| Archive for Whatever Comics Forum for Whatevercomics.co.uk Discuss comics. Air your points of view. Fun for all the family! |
| Robin The Boy Wonder |
Marvel's The SiegeMarvel released their December Solicitations earlier this week and it includes a rather interesting one-shot.SIEGE: THE CABAL Written by BRIAN MICHAEL BENDIS Penciled by MICHAEL LARK Cover by DAVID FINCH THE SIEGE STARTS HERE!! Remember when you were first introduced to the Cabal, the gathering of the most sinister members of the Marvel Universe, and you said to yourself: Well, that's going to blow up in everyone's face! Well, you were right and it happens right here!! Norman Osborn faces off with Doctor Doom and his mysterious threat to Doom is revealed. All of this is setting the stage for next month's explosive event: SIEGE! 48 PGS./One-Shot/Rated T+ ...$3.99 Marvel has only ever mentioned that Dark Reign would last approximately a full year before the story reached its natural conclusion and I wonder if this could be it, or the beginnings of the story's end. I doubt it's any real coincidence that, in the same month, there's another in-continuity one-shot focussing on Captain America. Thoughts, anyone...? |
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| Raien |
Dark Reign was the status-quo that got me reading mainstream Marvel, and I'm deeply saddened by the fact that it is ending so quickly and without much of its potential for unique storytelling realised. It feels like a waste of time and I honestly can't get behind this new Siege event with any sense of excitement. | ||||||||
| Robin The Boy Wonder |
I'm looking forward to Dark Reign ending.
I'm really enjoying Dark Reign; certain titles including Iron Man and Dark Avengers have exploded into life for me and are telling genuinely compelling stories at this time, particularly the former. Despite my enjoyment, however, the story should reach its natural conclusion at some point within the next six months. I would prefer that the story end on a high rather than Marvel tell every conceivable story possible from Dark Reign. I agree that there are many more stories that could be told but I would much rather the story end with my wanting more than end with a whimper and my then breathing a sigh of relief that the story's finally ended. There are many examples in Marvel's history of a story being told for far too long and then ending with an undramatic whimper (and with editors and writers struggling to end the story in a satisfactory manner). Besides, it gives us all a chance to salivate over what Marvel might do next... |
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| Robin The Boy Wonder |
Brian Michael Bendis recently let the cat out of the bag, so to speak...
It seems Siege is indeed a forthcoming Marvel event and will bring to a conclusion the Dark Reign. Siege is planned to be a four-issue limited series, beginning in January, that will reunite Marvel's Trinity of Captain America, Thor and Iron Man. Olivier Coipel has been confirmed as the series artist. There are no further details, although I hear Marvel are planning a more detailed press release at a forthcoming retailers summit. |
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| Robin The Boy Wonder |
Details on Siege are slowly starting to emerge now.
There's an Interview with Brian Michael Bendis on Newsarama concerning the mini-series. There's little further information but it does give the reader an idea of what Bendis is seeking to achieve. *** As a side issue to Siege (although there may be some relevance), there's another Marvel mini-series that may earn some attention upon its release: Doomwar. Doomwar is a five-issue mini-series focussing on a number of heroes (including the Fantastic Four and the X-Men) that basically, well, go to war against, well, Doom (you were expecting Paste Pot Pete?!?). Here's an Interview with Jonathan Maberry on Newsarama. *** Finally, expect another concluding Marvel epic in 2010 as Cable and Hope return to present-day Earth. The result is a multi-arc in the X-titles, planned for Spring. Expect Wolverine to appear in all of them! |
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| Batmanuel |
Past Pot Pete, now there's a challenge 
but seriously this is just the sort of power struggle one expects when the lunatics are running the asylum. Thanks for the posts on this one Boy Wonder, Oh by the way, i saw this and thought of you 
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| Batmanuel |
double one handed post.
i have just had the new marvel previews in and... 
