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Civil War: A Marvel Comics Event
Civil War: Fantastic Four
It's an old-fashioned family feud when Marvel's CIVIL WAR hits home! Mister Fantastic embraces the Registration Act, but the rest of his team aren't sure he's doing the right thing--and they're not shy about expressing it! And when newlyweds Storm and the Black Panther embark on a world tour to raise anti-registration support, the final battle leaves the Fantastic Four's lineup changed in unexpected ways! Meanwhile, She-Hulk flexes her legal muscles on behalf of the New Warriors--and Marvel's two newest teen teams discover family ties of their own as they clash with each other and the all-new Marvel Boy! COLLECTING: Fantastic Four #536-543, Black Panther #18-25, She-Hulk #8, Civil War: Young Avengers/Runaways #1-4
536 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2010
2 people are currently reading
87 people want to read
About the author
J. Michael Straczynski
1,377 books1,284 followersJoseph Michael Straczynski is an American filmmaker and comic book writer. He is the founder of Synthetic Worlds Ltd. and Studio JMS and is best known as the creator of the science fiction television series Babylon 5 (1993–1998) and its spinoff Crusade (1999), as well as the series Jeremiah (2002–2004) and Sense8 (2015–2018). He is the executor of the estate of Harlan Ellison.
Straczynski wrote the psychological drama film Changeling (2008) and was co-writer on the martial arts thriller Ninja Assassin (2009), was one of the key writers for (and had a cameo in) Marvel's Thor (2011), as well as the horror film Underworld: Awakening (2012), and the apocalyptic horror film World War Z (2013). From 2001 to 2007, Straczynski wrote Marvel Comics' The Amazing Spider-Man, followed by runs on Thor and Fantastic Four. He is the author of the Superman: Earth One trilogy of graphic novels, and he has written Superman, Wonder Woman, and Before Watchmen for DC Comics. Straczynski is the creator and writer of several original comic book series such as Rising Stars, Midnight Nation, Dream Police, and Ten Grand through Joe's Comics.
A prolific writer across a variety of media and former journalist, Straczynski is the author of the autobiography Becoming Superman (2019) for HarperVoyager, the novel Together We Will Go (2021) for Simon & Schuster, and Becoming a Writer, Staying a Writer (2021) for Benbella Books. In 2020 he was named Head of the Creative Council for the comics publishing company Artists, Writers and Artisans.
Straczynski is a long-time participant in Usenet and other early computer networks, interacting with fans through various online forums (including GEnie, CompuServe, and America Online) since 1984. He is credited as being the first TV producer to directly engage with fans on the Internet and to allow viewer viewpoints to influence the look and feel of his show. Two prominent areas where he had a presence were GEnie and the newsgroup rec.arts.sf.tv.babylon5.moderated.
Straczynski wrote the psychological drama film Changeling (2008) and was co-writer on the martial arts thriller Ninja Assassin (2009), was one of the key writers for (and had a cameo in) Marvel's Thor (2011), as well as the horror film Underworld: Awakening (2012), and the apocalyptic horror film World War Z (2013). From 2001 to 2007, Straczynski wrote Marvel Comics' The Amazing Spider-Man, followed by runs on Thor and Fantastic Four. He is the author of the Superman: Earth One trilogy of graphic novels, and he has written Superman, Wonder Woman, and Before Watchmen for DC Comics. Straczynski is the creator and writer of several original comic book series such as Rising Stars, Midnight Nation, Dream Police, and Ten Grand through Joe's Comics.
A prolific writer across a variety of media and former journalist, Straczynski is the author of the autobiography Becoming Superman (2019) for HarperVoyager, the novel Together We Will Go (2021) for Simon & Schuster, and Becoming a Writer, Staying a Writer (2021) for Benbella Books. In 2020 he was named Head of the Creative Council for the comics publishing company Artists, Writers and Artisans.
Straczynski is a long-time participant in Usenet and other early computer networks, interacting with fans through various online forums (including GEnie, CompuServe, and America Online) since 1984. He is credited as being the first TV producer to directly engage with fans on the Internet and to allow viewer viewpoints to influence the look and feel of his show. Two prominent areas where he had a presence were GEnie and the newsgroup rec.arts.sf.tv.babylon5.moderated.
