Time Runs Out For All-New Marvel Now With 2015’s Secret Wars & 13 Event Redux With Civil War, Avengers Vs X-Men, Age of Ultron & More Spoilers For A Multiverse’s Reboot Or Convergence?

News, Spoilers

Marvel Comics will be delivering a multiverse adventure in 2015 called Secret Wars. It’s something that Marvel has been building to not only in Avengers, but also in its Spider-Man line with Spider-verse. Little is known about 2015’s Secret Wars. The initial announcement by Marvel was sparse on detail beyond creative team, but we got a cool Alex Ross painted cover doing his best George Perez inspired Crisis on Infinite Earths jam.

Coming in 2015…

Jonathan Hickman.

Esad Ribic.

Secret Wars

In an interview, Marvel’s Executive Editor Tom Brevoort further noted that:

The scope of it is about the biggest thing we’ve ever done or attempted to do…

…[Secret Wars will] affect the entire publishing side when it debuts in the spring but boasts a story that crosses over to digital platforms, introduces new consumer products from various licensees and will work in a synergistic fashion across the Marvel brand…

…when time runs out, Secret Wars is happening…

While Secret Wars was also the name of Marvel first line-wide mega-event from the 1980’s, it seems this isn’t the only “event” or epic storyline title that will be repurposed in 2015. Several others are coming. Whether they are one-shots, mini-series or something else, we don’t know. What we do know is that it appears that Marvel Comics’ Secret Wars 2015 event will pit different interpretations of classic Marvel heroes (and perhaps villains) against one another. In the teaser video Marvel released recently, we know that these various alternate Earth takes on classic Marvel events will take place on a brand new “battleworld”; the original seen during the first Secret Wars event. That video teases an “All-New Marvel” sans the usual “Now” we’ve seen at the end of that wording over the last several years.

With each new 2015 repurposed classic event name below I’ll add the cover to the classic’s collected edition and Marvel’s blurb about it. Again, we know NOTHING about the 2015 namesakes beyond what we see in the teaser art below; but we do know a lot about the classic events, storylines and mini-series; thirteen (13) in total!

However, before I get to those, there are also some other visits to Marvel of olde that are part of Secret Wars, but aren’t necessarily classic “events” such as:

We also get a new Inhumans themed contribution to Secrets Wars called Inhumans: Attilan Rising. Marvel is really trying hard to make us care about the Inhumans.

We also have two “ends” teased by Marvel leading up to or part of Secret Wars:

Plus, we also have Spider-Man dealing with Marvel’s multiverse in the “Spider-Verse” stories in Amazing Spider-Man and the tie-in books.

Ok, here are the 2015 Marvel teasers and their namesakes.

Here we go.

SECRET WARS

The cover to May 2015’s Secret Wars #1 is on the below left, classic collected editions in the middle and right. The original Secret Wars ushered in a companion toy line and a follow-up event in Secret Wars II.

Marvel describes the original 1984 Secret Wars as: “The most powerful heroes and villains in the Marvel Universe square off on Battleword with the victor promised their greatest dreams and desires! Writer Jim Shooter and artists Mike Zeck and Bob Layton introduce the Beyonder in a 12-issue event featuring the Avengers, the X-Men, the Fantastic Four, Spider-Man, Magneto, Doctor Doom and more!” Secret Wars II was described as: “The omnipotent Beyonder comes to Earth to better understand the concept of desire as the heroes assemble to combat the threat he poses.”

X-MEN: DAYS YEARS OF FUTURE PAST

2015 teaser on the left for YEARS of Future Past, classic collected edition of DAYS of Future Past in the middle, and 2014’s X-Men Days of Future Past live-action movie Deluxe Blu-Ray / Digital / 3D (also available in DVD) on the right.

Marvel describes the 1981 Days of Future Past in an Uncanny X-Men 2-issue (#141 and #142) storyline as: “In a twisted version of the world they knew, the X-Men battle against the eternal mutant Apocalypse as Bishop seeks to repair the timeline. Legion, Xavier’s own son, attempts to kill off all of Xavier’s enemies; however, when Legion attempts to murder Magneto, Xavier sacrifices his own life to save Magnus. As a result, Magneto casts off his anti-human sentiments and carries on Xavier’s dream of peaceful co-existence, thereby founding the X-Men.”

IRON MAN: ARMOR WARS

2015 teaser on the left, classic collected edition on the right.

Marvel describes the 1987 Armor Wars storyline in Iron Man (and a brief cross-over with Captain America when Steve Rogers wore the black “The Captain” costume and the violent John Walker was Captain America) as: “Tony Stark discovers that someone has been stealing his Iron Man tech and selling it to supervillains. He decides he must do whatever it takes to reacquire — or destroy — the stolen tech.”

INFINITY GAUNTLET

2015 teaser on the left, classic collected edition on the right.

Marvel describes the 1991 Infinity Gauntlet event as: “When the Mad Titan, Thanos, acquires the all-powerful Infinity Gauntlet and erases half the universe, the survivors must attempt to topple an omnipotent opponent! Led by the resurrected Adam Warlock and aided by primal cosmic forces, Earth’s protectors enter cosmic warfare in a six-issue event written by Jim Starlin and featuring the art of George Perez and Ron Lim!”

HULK: FUTURE IMPERFECT

2015 teaser on the left, hardcover collected edition with Hulk: The End in the middle, and classic collected edition on the right.

