyer who never had anything.

    The section of the ship with Sue and the kids had Franklin on it. Hes made pocket universes and other crazy things when stressed. I wonder...

    Also, it kicks Convergence's ass.

    Random...remember the Beyonder who became a tree? Could that be the new yggdrasil? The maker destroyed it in the ultimate universe.

    Favorite moment

    image
  • playdohsrepublicplaydohsrepublic Posts: 1,377
    I know this is a bit of a nitpick, but what is Bullseye doing there? Isn't he deaf and blind and nearly paralyzed, living in a giant coffin?
  • BrackBrack Posts: 868

    I know this is a bit of a nitpick, but what is Bullseye doing there? Isn't he deaf and blind and nearly paralyzed, living in a giant coffin?

    Must be an imposter wearing his costume. Now where's my No-Prize? :)
  • David_DDavid_D Posts: 3,884
    Brack said:

    Enjoyed the story, but re-reading it again focussing on the art, there's an awful lot of gormless open mouthed expressions in this comic.

    To be fair, if my universe were ending, I would probably have my mouth hanging open, too. :)
  • BrackBrack Posts: 868
    David_D said:

    Brack said:

    Enjoyed the story, but re-reading it again focussing on the art, there's an awful lot of gormless open mouthed expressions in this comic.

    To be fair, if my universe were ending, I would probably have my mouth hanging open, too. :)
    I'd hope I'd be making an expression of abject terror rather than doing an impression of a sex doll/Greg Land heroine.


  • BlueBullitt01BlueBullitt01 Posts: 18
    edited May 2015
    I have to agree with @David_D and @TheOriginalGMan. Secret Wars #1 was fantastic. From the cover with its nicely done embossing and Alex Ross cover to the interior art conveying a sense of grand scope - well worth the $5.

    I also have to agree with @Brack on the "WTF?" lips on Bullseye and The Punisher - It really took me out of the moment. If I was immature or in high school, I am sure I could make a dozen jokes about them being some serious DSLs.... The editing team should have fixed those.
  • batlawbatlaw Posts: 879
    Bought it read it dug it. Very well done. (Totally kicks convergences ass). Im pretty lost on who's who and what's what but it still sucked me in and I'm happy to continue.
  • luke52luke52 Posts: 1,392
    Who can tell me what the hell was going on with Cyclops, the sentinels and the Phoenix egg?

    Apart from Thor I'm jumping into this blind. I'm assuming I'd get this if I'd been reading Avengers and New Avengers?

    Moment of the issue: the scene where Reed loses his whole family... and the tips of his fingers. Breathtaking, heart pounding and harrowing stuff.
  • luke52 said:

    Who can tell me what the hell was going on with Cyclops, the sentinels and the Phoenix egg?

    Apart from Thor I'm jumping into this blind. I'm assuming I'd get this if I'd been reading Avengers and New Avengers?

    Moment of the issue: the scene where Reed loses his whole family... and the tips of his fingers. Breathtaking, heart pounding and harrowing stuff.

    I'm assuming the Sentinel and Phoenix Egg junk happened over in Bendis' Uncanny X-Men, but I'm not far enough along in that to know exactly how that happened. I assumed that was the same Phoenix Egg from the end of Morrison's New X-Men.

    As for Avengers and New Avengers, yeah. This is less of a standalone event comic and more an extension of Hickman's story in those two titles. I've read at least half of both and made sure I read the last issues to make sure I knew what was going on for Secret Wars. I'm glad I did; I've heard people have been absolutely at sea without Avengers and NA.

    As for the issue itself, dang. DANG. I've been telling people since we started getting solicits that this was going to be bananas. Hickman and Ribic did not disappoint. I can't wait to see where this is all going.
  • SolitaireRoseSolitaireRose Posts: 1,445
    This is what I want when I get an event. Things feel big, a nice mix of HUGE and human and a sense that things are falling apart. I'm going to be bummed when Hickman leaves Marvel.
  • BrackBrack Posts: 868


    I'm assuming the Sentinel and Phoenix Egg junk happened over in Bendis' Uncanny X-Men, but I'm not far enough along in that to know exactly how that happened.

    It was supposed to have happened there, but Bendis was moving so slowly that he never got around to writing it.
  • David_DDavid_D Posts: 3,884
    Brack said:


    I'm assuming the Sentinel and Phoenix Egg junk happened over in Bendis' Uncanny X-Men, but I'm not far enough along in that to know exactly how that happened.

    It was supposed to have happened there, but Bendis was moving so slowly that he never got around to writing it.
    Are we sure about that? Given that there are a lot of X-Office books as part of Secret Wars, it felt to me like Bendis wanted that moment to pay off in his own book, but got told to save that moment with the Phoenix Egg to make it a beat in the Secret War issue.
  • HexHex Posts: 944
    David_D said:

    Brack said:


    I'm assuming the Sentinel and Phoenix Egg junk happened over in Bendis' Uncanny X-Men, but I'm not far enough along in that to know exactly how that happened.

    It was supposed to have happened there, but Bendis was moving so slowly that he never got around to writing it.
    Are we sure about that? Given that there are a lot of X-Office books as part of Secret Wars, it felt to me like Bendis wanted that moment to pay off in his own book, but got told to save that moment with the Phoenix Egg to make it a beat in the Secret War issue.
    I haven't been reading much in X-books lately. Where did this "Phoenix egg" come from? Someone please give me the Coles notes version and help me get up to speed.

  • BrackBrack Posts: 868
    David_D said:

    Brack said:


    I'm assuming the Sentinel and Phoenix Egg junk happened over in Bendis' Uncanny X-Men, but I'm not far enough along in that to know exactly how that happened.

    It was supposed to have happened there, but Bendis was moving so slowly that he never got around to writing it.
    Are we sure about that? Given that there are a lot of X-Office books as part of Secret Wars, it felt to me like Bendis wanted that moment to pay off in his own book, but got told to save that moment with the Phoenix Egg to make it a beat in the Secret War issue.
    We don't know for sure, but Brevoort and Hickman talk around the problem here: http://www.comicbookresources.com/article/this-is-battleworld-hickman-brevoort-discuss-secret-wars-1 Brevoort is being obtuse, Hickman is more pragmatic, both are careful not to throw Bendis under the bus.
  • jaydee74jaydee74 Posts: 1,526
    This looks very interesting to me and I'm very intrigued from what I had seen from the Free Comic Book day content but I think I'll get this when it's collected. Looks pretty cool though.
  • JaxUrJaxUr Posts: 547
    Is this just the Marvel version of Crisis?
  • popestupopestu Posts: 782
    JaxUr said:

    Is this just the Marvel version of Crisis?

    Maybe.

    They have gone out of their way to present it as such. That makes me doubt it. Perhaps it will be a summer event with actual lasting ramifications.

    I feel this is Marvel's way of having Miles join the universe proper, trade Mutants for Inhumans, create Samuel L. Fury, and get rid of the Fantastic Four for a while.
  • popestupopestu Posts: 782

    I know this is a bit of a nitpick, but what is Bullseye doing there? Isn't he deaf and blind and nearly paralyzed, living in a giant coffin?

    Yeah, right? Either way, he'd be better after this miniseries.
  • RepoManRepoMan Posts: 327
    Great opening to the event. I'm feeling that the main series will be outstanding, whereas the tie-ins leave me cold. This is in opposition to Convergence where the main series has lost me but the tie-ins are amazing.
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