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
June 27, 2016
Fantastic Four: 5
Black Panther: 4.5
She-Hulk: 4
Civil War: Young Avengers/Runaways: 4
Overall rating: strong 4
Black Panther: 4.5
She-Hulk: 4
Civil War: Young Avengers/Runaways: 4
Overall rating: strong 4
December 2, 2013
enjoyed this one a lot.. This book makes me wanna read the others in the series.. can't wait.. never been that big a ff fan either.. was happy to read the black panther and storm series.. that gave this compilation 1.5 stars.. The runaways and you g avengers led to the additional 1 star.. Overall the others I gave 1.5:)
April 24, 2025
It's as much a Black Panther book as it's a Fantastic Four one. I've never really read or been interested in either... But I'm collecting the Civil war saga and so I got it and gave it a read. The FF stuff is decent. Actually got me interested in reading more of their books. I've always took them to be a bit saccharine but there was some good character work in here. I think I've misjudged them entirely. Though the France subplot felt a bit pointless, and at the end of it Thing is just back home with no explanation as to how it ended.
The Runaways was decent, althought I have no idea who any of these characters are. It's a bit annoying that the character roster page just lists their parents instead of what their powers are or what their releationships are... But with the teams backstory I can why. Though I wish they had actually named their parents instead of using vague references. You can pick up most of it and follow along, but it also introduces another team of heroes I know very little about and it did get a bit confusing.
She Hulk was a bit of nothing. Another character I know very little about. It wasn't awful, but I could easily take or leave it. I feel like I learned more about her and her involvement and views on Civil War in the Civil War / Frontline series than her own stories. It's not really bad, just not my cup of tea.
The Black Panther stuff is super offputting.
Imagine if they had a hero called The White Wolf. And he came from a magical land of white people that was just BETTER, and everyone all the time talked about how great white people are and how white people do everything and everyone else is just lesser. How white people are more evolved and more spiritual and more scientific by their very nature. Oh look at all the other non-white nations who have stupid governments and are more violent and keep making mistakes. Oh we would be worried but we are so superior that if we wanted to we could wipe out all the non-whites without much effort... Etc. Etc. Etc.
Really didn't sit right with me. An unfortunately about half the book is this nonsense.
The Runaways was decent, althought I have no idea who any of these characters are. It's a bit annoying that the character roster page just lists their parents instead of what their powers are or what their releationships are... But with the teams backstory I can why. Though I wish they had actually named their parents instead of using vague references. You can pick up most of it and follow along, but it also introduces another team of heroes I know very little about and it did get a bit confusing.
She Hulk was a bit of nothing. Another character I know very little about. It wasn't awful, but I could easily take or leave it. I feel like I learned more about her and her involvement and views on Civil War in the Civil War / Frontline series than her own stories. It's not really bad, just not my cup of tea.
The Black Panther stuff is super offputting.
Imagine if they had a hero called The White Wolf. And he came from a magical land of white people that was just BETTER, and everyone all the time talked about how great white people are and how white people do everything and everyone else is just lesser. How white people are more evolved and more spiritual and more scientific by their very nature. Oh look at all the other non-white nations who have stupid governments and are more violent and keep making mistakes. Oh we would be worried but we are so superior that if we wanted to we could wipe out all the non-whites without much effort... Etc. Etc. Etc.
Really didn't sit right with me. An unfortunately about half the book is this nonsense.
March 20, 2018
Ten million questions came from this book, and literally 0 of them were answered. It had such potential, but without endings, the potential died out. Wouldn't recommend this to anyone who wasn't a diehard marvel fan
December 9, 2017
Rating this on the basis of the F4 issues.
Mostly mediocre with a few smash hits.
Mostly mediocre with a few smash hits.
February 1, 2014
Civil War: Avengers was an exceptional tie-in to the main event. So, I eagerly started with the Fantastic Four hardcover collection, and found that the book covers more than just that team. A large section is devoted to the Black Panther, with smaller sections for She-Hulk and the Runaways. This turned out to be a good thing as I felt the FF section was the weakest part.
