What Is Marvel Secret Wars?
Throughout Marvel Comics history, Secret Wars has held a lot of significance. With its extraordinary characters, fascinating stories, and grand-scale battles, the Marvel Universe has always captured the imagination of fans all around the world. Join us as we embark on a thrilling journey through the mysterious realms of Secret Wars, What is Marvel Secret Wars all about, what happens in Marvel Secret Wars, and discover how it contributed to shaping the Marvel Universe.
What Is Marvel Secret Wars All About?
What is Marvel Secret Wars about? Marvel Secret Wars is a crossover storyline published by Marvel Comics several times throughout its history. In addition to the 1984 version, there was also a 2015 version of Secret Wars.
A cosmic entity known as the Beyonder played a central role in the original Secret Wars storyline. A Marvel superhero or supervillain is transported to Battleworld by this entity. To determine the ultimate victor, the Beyonder pits these characters against one another.
The heroes and villains of Battleworld form alliances, clash and face a variety of threats. The series explores the interactions and conflicts between popular Marvel characters such as Spider-Man, Captain America, Iron Man, Thor, the Hulk, Doctor Doom, Magneto, and many others.
The 2015 Secret Wars event was a major crossover event that redefined the Marvel Universe. In this storyline, multiple parallel universes called the Marvel Multiverse collapsed, and the survivors were brought together on a patchwork planet called Battleworld by a powerful being called God Emperor Doom. Battleworld was composed of different domains, each representing a different alternate reality or timeline.
The series showcased the clashes and alliances between various Marvel characters from different universes, leading to epic battles and intricate storylines. It also featured the reimagining and merging of different timelines and continuities. This resulted in significant changes to the Marvel Universe and the creation of the current status quo.
Marvel’s Secret Wars is known for its sprawling cast of characters, high-stakes battles, and exploration of complex themes such as power, morality, and heroism. It has had a lasting impact on Marvel’s comic book continuity and inspired subsequent storylines and events.
What Happens In Marvel Secret Wars – It’s History
Action figures and comic books were the starting point for Secret Wars
Jim Shooter, Marvel’s then Editor-in-Chief, created Marvel Super-Heroes Secret Wars, which we’ll simply refer to as Secret Wars from here on out. The X-Men and Daredevil were among the hits he brought to Marvel comics in the 1980s. The DC Comics license had recently been lost to Kenner by Mattel Toys. When Mattel launched its Super Powers action figure line, the Marvel brand wanted a version on its own.
For Mattel to secure the license, Shooter had to develop a series around which a mass-market toy line could be built. The words “Secret” and “Wars” are popular among young boys, so Shooter came up with a concept. The story of a battle for the ages that combines most of Marvel’s biggest characters in a remote, secret world, is told in 12 parts. This led to the creation of Secret Wars comic books and an action figure line.
Beyonders and Battle Worlds in Secret Wars
As a result of Shooter’s decision to write the series himself, he created Battleworld, a planet created by the Beyonder, an omnipotent cosmic force. Among the heroes and villains from Marvel’s most famous characters, there was a battle between the forces of good and evil, which would consume the whole world. There was a contest between virtue and malevolence, and the ultimate victor would determine which of them was stronger.
Heroes would betray their comrades and allegiances would shift. It is natural for villains to betray one another, like when Doom did it. It’s like an old Star Trek episode straight from the ’60s. The only Marvel game that had nearly all of its classic heroes was this one. Among the notable absences were Daredevil, Doctor Strange, Namor, the Scarlet Witch, and the Vision.
A true event series, Secret Wars was the first in comics
Comic book history begins with Marvel Secret Wars, which was published a full year before Crisis on Infinite Earths. Crisis was announced in 1982 (though it had already taken place). Crisis #1 hit the stands right after Secret Wars’ last issue. Although the story was pretty straightforward, it was packed with cool twists, like Doctor Doom’s last-minute ploy to usurp the Beyonder’s powers, making him the true “Big Bad” of the story. The cosmic battle with Marvel’s biggest characters wasn’t the deepest story, but many readers loved it. The Infinity Gauntlet and Civil War paved the way for what was to come.
Even though Secret Wars was a relatively simple story, the Marvel Universe was affected by it for years to come. Titania, a new Spider-Woman, Julia Carpenter, and several other characters were introduced in the series. As a result of this series, Magneto was rehabilitated from an X-Men villain to an occasional ally. As for the biggest change of all, Venom, introduced in Secret Wars #8, became Spider-Man’s new black costume — the same one introduced in Secret Wars #8. In terms of sales, Secret Wars exceeded every Marvel comic released up to that point in 25 years. It was hated by critics, but loved by fans. In a surprising turn of events, Marvel’s Secret Wars toy line was largely a failure. However, the comic remains a classic.
Marvel Secret Wars II
Having succeeded with Secret Wars, Jim Shooter set his sights on something even bigger, better, and more awesome. It didn’t take long for Marvel’s Editor-in-Chief to agree. Shooter wrote the sequel to Secret Wars the following year because that’s the thinking that drives pretty much all of the entertainment industry. Secret Wars II was less of a hit than the original, mainly due to the fact that event comics weren’t available and superhero toys were hard to find.
