Now the fun begins. Secret Warriors gave us a taste of what was in that crazy brain of Hickman. S.H.I.E.L.D. is where we really start to see things form. This is the series that will have readers going back to issue 25 of Secret Warriors to start piecing things together. It's also where the foundations for what Hickman does in his Fantastic Four run gets set. 

We not only get the foundation of SHIELD starting way back in ancient Egypt by Imhotep (with a young Apocalypse and Moon Knight) but establishing it as a secret brotherhood whose purpose was/is to stop the premature destruction of mankind. And this highlights what makes Hickman's runs so good. In a way he's a history professor whose main focus is finding the obscure in the Marvel Universe and making it not only relevant, but expanding the universe. Sure, at its core we're getting a fundamental power struggle between Leonardo DaVinci and Sir Isaac Newton about whether man should continue to fight or survival or accept its fate. But outside of that, we're also given a young Howard Stark and Nathaniel Richards as agents of SHIELD. And what happens with both of them is then seen later in how their sons turn out. We see why "our" Reed Richards is so important and different from others. We see why Tony , despite all his flaws, can be one of the most prolific and accomplished (and focused) builders in the universe. 

This is the beginning of the theme of fathers and sons and what they owe each other. It's something we're going to continue to see throughout Hickman's runs (especially with Fantastic Four). But we also get the themes of Expansion vs. Contraction, Life vs. Death, Infinite Human Existence vs Inevitability.

Issues:

* S.H.I.E.L.D #1 The Unholy Resurrection of Leonardo da Vinci

* S.H.I.E.L.D #2 Newton's Theory of Eternal Life

* S.H.I.E.L.D # 3 The Theory of Eternal Life

* S.H.I.E.L.D #4 The Madness, the Star Child, and the Celestial Madonna

* S.H.I.E.L.D #5 The Forgotten Machines of Nikola Tesla

* S.H.I.E.L.D # 6 The Master's Hand

* S.H.I.E.L.D Volume 2 #1 Terribilita

* S.H.I.E.L.D Volume 2 #2 Fire

* S.H.I.E.L.D Volume 2 # 3 The Fall

* S.H.I.E.L.D Volume 2 #4 All Together Now

* S.H.I.E.L.D Volume 2 #5 Yesterday. Today. Tomorrow.

* S.H.I.E.L.D Volume 2 # 6 I Am the Sun

* S.H.I.E.L.D Infinity

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