Civil War II #1 Review

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Marvel’s epic event brings desire consequences in Civil War II #1.

Warning: this article contains some spoilers for Civil War II #1.

Civil War II #1

 Writer: Brian Michael Bendis | Artist: David Marquez | Color Artist: Justin Ponsor | Letterer: VC’s Clayton Cowles | Designer: Victor Ochoa | Cover Artist: Marko Djurdjevic

Civil War II #1 starts off with all, and I do mean very nearly all, of our heroes engaged in an epic battle against a Celestial in the heart of Manhattan. The Avengers, the Inhumans, the Ultimates, nearly every sorcerer in the Marvel Universe and dozens of other heroes have assembled to stop the Celestial. A plan is set in motion. The sorcerers, led by Dr. Strange, prepare a spell to banish the Celestial back to its own dimension while the rest of the heroes battle its minions. The plan works. The Celestial is defeated. The world is saved. This calls for a party, and Tony Stark promises drinks are on him.

The next night, the promised party is in full swing at Stark Tower. The mood is festive and collegial. Everyone is enjoying their success. Tony raises a toast and thanks the Inhumans, without whom the victory would not have been possible. Why is this? It just so happens that it was the Inhumans that came to the Avengers and the Ultimates with a warning that the Celestial would attack. In a conversation with Captain Marvel, She-Hulk asks how did the Inhumans know. The answer changes everything.

The Inhumans, led by Medusa, decide to bring the other heroes in on a secret. A few weeks prior to the Celestial’s attack, the Terrigen Mists swept across the Ohio State University campus. A couple of students were revealed to be Inhumans, people that have latent alien DNA that is activated by the Mists to reveal super abilities. One of the students was Ulysses. After exposure to the Mists, Ulysses gained the ability to see into the future. He was taken in by the Inhumans, and after experiencing a vision of the Celestial attacking Manhattan, the Inhumans approached the Avengers with this knowledge and disaster was averted.

This revelation is received differently by the assembled heroes. Captain Marvel, leader of the Ultimates, views such a talent as a gift. If harnessed, Ulysses’s power could aid her in defending Earth. Tony Stark (a.k.a. Iron Man) sees things differently. He wants to know two things: how precise are Ulysses’s visions, and can he be trusted? To answer the second question, they call for Jean Grey, who possesses telepathic powers. However, Ulysses mind cannot be read, which does prohibits the resolution to Tony’s second question. Therefore, they cannot know if he can be trusted, or exactly how precise Ulysses is.

Issue #0 introduced the debate that will frame this series. Captain Marvel and her allies would like to harness Ulysses’s abilities to predict attacks and prevent them. Tony Stark and his compatriots do not believe that anyone can be punished for a crime they have not yet committed. She-Hulk argued that nobody should be punished for crimes they have not yet committed. Everyone is entitled to freedom of thought. Civil War II #1 allows each side to bring evidence to support their platforms and refine their respective arguments.

As exhibit A for her case, Captain Marvel presents the events that have just transpired. Ulysses just informed them of an impending attack by the Celestial. The heroes assembled, the Celestial was defeated, and the world was saved. Therefore, Ulysses would appear to be reliable and his power should be tapped for the greater good.

Not so fast argues Iron Man. Tony counters this argument by pointing out they do not know the “probability ratio” for Ulysses’s powers. In other words, Ulysses saw a world that had been ravaged by the Celestial. He warned everyone of this possible future, and the heroes prevented it. Therefore, the future Ulysses saw was only a possibility because the Celestial did not actually ravage the world. With knowledge of a potential future, actions were taken that altered the outcome. However, who can predict the ultimate outcome? So, the question remains, how accurate is Ulysses? Furthermore, can he be trusted? Tony then argues a hypothetical: what if Ulysses had a vision in which one of the heroes was a danger to the future? What would they do then?

As an aside, Steve Rogers (a.k.a. as Captain America) asks Tony what is on his mind while he is arguing with Carol Danvers. Tony refuses to debate the issue with Captain America noting that morality debates between the two never go well. This was a nice reference to the original Civil War story, and it was a clever way to redefine the party leaders so that Captain Marvel is on one side while Iron Man is on the other.

Tony tires of the argument and believes he has made his point. He asks everyone to enjoy the party. Everyone goes their ways until one evening finds Tony Stark testing out a new suit of armor in his lab. His relatively new assistant, Mary Jane Watson, informs him of news of a companion. For spoiler purposes, that companion will not be named here. The news is not good. The companion is gone. Enraged, Tony seeks out Carol Danvers at the Triskelion, the headquarters of the Ultimates, to seek answers. What he finds there is not good.

When confronted, Carol confirms that Ulysses had a vision of where Thanos, of all beings, would be. Although it is not explicitly said, Ulysses was terrified, and it is implied that Thanos attacks Earth and causes a fair amount of devastation in his vision. He insists that the Ultimates be informed, and they are. With this knowledge, Carol had an opportunity to take down Thanos before he could attack Earth. She could not pass up the chance. So the Ultimates, with Tony’s companion in tow, ambushed Thanos. It didn’t go well, and Tony’s companion was killed by Thanos. Furthermore, another companion is in critical condition as a result of wounds sustained during the battle.

This would seem to be an argument that supports Tony’s position. It is too dangerous to rely on Ulysses’s visions. It got one hero killed for certain, and possibly a second one as well. Carol doesn’t see it that way. Despite the casualties. The mission was a success. Thanos was captured. He was not able to attack Earth; and furthermore, she pledges that she would do it again if given the opportunity.

Tony is not mollified by the capture of Thanos. He pledges that he will not let any of the heroes play God any longer, which suggests he is about to take the fight to the Inhumans. He argued that Ulysses’s knowledge should be used carefully. The other heroes failed to do so in his eyes, so he is going to resolve this issue his way.

Bendis has created a fascinating dilemma for Earth’s heroes. In addition, he has made the case for each side compelling. It is easy to see Carol Danvers’ side. She has an opportunity to see what the threat facing Earth is. With that knowledge, she can attempt to prevent attacks she might not have seen coming. She is also a soldier, and she is trained to accept casualties. Although she may mourn fallen comrades, her duty is paramount. On the opposite side, Tony is a scientist and his position is as equally compelling. Before he uses a tool, he wants to know how precise that tool is. He cannot reliably test Ulysses’s abilities. In fact, the data before him suggests that the tool isn’t so much an instrument of precision as it is an imprecise odds maker. Tony isn’t in the mood to gamble on the future (which is somewhat ironic given his playboy nature). So, which one, if either of them is right?

Bendis has Tony Stark and Carol Danvers concerned with different parts of the chronology of events. The first item is the potential outcome that Ulysses sees in his vision. The next item is what, if any action, should be taken to prevent that outcome. The third item in the sequence is the consequence of taking action. Captain Marvel is concerned with the first item. Her concern over the prediction makes her take action, and she believes she can shape the consequences into something that is more acceptable that the catastrophe she foresaw. Iron Man is more concerned with the consequences. He does not trust the precision with which Ulysses can calculate the future. Therefore, he fears the ultimate consequences of acting. Events in issue one solidify their respective positions.

Civil War II #1 is initially attractive because it gives the reader the chance to see how a fight among the heroes shakes out. It is easy to root for the heroes on an issue to issue basis in the average comic because they are always fighting the villains. Usually, the heroes win. Now, they are fighting each other. Who wins in these fights has more important consequences. Add the debate about what to do with knowledge of the future, and Marvel has the potential for a truly epic and memorable event.

Civil War II #1