In Marvel Secret Wars II, The Beyonder was once again featured, but this time he visited Earth in order to gain an understanding of humanity. The Secret Wars II core comic was centered on the conflict between the Beyonder and Earth’s defenders, whereas tie-ins focused on confrontations between The Beyonder and solo heroes. It is admirable that Shooter is striving to frame his story as an analysis of a godlike individual from a psychological perspective. There was however a great deal of bloat in Secret Wars II that prevented it from performing as expected. Furthermore, there was no sense of conflict in the story because the Beyonder merely wiped memories and revived dead characters in an attempt to reverse the damage caused by his actions. It didn’t help matters either that the Beyonder had a terrible hairstyle from the 1980s.
For nearly 30 years, this resulted in the end of the Secret Wars franchise. A 2004 miniseries titled Secret War, singular, was unrelated to this series. It was well worth the wait for Secret Wars to return in 2015, exceeding all expectations.
Marvel Secret Wars 2015
During Marvel Secret Wars 2015, the backstory of the Beyonder played a crucial role. He had been a member of an entire species of beings who had omnipotent powers. To destroy the entire Marvel Multiverse, these Beyonders set out with a plan. As a bomb in each universe, they wanted to use Molecule Man, a man capable of manipulating matter at a molecular level. In multiple universes, Doctor Doom tried to prevent the Molecule Men from exploding by killing them before they could. Incursions, a collision of realities destroying one reality, had unintended consequences. The story revolves around these Incursions.
Multiple storylines intertwine and span the build-up to Secret Wars, as well as Secret Wars itself. At the beginning of the story, the Illuminati work to prevent the Incursions, which threaten to destroy the Earth in alternate realities before the universes collide, by destroying it in the alternate realities before they can collide. Also, Namor, who left the Illuminati after disagreements, founded the Cabal, which mirrors the Illuminati. In addition, Marvel Comics created a universe called the Ultimate Universe to explore alternate storylines to the Earth-616 canon, where Earth-616 gets invaded by the Ultimate Universe. For Secret Wars to take place, several pieces had to come together.
As a result, Doctor Doom manipulates the Beyonders’ power to destroy them. The Multiverse, however, could not be saved by him doing so. The remnants of the destroyed realities are populated with the new world Battleworld that Doom creates with the usurped Beyonder power. A coalition of Earth-616 and Ultimate universe survivors overthrow him in the end.
Avengers: Secret Wars
Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame have been praised as two of the best media crossovers ever, so it is easy to see why fans are looking forward to a Secret Wars film. The Avengers: Secret Wars film is currently in development and will hit theaters on May 1st, 2026. In the Marvel Cinematic Universe, this will be the sixth film to feature the Avengers.
With the inclusion of the X-Men and The Fantastic Four, the movie could potentially be even grander than the two-part MCU story. As well as bringing together many popular villains, a faithful adaptation would treat fans to a brand-new experience. In 2024, Thunderbolts will be released and it will feature many previous MCU villains. In the MCU, all the members of the team are antiheroes rather than villains, so that doesn’t count.
In terms of storyline, Avengers: Secret Wars probably won’t be inspired by the original comic book. First of all, it appears that Jonathan Major’s Kang the Conqueror is the big villain of MCU’s “Multiversal Saga.” Kang is introduced in Loki, but in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, the full force of Kang’s power will be unleashed. Therefore, introducing the Beyonder in one of Marvel Studios’ final Phase 6 movies would be strange. There is no doubt that the Secret Wars film will make Kang responsible for the multiverse conflict, rather than riffing on the original idea. Aside from that, it won’t be possible before the next Avengers movie to introduce the X-Men.
Another recurring theme of Phase 4 is facing different versions of yourself, which means our heroes will fight different versions of themselves in addition to villains. Spider-Man: No Way Home, WandaVision, Loki, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness all featured this.
It wasn’t until Marvel Studios spent time making sure we cared about the hero’s fate that Infinity War and Endgame became major hits. It doesn’t make any sense to introduce a huge cast of characters at the last minute just so you can stay true to the comic books. Marvel Studios is probably going to concentrate primarily on the new heroes introduced during Phase 4, along with a few Variants, and make sure Battleworld resembles the classic comic book story without being constrained by it.
Phase 5 offers a better understanding of what Marvel Studios is trying to accomplish with the “Multiversal Saga.” In addition to the introduction of Kang as the main villain, it also features multiple events reminiscent of the Civil War. Among the plots of Secret Invasion is the discovery of a Skrull conspiracy that includes people and heroes posing as Skrulls. In Armor Wars, multiple MCU heroes will confront Tony Stark’s legacy (Robert Downey Jr.). The crossover will be seen in theaters for the first time because Armor Wars is so important for MCU’s future.
Even though Battleworld is still a long way off, the pieces of the ultimate superhero war have already begun to fall into place. Marvel Studios should try to outdo itself by making Infinity War and Endgame even more memorable.
Final Thoughts
With Marvel’s announcement of Avengers: Secret Wars, which will be released in 2026, fans may be wondering what to expect. Various alternate realities collide in Marvel Comics’ Secret Wars event, the most anticipated crossover event of the year. On a mysterious patchwork planet called Battleworld, heroes and villains from different timelines and dimensions battle for survival and power. Known for its epic stories, character interactions, and high-stakes battles, the event has captured the hearts of fans. Fans can expect more exciting announcements from Marvel Studios in the future, so staying updated is a good idea.