It looks like it is going to be good. This image here shows the Cap, Thor and Iron-Scum... i mean man (poor excuse for a man i know, but none the less a man). Its interesting to note here that if this image is correct that Mr Stark has got his mind back, with the help of the very heroes he turned his back on in the name of the law, and now stands side by side with the real heroes. see how they forgive him see how they take him under their wings after all this was the very man who hounded them and at times beat them down and tried to destroy them (Skrull) but our heroes are more compassionate, more heroic, and less black and white, so come on buddy, welcome back to the Marvel Universe, we forgive you. However.... i am not a hero, and i dont pretend to be Heroic. so if it were up to me i would have let Osborne throw his useless carcass into the ships furnace, and then go after Osborn and rip his head off. After all, its not like we needed Iron man to win is it, and i am not as forgiving as Cap. Anyway, Siege looks like it could be another kick ass comic fun in the same vein as Civil War and Secret invasion, Christ are we being spoilt or what 
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| Robin The Boy Wonder |
I could very easily get back into the 'Why I Think Tony Stark Is A Hero' argument... but I'm not going to.
I could very easily post argument, counter-argument and debate the point until I'm olg and grey... but I'm not going to. I still think you, Bats, were very wrong upon your consideration and reflection of Tony Stark within the larger Marvel Universe over the last several years; and that doesn't mean to say I consider myself entirely right in all of my arguments either. I simply feel that Tony Stark acted like a hero at all times despite the choices he made. He chose to follow and uphold the law, as did many others around him. There were those who chose not to follow the law; however, their point is no more or less valid than those they opposed. Both sides made some very good arguments during their journey and I feel that neither side were entirely right or wrong. Both sides made choices that could later be considered as destructive. The Marvel Universe hasn't been black and white in a very long time now, and is instead thriving within a greyer area. This is why we are compelled to follow these characters, whether we agree or disagree with the choices they make. Captain America, Iron Man & Thor are being touted as Marvel's 'Trinity' and I'm pleased to see them all preparing to come back together, regardless of their politcial perspective or stance in recent years. True friends, regardless of whether they may be hero or otherwise, will always remain friends despite their differences in opinion. They may debate and, at times, argue; however, their friendship and loyalties to each other are always stronger than the hardships they endure. This is the return of three very true friends, men who, I hope, surpass the argument that drove them apart. They will doubtlessly argue again in the future and will more than likely fight the other, although they will always remain friends. And Siege had better be good. I haven't forgiven Bendis for Secret Invasion yet, a story that I felt was really very poor by his high-quality standards. |
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| Reaper |
What didn't you like about Secret Invasion? | ||||||||
| Robin The Boy Wonder |
All of it...? 
I struggled with the series, if I'm being completely honest. The concept behind Secret Invasion was, quite simply, stunning. Bendis' idea for the Skrulls was a very simple one and one that fully realised their potential as an enemy for the Marvel Universe. The build-up in New Avengers was also handled really very well. As for the main story itself; well, I just felt Bendis was the wrong person to handle such a story as he just couldn't repress his natural instinct to tell a decompressed story. There were certain plot threads that lasted for far too long. The Avengers spent five issues in the Savage Land before concluding they needed to be in New York. When Skrull-Jarvis pinned down Maria Hill in the fallen Helicarrier, I naturally expected the plot thread to be realised in the next issue. Instead, we had a cliff-hanger, a one-page follow-up in the next issue and the end to this scene a month later. No writer should take two/three issues to tell this one scene, one that ultimately was easily handled by Maria Hill in a very anti-climactic sequence. I also felt as if Bendis hinged his story on big moments. The first issue felt as if Bendis were just stitching together a number of big moments into one extended issue with very little plot between them. I appreciate that a first issue of an event needs to grab the readers by the balls but there still needs to be some plot or character development. The Skrull Avengers in the Savage Land were also a poor point, in my opinion. The concept behind the last years worth of story had been to put the New & Mighty Avengers into conflict. Bendis had teased this, brought them together a couple of times before placing both teams in the Savage Land for the end of the first issue. The natural lead-on into the second issue is a battle between the two teams with both accusing the other of being Skrulls, a pay-off to their conflict after Civil War. Instead, Bendis cops out by throwing in a number of Skrull Avengers; would it not have made more sense to send in the Skrull Avengers to beat the victorious team...? The final battle between the heroes and the Skrulls also felt like a number of pasted-on scenes. There was very little continuity between panels, a fault that Bendis carried with him from New Avengers after their battles with the Hood's Masters of Evil. It wasn't all bad and there were some damned good moments in the series: The Skrull assault on New York, Yu's use of perspective to show the battleground above Earth that started the fourth issue, the return of Thor and Osborn's rise to power. I just feel Bendis is better used for more ground-level or urban stories rather than event & universe-spanning ones. Bendis can handle characters really well and his work on New Avengers & Daredevil proves this; however, every time he's called upon to tell an event story (House of M & Secret Invasion, not to mention his latter issues on Mighty Avengers), he still falls upon his decompression sensibilities to tell the story. I'm really looking forward to Siege and hope that, by telling the story in four chapters, he throws caution to the wind and tells the fuck-off, massive story he surely must be capable of telling. Otherwise, I fear it will be another example of outstanding build-up and a damp-squib finish. |
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| Batmanuel |
When i get the use of my right hand back i will post a lengthy reply to your last post Wonder boy,
but for now i will have to just disagree with your perception of the secret invasion which i myself and many others thought was rather good, the who is Skrull moments were really good with everyone guessing who they were (i correctly identified Hank Pym) also the invading Skrulls greatest warrior
me wonders if that be the reason you found it distasteful? i found that the Death of the freedom fighter known as Captain America distasteful and was horrified as i saw common sense being replaced by a supposed law which was the registration act. still that's for another day 
Siege on the other hand sees Osborne and crew go after Asgard. With Thor taken out by the clever manipulation of Loki its time to them on. the solicitation for siege embedded #1 goes onto say that Osbournes savvy use of the media which spring boarded him to power may be his downfall as it may turn against him. its time to expose Normans true face to the world and the secrets behind the attack on the gods. it ends with the statement... Witness the changing of the Marvel Universe firsthand. now if that doesn't get the juice flowing i don't know what will. one things for sure, i want to see Osborne get his comeuppance even more than i wanted Stark to pay for his crimes, and it looks like i will have my cake and eat it
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| Robin The Boy Wonder |
One man's freedom fighter is another man's terrorist. I personally do not like the term 'freedom fighter' because of this very phrase; however, I would never compare a comic book icon like Captain America to that of a terrorist before anyone even considers to misconstrue or misinterpret my comments. Anyhow, I don't want to get into the whole Civil War or Tony Stark debate here. My problems with Secret Invasion had nothing to do with anything potentially distasteful. I honestly felt it was a wonderfully-conceived, albeit poorly-written event-driven story and I'm aware of a large number of people within the larger comic book community who dislike the series just as I do. I'll be more than happy to argue the point with you when you're better. On another note, you were missed last Saturday when I popped by for my monthly comics 'fix'; hopefully, you'll be back to full fitness for my next visit. Get better soon, mate; if there's anything I can do, please give me a shout. 
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| Reaper |
Hang on, what did I miss? What has he done to himself this time?
I did quite enjoy Secret Invasion but I wouldn't say it was perfect, particularly the last battle scene which was more confusing than involving. The run up to it was very well handled, probably one of the most interesting run ups to an event I have seen. |
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| Robin The Boy Wonder |
Batmanuel has done something to his wrist...
I can't remember the official version the shop has disclosed off-hand; however, you have to wonder just what he was doing with his wrist... surfing the Girls, Girls, Girls thread, methinks!
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| Robin The Boy Wonder |
Marvel has recently released several teaser images.
Newsarama has compiled a Teaser Preview Viewer that makes it a littler bit easier to view them all. Clicked on the link...? So... who is Norman's secret weapon...? My guess is Scarlet Witch. The others are all major players, although Wanda's involvement makes more sense from a story-telling perspective. |
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| Conradical |
Cheers for the link, I've gotta say I'm sad to see the end of Dark Reign, but it also enforces my faith in Marvel that they want to keep things moving, just to avoid things getting stale, and because it's more realistic. It is "our world" after all.
