Fear Itself: An Event in Review

Hello once again faithful readers, and welcome back! This week marked the closing of the summer long Marvel event FEAR ITSELF, and since I'm finishing up my entry on DC's NEW 52 I thought it only fair to offer my take on a universe wide event from Marvel as well.

*PLEASE NOTE: The following article may contain spoilers. I will try to keep it to a minimum, but just in case please read at your discretion.

FEAR ITSELF began in April 2011 as a 'Universe Wide' crossover event in Marvel Comics, spanning a seven issue central series as well as numerous tie-ins and limited series connecting the events of the story with those of Marvel's other super heroes and villains.  The series focused on the idea of fear and it's affects on the whole of the Marvel universe not just as an obstacle or a deterrent, but as an actual weapon.


FACES OF EVIL

The main antagonists of FEAR ITSELF were The Serpent (The newly revealed Norse God of Fear, and uncle of Thor) and Sin (The daughter of recently deceased Captain America arch enemy Red Skull). In an attempt to exact revenge on Steve Rogers (the first Captain America) and the new Captain America (James 'Bucky' Barnes), Sin put into motion a decades old plan first orchestrated by her father the Red Skull during the final days of World War II.  By performing an ancient and long hidden ritual to revive the dormant and forgotten Norse God of Fear The Serpent, Sin was given one of eight hammers that transformed her into The Serpent's nigh-unstoppable 2nd in command Skadi: Herald Of The Serpent.  After receiving her new powers and pledging loyalty to The Serpent, Sin rallied her vast network of Neo-Nazi collaborators and followers for an attack on Washington, D.C. (dubbed Blitzkrieg U.S.A.) that would become the opening volley in the war against the Serpent's forces.


THE WORTHY

While Sin/Skadi was the first to receive a hammer of power from the Serpent, seven other Marvel characters were later 'gifted' similar hammers that transformed each of them into quasi-'Lieutenants' in The Serpent's army; The Worthy.

The reforming villain The Juggernaut became Kuurth: Breaker Of Stone.

The notorious gamma beast The Hulk became Nul: Breaker Of Worlds.

The powerhouse villainess Titania became Skirn: Breaker of Men.

The Atlantean warlord Attuma became Nerkkod: Breaker Of Oceans.

The french villain The Grey Gargoyle became Mokk: Breaker Of Faith

The sociopathic villain (and husband of Titania) The Absorbing Man became Geithoth: Breaker Of Wills.

And finally the muscle behind the Fantastic Four, The Thing became Angir: Breaker Of Souls.

A BROTHER'S QUARREL

The ensuing events followed the citizens of the Marvel universe attempting to survive the devastating onslaught brought on by The Serpent, who used his vast forces to cause chaos and fear across the globe to increase his ever growing fear derived power. In the end the fate of the world fell to the Avengers, whose charge it was to find a way to defeat the Serpent before Odin (The Nordic Father of Gods) turned his forces onto the Earth in order to destroy it, thereby cutting off the supply of power to his brother The Serpent.

The 'relationship' (if you can call it that) between Odin and the The Serpent comes to the forefront towards the end of the event when The Serpent's motivations and goals are finally revealed.  Without ruining any  big reveals, the fact that The Serpent is the only brother of the Nordic All-Father of Gods and this event is the first time anyone besides Odin has even heard of him should speak volumes about both the threat he poses and the mystery behind the brothers' history. While the FEAR ITSELF story did have a general ending, the history of the two brothers as well as the effect The Serpent's presence has on the Marvel universe are aspects of the event that will clearly carry on into future stories. After all, we are dealing with the two of the oldest and most powerful characters in all of Marvel; these brothers still have cards to play and tales to be told.



CLOSING REMARKS
Personally I found the majority of the event to be very well done, but the climatic finale seemed a little too mundane and predictable in comparison to the build up.  The story did an excellent job of showing the effects of fear on Marvel's characters, and the sense of desperation sown throughout the various tie-ins and series were compelling to read and made the experience much more relatable (due largely to the parallels one might find with the current air of fear, paranoia, and anxiety in our own world).  Aside from the less than stellar ending and the death of one of my favorite heroes (I won't name names, but I now hate Sin. A lot.) the FEAR ITSELF event succeeded in a very human portrayal  of a decidedly super human world.  Overall this event proved to be a very compelling read, and well worth the time in my opinion.

FEAR ITSELF CHECKLIST

That's it for today dear friends! If you liked what you read, checkout the Checklist above to see what you'll need to get in on the story! Till next time!

Libellus Pagina Amitorious,
Matt