The sides have formed and the battles are underway, though surprising changes are afoot.
What They Say:
PRISONERS OF WAR Doctor Doom brings Ultron back online to battle the champions of Earth! Meanwhile, Magneto takes the lone-wolf route!
The Review:
Going back to ‘classic’ comics continues to be a fun experience, especially when reading modern comics at the same time and seeing the differences in style. Secret Wars is the embodiment of where comics were in the mid 80’s with some big storylines, plenty of exposition while on the move and plenty moments where things are just stated that are plainly obvious. It’s nice in its own way and I do miss aspects of it because of the simple accessibility of it when it comes to a new reader jumping in. But those were the newsstand days and things were different. With the second issue of Secret Wars, events are now quickly feeling ‘normal’ in a way after the shock of being transported to this new created patchwork world has happened simply because they’ve gone and dealt with the familiar; battle against villains who only want to destroy them to gain the prize that the Beyonder offers.
The villains keep things simple by just grabbing up whatever high powered weapons they have and go after them with a straightforward attack. It’s one that works rather effectively just because of the power levels involved and half the heroes are taken down outright by it. It’s more surprise than anything else and it’s engaging to watch as the heroes rally back under Captain America. With the clean and strong line work here from Zeck, everyone is distinct and stands out against the others in really good ways. When the villains retreat after the heroes rally, the scene of Cap standing on the rock point towards them has lasted with me for a couple of decades now. It’s a commanding moment that works well. As does the push back he gets from some like Wolverine since they grate on each other. Even Hulk’s superiority comes into play a couple of times to good effect.
While the fight takes up a good chunk of space, there’s a lot of character material thrown in here as well. Several of the heroes are just coping with the situation as best as they can as they miss their loved ones and we get some good commiseration out of it. And even that impacts others who aren’t able to talk about it since it just reminds them of how bad off they are. The heroes have some good stuff going on here as they get their base, which is the size of like fifty-four pentagons though the scale doesn’t quite click at first, and it’s fun to see how the groups splinter and form along the way. What I liked the most with this issue though is that it lets Doom take his place in the scheme of things just right as he intends to set himself up as best as he can. His attempt with Galactus is almost comical, but it reminds him that they’re all but gnats before the Beyonder. What he ends up doing with Ultron, and the seeding of plans when it comes to Molecule Man, is just right though, especially when the rest of the villains return and find that he’s taken over while they were out. It’s pure Doom.
Release Notes:
This comiXology edition of Secret Wars comes with the main cover as released with the print edition and no other extras.
In Summary:
Secret Wars has a long haul ahead of it but this issue does some good foundation building on top of what came before with the introduction of the series and its core elements. The cast is dealing with a whole host of issues and it keeps to the divisive elements even on the heroes side well when it comes to the mutants and others. The banter is simple but effective, speaking to the core of the characters, and that’s what you really get out of this. While they’re more fleshed out in their own series and books, here it’s distilled down to their core traits and personalities and things play off of that. It makes it easier for anyone to get into it and know what they’re dealing with, and to then go off to that individual series and discover even more about that character where they’re the main focus or one of the main players. This issue has a lot going on and introduces some new things to it, such as Magento making his move and Doom making things work in his favor, but it also ensures some good action and fight sequences. It’s a fun issue that left me ready to jump into the next one right away.
Grade: B+
Readers Rating: [ratings]