[Here come some SPOILERS, well, more like speculations, but if you haven't checked on the link yet, please do before reading] Scarlet Witch does seem to make the most sense, but then again, I can't actually recognize most of the others, anyone else lend a hand? I can tell Scarlet Witch, Thanos, and Mephisto, big hitters for sure. Other guys? Is that Odin in the top left? Drawing a blank here. What's going on in number 2? Is that Magneto? Looks very reminiscent of an iconic image from the Heroes TV Show. Peter Petrelli much? 3 Looks pretty cool, as long as it's not meaning Ozzy's death. He's way too cool. Also, just a funny perspective, I may be hitting it on the head here or just seeing it in a strange way, but does it look like Spider-Man will don the Green Goblin costume? Go a little crazy himself? I mean, the guy already talks to himself enough! Looks a lot like Jim Carey in The Mask, if you get my meaning. Not much to say about number 4, father-son grudge match a clear and present danger. So . . . number 5 . . . I've not been reading the Cap Reborn line, if anyone could give me a handle on that, would be much appreciated. Is he actually back? But the real thing that's coming from this one is that Iron Man and Cap are revealing their identities. Possibly making all the strong, central ideologies that surfaced in Civil War into so much fluff? Just saying, fans of the War may be pissed. Yeah, they're all pretty tantalizing, so what's everyone else think? |
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| Conradical |
And of course, get well soon Bats! | ||||||||
| Robin The Boy Wonder |
Spoilers! Speculation Alert! Boy Wonder Makes Predictions!!!
I think I can help you here. Beginning with top left and continuing round the board clockwise, we have: Odin The Beyonder Scarlet Witch Thanos Mephisto Nate Grey, also known as X-Man Molecule Man I think I can narrow it down to one of two, although am plumping for Wanda. I don't see how or why Odin would support Norman Osborn unless, of course, this were part of Odin's plan to remove Asgard from Midgard and restore it to its rightful place. I doubt this though, as Odin could likely do this himself if he wanted to and wouldn't need to involve an earth-bound villain, such as Norman Osborn. The Beyonder is responsible for the Secret Wars (I & II) and is a ridiculously powerful entity. Oddly enough, I seem to recall his death being announced at the beginning of Annihilation so doubt its him. Despite my doubts, he is a genuine contender as he could be very easily malleable by one as manipulating as Osborn and is someone who would give Doom many a sleepless night (hence his reaction in Secret Invasion: Dark Reign). I think it's the Scarlet Witch for my reasons stated previously. Thanos would never allow himself to be manipulated by another and, in my opinion, wouldn't be interested in such a petty, earth-bound dilemma. Mephisto is a popular choice so far in the larger comic book community and could make sense if Marvel choose to make Norman Osborn ultimately responsible for the events of One More Day; after all, Mephisto's motives have never been clear other than the ending of the marriage was one of Quesada's 'genies' and therefore had to be done. However, One More Day is a very Spider-Man specific story, and Steve Wacker has often said they will one day return to these events... but only in the Spider-Man. Adding this layer to the larger Dark Reign story will only serve to add confusion and makes a larger Marvel Universe event a Spider-Man centric one. I don't think Marvel want to follow this route as they're promoting the story as an Avengers-themed event. Nate Grey is already being used in Dark X-Men. He's powerful enough to cause a problem but I doubt anyone in the Cabal would be shitting themselves about him. Molecule Man can also be easily controlled and is overdue for a return, although I feel Doom would already be controlling him by now. |
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| The Rascal King |
I've not followed the Marvel U since the end of Invasion, but I have seen that Captain America is coming back.
I'm pretty sure he was dead, right? |
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| Reaper |
Nope he was displaced in time....... obviously | ||||||||
| The Rascal King |
From being shot in the gut? | ||||||||
| Batmanuel |
The inclusion of both the Beyonder and Thanos have got me interested,
also Mephisto, could this be where the spell on Peter Parker is broken? one can but hope. also... boy wonder
See now thats just cruel.
IRON MAN !! well he was the Skrulls secret weapon after all
See i can be cruel too. Rascal: [/quote]I'm pretty sure he was dead, right?
Thanks Mate, i actually feel that i am getting on top of it now, i seem to be moving forward rather that stagnating so all being well i should be back on form by the new year. And i hate it when the quotes go all pear shaped like this, Sigh |
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