Annihilation
Episode 2
Conquest

It is a dangerous time for the galaxy.

The Annihilation Wave, a destructive fleet of bug-like creatures intent
on destroying the universe, have been defeated – but at great cost.
Populations have been decimated, Heroes have fallen, and entire planets
have been ceded to the enemy to secure a delicate peace.

In the wake of this war, new heroes have risen
to take on the mantle of responsibility
– but will it be enough to resist the coming
…Conquest.

One such hero, introduced at the very beginning of this book is Peter Quill, formerly the hero known as Star Lord. Though an Earthling, he has taken it upon himself to help the Kree Empire in rebuilding their defenses against any future incursions. What he doesn’t realize is that the allies he has brought in to help the Kree have already been infected with a techno-organic virus (both technological and biological – meaning resistance truly is futile). That virus is also known as the Phalanx – and they’re not looking to destroy the universe – they’re looking to assimilate and subjugate it.

The book is divided into four sections. The first is a prologue, which introduces the reader to the main players for the rest of this volume. I’ve already talked about Peter Quill – though the reveal of the enemy behind the attack doesn’t happen until the very end of the prologue – but it’s through this character that the reader sees first hand how overpowering the Phlanax’s attack is, how utterly unable to stop them Peter and the rest of the Kree empire are. The Conquest is already over at the end of the prologue, so the story moves into the direction of resistance and rebellion.

On a distant world of the Kree Empire, another hero – the daughter of Captain Marvel, who is known as Quasar – and her girlfriend Moondragon are trying to help a religious order rebuild it’s temple after the Annihilation war. As beings who are likely to lead a rebellion against the Conquest, The Phalanx have targeted them and attempt to kill them before they even are aware of what’s happened.

The second and third parts of the story follow each of these character’s separate adventures. Peter Quill finds himself forced into the role of Star Lord again, leading a rag-tag group of misfits on a suicide mission back to the Phalanx infested Kree homeworld. Their mission: to find and destroy an airborn virus the Phalanx are developing which could be used to infect entire worlds. With a team consisting of a talking Racoon who likes using big guns, a tree who thinks he’s royalty, a telepathic girl who may or may not be crazy, a bug-like-humanoid who enjoys the company of females, a rookie hero with god like powers, and a feral woman who’d as soon kill her friends as her enemies – you know things are going to be interesting. This has got a mission impossible, sci-fi vibe – with double crosses and great characters, all the hallmarks of great science fiction.

In the third part, Quasar and her companion are sent on a quest – to find the savior who can free the Kree from the Phalanx Conquest. It’s a bit of an uneven tale, starting out as more on an inner journey for both characters as they try to discover why they’re each having trouble with their powers. As those things get resolved, it becomes more of a fantasy story – with Dragons and a rustic people rising up against the army of the Phalanx with their swords and shields – as Quasar closes in on the savior. But when he is awoken too early because of interference by the Phalanx – will he be sane enough to help, or will he be the harbinger of the destruction of all?

The last part of the book is called Annihilation Saga – a summary of the events that happened in the first series (called Annihilation). You don’t have to have read Annihilation to read Conquest – and this part of the book ensures that if you didn’t, you can easily get caught up. That series was made up of three books, spanning characters from Nova to Ronan, Super Skrull to Silver Surfer.

Oh wait – you recognize that name – Silver Surfer? That’s a comic character? Oh you mean I forgot to mention this whole time that Annihilation Conquest is a comic book trade paperback? That’s because this is a science fiction story first and foremost – told using the comic art style – but nevertheless worthy of your attention even if you’re not normally a fan superhero comics. If you enjoy the types of stories you get with Star Wars, this is the superhero/Marvel universe equivalent. Annihilation Conquest feels a lot like The Empire Strikes Back to me – things start bad and get worse by the end – and I loved it. The artwork is superb throughout, and the writers are all top notch as well. I had stopped reading comics about 10 years ago – and I still find many of the comics I enjoyed as a child to be things best left to my childhood – but this is a whole different story. I get to revisit and enjoy a whole new aspect of the Marvel universe that I enjoyed (and still have way too much information stored in my brain about) but without feeling like the stories are just retreading the same beats over and over again (as I feel with the X-Men and Spider-man comics). I re-read Annihilation Conquest book 1 because I finally have book 2 coming – and I’m very excited to finally finish off this story and continue to read the further adventures of Marvel’s cosmic heroes. You can expect to see more reviews of those books in the months ahead.