Epic Battles of the Civil War, Volume 1: Bull Run

Epic Battles of the Civil War #1

by William Messner-Loebs

This was the first major battle of the Civil War. The Union Army marched from Washington, D.C. with the expectation that following this battle they would proceed to Richmond, Virginia, the Confederate capital and end the war. Instead, the Union Army was defeated, the South had a new military here, General T. S. "Stonewall" Jackson, and the divided nation prepared for a prolonged and devastating war.

Genres: History, Comic Book, Comics, Nonfiction, War, Civil War

50 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1998

About the author

William Francis Messner-Loebs (born William Francis Loebs, Jr.) is an American comics artist and writer from Michigan, also known as Bill Loebs and Bill Messner-Loebs. His hyphenated surname is a combination of his and his wife Nadine's unmarried surnames.

In the 1980s and 1990s he wrote runs of series published by DC Comics, Image Comics, Comico, and other comics publishers, including DC's superhero series Flash and Wonder Woman among others. Additionally he has both written and drawn original creator-owned works, such as Journey: The Adventures of Wolverine MacAlistaire.

Reviews

[Rachel · Rating 2 out of 5]

The 5 year old I babysit wanted me to read this to him. I thought it was a good explination that was simplified enough for kids to understand, but maybe not for a 5 year old considering he asked me what a confederacy was half way through the book.

[Nicholas Dehler · Rating 2 out of 5]

Boy was this riveting
Also wait Marvel published this? What😭

[Darrell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Marvel Comics just up and made some comic books featuring four of the major conflicts of the American Civil War. Who knew? The drawings may not be up to scale with their modern hero comics and the dialogue and wording might seem a little forced, but this is a great way to expose people to this rich history. The first volume of four centers on First Bull Run. Because this battle occurred early in the war, Marvel takes this opportunity to also address the causes and actions that lead up to the war. Again, perfect for curious future historians. Some may not like it and try to compare it to other Marvel comics that focus on the Avengers or X-Men; I suggest that you do not do that and just enjoy this as an independent book.

[Jurij Fedorov · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is Marvel? Marvel that makes movies so silly and childish that there is nothing deep to them and the moral and political viewpoints so predictable even a small child can guess them beforehand?

This is indeed a great little comic. Because a whole team made it it's in color! The books where 1 person writes and draws it are never in color. Here a full team set it up. It has 2 writers! 2 artists for the graphics alone and designers for lettering. And 4 editors! What do editors even do here? I don't know, but there are twice as many editors as writers so I assume they are highly paid and important.

The drawing style is old comic book. The details are lacking at times and the style flat. Yet the army depictions fully make up for it. Drawings with 40 soldiers are glorious. This is a very big success with plenty of small real stories and enough details. Written as a superhero comic not as an overview. Yet the overview is still very strong. I have to say I'm trying to rate it down as it's Marvel not a single artist. Yet they deliver. This is a strong intro.

I would have loved a comic before this explaining how the war started. It's actually extremely fascinating with a ton of details. Which is also maybe why they didn't want to make that book as it would be too much research and work. But it would be a spectacular idea.

I'm obviously reading all 4 books in this series.

[Trico Lutkins · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was pretty good. I liked that it used real quotes from primary sources. I didn't really like the page layouts. There was a lot of 2 page splashpages with smaller inlet panels that seemed to make it hard to follow which to read first. Also, it seemed like they wanted these huge epic 2 page images of the battle, but the small inlet panels seemed to undermine the epic page spreads.

The writing was good, but the book goes by fast and the reader never gets a chance to get attached to any of the characters. A little poetic license with some of the characters would have benefitted the story. I'm not saying to make stuff up, but it seems like the historical figures are only saying what can be proven from primary sources at the time. Maybe have the narrator infer their feelings to keep historical accuracy while still fleshing out more of a story than a historical account.

[Richard A · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is volume 1 of a great series of graphic novels about Civil War battles. Yes, it helps tremendously to already know something about the battle in question, but this version tells a complete story of the battle and its impact. Good for kids, but also for adults who are interested int he Civil War

[Graham Barrett · Rating 3 out of 5]

(Read as a kid, review from 2026)

One of two Civil War comics that I read as a kid around the tail end of my childhood obsession with the Civil War. It's a good enough depiction of one of the most important battles of the war. Not sure how well it conveys the nuances of the conflict but the artwork was pretty good.

[Eric Williams · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not that bad, as far as comic books (sorry, "graphic novel") are concerned. Pretty good for a visual introduction to the American Civil War. Obviously intended as an introduction to the war for children.

[Carolyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great illustrations, and this book dose a great job following the battles. I can’t wait until the next book

[Graham Bradley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great job. The art was simple but also kind of a throwback, which worked atmospherically. A good balance of detail and pacing.

[Philip · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not sure why I even have these - they're recent publications, so not remnants from my childhood like much of my Civil War stuff. However, this four-volume set offers a fairly decent "comic book" introduction to some of the war's major battles, and introduces some minor historical figures I hadn't heard of before. Unfortunately, I only have the books for Gettysburg and Bull Run, which are the two battlefields I've visited the most and therefore know the best. Would much prefer to have the Shiloh and Antietam books, but these are surprisingly pricey on Amazon so am not going to buy them.

[Ted Henkle · Rating 3 out of 5]

A decent overview of the battle. This series is probably ideal for introducing young readers to the American Civil War.

[Amy Winkelman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Being a visual person, this really helps put the Civil War in a way that I can better understand.

[Sam Mueller · Rating 3 out of 5]

Will be great in my classroom!