Customer Reviews

Siege

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(11)
3 star:		(9)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Let me start off by saying that it's been a while since I've been in tune with current Marvel continuity. Last Marvel event I was all ears for was Secret Invasion and everything that led up to it and surrounded it. Since then, with the whole Dark Reign stuff and Dark Avengers and such, I really haven't been all that interested, and what I did check out, I wasn't too fond of. At the earlier part of the decade, I was praising Brian Michael Bendis and the work he was doing, from his prolific Daredevil run to the underrated Alias and even to New Avengers; but his "event" work (i.e. House of M, Secret Invasion, and now Siege) has always felt as if something is lacking. Whatever the case, Siege attempts to wrap up a whole bunch of past Marvel continuity and stories, as Norman Osborne's plan to take down Asgard comes to fruition. Caught in the crossfire is Thor, and eventually the other Avengers heroes, current, past, and fugitive alike. While Siege isn't bad one bit, it is quite short, abrupt, and dare I say anti-climactic. Granted by the time the dust clears there are some grand amounts of destruction and even a bit of a body count, but it just feels like there's something missing and what's here was just rushed along. Plus, by the time you reach the conclusion, you'll find yourself saying "is that all there is?". Still, Bendis' House of M art partner Olivier Coipel does great work, and Siege is written well enough that you don't need to know every little detail of past continuity to have an idea of what is going on. Plus, two characters I can't stand bite the big one here, which in itself makes Siege worth checking out.

What goes up must come down. Norman Osborn has had a good run ramrodding the Marvel Universe, but his Dark Reign is just about over. Cracks are beginning to show beneath Osborn's in-control facade, and we've been conjecturing about the tipping point. We've witnessed the crumbling of his cabal as Emma Frost and Namor have already amscrayed, and now we learn that Dr. Doom isn't at all content to play second banana, to which everyone's reaction should be a resounding "Well, duh." In the one-shot SIEGE: THE CABAL we view the inevitable falling out.

Maybe it was only a matter of time before Normie turned his gaze on Asgard, floating prettily above Oklahoma. Maybe it took Loki's whispering sweet sedition into his ear. Asgard is an anomaly, and it isn't too long before Osborn perceives the ninth realm as a serious threat to Earth and, even more significantly, to Normie's own power base. In true wag the dog form, Osborn, requiring an excuse to invade Asgard, fabricates an incident - the destruction of Chicago's Soldier Field and deaths of untold thousands - with the substantial Asgardian warrior Volstagg caught in the middle, holding the bag. Osborn immediately gathers his hordes of minions (Dark Avengers, Thunderbolts, the Initiative, H.A.M.M.E.R.) and makes a beeline for Oklahoma. He invites full media coverage.

Speaking as a puny mortal, there's something gratifying about Balder's dismissive remark about humans getting promptly force fed back to him. Balder states: "I cannot imagine a mortal force that could possibly be any threat to the immortals of --" And then the Sentry punches thru the Asgardian walls. This may be the only time I've ever rooted for the insufferable Sentry. The siege commences, and it looks as if the gods of the Norse pantheon are right away on their heels. I say "looks as if" because for most of the series, we barely see the Norse pantheon, excepting Thor. Since this is their homeland being invaded, you'd think we'd see more of these Asgardians fighting the good fight. This is one of the nits I have to pick with this series.

SIEGE collects SIEGE: THE CABAL, SIEGE #1-4, and the FREE COMIC BOOK DAY 2009 (NEW AVENGERS) story ""The Way Things Are..." And I dunno. Maybe I have to re-read the thing, but SIEGE pretty much underwhelmed me. As much as I've heaped praises on Bendis in the past, I've been down on him for SECRET INVASION and, with SIEGE, I'm also harboring several issues. It may just be that the guy can't pull off the epic company crossover event. Even his knack for catchy dialogue is absent here, for the most part.

Not that there aren't some awesome moments. I can think of two iconic images off the top of my head: what the Sentry does to Ares and then Cap's oncoming shield reflected in Iron Patriot's gleaming face armor. People of consequence buy the farm in this series, and that adds weight to a story that is basically a series of slugfests. I do like that finally there's a resolution to the plot point dilemma that is the Sentry, a character so powerful that maybe only Squirrel Girl can take him down (Now if they'd only do something about the Hood). But for Spidey fans hoping the wallcrawler would have a decisive impact on bringing down the Green Goblin, well, Bendis throws us a bone, but it's pretty unsatisfying and anticlimactic.