Marvel describes the 1992 2-part Future Imperfect collected in the Hulk: The End hardcover as: “The testing of the first Gamma Bomb thrust upon Robert Bruce Banner led to what he would come to believe would be his greatest nightmare: his unwilling transformation into the Incredible Hulk. He believed wrong. Now, having been dragged into the future – into a post-holocaust, dystopian world – Bruce Banner discovers that his nightmare has a whole new name: the Maestro. This is a nightmare that only Hulk can end; for he knows that he himself is responsible for the presence of the evil Maestro. The future, our future, and the Incredible Hulk will never quite be the same. And neither will you.”

X-MEN: AGE OF APOCALYPSE

2015 teaser on the left, classic collected edition on the right.

Marvel describes the 1995 Age of Apocalpyse X-men event and storyline as: “In a twisted version of the world they knew, the X-Men battle against the eternal mutant Apocalypse as Bishop seeks to repair the timeline. Legion, Xavier’s own son, attempts to kill off all of Xavier’s enemies; however, when Legion attempts to murder Magneto, Xavier sacrifices his own life to save Magnus. As a result, Magneto casts off his anti-human sentiments and carries on Xavier’s dream of peaceful co-existence, thereby founding the X-Men.”

X-MEN: HOUSE OF M

2015 teaser on the left, classic collected edition on the right.

Marvel describes the 2005 House of M event as: “When the Scarlet Witch alters reality, the Avengers and X-Men face a world like none they’ve ever known! Writer Brian Michael Bendis and artist Olivier Coipel re-imagine the Marvel Universe with Magneto bringing mutantkind to prominence in an eight-issue event. As the only person who remembers how things used to be, can Wolverine set things right? Should he?”

PLANET HULK

2015 teaser on the left, classic collected edition in the middle, and animated DVD (Blu-ray and digital available too) from 2010 on the right.

Marvel describes the 2005 Planet Hulk storyline that began in Incredible Hulk: “After being exiled from Earth by the Illuminati, Hulk found himself on the planet Sakaar, where he was imprisoned and forced to do gladiatorial battle in the emperor’s arena. Hulk and his compatriots quickly rose through the ranks, and were soon approached by a rebellion that plotted to overthrow the emperor. Hulk declined, and the rebels were detained. But rather than killing them in the arena, Hulk helped them escape, and led his fellow gladiators to freedom.”

AGE OF ULTRON and VS. MARVEL ZOMBIES

2015 teaser on the left for, but Age of Ultron and Marvel Zombies were two separate events in the past and shown in middle below. At the far right are images from the next Avengers 2 film called Avengers: Age of Ultron set to hit theatres in May 2015.

Marvel describes the 2005 Marvel Zombies mini-series as: “Torn from the pages of ULTIMATE FANTASTIC FOUR! On an Earth shockingly similar to the Marvel Universe’s, an alien virus has mutated all of the world’s greatest super heroes into flesh-eating monsters! It took them only hours to destroy life as we know it – but what happens when they run out of humans to eat?! Follow their search for more food, and witness the arrival of the Silver Surfer!”

Marvel describes the 2013 Age of Ultron event as: “For years, the Marvel Universe has lived in fear that the artificial intelligence known as Ultron would one day wipe out all organic life and take over Earth. That day has arrived! The impossible has happened, and Ultron rules the planet! As the few super-hero survivors who remain try desperately to stay alive, Luke Cage learns the staggering secret of Ultron’s victory. And when a near-broken Captain America leads a ragtag counterattack, Wolverine makes a controversial and desperate decision — one that creates a new Marvel Universe, and inadvertently brings horrific disaster with it! With one final chance, can the heroes fix everything and defeat Ultron? “

CIVIL WAR

2015 teaser on the left, classic collected edition on the right.

Marvel describes the 2006 Civil War event as: “After a horrific tragedy raises questions on whether or not super heroes should register with the government, longtime Avengers teammates Captain America and Iron Man end up on opposite sides of the argument! Writer Mark Millar and artist Steve McNiven split the Marvel Universe in two as friend fights friend in one of the most celebrated and successful events of all-time!”

OLD MAN LOGAN

2015 teaser on the left, classic collected edition on the right.

Marvel describes the 2008’s Old Man Logan storyline in Wolverine as: “Nobody knows what happened on the night the heroes fell. All we know is that they disappeared and evil triumphed and the bad guys have been calling the shots ever since. What happened to Wolverine is the biggest mystery of all. For 50 years, no one has heard hide nor hair from him…and in his place stands an old man called Logan. A man concerned only about his family. A man pushed to the brink by the HULK GANG. A man forced to help an old friend—the blind archer, HAWKEYE—to drive three thousand miles to secure his family’s safety. Get ready for the ride of your life, Logan.”

AVENGERS VS. X-MEN (A VS X)

2015 teaser on the left, classic collected edition on the right.

Marvel describes the 2012 Avengers vs. X-Men (A vs X) event as: “The Avengers and X-Men have learned that the all-powerful embodiment of both death and rebirth known as the Phoenix Force is on a crash course for Earth and it needs a new host to unleash its immeasurable power. But what is the shocking decision tied to the Phoenix’s return that will pit the Avengers against the X-Men? And when good friends become bitter enemies, what does this mean for the future of the Marvel Universe?”

Any thoughts on what these All-New Marvel Now Summer 2015 teasers will play out as mini-series and/or on Battleworld?

Thanks for reading. All feedback welcome.

John is a long-time pop culture fan, comics historian, and blogger. He is currently the Editor-in-Chief at Comics Nexus. Prior to being EIC he has produced several column series including DEMYTHIFY, NEAR MINT MEMORIES and the ONE FAN'S TRIALS at the Nexus plus a stint at Bleeding Cool producing the COMICS REALISM column. As BabosScribe, John is active on his twitter account, his facebook page, his instagram feed and welcomes any and all feedback. Bring it on!