More Post-Secret Wars Wishes & Expectations + Which Ones I’ve Gotten Right So Far

So, back in February, I made a list of 10 things I either expected to happen in the post-Secret Wars Marvel Universe, now referred to as either the NEW MU or All-New, All-Different Marvel, or what I simply hoped might happen. Well, four months and a birthday later (yeah, I turned 30 on June 3rd, much to my dismay at now officially being ‘old’), I looked back on what these wishes and expectations were and which ones I got right. So, let’s take a look at these first before I go through a few more.

#1 – Wolverine Brought Back

CONFIRMED! According to recent banners for the All-New, All-Different Marvel, Old Man Logan is apparently gonna be a part of this new universe…which hopefully doesn’t result in us having to see the incestuous children of the Hulk and She-Hulk from his universe (EW), but nonetheless should result in some interesting scenarios. And, in addition to him being back, my other request was confirmed as well, since not only is X-23 sticking around, but she might be inheriting the position of Wolverine from him. I’ll get back to her later, though.

#2 – Tony Stark Becomes Good Again

CONFIRMED! On top of that, he seems to be the new flagship character for this new age. Of course, as I’ve mentioned before, this leaves us with more than a few questions, but it could prove to keep things interesting, at least.

#3 – Ms. Marvel Sticks Around

CONFIRMED! Not only is she sticking around, but she’s having a team-up with Captain Marvel, and is joining the Avengers! Also, Ms. Marvel #1 is getting reprinted AGAIN in September (which I believe makes at least 8 times now) with a bunch of #1 issues of female led comics. 😀

#4 – A New Young Avengers-like Team Book

…Ehh, not exactly. I mean, the new Avengers team kinda has shades of it, in that 3 members are teenage inheritors to legacy hero titles, but I wouldn’t really call it a team that specifically focuses on teen superheroes. In fact, the more I learn about the Young Avengers (because I didn’t read the book, which I admit is totally my bad), the more I realize that team needs to be brought back with them picking up where they left off.

#5 – Miles Morales Stays

See Ms. Marvel. In other words, CONFIRMED! lol Also, apparently, while Spider-Gwen will apparently be keeping her Earth, she’s apparently gonna be doing some dimension hopping between her world and the mainstream one, so expect some team-ups between the two.

#6 – One More Day Reversed

…Maybe? Looks like they MIGHT be, but I don’t really know yet. We’ll see. And speaking of which, I heard someone suggest that the reason Iron Man is being made Marvel’s flagship character is because, for the longest time, Spider-Man was considered the guy in Marvel, the most recognizable hero in their roster of characters, their answer to DC’s big name heroes like Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman, and it would be inappropriate for them to have him be their guy when he made a deal with the literal devil of their universe. And granted, that WOULD be a reason to lessen his overall importance and position in Marvel, but considering he’s being replaced with the guy that cloned his believed-to-be dead friend to hunt down superheroes for the oh-so-terrible crime of wanting to keep their identities a secret, mind wiped Captain America to cover up his own crimes, and basically screwed over his world by perpetuating the idea that they could stop the incursions when he knew it was outside of their ability to do, something he admitted to being a liar about, I somehow doubt that’s the case… … …Seriously, I hope that this new take on Tony Stark takes steps to see him make up for all of these terrible things. If I may be allowed to get up on my soap box for a second, I WANT to like Iron Man. I NEED to like Iron Man. We need a character like him to be on the heroic side of things. And the same goes for Spider-Man. I need to know that this guy can look back on what he did in One More Day and legit say to himself “…I screwed up. HORRIBLY.”, and then work to make up for what he did, really take responsibility for his actions. We need heroes who can do more than just save the day when called upon. We need heroes that, when they make mistakes, will learn from their mistakes and spend everyday afterward making up for them and never do it again.

#7 – A Simpler History

Not confirmed yet, but hopefully, we’ll get some simplification, particularly where it relates to Jean Grey and the Phoenix.

#8 – Old Heroes Retaking Their Mantles

Actually, if anything, DISPROVEN, at least for the moment. Sam Wilson is still Captain America, Jane Foster is still Thor, and it looks like we might even be getting MORE of these, as X-23 looks to possibly be taking up the mantle of Wolverine, and there’s been rumours afloat regarding a new Hulk…which, combined with news that the possible future evil Hulk known as Maestro is gonna be sticking around, makes me concerned as to what’s happened to Bruce Banner, and wonder if She-Hulk might just need to use that cure on him after all.

#9 – The A-Force

CONFIRMED, thank goodness! 😀

#10 – Character Histories Merged

Not really confirmed yet, but we’ll see. In fact, I’d be very shocked if Miles is the only survivor of the Ultimate Universe, with characters from that world becoming merged with their counterparts… … …Seriously, I can’t stress this enough: Fuck Marvel Universe Aunt May, Ultimate Universe Aunt May is AWESOME. XD

Soooo, yeah, about half of them confirmed, four of them still up in the air, and one that’s actually been thankfully disproven… … … … …Let’s try my luck with a couple more! ^_^

#11 – X-23 Joins The All-New, All-Different Avengers

During Marvelous May, I made a list of possible recruits for the All-New, All-Different Avengers…I can’t believe I didn’t add Laura to that list. And right now, with the reveal of her in the Wolverine costume, I think the odds are better than ever that she might be joining this team, unless she’s otherwise too busy with the Wolverines (assuming they’re still around post-Secret Wars) or the X-Men (because I would assume that, as the apparent successor to the Wolverine lineage, the X-Men would WANT her on the frontlines of their team). And, before anyone points it out…again, I am aware that Logan didn’t want Laura to become Wolverine and live the same life that he did. Well, first off, that didn’t stop Dick Grayson from becoming Batman for a time. And secondly, honestly, I think most of us knew she would eventually take up the role of Wolverine if Logan was unable, because, as his clone/adopted daughter (which I just realized how weird that must sound to non-comic fans, lol), she’s a lot like him.

#12 – The Return of Otto Octavius

I think the end of Spider-Verse pretty much made it obvious that this was gonna happen. The second he realized he was gonna disappear and that Peter would retake control of his body, it was clear he was setting up plans to orchestrate his later return. Now, the question remains, will he come back as the Superior Spider-Man, or as Doctor Octopus? Honestly, and I know I’m gonna take flak for this…I think he should continue to wear the Superior Spider-Man costume and have those powers. It makes him a bigger threat. Hell, let’s go one bigger: What if evil Tony DOES wind up being his own separate character from good Tony post-Secret Wars? Could we possibly see a Superior team-up?

#13 – The Fantastic 4 Taking A Break

While I suspect the team won’t up and vanish, it looks like the individual members might be doing their own things for a while, with Thing joining the Guardians of the Galaxy and Human Torch helping out the Uncanny Inhumans. And again, I know a lot of people suspect that, because Marvel Studios doesn’t own the rights to Fantastic 4, they’ll just phase the team out completely, but I honestly don’t believe that to be the case. Still, don’t be surprised if the team takes a break from the spotlight for a little while, at least AS a team. Although, in the absence of the Fantastic 4, we could be seeing more of the Future Foundation.

Anyway, I think that’s all for now. Let’s see what happens when Secret Wars ends before I look back on these again or make any more. In the meantime, lemme know what you guys think of the odds of the predictions that are still up in the air happening, how things are developing overall for the NEW MU, and if there are any predictions you guys have too. Ja né!

A More Detailed Analysis of the All-New, All-Different Avengers

…So yeah, once again, we’re talking about the new Avengers team. And btw, if you’re looking at the cover for the Free Comic Book Day issue and NOT hearing the Avengers theme from the movie, you’re doing it wrong. lol But yeah, with the team scaled down to seven, it seems the members are selected both for being legacy heroes and for having a wide array of varying powers and abilities. And honestly, I think that’s a good move. So, let’s take a look at what each member brings to the table, and how they might relate to one another, starting with someone the team wouldn’t be complete without…

Sam Wilson, AKA Captain America

While the original Captain America, Steve Rogers, wasn’t one of the original five founding members of the team, the legacy of Captain America is such that it wouldn’t be Earth’s Mightiest Heroes without him. And let’s face it, folks, regardless of if this is permanent or not, regardless of if Steve will ever regain the supersoldier serum and his youth or not, Samuel Thomas Wilson has proven himself as worthy stand-in for the role. As such, him being in this team is a must. However, despite currently acting as a leader for the Mighty Avengers, he hasn’t really done so for very long, which could prove an issue when it comes to being a possible contender for leader of the All-New, All-Different Avengers.

