As always and of course, reading even a little bit further comes with a big heaping tablespoon of SPOILER ALERT..!

Newsarama: Tom, ballparking – how much time has passed since the end of issue #4, where we saw a relatively peaceful departure for Sue and Johnny, and the start of issue #5 where they’re (pardon the pun) in the heat of things?

Tom Brevoort: It’s been a couple of days at least, maybe a week — I haven’t tracked it that specifically against all of the tie-ins to determine an exact amount of time that’s passed.

NRAMA: Were they actively taking part in an Anti-Registration activity, or simply on the run?

TB: Later on in the issue, we see them linking up with Cap’s crew in a secret base, and they’re recognized as part of the group and welcomed, so it’s safe to assume that they joined up with Cap’s people between last issue and this one.

NRAMA: Kind of a creepy question, but did Reed turn Sue and Johnny in, or did Tony infer that from the visit in FF #540, and get the troops moving on his own?

TB: We don’t really specify, but it needn’t be either. Given that we can infer that Sue and Johnny linked up with Cap’s crew in-between issues, all that would have to happen would be for them to have taken part in some public action as members of Cap’s resistance for word to have gone out about them.

NRAMA: If Reed didn’t report Sue and Johnny…can anything be read into that? Are Reed’s own convictions wavering at this point, as the personal costs mount for him?

TB: Fantastic Four #542 should tell you everything you’d ever want to know about why Reed is doing what he’s doing, and what kind of price he’s willing to pay as a result. Regardless, most of the Pro-Reg guys are grappling with the personal cost enforcing the law is taking on them.

NRAMA: Speaking of that tie-in issue in FF #540 – “42” – the Negative Zone jail played a role with Tony and Peter apparently visiting it for the first time. Yet, this wasn’t the debut, as it showed up in Front Line #5, first. Had everything stayed on schedule, would FF #540 have been the debut of “42” as being something in the Negative Zone and things went from there?

TB: If everything had stayed on schedule, then yes, the roll-out of the Negative Zone prison would have happened much more simultaneously — though I think you still would have seen it first in Front Line, just not weeks before.

NRAMA: In this issue it was mentioned that the Pro-Reg side's Thor-clone, who was called such last issue — our beloved "Clor"- was in fact a cyborg. So what is he, and who's right?

TB: A myriad of technologies went into creating the Thor doppelganger, including cloning and cybernetics — we saw the guts of his mechanical hammer in #4, as you’ll recall.

NRAMA: Over to Nighthawk and Stature – they’ve fully joined up with the Pro-Reg side, rather than just quit the game? That’s an option – a full pardon for “crimes” committed while with the Anti-Reg side?

TB: Yes. And that’s also an option for the people in the prison, when all is said and done. Tony’s not looking to permanently incarcerate anybody — he just needs for people to get with the program and join with him in what he’s trying to accomplish.

NRAMA: We understand artistic choices and all, but in the Spider-Man/Iron Man scene, why was Spidey still wearing the armor Iron Man gave him? Isn’t that something along the lines of a tactical mistake – you know, don’t wear the armor your enemy gave you and can presumably shut down, lock-up, change into a clown costume?

TB: Perhaps — but this confrontation is at least a little bit unexpected on Peter’s front, as seen in Amazing #535, and he’s probably operating more on adrenaline than anything else at this point. See more in Amazing Spider-Man #536.

NRAMA: Oh – and Iron Man’s tactical error – appearing to threaten May and Mary Jane?

TB: Yes, insomuch as that’s the moment that tips this over from being an angry discussion into an out-and-out fistfight.

NRAMA: All the bullets missed Peter?

TB: Or bounced off the Iron Spidey suit, which is more durable than ordinary cloth — another reason to continue wearing it.

NRAMA: Before we get too far ahead of ourselves, where does Spider-Man #536 (November 22nd) fit in to things?

TB: Amazing #536 picks up right after Spidey is blown out of the wall in the opening seven pages or so, and then runs parallel to the rest of Civil War #5 (and even a little bit beyond it).

