Annihilation: Conquest, Book 2 (Bk. 2) [Hardcover]

Javier Grillo-Marxuach (Author), Dan Abnett (Author), Andy Lanning (Author), Kyle Hotz (Author), Sean Chen (Illustrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 23, 2008

The next Annihilation epic continues with the newest addition to Marvel's galaxy of sci-fi stars and the last remaining Nova Corps centurian, as the action builds to the main event! Who is the haunted loner known as Wraith? What are his chilling powers, how did he get them, and what is the tragic quest that drives him? Meanwhile, Rich Rider stood toe-to-toe with Annihilus, but can the Human Rocket face a foe that has an entire galaxy on lockdown? What will happen when a man used to flying anywhere finds himself trapped with nowhere to run? And finally, in the wake of the Phalanx's sneak attack on the Kree Empire, heroes separated by distance but united by willpower have taken their first steps toward liberating a galaxy in peril. Now, all the threads begin to weave together - and if you thought the surprises were over, think again! What are the Phalanx really after? What new players will change the game? Grab your weapon and join the fight for freedom with Wraith, Nova, Quasar, Star-Lord, and more! Collects Annihilation: Conquest - Wraith #1-4, Nova #4-7. and Annihilation: Conquest #1-6

Product Details

• Hardcover: 352 pages
• Publisher: Marvel (July 23, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 078512716X
• ISBN-13: 978-0785127161
• Product Dimensions: 1 x 1 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #450,993 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Annihilation Conquest Book Two: One spectacular finale., June 2, 2010

By 

Grant Watson (NC) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Annihilation: Conquest, Book 2 (Bk. 2) (Hardcover)

I had just about given up on Marvel and their "Events".

Most of them boil down to interesting ideas with anti climactic resolutions and, more often than not, no resolution. The "Annihilation" and "Annihilation Conquest" sagas were the exception. These stories stood apart from the rest of the seemingly endless story arcs happening in the Marvel Universe. These stories made this jaded 40 something year old comic collector a believer in Marvel again. Characters that were minor, obscure and outright forgotten were brought back with new life breathed into them with some wonderfully creative, witty and ambitious writing by Keith Giffen, Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning. Classic Bronze Age characters like Warlock, Gamora, Drax, Rocket Raccoon and Starlord were brought back to tell one of the most entertaining stories that I've read in decades. Annihilation Conquest Book 2 delivers one spectacular finale.

The techno-organic race known as The Phalanx has infected the universe with a virus that has taken over all machine and all organic life. Fighting off the attack is the last of the Nova Centurions Richard Rider, a rag tag and rather eclectic group of "Guardians" made up of Rocket Raccoon, Groot, Mantis and Starlord. Also joining the fray is Ronan The Accuser, the Kree Empire, the Super Skrull, Quasar, a newly evolved Adam Warlock, Drax the Destroyer, Gamora, The High Evolutionary and a new character called Wraith who seems to have the ability to strike fear even into an emotionless race of machines. This is quite the line up of characters.

But what this united group of heroes and former villains discovers is that the Phalanx have a new leader...Ultron. Now more powerful and more of a threat than ever before. Annihilation Conquest Book Two does not disappoint. It has one heck of an action packed ending, smart, witty, exciting, surprising and just plain fun. Also, Annihilation Conquest Books One and Two give birth to one of the most entertaining ongoing series around today...The Guardians Of The Galaxy.
The Hardcover version is really nice and can still be had for roughly the same price as the paperback. It's larger than the trade paperback and that emphasizes the very attractive art by Sean Chen, Scott Hanna, Kyle Hotz, Tom Raney and Wellington Alves. The writing by Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning is terrific.

Annihilation Conquest Book Two collects Wraith 1 thru 4, Nova issues 4 thru 7 and Annihilation Conquest issues 1 thru 6.

One bit of advice for those considering purchasing Annihilation Conquest Book Two. I would recommend purchasing Nova, Vol. 1: Annihilation - Conquest and Nova Vol. 2: Knowhere (v. 2). Annihilation Conquest Book Two contains "some" of the relevant "Nova" issues pertaining to the Annihilation Conquest story and fills in the gaps with a page of text and it's just not the same thing. If you've already invested in the first "Annihilation" saga and are thinking of purchasing books one and two of the "Annihilation Conquest" saga, then you might as well have the entire story and get the first two volumes of Nova, it's definitely worth it.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Marvel's Latest Cosmic Epic Concludes, January 26, 2009

By 

Joseph Boone (Irvine, CA United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (2008 HOLIDAY TEAM)    (REAL NAME)   

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This review is from: Annihilation: Conquest, Book 2 (Bk. 2) (Paperback)

Over the past several years, Marvel has dusted off its space bound races and heroes and put them into a couple of large events. The first, Annihilation, was a reasonable sales success and featured an invasion of the universe led by Annihilus and his horde of followers from the negative zone. This time around, we have the Phalanx, a hive mind created by a techno virus that is reminiscent of the Borg from Star Trek. The Phalanx infects the population of a planet they wish to take over and in short order they have a whole new batch of converts. In Book One, we saw the new Quasar, Moon Dragon, Nova, and a number of other would-be heroes, including Rocket Raccoon, step up to oppose the Phalanx despite the seemingly insurmountable odds.

In Book Two, the saga's conclusion, the story starts off with Nova #4-7 and it's a strong beginning. Nova encounters the Phalanx and is forced to make a run for it, but not before he's infected with the virus. The story has a real "out of the frying pan and into the fire" feel to it and the tension is amped up to a major degree as you wait to see how he can possibly survive what's happening. The next segment is a miniseries featuring a character called The Wraith. He was an ordinary Kree and the series shows how he has become the one being in the universe that the Phalanx fear and sets him up to play a large part in the Conquest story line. Finally, there is the Conquest mini series itself, which is reprinted in its entirety and tells the main story of the clash with the Phalanx.

Because of the nature of this collection, it suffers from being more than a little disjointed. You aren't reading one story, but three. The connection is not seamless and another four issues of Nova's story are summarized in a page of text rather than reprinted due to space considerations. Still, the overall quality is well above average and it's a treat to see characters like Ronan the Accuser get treated as more than a quick knockout for the Fantastic Four or Avengers for a change. Other characters like Star Lord or Rocket Raccoon would never even see the light of day without a series like this and yet they prove very entertaining.

I won't give away much of the plot because I don't want to spoil this for new readers. Suffice it to say that this is something of a space opera with lots of ups and downs. Readers will ride a roller coaster as it looks like the heroes face certain defeat one moment, certain victory the next, and then back to doom again with the next plot twist. There are plenty of laughs, but also some good action scenes and even a death or two. Abnett and Lanning are the main architects and they've crafted an entertaining story that strikes the right balance between delivering the goods without ever taking itself too seriously.

3.0 out of 5 stars Guardians of the Galaxy vs. the evil lord Anticlimax!, July 7, 2011

By 

Guillame Avallone (Confusion, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Annihilation: Conquest, Book 2 (Bk. 2) (Paperback)

Annihilation: Conquest could've done with more Star Lord, Nova, and Quasar, and a whole lot less Wraith. Seriously, his adventures were even more filler than those of Super Skrull in Annihilation and only half as well-executed. The pacing of Book 2 feels rushed. The big bad is revealed about ten pages before he is destroyed in a battle lasting approximately 5 panels. Really? Book 1 is fun. Book 2 is ok. Get it for Groot, Rocket Raccoon, Mantis, and the rest of the guardians. Although if you skip it, you'll live.