In any case, Samuel is a master acrobat and aerialist, which he makes perfect use of with the wings carried over from his old Falcon persona. Also assisting him in the sky is his pet bird, Redwing, with whom he had a telepathic link to (though Redwing MAY have been killed in a recent issue of All-New Captain America). He’s also been trained by Steve Rogers in a number of different martial arts styles when action needs to be taken to the ground. His body has been taken to the peak human range, able to press about 480 pounds. And, as is a must for anyone carrying the name of the iconic hero, Sam also wields Captain America’s shield, which is made out of Vibranium and thus able to absorb immense kinetic energy, making it near-indestructible. After one of the few occasions where that near-indestructibility was tested a bit too much, though, the shield was rebuilt using the mystical metal, Uru, making it stronger than ever. If that metal sounds familiar…well, the next Avenger on this list wields a weapon made from the same stuff.

Thor, the Goddess of Thunder

“Whomsoever holds this hammer, if he be worthy, shall possess the power of Thor”. That WAS the inscription on Mjolnir, the mighty hammer wielded by the God of Thunder, Thor. However, recent events have led to the inscription reading “if SHE be worthy”. Personally, I would’ve gone with the less gender specific inscription of “if THEY be worthy”, especially since this isn’t the first time a woman’s held the hammer, but regardless, the point stands: The new Thor is a woman. We don’t know WHO yet, but whoever she is, she’s proven so talented with Mjolnir that even Thor Odinson has given her his blessing and his name. The only real problem she has going into joining the Avengers is that she appears a bit inexperienced as a team player. Despite this, she does appear heroic-minded, and is most certainly one of Earth’s Mightiest Heroes.

As I said before, Thor wields Mjolnir, a weapon made by the dwarven blacksmiths Eitri, Brok, and Buri, who used the core of a star as the mold. The star later went supernova, almost destroying Earth, and may have been the resulting force for what killed the dinosaurs. In addition to being a weapon composed of Uru and possessing immeasurable strength and durability, it also comes complete with a number of abilities. Thus far, the female Thor has demonstrated that she’s gained superhuman strength and can lift 100 tons for sport, can channel electricity with or without the hammer in her grip, can survive the vacuum of space, possesses chronokinesis, is near-invulnerable, and possesses immunity to all Earthly diseases and infections. And, as the chosen wielder of Mjolnir, she is the only one who can lift it, can summon the hammer to her hand from anywhere, and by tossing it and holding onto the leather thong, she can use it to fly at the speed of sound. Also, this Thor apparently possesses finer control over the hammer while it’s in flight than Odinson, even from a long distance. This is likely due to her apparently higher levels of self-restraint, able to keep a tighter focus than the former God of Thunder in battle. She may literally take every aspect of the former Thor and improve upon them all. However, she also has the same weakness as the enchantments involving Don Blake and Eric Masterson: Prolonged separation from the hammer will cause her powers to slowly fade. In order to maintain her maximum potential, she has to remain in direct contact with Mjolnir. But, considering her mastery over the hammer in such a short amount of time, this is a relatively small weakness to have, as she may prove to be the single most powerful of the new Avengers team.

The Invincible Iron Man

Here’s where there’s kind of a big question mark present. Granted, it wouldn’t be the only one on this team, but I’ll get to that. As readers of the current Marvel product know, Tony Stark was inverted in the event AXIS. Basically, he’s more or less a villain now, although how you could tell considering some of his behaviour over the past few years (starting Civil War, mind-wiping Captain America, etc.) is a bit in question. However, the Iron Man suit on the cover is clearly in the old school hot rod red and gold, as opposed to the chrome Superior Iron Man. So, either he’s been reverted to normal, which could lead to more than a bit of discomfort and mistrust on the team for various reasons, or Secret Wars has brought back an earlier Tony Stark, one who didn’t do any of the crap his more recent incarnation has been responsible for, which could lead to Superior Iron Man being the old school evil twin scenario…which could be interesting, honestly. Of course, one other possibility is that it’s not really Tony in the suit, which would fit the trend of the others being newer characters stepping into old shoes. Personally, I’m kinda hoping for Pepper, since then the gender ratio of the team would be a bit more even.