NRAMA: Speaking of this exchange, as well as, again, what went down in FF #540, when Iron Man eavesdropped on Peter and Reed – it again seems that there’s serious flirtation with casting Pro-Reg as “bad guys,” Anti-Reg as “good guys.” And while you could explain the last major battle with “Cap threw the first punch” this is pretty open aggression on the Pro-Reg side. In your eyes are the Pro-Reg still playing fair?

TB: Well again, I think it all depends on how you look at it. Iron Man confronts Spidey, but it’s Spidey that throws the first punch (in response to Iron Man bringing up Aunt May and Mary Jane). Then, Iron Man and Spidey scuffle, S.H.I.E.L.D. troops burst in, and open fire on the guy attacking Iron Man. So trigger happy, perhaps, but not necessarily bad guys.

NRAMA: Nice touch – the laser guide-light in the panel before Jack O Lantern’s head blows. Just saying…

TB: That’s Steve and Morry.

NRAMA: Why would the Punisher actually choose a “side” here? Seems that, with the heroes at each others’ throats, now would be a good time to thin the supervillain herd a little, regardless of who’s working for whom.

TB: Frank’s a capable guy — he can probably accomplish both things if he puts his mind to it. And you’ll get a better picture of the Punisher’s point of view in Punisher War Journal #1 in a week or so’s time.

NRAMA: The heroes’ outrage at the mere presence of the Punisher – how do they see him? Obviously, they haven’t all had encounters with him, personally, so they’re relying on what they hear form other, but what’s his rep among the heroes?

TB: It runs the gamut, but even his biggest supporters in the superhero community see Frank as something of a loose cannon — and as a psychopath in the worst cases. He’s a lot more extreme in his position on criminals than just about anybody else in the room. I would think that especially the guys who’ve spent some time on the wrong side of the law might view him the harshest, as, if the Punisher had his way back in the day, people like Hawkeye, the Scarlet Witch, and Quicksilver would probably be pushing up daisies, rather than having gone on to become Avengers.

NRAMA: Et tu Tigra? Wouldn’t that hideout be…electromagnetically shielded or something?

TB: Even if such shielding was in place, I would think that Tony Stark’s new Extremis-enhanced abilities would allow him to pick up a signal transmitted from within it. And atop that, you would expect that the underground has some frequency or wavelength that’s allowed through any shielding, so that they can communicate with each other in the field as necessary.

NRAMA: How did DD/Danny go from being at the meeting on one page to being captured on the next? Was his capture planned by the Anti-Reg forces?

TB: Well, there’s a time jump between pages. Some of the crossover tie-ins take place within that gap. But for the purposes of reading only Civil War, it didn’t seem prudent to add any sort of time-stamp to the HELL’S KITCHEN locator caption when we segue to the Daredevil scene.

NRAMA: Dan’s done a good job of it in her series, but can you take us into She-Hulk’s head a little on why she’s supportive of the Pro-Reg side? She’s seen authorities hunt her cousin for years and years, and, while she doesn’t know what the Illuminati did most recently, she’s never seen too keen on telling Bruce to stop running and come in. What’s influencing her here?

TB: Given recent events in She-Hulk’s own series, and earlier events such as her hulking out and tearing the Vision apart in “Avengers Disassembled” or destroying the town of Bone, Idaho in the Geoff Johns era of Avengers, Jennifer has had firsthand experiences with what happens when superhumans lose control. Beyond that, as a lawyer, Jennifer has an innate respect for the law — and if she disagrees with the law, she’s more likely to contest it in a court of law, through proper channels, than to act in defiance of it.

NRAMA: Tonally – looking at Civil War on the whole, where are we at the end of #5? Was this the end of The Empire Strikes Back, to use three-act shorthand?

TB: I think the end of #4 probably corresponds to the end of Empire. #5-#7 comprise the third act, so we’re maybe twenty minutes into Return of the Jedi at this point — in the process of rescuing Han, but not having quite accomplished it yet.

NRAMA: That said, where can things go for issue #6?

TB: We’re racing towards the climax now, so there’ll be gearing up for punching and hitting, strife within both camps, a daring raid, a betrayal, and a big reversal at the end.