SPOILERS Dark Reign/Cabal: What did I miss in the last year?

[mgmonkey]

So, I've succesfully managed to avoid almost all of Dark Reign & Cabal due to financial reasons, dislike of strung out storys, and excessive tie ins etc, BUT...

The 2 issues I have read were the Secret Invasion/Dark Reign one shot of The Cabal and The X-Men annual featuring Emma Frost & Namor, (which was very good).

I'll probably be buying the Cabal/Siege one shot and the 4 part Siege series, so my question is........What has happened inbetween regarding the Cabal characters? Emma, Namor , Loki & Doom mainly, Norman Osborn doen't really interest me.

Also, what's Mephisto been upto if anything? I understand he's just turned up at the end of Dark Avengers with the Molecule Man, (what's been happening also with him)? Have there been any solid references to pre BND Spidey by Mephisto or in ASM?

I guess I could just wait for the free "saga" style one shot they'll be releasing pre Siege, but I'm sure some 'Rama heads out there can fill me in.

Thanks!

[MayorMItch100]

Emma and Namor played Osborne and their plan was fleshed out in DA/XM: Utopia. Their plan roughly evolved Emma and Namor getting into Norman's Cabal, just to later team up with Summers and make Norman look like a complete fool infront of his most valuable asset, the media. Loki has been scheming, his scheme hasn't quite been explained very much yet. Doom really hasn't done very much, but is working with the Red Skull and Zola (?) in Cap Reborn. Norman is pretty much being screwed by his whole crew.

Mephisto hasn't been prominent at all in this whole Dark Reign thing. but at least he is showing up now, before becoming some lame attempt to tie things together in Siege #3. Molecule Man, the only thing of note (and pretty much of late) was him escaping from the Raft way back when. There havn't been any references to BND, because Mephisto hasn't said anything yet (literally in the past year during dark reign he hasn't said a word or been seen, though he could be the person behind norman in the Cabal the one-shot).

You could have but this is fun for me, helps me tie things in that maybe i didn't catch when i first was reading the issues.

Most of the Siege stuff is going to probably be fleshed out in late november and then more completely in December, and definitely in January. People have been opposed to this whole thing, but i have been really enjoying it.

[TruBlud71]

Most of what you missed were a plethora of useless $3.99 mini-series and one-shots. (Sinister Spider-Man starring Venom, Mr. Negative, Made Men, Lethal Legion, Zodiac, etc.) For the most part these books did nothing except advance the idea that the Marvel U. has gone to crap.
Dark Avengers/X-Men: Utopia (and Dark X-Men before it) simply confirmed that Emma is more a good guy than bad, as is Namor and all the mutants now live on an island off the San Fransisco coast (a former Asteroid M, which has brought Magneto calling).
Molecule Man has just made his first appearance in Dark Avengers. Beyonder, Odin, and Mephisto have been fairly absent overall.
Norman keeps going away to his room because he is bat $#!t crazy and on the way to becoming the Goblin King.
Moonstone is sleeping her way through the Avengers to undermine Norman, starting with No-Varr and now onto Bullseye who is still a pyscho.
Venom still eats living things when the opportunity arises. The Sentry is still apparently a schizophrenic and his own worst villain.
Hawkeye/Ronin has been captured, Luke Cage has been captured and needed heart surgery, Dr. Voodoo is the Sorcerer Supreme, Hank Pym is the Scientist Supreme, Bruce Banner has been reexposed to Gamma radiation to rush his transformation back to Hulk.
Ares just likes to fight and is more on his kid's side than Normans. (Ares son is one of Nick Fury's Secret Warriors).
The Initiative has gone to crap and is a mix of villains and New Warriors.
The Hood has lost his powers, I think he forsook Dormammu or some such. But Loki has given him the Norn Stones which have reimbued him with nasty magic. Again, no real change.
The Thunderbolts are still a powder keg of villains and c-list heroes that are loyal only to themselves.
Tony Stark has been erasing his brain so Norman can't get all the 411 on all the Superhumans that Tony had stored there.
Loki got Thor kicked out of Asgard on a technicality.
Hydra is behind a whole bunch of bad stuff and Dr. Doom is everywhere.
Plus, Cap isn't really dead.
Get all that? Good. Carry on.

[TruBlud71]

There were also Dark Reign Elektra and Dark Reign Young Avengers. Not much change there either.

[mgmonkey]

Thanks peeps!

Where does super badass post Millar FF Dr Doom fit into all this? Has this taken place yet within the main direction of the Marvel U, i.e. He's much more powerful and Latveria is destroyed?