Regardless of who is in the suit, anyone who has read the comics or watched the movies has a decent idea of what to expect. Repulsor blasts, flight capability, enhanced strength, is airtight so he can survive underwater and in space, and will likely have a vast number of hidden weapons and equipment installed. And, assuming it IS Tony under the suit…well…

Vision

This is where the other question mark on the team is. Vision’s personality and overall sense of self can differ, depending on current programming on his brain patterns. And since I’m not reading Uncanny Avengers, I don’t really know much about his current persona. However, if it’s kept unique from past versions, it would help to contribute to the theme of this team: Recognizable names and costumes, new personalities/characters. Regardless, Vision has nonetheless proven time and again to be a key component to any Avengers team, and can work his way into any gathering of heroes easily enough.

Vision’s abilities have generally been pretty consistent, so we can expect him to have his hyper-intelligent brain, capable of analyzing and processing information at the speed of the world’s greatest super computer and possess superhuman reflexes, can absorb solar energy and release them as energy beams, and has the ability to alter his own density to fly, turn intangible, become hard as diamond, or lift anywhere from 50 to 90 tons. Also, he can adjust and alter his vocal processor, optical scanners, and audio tuners, and can even use holograms to make himself appear human. Despite this, he’s not invincible, as there are those in the Marvel Universe with superior strength and speed to his. And while his brain is extremely fast-working, he HAS been shown to be capable of being distracted, which can be a problem. Also, despite not being human, he was once shown to be knocked out by a drug………Yeah, not sure how that worked. o.O

Sam Alexander, AKA Nova

Probably the member I’m least familiar with. I don’t really know much of anything about the Nova Corps, other than them being intergalactic police officers, keepers of the peace and upholders of justice. I do know that Samuel Alexander is a teenager, one of three on the new Avengers team, and has been an official member of the Avengers since December, though he’s on probation for going after Kluh (basically, think the Hulk, only even more powerful and rampaging……YEAH, seriously) alone. So yeah, he can be a bit headstrong, over-confident, and still has a bit to learn about being part of a team, but he’s got a good heart, and the potential to be a great Avenger. Also, apparently he was named after Jeph Loeb’s son, who died of bone cancer when he was only 17.

By putting on his helmet, Sam gains access to the Nova Force, a near-limitless source of energy. Different members of the Nova Corps can harness different levels of power from it, depending on their rank. As a centurion,  Sam can lift up to 20 tons, possesses limited amounts of telekinesis, can fire concussive energy blasts in beam and sphere format, possesses a sort of cosmic awareness, can fly at seemingly physically impossible speeds, and can instantly translate any language to English, though he also knows some Spanish and Morse Code on his own. However, his strength and speed do have limitations, as proven in his fight with Kluh, who very nearly killed him, and has apparently left him suffering from a memory disorder, so that could be a problem for him.

Kamala Khan, AKA Ms. Marvel

The superheroine that I will not shut the fuck up about. XD So, I’ll make this quick: Kamala might be the newest and most inexperienced member of the team, which could lead to more than a bit of a problem, as is her HIGHLY over-protective family, but she’s a quick learner on the job, and has already proven herself time and again as a hero. And, because of a previous team-up she was a part of, I’m sure her and the last member on this team should work well together. Also, as an Inhuman, she can work well as an ambassador between the two groups, and I’m sure could likely call in support from a certain giant teleporting dog with superstrength that’s come to her aid more than once.

As one of two members of the team who can’t fly, Ms. Marvel nonetheless has no problem getting around. Given that she can alter her body to any size and shape that she wants, she could literally walk across whole city blocks in less than a minute. Of course, being able to shrink and grow to any size also makes her a nice stand-in for other size-changing Avengers like Ant-Man and Wasp, and being able to stretch out any body part means they won’t need to call in Mr. Fantastic anytime soon (thank goodness). She can even change her appearance to look like other people, meaning she could be a covert infiltrator if she wanted. Lastly, she has an accelerated healing factor, having once recovered relatively quickly from being shot. That said, this ability comes with a handicap, as she can’t use her other powers while healing, and the more she uses it, the less malleable her cells will be for a while, hindering her polymorphic powers, so she still needs to be careful on the job.

