Civil War Journal – Week Sixteen

By Matt Conner | Sep 15, 2016

Civil War II has now delayed the main series through the end of December, but that’s not stopping it from pumping out ten books this week – which five counted?

Welcome back to Civil War Journal, Bam Smack Pow’s weekly recap column of all things Civil War II. This week, Marvel announced that the last four issues of Civil War II would come out at the end of September, October, November, and December. Last week only had four books, but this week, Marvel publishes ten. Expect a lot of light weeks ahead, dear readers.

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Previously: Captain Marvel used Inhuman Ulysses and his visions to plan strategy, and this might have killed War Machine and the Hulk.

What happened? Ulysses predicted that Sister Grimm would kill a girl named Alice. The twist is that Alice has become a bug monster responsible for turning her whole town into bug monsters, and she asks Nico to kill her to stop the infection. How will this affect Captain Marvel’s predictive justice? And Singularity is done with her teammates fighting and tells them that if they can’t make nice, she will imprison them all within herself. Eww.

Was it good? It was – I’m getting tired of the ironic ways every writer has to go around the trope of Ulysses’s premonition, but there aren’t many other ways to tell this story, and this writer keeps all of the charm of this team even when they’re fighting.

Recommendation: Keep it in mind, but the twisty plot is done just as well in our top-tier All-New Wolverine.

What happened? Spider-Man fought Clash, fulfilling the prediction, but he has to question how much of that fight happened because he got paranoid about the prediction itself.

Was it good? It’s straightforward. A solid read, enjoyable enough, but not saying something the other books haven’t.

Recommendation: It’s the most Spider-Man you’ll get out of the crossover, so if he’s your favorite, pick this up. But if you’re just trying to keep up with the event, this is politely unnecessary.

What happened? Shikla and Deadpool have a brutal physical fight, which he relates to their own personal Civil War, but they maybe stay together. Deadpool grieves the loss of his team of mercenaries and the end of his run in the Uncanny Avengers.

Was it good? Not really. It had a softer side than I expected, given the tone of the rest of the Deadpool tie-ins, but Deadpool works best as a supporting character. And it’s not much of a Civil War II tie-in.

Recommendation: Let this one float on by.

What happened? The guys and Gwenpool keep trying to collect the bounty on the alien Ulysses identified. The closest the book gets to any Civil War is the Gone With The Wind homage on the cover.

Was it good? This book has more great jokes per page than anything Marvel has published in months. I loved every panel. But it’s not a Civil War II book, and the bait-and-switch is getting old.

Recommendation: Read this. Love this. But don’t expect it to help tell the Civil War II story.

What happened? Spider-Man 2099 and some notable heroes like Hulk 2099 and Cerebra fight Punisher 2099, a post-apocalyptic Power Pack, and three of the most popular of 2099’s X-Men.

Was it good? As a comic? Yes. But continuing the trend, this didn’t even mention Ulysses. Maybe the hero-vs-hero qualifies it as a Civil War, but Civil War II is about profiling and predictive justice, and this isn’t.

Recommendation: Only if you’re a fan of Marvel’s 2099 stories. And if you are, come sit next to me. We can swap trading cards.

What happened? Medusa realizes she’s being framed by Maximus the Mad, who took advantage of her revenge on Iron Man. Captain Marvel tries to arrest the Inhumans, and Medusa plays some cunning political games to stay on Maximus’s trail.

Was it good? Yes. Tony Stark crossed a big line in Civil War #2, and this is a much more involved exploration of the consequences than what Bendis writes in Invincible Iron Man.

Recommendation: Yes, this is a top-tier crossover book.

What happened? Hercules and his team of gods defeat the Uprising Storm. If you didn’t see anything about Civil War II in that sentence, then you get what it was like to read this issue.

Was it good? It’s a good last issue of the Abnett Hercules run. It’s an insulting last issue of a book called Civil War II: Gods Of War.

Recommendation: Don’t get this book. I mean, if you’ve read Herc’s adventures thus far, you deserve to see how it ends, and it ends well. But there has to be a way to reward the creative team while punishing the slimy marketing.

What happened? Mockingbird solves the murder on the cosplay cruise ship, but it turns out the evidence clearing her ex-husband of Hulk’s murder was just bait for a trap.

Was it good? Yes, it’s going to be Pick Of The Week tomorrow. Hey, if the Civil War II link is going to be a trap, might as well make that text. (Yes, I’m still seething about the Deadpool recap suggesting that maybe we can all pretend Ulysses predicted this issue would happen. That was low.)

Recommendation: I tell you, you can and should enjoy the wonder of this issue independently from Civil War II. But this column is to help figure out which extra books you need if you’re trying to follow the main story and its impact – this book isn’t that.

What happened? Spider-Man, Ms. Marvel, and Nova are horrified when they witness Hawkeye killing the Hulk.

Was it good? It was. For as huge an event as the death of a founding Avenger, the horror hasn’t been explored too many places. This was a great place to do that, and the teen heroes are perfect fits for the role.

Recommendation: Most of the book is about the book’s ongoing subplots, but Hulk and Spider-Man fans really should move this to the top of their stacks.

What happened? The mutants on the Unity Squad attack a government facility to advance the quest for a Terrigen cure, just like Ulysses vaguely mentioned something about. Captain America tracks Deadpool to the scene of the crime, fires him, and disbands the whole Unity Squad. Meanwhile, Doctor Voodoo’s ghost brother sells the Hulk’s dead body to the Hand for a ninja resurrection.

Was it good? The summary sounds good, but the delivery comes across too light, like caricatures of the characters. This is the best volume of Uncanny Avengers, but the concept hasn’t ever led to stories other than “Our team just can’t get along!”

Recommendation: A zombie ninja Hulk sounds pretty awesome, but you go back to sleep, darling. I’ll wake you if it turns out cool.

Last week had fewer books, but three out of four were tied in to the main crossover. This week had about fifty percent, and even those weren’t better than the series had been before Civil War II. This event just won’t die, and it’s already made its point clearly enough. We’ll keep recapping, because we love you, but we don’t recommend reading too many more of the books themselves.

Tie-In Round-Up:

Recommended: The main series, of course, with preludes from the zero issue and the Free Comic Book Day pages. Also The Accused, All-New Wolverine, Captain America: Sam Wilson, Captain Marvel, Civil War II: Ulysses, Ms. Marvel, and Uncanny Inhumans.

Good but not top tier: A-Force, All-New All-Different Avengers, Captain America: Steve Rogers, Civil War II: Amazing Spider-Man, Civil War II: Choosing Sides (but only the Damage Control story and the Whitley/Sauvage eulogy for War Machine), Civil War II: Gods Of War, Civil War II: X-Men, Deadpool until issue 15, The Fallen, International Iron Man, Invincible Iron Man, Mockingbird, Nova, New Avengers, Patsy Walker AKA: Hellcat, Power Man And Iron Fist, Rocket Raccoon And Groot, Scarlet Witch, Spider-Man, Spider-Man 2099, Spider-Woman, Squadron Supreme, Totally Awesome Hulk, The Ultimates, Uncanny Avengers, Venom

Not good: Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D., the bulk of Civil War II: Choosing Sides, Civil War II: Kingpin, Deadpool after issue 15

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