Beginning in December 2008, this was the Marvel Event known as the Dark Reign, encompassing multiple storylines and a carefully scripted, year-long sequence of superhero/super-villain crossovers.  The plot focuses on what happens when one of the worst super-villains gains the resources and authority of an entire country.

In the aftermath of the Skrull invasion against the human race (in the story line, Secret Invasion,) one man fired the shot which killed the Skrull queen, ended a war, and promoted himself to the champion of The United States of the Earth-616 Universe.  Surprisingly, it was not Captain America, or Iron Man, or even Wolverine.  It was Norman Osborn (aka:  the Green Goblin,) the former leader of the criminally-reformed Thunderbolts.

Recognizing the great unrest and not unwarranted fear of the general public, Norm cunningly capitalized on his achievements, maximized his fame and elevated/exploited his status.  Within weeks he had been confirmed as the U.S. Director of National Security, and also replaced Tony Stark as head of S.H.I.E.L.D.  Osborn simultaneously formed an alliance with Doctor Doom, Emma Frost, Namor, Loki, and the Hood called, The Cabal.  Osborn used H.A.M.M.E.R. to carry out his own agenda and, at times, the Cabal's.  However, Osborn's actions and his reputation influenced a number of heroes and villains to attempt to resist Osborn's rule and remove him from power, by force if necessary.

How do the leaders of this country combine efforts with our greatest super-heroes and cope with the coming changes?  It all unfolds as you read Dark Reign.  Let us first understand that editor-in-chief of Marvel, Joe Quesada, said that Dark Reign was not an event.  Think of it more as an era of troublesome times within the Marvel Universe.  There is no core limited series here.  Instead, the storyline is made up of one-shots that help fill in the gaps; limited series exploring the effect of the event on teams and individuals; and tie-ins with other ongoing series.  The main storyline led into the Siege crossover event (starting in 2010,) although some plot elements are ongoing.

As I researched the Dark Reign epic saga, I found a myriad of different reading orders (not one of them official,) as well as a plethora of compilations (no two of them exactly alike.)  So, after much debate and soul-searching, I decided to utilize the reading order list I found here:  This webmaster seems to be on top of many other events within the comic book realm, and I do value his opinions.

So, here in this almost huge torrent, you will find complete and in reading order, ALL 300 issues of the Dark Realm [non-]event (including Dark Avengers Utopia and Exodus; Spider Woman; and S.W.O.R.D., et al) as depicted in the link above, plus one What If…? issue.

Enjoy, and please seed.

The bayimg tag linkage still seems to be amiss, so lemme try sharing this: