Binge reading comic events is my favorite way to read them. In a world of Netflix and instant gratification, having to wait for that next issue can make me lose interest. With the finale of Civil War II coming out, I thought it would be cool to help everyone save a little money this holiday season, by trimming the fat.
Much like its predecessor, Civil War II is a sprawling epic with numerous tie-ins. It can be hard to determine which one’s actually “tie into” the main plot, and which one’s just mention it offhand while continuing with their own stories.
Consider this a consumer guide of sorts: I’ve created a “skippable” list for the trade waiters, Marvel Unlimited users, and the general binge reading public. I can’t include everything, so I’ll be focusing on the books with “Civil War II” in the title. Also with a list like this, there may be some minor spoilers, so you’ll have to forgive me if I divulge too much.
Civil War II: Ulysses
Al Ewing is at it again! This book makes for a fun look at Ulysses and Karnak as they get to know each other. There are a lot of funny moments and the book succeeds in making Ulysses a likeable character. I recommend this one as a supplement to your enjoyment of the Civil War II event. “Which bucket did you use?” Read It.
Civil War II: Gods of War
This book makes for the conclusion of the “All New All Different” Hercules storyline. In it, Herc gathers a team of Demigods to destroy the “New Gods” Catastrophobia, Cryptomnesia, and Horrorscope. To that end, it wraps everything up nicely. It does mention the second Civil War a few times, but doesn’t really have anything to do with it. So, unless you’re already keeping up with the Hercules title, this book does very little to expand upon the actual Civil War II event. You can Skip It if you haven’t kept up with Herc.
Civil War II: Kingpin
This is a story about the Kingpin, returning to and regaining his throne in New York City. He discovers that one of his old henchman is an Inhuman with the ability to remain undetected by Ulysses’ precognitive abilities. While it’s a great story, it doesn’t really have much to do the superhero Civil War. One could argue, though, that it provides a street level viewpoint of the event, and because of this, I say Read It! I am biased, I love the Kingpin and this is an interesting and fun story and sets up his own title coming out in February of next year.
Civil War II: The Amazing Spider-Man
When Ulysses gets to visit Spider-Man at Parker Industries, he has a vision that Spidey will fight a former villain/current employee “Clash.” Clayton Cole is a reformed villain working for Parker Industries, but is having a run of bad luck, and after Ulysses’ vision, notices that he’s being watched at work more than usual. This leads to him reverting to his old ways and fighting Spider-Man. More importantly it raises the question of morality when involving Ulysses and using him for his powers. Are his prophecies self-fulfilling? In other words, did Clash “break bad” because Ulysses’ vision caused Spidey to investigate Clayton more closely. While I wouldn’t call it a “must read” it does raise some interesting issues. Due to this, if you have the means, Read It.
Civil War II: X-Men
With the Terrigen Clouds being toxic to mutants, Magneto doesn’t really need any other reason to go to war with the Inhumans. Ultimately, though, that’s what this series is setting up for: Death of X and Inhumans vs X-Men. It doesn’t really add anything to the Civil War II story, but does set up for those two forthcoming events. If you’re not already keeping up with the X-Men books, then there’s really no reason to read this one. Skip It.
Civil War II: Choosing Sides
Choosing Sides is kind of a hard sell for me. While the stories are technically about what certain characters are doing during the second Civil War, I still can’t really call it a “must read.” Unless you absolutely want to know what Nick Fury, Night Thrasher, Kate Bishop and others are up to throughout the Civil War, I personally think you can Skip It.
That pretty much sums up all the tie ins with Civil War II in the actual title. There are other books that do tie into the Civil War II story, but if you’re not already following them, in my opinion they don’t add enough to warrant going out and picking them up, just for reading the event. Except for the Ultimates. If you’re not reading the Ultimates, you should be. It’s really good.
