Synopsis / Summary / Plot
Civil War II: Choosing Sides #1 Synopsis by
Rob Johnson
This is an anthology title with 3 stories each issue. The 1st story will continue through the series, but the others are single-issue tales.
Story 1:- Nick Fury Jr in Post Prologue part 1
SHIELD Director Maria Hill briefs Nick Fury that the Inhuman Ulysses has prophesied an attack by Hydra troops posing as SHIELD Agents that will bring down SHIELD. Nick will lead a team of volunteers to take them down in a pre-emptive strike.
As they approach the target Hydra base in a hover jet his team attacks Fury, shouting "SHIELD must live! Fury must die!". Nick jumps out of the plane taking an Agent with him to cushion his fall on the Hydra landing pad. Other Agents rappel down to him but he defeats them all.
The jet attacks, but Fury taps the symbol on the chest of his new uniform and goes invisible. Another tap and he is able to leap back into the plane. These are functions of his new threads.
Under questioning the pilot says that they are part of the 'true' SHIELD, and their leader has his own prophecy that says Fury must die. And the fanatic crashes the plane into the Hydra base.
Nick of course escapes. He figures he can't report this to Hill because SHIELD has obviously been infiltrated. He'll play dead for a while and investigate on his own.
Story 2:- Night Thrasher
The original Night Thrasher is helping fight the Servitors of the Celestial Destructor in Times Square. Blue Marvel called him in, but nearly every hero is there (in Civil War II #1). We see the ANAD Avengers Captain America (Sam Wilson), Iron Man, Nova and Spider-Man (Miles Morales) plus Captain Marvel and War Machine.
Dwayne Taylor remembers his past as a company CEO like Tony Stark with an armoured superhero secret id. But his musing is cut short when he discovers a young girl trapped in the wreckage of a bus in the supposedly-evacuated area. He's given his skateboard more functions, and now uses it as a spreader to free the girl.
Iron Man is impressed, as he is when the board separates into pieces each of which is an independent shield to block energy blasts. Captain Marvel is too when he sends the board to deliver taser shocks to several Servitors.
Later he provides power for a defibrillator to shock the girl Tina's heart. She's come from Baltimore to live with family in New York.
Story 3:- Damage Control
Dr Strange confirms that the Celestial Destructor has been sent home to his dimension by his team of mystics (we see Dr Voodoo and Scarlet Witch). Captain America (Steve Rogers), Hawkeye (Clint Barton), Medusa, Ms Marvel, Wolverine (Laura Kinney) and both Spider-Men are standing around when Lenny Ballinger of Damage Control arrives to start clean-up.
Next morning in their Flatiron HQ Albert Cleary and John Porter are worried because the TV ad they've created is rubbish. The CEO Robin Chapel arrives wanting to see it. But luckily she's distracted by a call from Ballinger about a problem on site - their heavy machinery has been destroyed overnight.
They call in a favour and borrow some equipment built by Parker Industries. But the team have to camp out next night to guard it. Couple Robin and John are sharing some wine when they hear a disturbance. They see a living steam shovel calling itself Trull the Unhuman dismantling the Parker machines.
It turns out he hadn't destroyed the previous machines, but modified them to his own design. Now he sends them against the humans, but they just wander haphazardly.
Worker Monstro steps up and tells Trull he sympathises with his loneliness. Trull has created a family! Trull says he's given up on conquering the world after being defeated by an elephant, Ghost Rider and paved roads. Robin offers Trull a job with DC, and the mini-Trulls can learn the trade too. Trull accepts.
Trull's closing words give Porter an idea. They finish off their TV ad with Trull saying "Leave it to the professionals". And Robin thinks it's a success.