Marvel Universe (And Ultimate Universe) Coming To An End In Secret Wars
By Nick Tylwalk
Many Marvel Comics fans seemed to latch onto the idea that when Secret Wars arrives in May, it will spur Marvel to do a complete reboot of its comic continuity. Others maintained that there was no way 75 years of stories would be thrown out the window and made non-canon. If we learned anything Tuesday at the Secret Wars Live Kickoff event held at Midtown Comics in New York City, it’s that both groups are probably right.
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Executive Editor and SVP, Publishing Tom Brevoort and Editor-in-Chief Axel Alonso spent just over half an hour talking Secret Wars during the event, and they delivered what Marvel promised when it teased an “announcement to end all announcements.” Alonso got to drop the bomb just a few minutes in, revealing that in Secret Wars #1, the final Incursion will take place between the Marvel Universe and the Ultimate Universe. The heroes of both worlds will have eight hours to try to save them, and they won’t succeed.
Other universes will also “smash into” the main two, and the result will be the new Battleworld we’ve seen before. Brevoort and Alonso made it very clear that there will be no more Marvel Universe and Ultimate Universe after this, simply one new universe for which the Battleworld will serve as a sort of incubator. We won’t know exactly what they mean by that until the event plays out, but they did say that Battleworld will be where the new Marvel Universe ferments, leading directly into what happens next.
So again, not necessarily a complete reboot, but definitely not what came before. And Alonso claimed readers will be shocked at the chances Marvel will take.
All of the teasers we saw a while back will be titles during the event, and new series (both limited and ongoing) will launch during Secret Wars. More will launch after it’s complete, which should surprise no one.
Brevoort called this the largest event Marvel has ever done, as well as the one requiring the most coordination. Writer Jonathan Hickman supposedly first conceived of its broad strokes back toward the beginning of his Fantastic Four run, but it evolved into an even larger tale as it got kicked around, and it’s a direct result of the overall arcs he’s been telling in Avengers and New Avengers.
More takeaways from the Live Kickoff:
- Marvel is doing a Secret Wars #0 issue for Free Comic Book Day, written by Hickman and with art by Paul Renaud. Not only will it set up the story for fans who haven’t been following Hickman’s epic so far, it will reprint the recent Marvel/Attack on Titan crossover story released in Japan.
- Alex Ross is doing covers for all eight issues of the main Secret Wars title. Esad Ribic is doing the interior art, and has a chance to become a bona fide comics superstar.
- Secret Wars #2 will be an oversized issue that Brevoort described as a “phone book.” It will also ship in May, and will supposedly explain everything readers need to know about Battleworld and the temporary status quo.
- A large number of licensees are on-board for the event, with the Marvel folks mentioning Hasbro, Uper Deck, Diamond Select, Funko, Mad Engine and Hot Wheels, among others. Marvel’s gaming arm will also be up to something, though those plans couldn’t be revealed yet.
If an announcement was ever thrilling, confusing and a little scary all at the same time, this one was it. Expect to see many more Secret Wars announcments over the next two weeks. And in the meantime, pour out a little of your favorite adult beverage for the Marvel Universe as we know it, because it only has four more months to live.