Civil War: Front Line by Paul JenkinsMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
I really loved the Frontline comics from the 'Civil War' series. Acting as a mouthpiece for the writers as well as for many readers, the series filled in missing gaps and essential nuggets of information left out in the rest of the Civil War imprints.
The series follows two reporters attempting to navigate and report on the insane new world they've got caught up in. Add to this mysterious deaths and police investigations, the sheer impact of the Civil War on the citizens of the Marvel Universe come to light.
Drawing parallels throughout with real-world circumstances and reactions, Frontline feels ridiculously relevant, which is surprising, considering it's a Marvel comic. Yes, the art has some issues (read: female characters are the bane of my comic book-reading existence), but overall the story is intriguing and sometimes even a little thrilling.
Each Frontline comic ends with a brief re-telling of an actual war, juxtaposed with recreations of those events alongside 'Civil War' events. I actually loved this part, mostly because it introduced me to some writers I was not familiar with. What struck me most was the story at the end of the first Frontline issue. It's a poem written by a Japanese boy who grew up in an internment camp. It was a powerful beginning immediately focusing the story on atrocities committed from the inside. Far too often we point fingers at others for committing the worst crimes - we don't look internally at all.
Frontline is rife with plot twists and turns and some jolting surprises. All, as I've mentioned, written with a realistic bent of mind. Most of it came across as quite refreshing. What I especially loved was Sally's rant at Captain America at the end of the series. Honestly it was directed at the wrong person (in my opinion), but that's not to say the essence of it didn't feel important or true. It would have made sense out of context as well, be it directed at a superhero or a superpower.
What got me was the 'Accused' segment. As the sole survivor of the massacre, New Warriors member Robbie becomes the scapegoat for the government, the media and the public. His refusal to back down and own up to any wrongdoing just worsens his situation. It's been a while (read: never) since a comic book character's transformation emotionally affected me, but Robbie's did. The writers never jump the shark with his circumstances - it's just one relentless slog for the man and for the reader. What a story!
A Marvel comic with a political and ideological framework driving it seems rare (to me at least). There's a lot right with this series, mostly because the writers decided to give the story a go, instead of just making it a flashy comic. Other comic series could take some inspiration from this series' and finally do their readers some justice.
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