Secret Empire #1 Review/SPOILERS

[Prof. Warren]

The Hydra Cap saga continues with issue #1, courtesy of Nick Spencer and Steve McNiven.

SPOILERS AHEAD!!!


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I didn't do a comparative page count between this and the #0 issue but this feels bigger, more substantial and #0 was a packed issue itself. Either way, you get a lot of story here.

Things don't pick up right where #0 left off - there's a time jump where we're now living smack in Hydra Nation. It's a chilling state but Spencer injects it with wry touches, like a Middle School named after Daniel Whitehall being "Home to the Krakens."

We see how Cap and Hydra have sold their new world to people who still remember what used to be, that the world that everyone remembers is now part of what is referred to as "The Great Illusion" - the Allies' desperate, Cosmic Cube-produced move to make the world believe that they, not Hydra, had won the war.

Not everyone is on board with that, obviously, hence the resistance.

A big part of that resistance is the Champions, who we see saving Rayshaun Lucas - aka the new Patriot - from pursuing Hydra forces and whisking him to their hidden HQ. Rayshaun has a flashdrive of valuable info passed onto him from Rick Jones containing Selvig's files that may hold the key to saving Steve and turning things around.

Now, I'm not going to get into a detailed synopsis here. For one, this issue is just too massive to easily summarize and for another a beat by beat rundown just wouldn't do it justice. Suffice it to say, if you thought you'd been hit in the gut by #0, this issue far surpasses it.

There's a character death in here that is both shocking and heartbreaking. Comic fans have become somewhat inured to deaths but this one is rough. Whether or not it's final or not, who knows, but it's very hard hitting and this character's final words in the face of imminent death gave me goosebumps.

Things will get better for our heroes but this is their darkest hour.

Some additional thoughts:

I love how Spencer writes Hydra Cap. That's been one of the best aspects of this story from the start and now that whatever facade Steve was putting up to the people around him has dropped, I like it even more. As despicable as his actions are now, he remains a man of conviction and he continues to be eerily "Steve-like" as he tries to win people like Sharon over to his side.

A.I. Tony is a major part of this, which is great. Any questions as to what's up with Tony and who's in the classic IM armor are answered here. It's A.I. Tony and for anyone who's been enjoying him in Bendis' Invincible Iron Man, he's just as good in Spencer's hands here. He's pretty disillusioned right now and he rattles off the list of failed attempts that have been made between #0 and #1 to save Steve. He'll get his head back in the game but for now, saving the world isn't on his to-do list.

Also, I hope we get to see more of Steve's Hydra Avengers in action as it's quite a line-up - Odinson, Deadpool, Scarlet Witch, Vision, Taskmaster, Black Ant and Superior Octopus. We don't get to spend any real time with them here, just see them briefly mopping up a giant monster problem, so we don't know what thinking has led some of them to join but I hope they get some real page space both here and elsewhere (maybe in ASM) before this event is over as I'd love to see how this group interacts with each other.

As noted, things are looking bleak right now. The resistance is on the run, not in a position to take the world back yet, but this is just the first act. It's going to be rousing when the tide turns but for now, it's Cap's world and everyone else is just living in it.

[JKtheMac]

Well that was a dense read. It is going to take a while to absorb the whole thing. First impression, we are definitely looking at a mixture of historic revisionism with some Borges style subjective reality creeping in. This world has not been changed, parts of it have become subjugated and manipulated on multiple fronts.

On a side note, I can't work out if Spencer agrees with the Rolling Stone review "Queen may be the first truly fascist rock band" (Dave Marsh 1979) or if he is against it, but he has to be commenting on it.

[Bossace]

Avengers assemble... oh poor Rick you poor guy. After watching AOS last night and fitz'sreaxtion at the end of the episode, I'm curious if we will see something similar to that.

So that vomiting copy inhuman... what a power, wonder if he'll play a part later on it was just used to show the hunting of inhumans.

Interested if we will see hydra fall apart from within as webgeard Steve mention to madame hydra.

The whole Clint and Natasha possible romance seems oddly placed within this story.

Curious about odinson, Wanda, and vision, maybe they'd playing the long con and are the resistance's people on the inside.

A.I. Tony I'm enjoying

[Ianbarreilles]

So how long do you think Doctor strange and Carol Danvers will kept out of the fight? Probably until issue four or five right? The defenders spider woman and the uncanny avengers along with cloak and dagger are currently trapped with Doctor strange in Manhattan with the dark dimension shield preventing them from helping the resistance and the agurdians of the galaxy are with Sam Alexander/nova and the ultimates and alpha flight are with Carol Danvers in space they're unable to make it back to earth because the earth defense shield is still operational.