The book opens with the Fantastic Four. Before Civil War had even begun, Reed Richards determined that Tony Stark was right and the Superhero Registration Act should be supported. At the end of the Illuminati one-shot, he joked that he needed to go home and spend the rest of his life arguing over it with his wife. Instead, it broke the FF entirely. After Goliath dies at the hand of the Thor clone Reed and Tony created, Sue defects to the rebels. Johnny follows, leaving only Ben undecided. The critical aspect of this tie-in is learning Reed's motivations for his support of the Act; he used a mathematical formula! I personally felt this was a cop-out for the writers, especially since they make it clear that he knows his actions are morally wrong. Ben decides to leave the country and fight bad guys in Paris, which I thought sidelined the main story unnecessarily. Sue's actions were better covered in the Avengers tie-in. There is a quick section after this which covers the Sentry visiting the Inhumans on the moon. I'm not a fan of the Sentry, and this didn't add anything to the main event.
The next section begins with Black Panther's Wedding to Ororo Monroe/Storm. This was the strongest section of the book which expanded on the Civil War event in a big way - from an "outsider's" point of view. Black Panther is the ruler of a foreign nation, and so not subject to the SHRA (Storm's status is more ambiguous). Once married, he and Storm set off on a world tour of major powers including Britain, Latveria, Atlantis, etc. The story intercuts with US officials discussing the tour and T'Challa's possible motives for doing so. The powder keg ignites when the tour comes to the US. This section had some exciting action sequences, and because Black Panther is also one of the "geniuses" he pulls some excellent gambits in support of the rebels. His relationship with Storm was also well done, touching on their newlywed status, and their strengths as a power couple. This was my favorite part of the tie-in.
After Black Panther, a small section covers the She-Hulk, who decides to help some of the New Warriors (who were responsible for the Stamford incident) to close down a hate site targeting their members. This section wasn't essential and didn't add much to the overall event but was at least more interesting than the Sentry.
Lastly, the Young Avengers go on an unsanctioned mission (meaning Cap said no!) to help the Runaways who have caught the attention of SHIELD as unregistered heroes. I am completely unfamiliar with the Runaways and only a little with the Young Avengers. Never-the-less, I found this section to be fast-paced and gripping. The teens are in over their heads, but fight for each other without reservation. This section made me eager to read the Young Avengers collection I haven't gotten to yet!
Overall, though I felt the FF section was weak, the collection as a whole was very good and expanded on Civil War in a meaningful way. Highly recommended.
The book opens with the Fantastic Four. Before Civil War had even begun, Reed Richards determined that Tony Stark was right and the Superhero Registration Act should be supported. At the end of the Illuminati one-shot, he joked that he needed to go home and spend the rest of his life arguing over it with his wife. Instead, it broke the FF entirely. After Goliath dies at the hand of the Thor clone Reed and Tony created, Sue defects to the rebels. Johnny follows, leaving only Ben undecided. The critical aspect of this tie-in is learning Reed's motivations for his support of the Act; he used a mathematical formula! I personally felt this was a cop-out for the writers, especially since they make it clear that he knows his actions are morally wrong. Ben decides to leave the country and fight bad guys in Paris, which I thought sidelined the main story unnecessarily. Sue's actions were better covered in the Avengers tie-in. There is a quick section after this which covers the Sentry visiting the Inhumans on the moon. I'm not a fan of the Sentry, and this didn't add anything to the main event.
The next section begins with Black Panther's Wedding to Ororo Monroe/Storm. This was the strongest section of the book which expanded on the Civil War event in a big way - from an "outsider's" point of view. Black Panther is the ruler of a foreign nation, and so not subject to the SHRA (Storm's status is more ambiguous). Once married, he and Storm set off on a world tour of major powers including Britain, Latveria, Atlantis, etc. The story intercuts with US officials discussing the tour and T'Challa's possible motives for doing so. The powder keg ignites when the tour comes to the US. This section had some exciting action sequences, and because Black Panther is also one of the "geniuses" he pulls some excellent gambits in support of the rebels. His relationship with Storm was also well done, touching on their newlywed status, and their strengths as a power couple. This was my favorite part of the tie-in.
After Black Panther, a small section covers the She-Hulk, who decides to help some of the New Warriors (who were responsible for the Stamford incident) to close down a hate site targeting their members. This section wasn't essential and didn't add much to the overall event but was at least more interesting than the Sentry.
Lastly, the Young Avengers go on an unsanctioned mission (meaning Cap said no!) to help the Runaways who have caught the attention of SHIELD as unregistered heroes. I am completely unfamiliar with the Runaways and only a little with the Young Avengers. Never-the-less, I found this section to be fast-paced and gripping. The teens are in over their heads, but fight for each other without reservation. This section made me eager to read the Young Avengers collection I haven't gotten to yet!
