"The War Begins"
Published May 1984
Writer: Jim Shooter
Penciler: Mike Zeck
Inker: John Beatty
Cover Artists: Mike Zeck and John Beatty
What's Going On?
At the end of many Marvel comics in April 1984, the characters found themselves mysteriously drawn to an enormous mechanical construct in New York City's Central Park. When the heroes approached the construct, they (and it) mysteriously disappeared. In the comics dated May 1984, the heroes had all returned, some (like the Fantastic Four and Spider-Man) with significant changes. So what happened in between issues? Secret Wars. So let's see what it's all about.
A collection of super heroes (Spider-Man; Hulk; Mr. Fantastic, the Human Torch and the Thing of the Fantastic Four; Wasp, She-Hulk, Captain Marvel, Captain America, Thor, Hawkeye, and Iron Man of the Avengers; Professor Xavier, Storm, Nightcrawler, Rogue, Cyclops, Wolverine, Colossus and Lockheed of the X-Men) find that they have been teleported to an unknown place in deep space.
For reasons they don't understand, the villainous Magneto is included among their numbers. Nearby, on a separate construct floating in space, a collection of super-villains (Enchantress; Ultron; the Absorbing Man; Wrecker, Thunderball, Piledriver and Bulldozer of the Wrecking Crew; Kang; Galactus; the Lizard; Molecule Man; Doctor Octopus; and Doctor Doom) has also been gathered.
As the various heroes and villains are adjusting to their situation, they witness the galaxy around them beign destroyed by a mysterious force. Only one star remains, and the rubble from the universe is brought together to form a hodgepodge patchwork planet.
Just after witnessing this, a disembodied voice instructs the heroes and villains: "Slay your enemies and all your desires shall be yours."
Galactus, sensing that this creature from Beyond actually has the power to do anything, demands that it cure the endless hunger that drives Galactus to consume entire planets for food. He is unwilling to engage in battles that the one from Beyond desires, and instead flies toward the light that represents the Beyonder. The mighty Galactus (and Doctor Doom, who wanted a closer look at the Beyonder) is swatted away with no apparent effort from the Beyonder.
The heroes and villains (including Galactus and Doom) are then transported to the new planet's surface. After deciding who would lead each side (Captain America for the heroes and...well, no one in particular for the villains), the heroes braced for the incoming assault from the villains.
Sub-Plots, oh the Sub-Plots:
- While most of the villains are buying into the idea of killing their way into the Beyonder's good graces, Doctor Doom is awed by the sheer scope of the Beyonder's power. He wants to understand the power and dismisses the notion of competing for the chance of benefiting from it.
- For reasons unbeknownst to anyone except the Beyonder, Magneto is categorized as a "hero." Most of the heroes accuse Magneto of being a villain, but the X-Men (specifically Xavier and Cyclops) make the unusual choice to defend him.
- Realizing that the other super-villains are too petty for his tastes, Doctor Doom tries to conference with his nemesis, Mr. Fantastic. When he encounters the other super-heroes treating him like a common villain, Doom abandons his attempt to meet with Richards and goes his own way.
Writing!
I don't know if I've ever read anything else Jim Shooter has written, so this series will give me a non-Claremontian experience for a change. How is the writing? Well, there are a few bright moments. I think Shooter does a decent (not great, but decent) job with Doctor Doom. Most of the other characters are pretty two-dimensional, but Doom actually acts against expectations, which is great.
I also really liked the Galactus/Ultron interaction. It did a good job setting up the Molecule Man for anyone unfamiliar with him, it made Doom look good, and it showed off how powerful Galactus is. When Galactus was eventually defeated by the Beyonder, this made the Beyonder seem invincible. That is how you build up a threat in a story.
As far as characterization goes, though, Shooter played everything super-simple and ignored a lot of established character developments (like Xavier being able to walk or Storm leading the X-Men). I guess I'll have to wait and see if that becomes irritating or not.
I also liked the nod Shooter gives to Claremont's nascent Magneto redemption arc (remember, Magneto hadn't appeared in-continuity outside of a flashback since Uncanny X-Men #150) by having Magneto categorized as a hero. Of course, Shooter goes out of his way to make Magneto sound like a jerk, but given the cringe-worthy dialogue he gives Wolverine, maybe that's just what he thinks "cool" sounds like.
Art!
Mike Zeck did some fantastic work in the 80s --- his cover art, in particular, is great --- and he was given a hefty task with this series. There are a LOT of characters here and this is a twelve-issue series delivered monthly. Not surprisingly, Zeck takes some shortcuts, Take a look at the background in this introductory scene:
Don't get me wrong --- there are a lot of cool, poster-worthy scenes. I think Zeck and John Beatty did a good job, given the time and space limitations (34 characters in one issue?!?). I am curious if their work suffers as the series goes on, though.
Retrospectively Amusing:
- The devils in the details, part one: Cyclops and Rogue were not with the X-Men when they entered the Beyonder's mechanical construct in Central Park. For that matter, I doubt Galactus or Ultron were in NYC that day, either. So...if the Beyonder was just teleporting people away from whatever they were doing, why even bother with the Central Park device?
- The devil's in the deails, part two: While the X-Men are all shown changed from their street clothes into their hero threads, Xavier was given a suit, blanket, and put in a wheelchair. Please note that Xavier had recently started walking again in the pages of Uncanny and New Mutants just prior to this series. Congratulations on being selected for Secret Wars, Chuck! Have a seat!
