Top 10 Marvel Comics Events Of All Time

4. Secret Wars (1984)

Why it was good: There’s something to be said for the original. This was the event that started it all, proving not only the drawing power of having all of Marvel’s biggest super heroes together in one story (as obvious as that might seem), but also verifying that a limited series was the right format for this kind of gathering. While the plot is certainly a little simplistic by today’s standards, it needs to be viewed through the lens of its time, and there’s more going on than you might remember if you go back and re-read it. Not all of the characterizations were spot-on (more on that in a second), but if you want to see the hubris and ambition of Doctor Doom or see why Spider-Man is so great, even among all of his peers, or just want to see the Hulk lift an entire freaking mountain range, this is the place to do it.

Why it didn’t rank higher: The overall story was a bit light to carry 12 issues, with the mystery of the Beyonder dragging on, occasionally propelled only by the shifting allegiances among the heroes. Secret Wars was also a bad look for Professor X; Charles Xavier could always be manipulative (comes with the territory of being a telepath, one guesses), but having the X-Men serve as a third force between the non-mutant heroes and the villains for most of the series was sort of silly. It’s also impossible to ignore the fact that Marvel put this together because a toy manufacturer asked it to do something. You’d prefer the best event ever to be story-driven, no?

How it had lasting effects: It gave us the iconic black Spider-Man costume, which led to Venom, so that’s a big one right there. In the minus column, it also led to Secret Wars II, and the less said about the sequel, the better. Mostly, Secret Wars was like a giant proof of concept, useful for a lot more than just selling toys with holographic inserts you put into the figures’ shields (really, I lived through that). It laid the groundwork for every event that followed, and similar big crossovers and mash-ups from other publishers as well. I’m not even writing this list without it.