SIEGE #4 (OF 4)
What did the
iFanboy
community think?
Pulls
PENCILS: Olivier Coipel
INKS: Mark Morales
COLORED BY: Laura Martin
LETTERED BY: VC - Chris Eliopoulos
COVER BY: Olivier Coipel
Size: 40 pages
Price: 3.99
This issue is exactly what it needed to be in order to get the Marvel Universe where it’s been advertised as going for the last few months. And while that is a good thing, it does not make this, in my opinion, a great comic.
The problem is, thanks to overpromotion and the fact that Marvel has already released several titles that come out AFTER Seige, we knew what the last two page spread would like. So, while it’s artistically gorgeous, it’s an emotional letdown. We knew how this was going to end before it even started. There were certain ways Bendis could have written around this problem, he could have thrown in a few surprises, an unexpected death, a subplot point that we couldn’t have imagined. Alas, there are none to be found here. This was a paint-by numbers final act of a movie. A movie which showed you the climactic scene in the trailer, several months ago.
Yes, the dialog is very Good Bendis, and the art is very good. But, there was zero excitement in a comic full of events that COULD have been exciting if not for very very very very very poor market saturation by Marvel.
I’ll give the story a three because it does everything it sets out to do, and the art a four because Coipel’s art looks not quite great and never epic, but certainly better than average. I’ll give Marvel a -1 for sucking the life out of this issue.
FYI: The reading order for this week’s Seige comics (and there’s a bunch) is, as follows:
Seige #4
Seige Embedded #4
Dark Avengers #16
New Avengers Finale
Sentry: Fallen Sun
Art: 4 - Very Good
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I wonder if the Heroic Age has seen such a marketing push because of Siege’s relatively low sales. Marvel has been trying to assure everyone that as soon as we can get past this one last event, the MU will return to how everyone liked it.
@Ottobot: That could be, but I think, had I not known exactly what was going to happen, this title would have been more enjoyable. I found Seige a much better read than any of the other Marvel super crossovers. I kept reading Secret Invasion because I wanted it to be over so I could see what Marvel would do next. With this title, I read it in spite of knowing exactly where it was going to go, and I still enjoyed it more than SI, WWH, and the Dark Reign books.
Thanks for the reading order man, I definately would’ve read Dark Avengers before this
@akamuu – Totally agreed. And honestly, I’ve enjoyed Siege more then Blackest Night. It’s been a nice little blockbuster, Marvel’s done well keeping it, well, sort of concise. Contained enough, anyway. I’d be okay with event books if event books could keep it to a 4-part minimum. It’s just read better then Secret Invasion, IMO.
addendum: ..So…The Sentry is the Fallen Son. Ah, well, I guess it was sort of a given anyways.
@cutty: You’re welcome. While it wouldn’t have really ruined any reveals if you read it out of order, I really feel that these five books, read together as one unit, are a fantastic read.
@ottobot: I’m with you on Seige, overall, being better than Blackest Night. I also think you’re right that BN would have been much improved if kept to four issues.
I was going to skip Fallen and the Avengers Finale to save some bucks. I guess you’re saying it’s worth it?
@cutty: I thought so. Flip through Fallen Sun first, as it might not be your thing. There’s little action there; it’s a grief comic, but I think it’s one of the best written eulogies for a character that I can remember.
@akamuu – uggghhh, that’s exactly my thing. I guess I may as well check it out. If anything, I guess if its done correctly, it will give me more fuel to bitch about Fraction’s Nightcrawler sendoff.
Who wrote the Cap funeral from Fallen Son: Iron Man? The one Cassaday drew? That was fucking fantastic
@cutty: I never read the Fallen Son series after the death of Cap, but I think we’ve got a bunch somewhere in this store, so I’ll go and check out the Iron Man one. Thanks for the recommendation!
@cutty For the life of me, I can’t fucking remember. I loved those books though. That was Loeb at some of his finest. I need to get the trade.
Sam Wilson?
Yes! The Cap funeral was Jeph Loeb and it was perfectly executed. Having Cassaday do about 4 splash pages didn’t hurt
lol. I thought you were talking about the character within the book…who wrote the eulogy. That’s why I said Sam Wilson.
I read a review about Fallen Son and Loeb. The book was hitting close to home due to the recent death of his son. All 5 books are written symbolizing each stage of grief. When I read that review, I knew I had to get the mini.
Ok, can someone please help me out here. How exactly did Thor kill the Sentry? I mean, the Sentry has already shown that he can take a blow from Thor’s hammer and Loki’s magic stones were no longer in the picture.
The tie ins were outstanding. But Sentry in this issue was kind of weak. He went over molecule man big, but in Seige 4 he mostly casts pointy shadows and gets beat on by Thors hammer.
@Wone: I got nothing. He used…ummmm…magic hammer polish? to strengthen his weapon?
@spiderphilman: I liked the Sentry issue but I am apparently in the minority. I do think he was an unimpressive villain in this issue.
@Wone You’d have to ask Bendis, who did not make it clear. But I would say a) Sentry wanted to die. b) It was a culmination of damage, almost all magic, from the Norn stones through Thor’s lightning with one atomic sized carrier blast in between. c) Thor finally actually wanted to kill Sentry, Previously he had been holding back just a bit. But mostly a) I would guess.