As the conclusion to a major event I found this to be flat-out disappointing.  The art was fine, with some very nice panels.  Overall, I think that the art in issue #1 and #8 was the best of the series, which seems fitting.  The story, on the other hand, was a total letdown.  To me, issue #1 was the best of the run, and each issue after seemed to be less enjoyable than the one before (with the exception of issue #7).

So what didn't I like about this story?  First of all, it doesn't have any real action.  Instead, it has a few action panels accompanied by narration explaining that epic battles did indeed occur, but we, the reader, don't need to see them (yawn).  We have a four page sequence of the Skrull Queen/Spiderwoman being gang rushed by the all of the heroes which culminates in Norman Osborne blasting her to death, just ahead of Wolverine’s claws (by a hair).  The narration in the final panel though is absolutely ridiculous: "But only one person got the killshot. Norman Osborne. All the Networks were covering it live.  Everyone on the planet saw it.  It was, quite literally, the shot heard 'round the world."  Ugh.  But the most terrible aspect of this one panel is that this is the moment that will define the next "x" number of months of Marvel continuity as it established one of the most inane and ridiculous conceits that I can imagine.  Because it was Osborne that took that one single shot, the President (unilaterally mind you) hands over all aspects of national defense to Norman Osborne!  Yes, a convicted criminal, a psychopathic murderous supervillain, in control of the nation's defense all because he pulled a trigger.  Holly crap, are you f'n kidding me?!?!?!?!  But oh no, it gets even better when everyone just suddenly decides that Stark is a monstrous criminal because the invasion happened!!!  And Osborne's a f'n saint who's come to save us all!!!!!!  So then the government gives Stark's private property (Avenger's Tower) to Osborne to use as his headquarters for his own new Avengers team (and in a single panel the President creates a new national defense effort/agency, appoints and installs Osborne as the head, and blames Tony Stark for the entirety of Civil War; later the President makes a unilateral procurement decision for the Federal government that it will no longer procure or use Starktech – amazing, and not in a good way)...

And in the basement of the recently confiscated Avenger's Tower?  Osborne's villain friends, including Emma Frost and Namor.  Really?  So Emma’s a villain again, and Namor’s getting into bed with Norman Osborn?  There are many more logical flaws peppered throughout this issue, any of which could make my head explode, but I think that I've bitched enough so I'll just wrap it up here.  Dark Reign promises to be flat out ridiculous, so I sincerely hope that some of Marvel's better writers can prove me wrong and offer something worth reading coming out of the ashes of this farce.