Brian Michael Bendis works SIEGE with a broad brush, and so the fine details are lost. People rail against the man's decompressed storytelling in his other titles (UNLIMITED SPIDER-MAN, NEW AVENGERS), but I prefer those as Bendis is best when his characters are interacting and engaging in nifty dialogue. SIEGE's epic canvas and the allotted four issues don't allow for too many personal moments, except that it's those personal moments which anchor the story and invest the reader. Bendis conveys the grandeur but not the heart.

Providing behind-the-scenes grist, Bendis inserts various transcripts along the way. We read Norman's staff conference leading up to the siege. We also peek at a Secret Warriors debriefing and text communique between an embedded Maria Hill and the White House.

If you were wondering what the heck was going on with Tony Stark recovering in Broxton, Oklahoma, you should check out IRON MAN's "Stark: Disassembled" arc. I assume everyone knows by now that Steve Rogers is back.

My opinion, Olivier Coipel, whose stuff I loved in THOR, handles the visuals, and his art vacillates from mostly good to sometimes shaky, and I think he was feeling the pressures of Big Event-itis.

I'm bothered that the tragedy of Soldier Field is glossed over. I'm bothered that for a saga focusing on Asgard, few Asgardians appear on screen. It's hard for me to buy that Thor can be taken down so easily. It doesn't ring true that Loki would miscalculate so. I thought the final battle ends up unrewarding and feebly executed, and I roll my eyes at the cheap contrivance that is the Stones of Norn. The coda gives us an idea of the direction the Avengers will be taking. Bendis also gives a nod as to who'll be replacing Norman Osborn (and it's easy enough to figure out who gets tapped). All the loop-de-loops Bendis has put us thru over the years, all the changes he's effected, from Civil War to the Skrullapalooza to Dark Reign to Siege, and what do we end up with? We have a lot of things pretty much come full circle: The Avengers' big three are back in rotation. I know, I'm probably oversimplifying things. But that's the immediate impression I'm left with after finishing this series. Bendis ushers in the Heroic Age, and I'm not much impressed. Except that since I've long liked the dynamism of the New Avengers, I'll still be tuning in.

Here's a drinking game: take a swig each time you note a "Kra-ka-koom!" sound effect.

Not only does Siege have the best artwork out of any event, thanks to Coipel, but Siege dishes out the best story. For me, the story hit really hard because I'm a Thor reader. If you haven't read recent Thor, the story might not be as dramatic for you. The Asgard ambush idea immediately stirred turmoil in me that previous events failed to do. Somehow the threat of Norman Osborn destroying the beautiful realm over Oklahoma was more threatening to me than Secret Invasion. It is because of that intensity, that I claim that Siege is more dramatic and entertaining than Civil War and Secret Invasion. It's plot alone gives us the shakes.

This may be the part of the review where you read something disappointing about this product. I'll let you know, I found nothing wrong with Siege, and I'm suprised. I had problems here and there with all the events, but Siege is flawless in my opinion.

*Elegantly Epic Artwork
*Terrifying Villains
*Ex-Avengers Coming Together
*Every Character's Dialogue Specially Treated (Thanks Bendis!)
*An Amazing Thor Story Within An Event
*A Bombardment Of Twists
*Bendis Wasn't Afraid To Do Devastating Things(You May Shed A Tear By The End)

I rest my case. What more could you really ask for? Siege takes the good things from Civil War and Secret Invasion, and creates a better story without the problems we saw before. It feels right to say that this is the event we've all been waiting for.

I am a devoted marvel maniac.
I mostly liked this. The art was fantastic and the big shocking moments were great.
I didn't like how Bendis wrote Osborn's fast fall from grace, it seemed really half-assed,
half-assed like the way Secret Invasion ended (should have ended with Fury sending omega level beings to finish the fight on the Skrull worlds)
and the way Civil War ended (should have ended with Cap getting killed)
and the way WWHulk ended (Hulk should have defeated everyone and then seen that his anger was futile and moved towards grief and acceptance).
That said, I mostly liked all of those events as well.

I didn't like how Sentry/Void was taken out, too weak too easy.
Thor should not have been able to take him, Odin should have shown up and banished Sentry to Muspelheim.

Marvel is like SNL in the 90s, they start a great skit and don't know how to punch out.

It's about time that our heroes are finally allowed to be heroes again. For four years, they've been fugitives, exiled through time, replaced, and as far as the classic heroic narrative is concerned, completely removed from standard, reliable heroism. Siege is the essential book in which the tides are turned, serving as a vital point around which all of Marvel's continuity hinges from here forward. Thankfully, it's an amazingly done book.

