The Amazing Spider-Man: Civil War by J. Michael Straczynski, Stan Lee
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Book Reviews of The Amazing Spider-Man: Civil War
Book Review: A great entry in a wonderful series of books
Summary: 5 Stars
Marvel's Civil War series has almost single-handedly revived my interest in some of the characters I followed when I was a kid. I was more of a DC than a Marvel fan when small, but I spent my time with the Fantastic Four, the Incredible Hulk, Spider-Man, and the others. But as the years went by I mainly just kept up with the X-Men but no others. While the Marvel heroes were always more complex and tortured than the DC characters, they had undergone less revision than had such DC greats as Batman and Superman. But when Marvel finally got around to shaking their world up they pulled no punches. Everything you thought you knew about the Marvel universe was about to change.
Talking with others about this series, the first question that pops up with anyone who wants to read the books is: Where do I start? Apart from a couple that should be read first, there is really not much of an answer to that one. The various books cross and criss-cross each other to such a degree that you can almost start anywhere. The only two that I think definitely fall into the "Me First!" category are THE ROAD TO CIVIL WAR and then CIVIL WAR. But after that almost any order is OK. This is the first one that I read after CIVIL WAR and it does strike me as perhaps a bit more at the heart of the story than most of the others. Peter Parker's unmasking himself at a Washington, D.C. press conference is one of the most important events in the larger narrative as well as his response to all that goes wrong afterwards. It also casts Tony Stark in a somewhat poorer light than some of the other volumes. For instance, learning that he gets feedback from the Spider-Man suit he has given Peter makes him look like he believes he has the right to intrude into the lives of others.
I enjoyed the story overall, but especially involves the dilemmas facing Peter as he almost instantly regrets his decision to side with Tony. They do a great job of presenting his growing doubts as to the correctness of doing what they are doing in fighting those who resist registration. And it has a heck of a cliffhanger ending.
One thing I like about the various Marvel comics involved in this event is the way they almost conduct a dialogue with one another. No one comic presents the definitive point of view on the events involved. One will present the deep background that another sees only a portion of. Sometimes they will simply refuse to repeat the events covered more fully by another comic (they tell you which issues tell the missing bits).
I will add that if you are a Spider-Man fan but don't want to get involved with the rest of the Marvel Universe, this may not be a very satisfactory read. This is not much of a standalone story; it is fully integrated into the rest of the other books in the Civil War series. Even if you want to plunge into the Civil War books, you can't get to the end of it all at this point. Not all of the comics have been collected into volumes yet. Many key issues have not been collected, including the biggest event in the whole series, though I won't mention that on the off chance someone has not heard. If one finds this series of stories compelling I recommend going for the heroes one most enjoys. Not all of the books are at the heart of the story. The Wolverine, for instance, isn't a major part. Nor is the Young Avengers and the Runaways volume (I'm a huge Runaways fan so that was the appeal for me). But I would recommend that if you read more than a couple of books in the series then to make this one of them. It will be on a short list of the best books dealing with the Civil War.
Book Review: Pure Marvel
Summary: 5 Stars
I thought I had a good handle on Marvel's Civil War. As always, Marvel gives great art, great action with deeper meaning. I saw parts of the book on their free digital comics and I had to have it. The interaction between Spider-Man and Captain America is spot on, from the first fight to their conference and Spider-Man's resulting decisions.
When Cap began his story, at Spidey's usual good natured ribbing, I was hooked. I never thought of Steve Rogers as a school boy and certainly not a scholar but he was that sickly boy who probably used books for protection. Back there, during the Depression, he found Mark Twain, a favorite of our family, and his memorized statement on patriotism told me where his own spirit came from. And that bit of Twain's amazing words sent me on a search for where it came from and landed me into a half a day's discovery of Mark Twain's quotes and a renewed interest in the Hannibal, Missouri's favorite son. It is amazing how true his statements are even to this day.
This is exactly why I have followed Marvel for all these years. There is always far more to those 'comic books' than just action.
Book Review: Spiderman at a Crossroads
Summary: 5 Stars
Spiderman has always been my favorite Marvel charachter. I hand't read his book in about 20 years- way back when he first got his black costume during the Superhero Secret Wars. I recenly saw he was "Back in Black" and got curious for some backstory, so I picked up this and other Marvel Civil War tie-ins.
Great Story! The theme of government Superhero oversight registration and the secret of Peter Parker's secret identity are directly at odds. Peter has some serious soul searching to do and it tears him apart. Once you read this, you will want more.
Book Review: Civil War: Amazing Spider-Man IS AMAZING!
Summary: 5 Stars
It's been quite a while since I've picked up a comic book, let alone a Spider-Man comic. My curiosity got the better of me, and I purchased this product on a whim. And I must say, the artwork and the coloring is absolutely gorgeous! The story was also emotionally involving. You could feel the pain that everyone felt (superhero, civilians alike), how one superhero's decision affects other people's lives. Kudos goes to the inker as well as the artist(s), as well as the writer. Brilliantly executed, it left me wanting more!Book Review: The spiderman's side
Summary: 5 Stars
This story tell's the inner war in Spiderman's soul about what is right and what is wrong, about superhuman registrstion, and in this book spiderman fooled by Iron Man's lies and strange actions, he unmasked himself and say to the world that he is Peter Parker, and the consecuences are too big and too dangerous to Spiderman and his family, if you like Spiderman character, you should buy this book.