War of Kings [Paperback]

Reading just this War of Kings book, your getting the short edited version.
Read all the crossovers to really appreciate this fantastic story. It would be difficult to list a reading order of everything leading up to War of Kings since this story has been building for years, but you want the main story you should get the books with the War of Kings banner, "Road to War of Kings", "War of Kings", "War of Kings Warriors", "Nova Vol5 War of Kings", "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2&3 War of Kings".
For the best experience, read the individual issues in this order:
War of Kings Darkhawk #1 & #2
X-Men Divided We Stand #2
X-Men Kingbreaker #1
War of Kings Warriors #1 (Gladiator/Blastaar)
Guardians of the Galaxy #7 - #10
Secret Invasion: War of Kings
War of Kings Warriors #2 (Crystal)
X-Men Kingbreaker #2 - #4
War of Kings Warriors #2 (Lilandra)
Guardians of the Galaxy #11 - #12
War of Kings #1
Nova #23 - #24
War of Kings #2
War of Kings Savage World of Sakaar (doesn't fit in seamlessly)
War of Kings Ascension #1
Guardians of the Galaxy #13
War of Kings #3
War of kings Ascension #2
Nova #25
Guardians of the Galaxy #14
Nova #26
War of Kings #4
War of Kings Ascension #3
Guardians of the Galaxy #15
War of Kings #5
War of Kings Ascension #4
Nova #27
Guardians of the Galaxy #16
War of Kings #6
Guardians of the Galaxy #17
Nova #28
War of Kings Who Will Rule
Guardians of the Galaxy #18 - #19

Like with all crossovers there is some overlapping, but to avoid spoilers this is the best way to read this epic story.

The War of Kings hardcover is a nice, if uneven, collection of cosmic tragedy in the Greek tradition. The first third of the book reprints the main War of Kings story. It is spectacular. I read it barely knowing any background on Vulcan (emperor of the Shiar Empire), or the recent details regarding the Inhumans (the new royal family of the Kree). The writers do a fine job of presenting everything you need to know so newcomers need not worry very much about being lost. Abnett and Lanning allow the characters to speak through their actions and deftly prod several sub-plots and themes throughout the series. War Of Kings discusses the dilemma of loyalty and fidelity to family, race & culture, as well as the violence of evolution (note: both the Inhumans and Vulcan are evolutionary upstarts). The artist Paul Pelletier turns in a bravura work of storytelling, masterfully grounding all of the drama and action into a plausible reality.

My only criticism of the main story is that story threads and characters from other Marvel Comics occasionally appear without context or resolution. The character Blastarr appears on the cover, is mentioned a few times in the War of Kings story, but you need to read Guardians of the Galaxy and Nova to see how it turns out. At the end of War of Kings, the Magus, a villain from 1970s and 1990s Marvel comics, appears and interrupts the flow of the narrative. I understand how Marvel wants to demonstrate how the finale of War of Kings impacts other books but, objectively speaking, it ruins the flow of the main story. Still, the main story is excellent fun (5 stars).

The second third of the collection showcases the side story of Darkhawk. Again, I barely knew the character and have no idea if Abnett and Lanning's story contradicts the history of Darkhawk. But they do a fine job of building a hero forged out of tragedy. I won't spoil the story because the details are part of its charm but Abnett and Lanning tell a tale wherein Darkhawk becomes sweep up in the War against his better judgement. The secret history of Darkhawk's armor is an intriguing development and it is interesting how his story weaves in and out of the main War of Kings. You could almost read them mesh together but that path would muddle the impact of either series. It was nice of Marvel to put them back to back. Despite this praise, the story had some weaknesses. Darkhawk makes a point that he is an anomaly and the repetition of the idea becomes boring. But most important, the fate of a character at the end of Darkhawk possibly contradicts the end of War of Kings, or maybe that's vice versa. Either way, it seemed like a sloppy mistake that marred an otherwise good story. (4 stars)

The last third reprints non-essential stories that involve or expound on ideas from War of Kings. They are at best adequate and at worst bland. The stories featuring Gladiator and Lilandra are nicely done and I felt like the stories really added something to the main series. I could take or leave the Blastarr story since he wasn't important to the main series. The Skaar story is a rehash of the story of two enemies who gain respect for each other, memorably done much better in the movie ENEMY MINE. Lastly the Crystal story was bland. I almost wish Marvel had dropped these books and instead included relevant issues from the Guardians of the Galaxy or Nova series'. (2 stars at best)

Despite the lackluster third, most of the collection is pretty good and best of all approachable for new readers.

The Inhumans get better and better. 40 + years after appearing in the FF, they've finally come into their own. They are no longer "heroes" so to speak in this chapter - and no-one is. More importantly, they've become more decisive and less cryptic.

WAR OF THE KINGS has a nice epic storyline that brings together (in my mind) lesser characters from the 70s and early 80s Marvel Pantheon - Starjammers (still hate that name); the Shi'ar Imperial Guard; cameos by the Guardians of the Galaxy - and brings them to life. And of course, we have the Kree.

The Inhumans have clearly carved out a universe of their own, and this epic really sits outside of the regular Marvel books. In fact this scenario would've been hampered with any regular Marvel heroes. Without them, writers Abnett and Lanning have more room to explore and take the characters to a different level. Looking forward to more.

› Go to Amazon.com to see all 9 reviews  4.6 out of 5 stars