If Marvel has a trademark "feel" for their superheroes, it's their use of pathos, bringing heroes to a very human level in spite of their superhuman powers. This element is what makes for a compelling, relatable story, especially when your flagship characters have been out of commission for quite some time and are constantly evolving. With Marvel's top talent fleshing out every corner of Siege, they've built a beautiful, hopeful thing. It restores our hope in the heroes we love, and our faith in comic books as a medium to deliver a heartfelt story, even when it's based in a fantastic world.

So, ex-villain Norman Osborn (former Spider-Man arch-nemesis Green Goblin) has earned control of the U.S. government's top-secret, ultra-powerful task force via ostensibly legitimate means, but it's not very surprising that he's secretly still evil and working to reshape the world in his image. His madness is pushed by Loki, the Norse god of mischief (and Thor's half-brother), and all of Osborn's trademark hubris eventually mounts in an assault on Asgard--which happens to be hovering above a field in Oklahoma at the moment, having been displaced from its position in the heavens. Of course, attacking the city of the gods is a nearly insurmountable challenge, and the ensuing clash is suitably explosive and all kinds of can't-stop-reading exciting.

It's the kind of epic, huge excitement that's rarely been felt since reading The Ultimates. Big things are happening, and they're easy to grasp, and the weight of them is made very real and visceral by an amazing combination of slick writing and beautiful artwork. Bendis' plots run for years on end, and they might get tangled in themselves and seem like they're going nowhere fast, but Siege actually hits the big, red reset button in a sensible, believable way. We get our heroes back, and it was all worth it. At the same time, a few heroes are killed, and many rewrite their own roles in Marvel's mythology. Without providing any spoilers, Captain America is back (and awesome), Iron Man is still a fun read, and The Sentry is a character who is unexpectedly complex and enjoyable, despite being a very recent addition to the familiar roster of heroes.

Coipel's elegant, powerful art is stunning. He's able to capture movement and emotion, expression and depth without missing a single stroke. I think I've found my new favorite comic artist. It's a class in perfect visual narrative that I can't stop looking at.

There's plenty of comic violence, including one scene of someone being ripped in half by someone else--but it's definitely not without narrative relevance. It's an epic battle that lasts for four issues, and it's Tolkien-esque in scope and detail, with additional books in the Siege: Battlefield collection adding to the scope of these events. The orchestration is impressive, and as such a vital book (and a hopeful story), it's a great addition to the collection.

-- Collin David

When Bendis first started with Marvel, he really grabbed my attention, especially his Ultimate Spider-Man and his Daredevil work.

Over the past ten years or so, I feel he's really dwindled down, and is now phoning it in a lot of the time.

Siege definitely cements that opinion for me.

This is mid-level, take it or leave, completely forgettable... about as average and pedestrian as comics get.

Then again, I'm nearly 35 years old. When I was 8 years old and read Secret Wars, I thought it was the greatest thing since sliced bread, although looking back it probably wasn't all that good. A few years later, my friends and I completely loved Infinity Gauntlet, which I'm sure a lot of people just can't stand these days.

So, from my POV, Siege was nothing more than... blah. But from a new reader's perspective, maybe this could be the best story ever.

(Warning to parents: This story has graphic violence that I don't think they could even show in an R-Rated slasher film)

Siege is the culmination of events that began way back before Avenger's Disassembled with "The Sentry". This has been Marvel's Platinum Age with a string of major successes including "House of M", "Civil War", "World War Hulk", "Secret Invasion", the Dark Reign Era, and now "Siege" the best of all these previous series. For the proper reading order and to get the most out of this fantastic series read this book and "Dark Avengers: Siege" in this order.

1. Siege: "The Way Things Are..."
2. Dark Avengers Vol 3. Siege: Annual #1 and Issue 13
3. Siege: The Cabal, Prologue and Siege #1
4. Dark Avengers Vol 3. Siege Issues 14-15
5. Siege #2-4
6. Dark Avengers Vol 3. Siege Issue 16

