The Avengers, Fantastic Four, and X-Men gather at the blast zone for a search and rescue effort, while the heroes talk over the ignorance of the New Warriors to cause such decimation. Goliath mentions to Ms. Marvel that after recent events with the Hulk and Wolverine, this will be the final straw – the witch hunts will begin because of this. On CNN, She-Hulk says that she thinks a control act on super-heroes wouldn’t be a bad idea. At a funeral for victims of the explosion, Tony Stark is approached by a victim’s mother who spits at him, cursing the actions of super-heroes. Outside of a New York club, Johnny Storm meets up with a date. As the two are about to enter, people waiting in line speak out against him. As he argues back, someone breaks a bottle over his head and the crowd proceeds to beat him.

The Avengers, X-Men, Fantastic Four, New Avengers and several other heroes gather in the Baxter Building to discuss the growing call for hero registration. Dr. Strange, Luke Cage, Wasp, Falcon and Wolverine speak against the idea, while Iron Man and Yellowjacket defend it. Spider-Man and Invisible Woman talking about forced revelation of identities causing some heroes to quit. Nighthawk brings up that the idea is just speculation at this point, but Daredevil says it has been building for quite some time.

On the SHIELD Helicarrier above New York, SHIELD Commander Maria Hill meets with Captain America about the gathering in the Baxter Building, asking about people against the registration act. Hill talks about taking down anyone who opposes the action. She tells him that SHIELD is forming an anti-superhuman response unit, but needs to know that the Avengers are on their side. Cap argues against bringing down heroes, which causes the surrounding SHIELD agents to draw their weapons. Again Cap refuses to comply and Hill orders him tranquilized, but he swiftly breaks through their ranks and dives through the Helicarrier window. He lands on an approaching aircraft and tells the pilot to fly away. At the Baxter Building, the Watcher appears before the heroes.

Later, in Washington DC, the President meets with his top advisors about Captain America escaping SHIELD and going underground. With the registration so controversial, he doesn’t want its opposers having a powerful figurehead to stand behind. Iron Man responds that they will find a leader of their own. With Mister Fantastic and Yellowjacket behind him, Iron Man tells them to leave Captain America to them.

Review: Nice. That’s what I have to say about this issue. It’s gotten me very excited about Civil War, and it did it all in one issue. Having Captain America as the head of the anti-registration forces is an unexpected twist, but it’s one done effectively with the building of the character of Commander Maria Hill. Any reader of New Avengers knows that she is not an enjoyable character, and the heroes certainly don’t have the bond with her that they had with Nick Fury. Hill is a very antagonistic character, and she gives the perfect reason for Cap to go against the system. What makes it more intriguing is that she’s not in the wrong. Careless heroics did cause the tragedy, and this is a logical solution. It’s a very moralistic conflict, and one that I suspect will get worse before it gets better.

Sorry, fans of the New Warriors. Your kids are toast. I only knew three of the members from the one or two issues of the old series I own (of course the team was only four people), but I did fondly recall them and were therefore slightly saddened by their demise (especially Speedball). Marvel used the age-old tactic of offing a known, yet unimportant character(s) for the purpose of adding a sense of importance to the events. DC kicked off Infinite Crisis by killing the Blue Beetle, using the same tactic. The kids were just cannon fodder to kick off the epic, and it’s doubtful that too many people are going to miss them.

Tapping Steve McNiven for pencils this book was a good move on Marvel’s part. He’s likely fresh in fans’ minds from his solid run on New Avengers and the first part of Ultimate Secret. The splash of the heroes at the blast zone is powerful, as is the fight scene between Captain America and the SHIELD agents. McNiven’s art goes well with Mark Millar’s writing for a powerful first issue. Hopefully, they can keep this going through six more issues.