But anyways how long do you think these heroes will be kept out of the fight????

[dragonmp93]

Well, this explains, kind of, why the Captain Hydra is worthy, at least to a poster's theory.

[tliscord]

Thinking of players off the field but who possibly could affect the outcome. In particular, the nameless one himself, Nick Fury who was not above intervening in the Black Widow saga with the Winter Soldier. Winter Soldier, can't believe he's off the table for good given his key relationship with Kobik, with Steve, and with Helmut. Hickman's SHIELD story has been mentioned here as well. Are we going to see some deeper relationship with Sinclair and the Kraken beyond Hydra.

And finally we've seen Cap overcome the Cube influence in the past through sheer strength of will. Spencer seems determined to nuance Cap's devotion to Hydra with his loyalty to his friends .... sort of. Clearly not there yet.

[Witchfan]

robertliefeld‏
Verified account
*@robertliefeld 1h
1 hour ago


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Secret Empire #1! Outstanding. Marvel's best event launch since Civil War. Great work by Spencer and McNiven! Terrific!

Sean‏*@snarkysean13 32m
32 minutes ago


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Secret Empire #1 is the BEST way to kick off an event, it might be even better than Secret Wars #1! @nickspencer I can't wait for #2!

Some Twitter reactions.

[Prof. Warren]

Avengers assemble... oh poor Rick you poor guy. After watching AOS last night and fitz'sreaxtion at the end of the episode, I'm curious if we will see something similar to that.

So that vomiting copy inhuman... what a power, wonder if he'll play a part later on it was just used to show the hunting of inhumans.

Interested if we will see hydra fall apart from within as webgeard Steve mention to madame hydra.

The whole Clint and Natasha possible romance seems oddly placed within this story.

Curious about odinson, Wanda, and vision, maybe they'd playing the long con and are the resistance's people on the inside.

A.I. Tony I'm enjoying

I definitely thought about Fitz on last night's AoS after reading this issue. I expect Steve will have a similar moment of total horror when he is restored or fights his way back.

I do wonder if that Inhuman will come back. Such an unusual power - I'm sure it would come in handy at some point!

I'm good with Clint and Natasha possibly developing a romance here. I don't think it would go full bloom as there's too much else going on but I can see them brought closer by the intensity of everything going on around them.

And I wouldn't be surprised if at least one or more members of Steve's Avengers is actually working for the resistance from the inside.

[dragonmp93]

I definitely thought about Fitz on last night's AoS after reading this issue. I expect Steve will have a similar moment of total horror when he is restored or fights his way back.

I do wonder if that Inhuman will come back. Such an unusual power - I'm sure it would come in handy at some point!

I'm good with Clint and Natasha possibly developing a romance here. I don't think it would go full bloom as there's too much else going on but I can see them brought closer by the intensity of everything going on around them.

And I wouldn't be surprised if at least one or more members of Steve's Avengers is actually working for the resistance from the inside.

My bet is on Deadpool.

[Outburstz]

Mutants get their own place and the Inhumans are being rounded into camps LMAO HELL YES

[Andru]

I really enjoyed this issue! I just recently read all of Captain America: Steve Rogers, so everything is fresh in my head.

I was pretty firm on just sticking to the main series and not bothering with the tie-ins, but I have been enjoying the overall story so much I might have to at least try some of them out. Mostly interested in Strange & The Defenders being stuck inside the Darkforce dome.

[Webhead]

I would've preferred direct progression from the #0 issue rather than the cold open myself.
The strong points were seeing the real world reactions to Hydra rule and Cap's voice. The weakest was an unexplained, uneven Avengers lineup. Like seriously... what are
spoilers:

Odinson and Scarlet Witch doing there? And Rick's death I could do without. The shock value was relatively scarce till that point. And boy, the last year or two haven't been kind to the Hulk family have they?

end of spoilers

[Sapfiryt]

Mutants get their own place and the Inhumans are being rounded into camps LMAO HELL YES

Lol, dude. I like your reaction

[Moon Ronin]

Mutants get their own place and the Inhumans are being rounded into camps LMAO HELL YES

And that is where the parallels as to how a group of people were treated by the German side during WWII will start. Look up the deffinition of inhuman;

2: of or suggesting a nonhuman class of beings

Yeah this is going to go over well. I wish they would stop throwing wood on that fire.

[dragonmp93]

Mutants get their own place and the Inhumans are being rounded into camps LMAO HELL YES

Finally.