- How short would this battle royale have been if Galactus had not A) decided to not compete and B) destroyed Ultron?
- Wolverine is a huge jerk (1 of 4): Isn't it weird how awful the Avengers are to the X-Men in this issue? It's not like Cyclops hasn't met them on several occasions by now.
- Wolverine is a huge jerk (2 of 4): I think all of Wolverine's lines in this issue have him waving his claws around.
At the end of many Marvel comics in April 1984, the characters found themselves mysteriously drawn to an enormous mechanical construct in New York City's Central Park. When the heroes approached the construct, they (and it) mysteriously disappeared. In the comics dated May 1984, the heroes had all returned, some (like the Fantastic Four and Spider-Man) with significant changes. So what happened in between issues? Secret Wars. So let's see what it's all about.
A collection of super heroes (Spider-Man; Hulk; Mr. Fantastic, the Human Torch and the Thing of the Fantastic Four; Wasp, She-Hulk, Captain Marvel, Captain America, Thor, Hawkeye, and Iron Man of the Avengers; Professor Xavier, Storm, Nightcrawler, Rogue, Cyclops, Wolverine, Colossus and Lockheed of the X-Men) find that they have been teleported to an unknown place in deep space.
For reasons they don't understand, the villainous Magneto is included among their numbers. Nearby, on a separate construct floating in space, a collection of super-villains (Enchantress; Ultron; the Absorbing Man; Wrecker, Thunderball, Piledriver and Bulldozer of the Wrecking Crew; Kang; Galactus; the Lizard; Molecule Man; Doctor Octopus; and Doctor Doom) has also been gathered.As the various heroes and villains are adjusting to their situation, they witness the galaxy around them beign destroyed by a mysterious force. Only one star remains, and the rubble from the universe is brought together to form a hodgepodge patchwork planet.
Sub-Plots, oh the Sub-Plots:
- While most of the villains are buying into the idea of killing their way into the Beyonder's good graces, Doctor Doom is awed by the sheer scope of the Beyonder's power. He wants to understand the power and dismisses the notion of competing for the chance of benefiting from it.
- For reasons unbeknownst to anyone except the Beyonder, Magneto is categorized as a "hero." Most of the heroes accuse Magneto of being a villain, but the X-Men (specifically Xavier and Cyclops) make the unusual choice to defend him.
- Realizing that the other super-villains are too petty for his tastes, Doctor Doom tries to conference with his nemesis, Mr. Fantastic. When he encounters the other super-heroes treating him like a common villain, Doom abandons his attempt to meet with Richards and goes his own way.
Writing!
I don't know if I've ever read anything else Jim Shooter has written, so this series will give me a non-Claremontian experience for a change. How is the writing? Well, there are a few bright moments. I think Shooter does a decent (not great, but decent) job with Doctor Doom. Most of the other characters are pretty two-dimensional, but Doom actually acts against expectations, which is great.
As far as characterization goes, though, Shooter played everything super-simple and ignored a lot of established character developments (like Xavier being able to walk or Storm leading the X-Men). I guess I'll have to wait and see if that becomes irritating or not.
I also liked the nod Shooter gives to Claremont's nascent Magneto redemption arc (remember, Magneto hadn't appeared in-continuity outside of a flashback since Uncanny X-Men #150) by having Magneto categorized as a hero. Of course, Shooter goes out of his way to make Magneto sound like a jerk, but given the cringe-worthy dialogue he gives Wolverine, maybe that's just what he thinks "cool" sounds like.
Art!
Mike Zeck did some fantastic work in the 80s --- his cover art, in particular, is great --- and he was given a hefty task with this series. There are a LOT of characters here and this is a twelve-issue series delivered monthly. Not surprisingly, Zeck takes some shortcuts, Take a look at the background in this introductory scene:
Retrospectively Amusing:
- The devils in the details, part one: Cyclops and Rogue were not with the X-Men when they entered the Beyonder's mechanical construct in Central Park. For that matter, I doubt Galactus or Ultron were in NYC that day, either. So...if the Beyonder was just teleporting people away from whatever they were doing, why even bother with the Central Park device?
- The devil's in the deails, part two: While the X-Men are all shown changed from their street clothes into their hero threads, Xavier was given a suit, blanket, and put in a wheelchair. Please note that Xavier had recently started walking again in the pages of Uncanny and New Mutants just prior to this series. Congratulations on being selected for Secret Wars, Chuck! Have a seat!
- How short would this battle royale have been if Galactus had not A) decided to not compete and B) destroyed Ultron?
- Wolverine is a huge jerk (1 of 4): Isn't it weird how awful the Avengers are to the X-Men in this issue? It's not like Cyclops hasn't met them on several occasions by now.
- Wolverine is a huge jerk (2 of 4): I think all of Wolverine's lines in this issue have him waving his claws around.
- Wolverine is a huge jerk (3 of 4): By the way, has anyone noticed Wolverine's claws?
Wolverine is a huge jerk (4 of 4): I love the disrespect Wolverine is giving Captain America here. I don't think I've ever seen him show anything more derisive than grudging respect in any other team-up. P.S.: Wolverine has claws.
Worth Noting:
This is the first mention (although it doesn't take physical form) of the Beyonder.