Miles Morales, AKA the Ultimate Spider-Man

The last member of the All-New, All-Different Avengers, Miles is a member of the Ultimates. However, considering the rather bleak future of his world with Secret Wars rapidly approaching, it seems the Ultimate Spider-Man has managed to make it into the new Marvel Universe as a member of Earth’s Mightiest Heroes. Despite being one of the youngest Marvel heroes of all time, Miles has nonetheless proven himself as the replacement of his world’s Peter Parker, instilled with the same sense of responsibility and possessing a lot of the former Spidey’s creative and calculating mind.

Anyone who knows Spider-Man has a general idea of what to expect when it comes to Miles’ main abilities: He has superstrength, agility, durability, and reflexes. He can stick to and walk across walls by reversing his own electron attraction, and can swing from structure to structure using the web shooters worn on his wrists passed down to him from Peter. And, of course, he possesses the Spider Sense, which grants him omnipresent detection of his surroundings, and seems to have greater potential than even Peter’s due to the genetic enhancements done to the spider that bit him. However, despite this, he’s not as good at being able to recognize and respond to threats detected by the Spider Sense just yet, and while he’s picked up quite a bit of fighting skill just from watching tapes of his predecessor, he’s otherwise had no formal martial arts training. To counter-balance this, he has two abilities unique to himself: He can blend himself and his clothes into his surroundings as a form of invisibility, and he can use the Venom Blast, a paralyzing touch with varying levels of effectiveness on different opponents (apparently works best on opponents with genetic alterations to their body). As such, anyone who only has knowledge of the more well-known Spider-Man abilities can be caught off-guard in a fight with him, which is how he even managed to defeat the mainstream Peter Parker in a fight after their first encounter led to a bit of a misunderstanding.

Anyway, that’s the magnificent seven members of the All-New, All-Different Avengers. Got any thoughts or opinions on this team, or other heroes you’d maybe like to see join later on? Lemme know in the comments below, and let’s see how everything turns out on Free Comic Book Day. Ja né!

Meet the All-New, All-Different Avengers

Well, doesn’t look like we’ll have to wait for May after all. Ladies and gentlemen and others, I present the All-New, All-Different Avengers. 🙂

So, going by this, the team consists of Ms. Marvel (Kamala Khan), Ultimate Spider-Man (Miles Morales), Nova (Sam Alexander), Vision, Captain America (Sam Wilson), Iron Man (Tony Stark?), and Thor (we’ll find out in a month or two). So clearly, several big changes to Marvel’s roster, particularly their big names, are sticking for some time to come. The one big question mark, however, is on Iron Man. Currently, Tony Stark is evil, having been inverted by the events of AXIS, and wearing an all silver suit. So, the question now is, does Tony become a good guy again and ditches the Superior Iron Man suit, or is someone else wearing the hot rod red and gold? Also, one has to ask about Miles. If he’s on the Avengers as Spider-Man, what does this mean for Peter? Has he retired, or are they both operating as Spider-Man?

Regardless of the answers to these questions, this nonetheless looks to be a great, well-balanced, and powerful team to be representing Earth’s Mightiest Heroes. Now, for those out there that are screaming and accusing Marvel of pandering, insisting that we bring Steve Rogers and Thor Odinson back, and that the others are little more than Marvel trying to make a buck and stuffing various minorities down our throats, I have a piece of advice: Think about how the real world works. And I know, Marvel comics take place in a world very much unlike the real world, but we the readers don’t have that. We live in a world with multiple races, religions, and nations. Marvel is trying to reflect that very real fact. They’re trying to be more inclusive to various minorities. That’s why we have a female Thor, an African-American Captain America, a Pakistani-American Ms. Marvel, and a Black Hispanic Spider-Man. And besides that, if I know Marvel, this won’t be the ONLY Avengers book out when Secret Wars ends, so don’t be surprised if we see another one that DOES have Steve Rogers and Thor Odinson on the team. But yeah, ultimately, this is about change. Will this change be permanent? Who knows? But for now, these are the faces of the Marvel Universe. And ultimately, it’s like Superboy once said: “It’s simple. Either get on board, or get out of the way.”

Anyway, that’s my two cents on the new Avengers team. What do you all think, though? Lemme know in the comments below, and let’s all at least be willing to give this team a chance to impress us come Free Comic Book Day. Ja né!