Is anyone else tired of giant crossover events in which you have to buy every comic book put out to get the whole story? Even if you wait for the trade paper backs you still have giant chunks missing and you have to piece the whole thing together like some insane literary jigsaw puzzle. I mean imagine if you're reading a Sherlock Holmes story and suddenly it skips to the end. In order to get important plot points you have to run out and buy at least 5 more novels to fill in the blanks.
But let's leave aside crass commercialism for a moment and focus on the the story.
After building Norman Osborn up as a necessary evil and one of the most complicated and interesting characters in comics today they decide to have him devolve into a raving lunatic and revert to type. Oh God forbid you have a former villain who makes an effective hero unless his name is Hawkeye. Heaven forfend you have a guy who is morally ambiguous working for the greater good. Sure they could have had Norman Osborn fail and fall but they could have drawn it out a lot longer. He could have been the most interesting character in fiction since Richard the 3rd but instead he became just another freak in face makeup.
Though it did have my favorite line of dialog in any comic book ever. Captain America recently back from the dead (which I imagine is a bit like going to a spa for super heroes) says "I don't know exactly what's going on but I know we have to act."
Really? That's your strategy? Before you know who is doing what to whom just jump into the middle of a donnie brook and start swinging. I will restrain my knee jerk liberalism and not make a joke about foreign policy. But how in the midst of all the colorful costumed individuals did the Asgardians manage to figure out who was friend and foe? How did they know who was on Osborn's side and who was on Captain America's side? And how with all the swords and axes and power beams did only Ares the Greek god of war die? Well him and the Sentry.
Oh yes the Sentry. We take a character who stared in one of the best miniseries to date and completely destroy everything that made him great. In his own book when he discovered that he and the Void were in fact the same person he decided the most heroic thing he could do was not be the Sentry. To erase himself from the world and go back to being a normal human being. But no that was too interesting and existential for Marvel. They had to bring him back and tell us that he was really a drug addict. No wait he was the Void and the Sentry was actually a fake version of himself. No wait he's an agoraphobic schizophrenic. No wait he's actually three hamsters in a man suit. And what sidekick?
And somehow even though in his own miniseries as the Void he single handedly defeated every super powered person on the planet, somehow they manage to kill him now. What the What?
In the end this is like a lot of big "event" stories. A really great buildup with some interesting exploration of minor characters leading to a battle that accomplishes nothing. Thank you Marvel. I am now nearly done with you and DC. Now go to your gold bed with pillows made af 100 dollar bills and cry yourself to sleep knowing that you have disappointed another fan.

If you read Marvel comics these days, you have some opinion of Brian Michael Bendis, the virtual co-Editor-in-Chief who has been the guiding hand behind the Avengers franchise since 2004. His tenure has been fairly controversial, making a number of radical changes to the property in this initial storyline - what is beyond dispute is his ability to put them at the centre of everything. In the last six years, Bendis guided the Avengers through a number of events, most of which he wrote ("House of M", "Secret Invasion"; "Civil War" being the big exception) as well. Now comes "Siege", the capstone to "Dark Reign", the year when villains took over the Marvel Universe, led by Norman Osborn. Bendis' previous events were mediocre, suffering from a number of pacing and plotting issues; while the latter are still present somewhat, he delivers by far his best event with "Siege". Spoilers follow.

Osborn's rule was initially based on the Cabal, an alliance of villainous masterminds working behind the scenes, but by the time this story begins that organization has fallen apart, with only Loki and the Hood still notionally involved, and Loki is in fact the man pulling the strings behind Osborn's increasing insanity. Loki wants to deal with the city of Asgard's continued presence on Earth, the idea of which offends him, and, through various somewhat-implausible means, convinces Osborn to launch an invasion of Asgard. This, finally, puts Osborn on the offside with the public, which has previously (and again, somewhat implausibly) been supportive of his bloodyminded approach to keeping America safe. With the world in peril, the newly-returned Steve Rogers (not Captain America, though he dresses the part for the big-time) must rally the disparate groups of Avengers and lead them into battle to assist Thor and his people.

"Siege" is really the counterpoint to "Avengers Disassembled", bringing the Marvel Universe to a great extent full-circle under Bendis' hand. Where he previously expressed minimal interest in some Avengers mainstays, such as Thor, they are front and centre here; and, surprisingly, Bendis writes a very good Thor, with a concerted effort to portray him as the good guys' major hitter. Truly, there isn't a huge amount of characterization in a story this densely packed with plot and action, but the smaller format does wonders for the pacing, which has often been Bendis' Achilles Heel (the last two events he wrote both ran for eight issues, well outstaying their welcome). Olivier Coipel on art (reuniting with "House of M" partner Bendis and continuing the story of the Asgardians he drew in "Thor" with JMS) delivers magnificent work, as expected. This is a fairly straightforward action story, but it's a very good one.

Recommended.

Always been a Marvel fan (not fanatic), and I found the Secret Invasion storyline to be pretty solid. So much so that I've wanted to read the Siege books. But with several graphic novels, I didn't know where to start. I opted for this volume because it seemed to be the starting point. Now that I've read it, I NEED TO BUY ALL OF THE SIEGE GRAPHIC NOVELS!

Great job of story-telling. Great artwork. I am officially hooked!