(A little introduction of my self. This blog has been already written on my wordpress account, as is any other post I put on here. These posts, are thorough and long winded. I will also start doing reviews of these comics using the review section of this site. That will be more co-ordinated, and contain less swearwords, I hope. In essence, this is me taking the issues the pieces, panel by panel. The reviews will be a summary of my opinion).

Welcome to the first part of my comic review series. Today, I am putting Secret War under the microscope. This dark and secretive miniseries was written by Brian Micheal Bendis and painted by Gabriele Dell'Otto. So read on, and discover how far someone would go to deliver justice.

Issue 1 begins with Luke Cage and his girlfriend Jessica Jones (Jewel). They are walking towards their house where a group of kids are playing. Cage asks them whether they know about a dealing, which the teenagers deny. Cage then decides to be a jackass and tells them that he wants a name when he comes back out. Now, I don't know if this is meant to be stereotypical, but why are these kids meant to know about a car theft? Inside the house, the couple find a strange woman, who proceeds, to cause a massive explosion and destroys the apartment. Now this is a good start to the comic, creating suspense and confusion about what happened.

Next, we are at the S.H.E.I.L.D Helicarrier. Before we continue on, I need to address Dell'Otto's art ( I know his name is confusing, who has a apostrophe in their name?). The motion blur and shadows are pretty good, but it can be overbearing. Anyway, on the Helicarrier ,Nick Fury is involved in a briefing. This meeting shows that S.H.E.I.L.D knows about everything that goes on, and that Fury really doesn't care about the issues. The Cage situation is brought up, and nearly sidelined. You would think that they would put a bit more attention onto the incident, given that the person giving the report states that cage is in 'serious condition.' One of the agents also says that he loves Power Man, showing that he has some respect for the hero, yet doesn't care that his idol was nearly killed. Fury asks about it, considering he has been silent the whole time. Something that Dell'Otto did well with Fury half covered in shadow. This makes the reader wonder which side he will be on during this conflict.

We cut to the hospital, where Cage is still in a coma. By his bedside are Iron Fist and Jessica. Fist is reading out of a magazine when Fury appears at the door. Rand is friendly with him, while Jessica is apprehensive, indicating that she knows more than the reader does.

We cut to one year ago, where we see two S.H.E.I.L.D agents looking at a film where Killer Shrike is being beaten by Iron Man and Thor. The agents are interrogating Shrike, but also being assholes. The villain demands a lawyer, but the agents refuse. They are confused by the fact that Shrike has expensive technology, which cost more than he has in his savings, suggesting that someone else is paying for his weapons. They beat him into making a deal rather than heading the Ryker's Island. We cut to Philadelphia, where Killer Shrike is going to his dealers place, while being watched by Agent Woo and Sitwell. His contact knows about him being arrested, and as Maddicks opens the door, he is electrocuted and killed. Within a few seconds, the place is overrun by S.H.E.I.L.D agents. Later, Fury is getting the news that there was an underground tunnel system, and that the killer could be anywhere. He gets a call from Black Widow, who is the sex symbol of this miniseries (come on, I'm a guy, and it's all she really does). Natasha tells Fury that she is in Latveria, tracking the Tinkerer (who I don't think appears again). Someone picks up Mason, with Government plates.

We next see Fury standing in front of the president. Fury informs the president that Jack O'Lantern has been receiving his materials from the Tinkerer, but that there was a massive difference between how much money the criminal was making, and how much his armor cost. He then reveals in a long winded explanation that someone has been bankrolling these criminals via the Tinkerer, which makes them terrorists. The images behind him suggest that there have been other criminals doing the same, including Scorpion, Grizzly, Goldbug and Doctor Octopus (why he needs Mason, the man's a genius himself). The person behind the bankrolling is uncovered as Lucia Von Bardas, the prime minister of Latveria after Doom was deposed. The president refuses Fury's offer to send a response team, saying that they will handle it diplomatically. Marvel have always used real life controversy to return to push their patriotic characters forward, more noticeably Captain America. This issue shows the fickleness and ignorance of the government, which may be a response to things that have happened in the past and the Government's inability to do the things that need to be done.

The next scene we see Fury storming away from the White House, with the Countess on his heel. It is obvious that Fury hates diplomats. 'They have the evidence...and they are going to sit on it and do nothing.' There is even signs that he's close to tears. This is probably one of my favorite pages of the whole miniseries. We quickly cut back to present day at the hospital with a top down view of the three looking over the hideously beaten Cage, with just the words 'What have I done?' This is really effective as it is just a small panel at the bottom of the page, making Fury look small. Another thing I should note is the addition of the S.H.E.I.L.D files. These are recorded transcripts and files of heroe, villain and agents, and appear in all of the issues, most of them with a Fury's note at the bottom. This particular file is of Jack O'Lantern, but his file is presented so it's like a computer screen, You can see a list of criminals (some are questionable, like the Punisher and the Hulk) behind him, including Magneto, the Kravens and the juggernaut to name a few. I spent more time trying to figure the names out than looking at the focus. There is also a transcript between Jack O'Lantern, Woo, and Sitwell. The two agents are being their normal dickish selves, and Macendale is quiet for the most of it. The villain then reveals that the Tinkerer was the one who gave him his equipment, but that he doesn't know who is paying Mason. And so, the transmission ends with most of Jack O'Lantern's words being omitted, and the agents being forced to closing record.

This first issue is a great starter. It tells us what is about to happen, and the consequences of those actions. it gives us an insight into the workings of S.H.E.I.L.D, and has sneak peaks of famous agents that a true Marvel fan should know. However, the large amount of B-list characters may alienate people, an the miniseries in a whole is not a good jumping on point. Overall, It's an excellent read for the Marvel nerds, and this is just the beginning.

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If you're reading this, welcome to my blog. Here, I will try and post regular opinions and predictions about the Marvel Universe. Please note that I live in the UK, so I will read the actual comics later than most people, so I will be following the Marvel Wiki. In my opinion, Marvel are the best comic company of all time (we'll get to what I think of DC eventually). The dark and gritty atmosphere that recent comics instill (Fear Itself as an example) doesn't take away from the soul of the fantastic legacy that so many have helped install. The characters that have been around for decades and have been so fleshed out and burned into our hearts that we are devastated when something happens to them (Sentry, Nightcrawler, Cable or Captain Marvel ring any bells)? The villains that we love to hate (Doctor Doom, Bullseye, The Hood). The locations and worlds that we can only dream about (Asgard, S.H.E.I.L.D Helicarrier). The events that have changed the Marvel Universe forever (Secret Wars, Civil War, Secret Invasion). In this blog, you can expect me to give my feelings on stories, characters, and teams. I am not being paid by anyone, nor being forced to transcribe for someone. This is a completely honest and independent blog.

Thank you.