Comic Stack 06/17/15: GraphicAudio Review: Civil War by Stuart Moore

Civil War was one of those crossover comics that made me want to bite my tongue. I’m not a huge fan of these Marvel crossovers where they pit heroes against one another because Marvel doesn’t seem capable of finding a resolution that doesn’t involve a bigger threat causing the heroes to kiss and make up while dealing with this new bigger threat. It’s been years since I’ve actually read these books, so I decided that a reread is in order. Even though I said my comic stacks would mostly revolve around indie comics, I thought it would be fun to use it for this reason as I reread Civil War and assess how I feel about them now. Some elements of these comics will find their way into the next Avengers movie, so think of this as preparation. These stacks will cover three paths. House of M and how it leads into Civil War and how Secret Invasion came into play. Today, however, I will start with the GraphicAudio story that novelized Civil War. Yes, I should’ve listened to this before The Death of Captain America, but you’ll have to forgive me. I had no idea that I would be willing to read these comics again after reading The Death of Captain America. This book encompasses the story of the main issues of the story, which spanned over seven books. In reality, this entire storyline houses ninety plus comics from various Marvel titles including, X-Men, the Runaways, Punisher, etc. It was massive in scope, and while I remember being disappointed in the story itself, it really did feel like a civil war when you added all the heroes caught in the middle of this debacle.

Civil War (Novelization) by Stuart Moore Publisher: GraphicAudio (March 1, 2013)
Length: 6 hrs

A group of young, inexperienced heroes are given their own reality show called Thunderbolts where they’d square off with mostly has-been, never-was type villains. Important among these heroes is Speedball, a cocky speedster (aren’t they all?) who has been hiding his bipolar disorder from his teammates. He’s important because he’s the only person to survive the tragic death of his teammates and a group of children and parents, after the Thunderbolts went after a very powerful villain named Nitro. Speedball becomes the subsequent target for hate because of the incident, which leads him down a very dark road for a while, a road that he felt he deserved. I’ll talk more about Speedball at a later date when I get to the comics.

(Side note: I love the game Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2 can help me to provide visuals for this story!)

In response to this attack, the public demands that heroes be outlawed. Tony Stark, trying to be diplomatic, negotiates with the government to create the Superhero Registration Act, which would basically make heroes expose their true identities while allowing them to still fight crime and getting supervillains off the streets. Captain America takes offense to this, feeling as if the personal liberties of the men and women who put down villains every day were being attacked. When Captain America is told that he is to uphold this law because he is the hand of the government, Captain America replies that he never represented the government, that he’s always been about the people. This leads to heroes and villains taking sides in a battle that escalates to tragic levels and puts one very well-known superhero, the first to unmask, in the middle of a war nobody wants–but no one cares to stop because to stop would admit culpability.

Later in the story, Peter begins to think that unmasking heroes probably isn’t the best way to go about things, but the battles between Captain America and Iron Man continue to rage, tearing down cities they were meant to protect. This ultimately leads to Captain America standing down for the people he loves, even if they despise him, call him a traitor. He realizes he’s let his belief in the liberties of the people blind him to everything else. He doesn’t want to cause more civilian casualties, and he’s willing to submit to due process. His subsequent death is caused by the public perp walk that Iron Man made him take when he turned himself in, which is one of the douchiest moments in Marvel history.

As in The Death of Captain America, this book has amazing production. I still had a little of a problem with the action sometimes taking over the dialogue at certain points, but that could be my headphones in some instances and not always the book. Most of the dialogue is pretty much word for word from the comics, but they’ve added so much more depth the story that made it a captivating listen. Comics have to convey so much through their words and art. Sometimes, though, the readers don’t always glean certain things from panels. This audiobook did a wonderful job of making me consider the thought process and inner struggles of these characters even more, especially Tony, who I pretty much hated through most of Civil War. I didn’t ever fault him for trying to come to a reasonable condition at first, but I felt he exhibited some pretty gross behavior during that time. Don’t think I’m letting Cap off the hook either. His actions caused a lot of damage as well, and he was blind to see it until it was almost too late.

I will admit that the beginning of this book was cheesy, but I think it’s meant to be as we follow the Thunderbolts through what should’ve been a routine mission. They were children playing at being adults, and I felt that cheesiness of the first chapter captured that well, especially in audio. Then, when Nitro tells them they’re playing with the big boys, the story takes a turn into a more serious endeavor. Despite any reservations I have about the Civil War storyline, this audiobook managed to capture. complex emotions, the internal shaky justifications for their actions, and the intensity of this large scale battle and give listeners a story that makes fans ache for both sides. No one came out unscathed.

Prepare yourself, kiddies. Next week, we start House of M, which sets everything in motion!

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