Overall, though I felt the FF section was weak, the collection as a whole was very good and expanded on Civil War in a meaningful way. Highly recommended.
March 1, 2012
This is the first Fantastic Four graphic novel that I've read, but the second (or third) in the Civil War series.
The book does a good job of explaining why the Civil War is taking place, and the effect that the war has on the Fantastic Four is very interesting.
There are two main reasons that I feel this book is only deserving of four stars:
Firstly, only the first half of the book is actually about the Fantastic Four; the second half is a collection of stories about other heroes, including Black Panther, Storm (of the X-Men), She-Hulk, The New Avengers and The Runaways. If I were a hard-core Fantastic Four reader, I think I'd feel somewhat cheated.
Secondly, it feels like there are a lot of Civil War events related to the Fantastic Four that should be featured in the book but aren't.
The book does a good job of explaining why the Civil War is taking place, and the effect that the war has on the Fantastic Four is very interesting.
There are two main reasons that I feel this book is only deserving of four stars:
Firstly, only the first half of the book is actually about the Fantastic Four; the second half is a collection of stories about other heroes, including Black Panther, Storm (of the X-Men), She-Hulk, The New Avengers and The Runaways. If I were a hard-core Fantastic Four reader, I think I'd feel somewhat cheated.
Secondly, it feels like there are a lot of Civil War events related to the Fantastic Four that should be featured in the book but aren't.
September 21, 2015
Collects Fantastic Four issues #536-543, Black Panther issues #18-25, She-Hulk issue #8, and Civil War: Young Avengers/Runaways issues #1-4
I picked up this book because I wanted to read the Fantastic Four issues, and mostly skimmed through the rest of this book. The "Black Panther" issues seemed strong as well.
This collection does a good job at bringing people up to speed by putting in some issues that set the stage before the issues that took place during the "Civil War" event.
The "Fantastic Four" issues featured interesting relationship dynamics in that not all of the FF members agree on which side they should take in the Superhero Civil War. Dr. Doom was awesome during his appearance in the "FF" issues, and Thor's storyline overlapped with what the Fantastic Four were encountering.
I picked up this book because I wanted to read the Fantastic Four issues, and mostly skimmed through the rest of this book. The "Black Panther" issues seemed strong as well.
This collection does a good job at bringing people up to speed by putting in some issues that set the stage before the issues that took place during the "Civil War" event.
The "Fantastic Four" issues featured interesting relationship dynamics in that not all of the FF members agree on which side they should take in the Superhero Civil War. Dr. Doom was awesome during his appearance in the "FF" issues, and Thor's storyline overlapped with what the Fantastic Four were encountering.
April 30, 2011
A pretty mixed bag. The FF stuff is pretty good. The Civil War has a lot of influence on the personal life of the group, which makes for pretty good reading.
The Black Panther portion starts out pretty solid, with the wedding and its aftermath. But then BP and Storm get involved in the Civil War and it all feels really forced. It would have made way more sense for them to sit this one out.
Then there's a terrible She-Hulk issue.
Finally, the Young Avengers / Runaways storyline, which should be goofy, is actually pretty good. It assumes you have a pretty good knowledge of both groups, and some Kree guy, but it's solid, nonetheless.
The Black Panther portion starts out pretty solid, with the wedding and its aftermath. But then BP and Storm get involved in the Civil War and it all feels really forced. It would have made way more sense for them to sit this one out.
Then there's a terrible She-Hulk issue.
Finally, the Young Avengers / Runaways storyline, which should be goofy, is actually pretty good. It assumes you have a pretty good knowledge of both groups, and some Kree guy, but it's solid, nonetheless.
April 25, 2012
This was one of the better side stories for the epic Civil War event. Each issue held their own while also being memorable toward events occurring in the main story. What I enjoyed most about this story was how Straczysnki took each character of the Fantastic Four and portrayed their character while following the plot development elsewhere. Solid 4 out of 5 as my only qualm with this story was/is how I feel about the French mock of DC characters. Still not certain if serious or not in this case...
March 25, 2012
Fairly entertaining as a story arc, but there is too much stuff that's covered in the other Civil War books to make this work as a stand-alone story.
May 10, 2016
I didn't realize before getting this from the library that this is a bunch of the smaller tie-in books put together (Fantastic Four, Young Avengers, and Black Panther tie-ins).
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews