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Even without an issue of Secret Wars proper this week, the news coming out of Marvel regarding the event has been overwhelming. Get a snack and relax as we inform you on all the big new coming from the publisher about the event from the last two days — it’s kind of a lot!

1. Get ready for the ‘THE FINAL WAR.’

This morning CBR debuted the brand new new solicits for the publisher where Thanos stands in what seems to be the pit introduced in Secret Wars #2 with a solicit reading reading: THE FINAL WAR! I think this Alex Ross cover has my attention…

2. Something is happening…8 Months Later?

AS IF that wasn’t enough for you, Marvel also announced on Newsarama yesterday that their books after Secret Wars are picking up a full 8 months after the big event! It’s interesting to hear that Marvel is billing 8 months as their mysterious number. Fans already got a taste of the Marvel Universe 8 Months Later with the Free Comic Book Day Avengers story. Sneaky! The House of Ideas went onto to state that A-Force and Weirdworld are continuing after the event (AWESOME!) Maestro, Mrs. Deadpool & The Howling Commandos, and Uncanny Inhumans will all be part of the new Marvel Universe (reboot?) So let’s look for the reboot publishing initiative in Fall 2015.

3. Uncanny X-Men #600 Delayed!

Uncanny X-Men #600 has been delayed until AFTER Secret Wars. That’s huge news as Marvel has been seeding some massive plot developments for Cyclops in Secret Wars that need to be addressed in Bendis-written titles eventually! Uncanny X-Men #600 has been delayed into October, and it is the last X-Men title written by Bendis.

The author commented on the story through Tumblr: the Internet is half lying to you. It is not shipping in October because I am a massive spastic fuck up. it was bumped until after secret wars for editorial and commercial reasons. not my call. this was marvel. but they have their reasons.

4. Mike Zeck is getting an Artist’s Edition with a Secret Wars reprint.

Finally, the extremely important 80’s Marvel artist Mike Zeck known for a little story entitled Spider-Man: Kraven’s Last Hunt, and an obscure comic called Secret Wars first published in 1984 is getting an Artist’s Edition featuring his Marvel work called: Mike Zeck’s Classic Marvel Stories: Artist’s Edition.

The author said the following about working on the original Secret Wars with Jim Shooter via this comment with CBR: I didn’t think much about that at the outset, but when issues started hitting comics outlets, it became evident that it was “a big deal with a lot of attention!” Deadline pressures and other elements made the work less enjoyable than some other projects but [it was] definitely worthwhile in the end. “Secret Wars” totally succeeded in bringing attention to Marvel comics via the series and the toy tie-ins. I always hear from fans at conventions that it was “Secret Wars” that prompted them to start reading comics. Very gratifying.

Writer:

Jonathan Hickman

Artist:

Esad Ribic

Colors:

Ive Svorcina

Letters:

Chris Eliopoulos

• WHEN THE MARVEL UNIVERSE IS GONE, ALL THAT REMAINS IS BATTLEWORLD!
• LEARN THE SECRETS OF THIS BRAVE NEW REALM IN THIS SPECIAL OVERSIZED ISSUE!

Well folks…that’s how to write an event comic.

Secret Wars #1 had so many plot threads to tie-up that it didn’t really have a chance of being a good story in it’s own right. After all, the series opened with the direct continuation of the really interesting plot thread from New Avengers #33 — a story that a lot of Secret Wars readers probably never looked into. The issue even bookended with that same plot point, but in a manner that is likely set to alienate new readers. Even those that are familiar with the first series (from the 80’s) or have read previous Secret Wars comics may not have recognized the new forms that the Beyonders took in the story. With that, comes Secret Wars #2, a story that shifts the Marvel Universe into a brand new place. Without giving away too much, I would like to say that this installment is about Battleworld. Somehow the Marvel press train actually managed to skirt more than a couple surprises about this story that are hidden from even the most astute readers.

The Marvel Universe is gone and Battleworld is now here, but everything else about what is inside the new Secret Wars issue #2 remains a shroud of wonderful mystery. Author Jonathan Hickman bends the mythology of the Avengers franchise, and once again mixes and matches everything he has created into a beautiful mess here. All the pieces already established in Avengers and New Avengers are rearranged in this issue, which is full of characters forming new relationships with each other that feel ancient. When Jim Shooter first ushered in the original Secret Wars series, he did so with pride, promising some lofty goals. Where that series eventually devolved into mindless fighting — this Secret Wars saga promises something else via this issue.

Sure new status quotas, characters, and relationships, are something frequently seen in the Marvel Universe — but this exact world has new things to say about characters.

LIGHT SPOILERS: One such example of these new things are the way that the Thor characters all have different relationships amongst themselves and with others. Yes, there are a ton of people with hammers arranged in this issue — but that doesn’t mean everything about surprise of the heroes’ own mythology is known to the reader.

Thankfully, this inversion of the original premise makes the actual saga of Avengers (the 2012 volume) less relevant. For some fans, that might be a let down, but this new Secret Wars needs to last and be burned into the mythology of the Marvel Universe. If everything about this comic sounds incredibly complicated — that’s because it is — however, this issue did the right thing by averting expectations and shifting pieces off of the board. The main criticism of the tale is that it just should have been the first issue. Confusing readers with context about a threat that they are unfamiliar with is not the good for the average fan. If any new reader is interested in this saga, hand them this second issue first. It will avoid some questions that will lead to trouble further down the round.

This tale is also much more suited to the art of Esad Ribic now. His depiction of Doctor Doom is nothing less than terrifying. The opening scene calls for a certain type of emotion that proves why Ribic can be counted among the best in the industry. Ive Scorcina’s color palette is also a haunting and beautiful. Secret Wars has an expansive scope that is perfectly explored within this tale. Key moments of action retain the fluidity necessary of great comics while still evoking the cerebral line work and sheer beauty of what Ribic is depicting in this comic.

Never before have I seen an event series so confident in it’s own ideas — as Hickman packs the story with loads of Marvel mythology in a king-sized ration. There are but a few plot threads tethering this story to our version of Marvel reality, but this story is meant to be witnessed through the eyes of the outsider, purposefully alienating the reader. For a Marvel comic filled with explosive wonder look no further than this week’s Secret Wars #2. Hickman and Ribic create mythology of lasting impact in Secret Wars #2.

Secret Wars #1

Writer: Jonathan Hickman

Artist: Esad Ribic

Color:Ive Svorcina

Letters: Chris Eliopoulous

Publisher: Marvel Comics

The time for talking and teasing is over, Marvel’s “mega game changing” event Secret Wars is upon us. Now, it’s time to see if the real thing can possibly live up to the hype. Free Comic Book Day gave readers a zero issue that served as a primer for anyone not caught up on current events in Avengers titles. Issue one of Secret Wars marks the real kickoff of the collision between the Marvel universe we’ve known for more than 75 years and the Ultimate universe launched back in 2000. With a lot of ground to cover we’ll keep it short and major spoiler free.

The opening chapter isn’t so much about the Battleworld or fighting Beyonders as it is a reckoning of the cataclysmic incursion between Earth-616 (regular universe) and Earth-1610 (ultimate universe). Before Secret Wars, writer Jonathan Hickman had set a chain of events in motion during his Avengers run where alternate universes could only survive annihilation by destroying other universes. It all gets extremely lightly touched upon in the opening through the dialogue of the evil Reed Richards from the Ultimate universe, but doesn’t explain all the events leading up to the end of the worlds. Hickman instead made this first issue a massive Marvel fight between Ultimate Nick Fury’s forces and the Avengers of the regular Marvel U. In the midst of battle, the good Reed Richards (616) attempts a last ditch effort to gather essential people on Earth to his life raft (that’s literally what they called it) in order to continue the human race once doomsday obliterates everything. The end of issue one is where the meat of Secret Wars battle for reality begins, but we’ll have to wait till issue two to see how things really take shape.

An action packed story relies heavily on an artist who can cinematically capture it all. Esad Ribic’s work in the book is solid. The scale of the lens readers witness events through is massive and his panel layout choices move everything along at a break-neck pace. He does sacrifice fine detail in the drawings, but fortunately doesn’t skimp on the small details in the panels particularly the impact moments. Where the visual really pops is in the color work of Ive Svorcina. It brings out such a distinction in the contrast of the 616 and Ultimate universe that adds the much-needed definition between the sides in battle. Marvel’s AR app also gets a really great workout from the art in the book, if you haven’t used it, make sure you download it for this series.

Overall, enjoyment of Secret Wars #1 is fragmented and where you find yourself depends on how closely you follow Marvel books. If you’ve been following Hickman’s Avengers titles then this series is a can’t miss payoff for your loyal reading. However, Marvel’s ambitions for Secret Wars went far beyond that audience. The publisher didn’t spend a year bombarding us with –teaser after teaser– and –press announcement after announcement– just to solely reward Hickman’s core audience. A highly touted PR campaigned combined with the timing of releasing right after the Avengers: Age of Ultron film hit theaters meant Marvel wanted to bring in everyone who’s ever read or even thought about picking up a comic book to buy this book. In this regard they didn’t make issue one as new-reader friendly as it should have been. If you haven’t been reading Avengers routinely then your level of indulgence from reading Secret Wars will depend on if you can accept the premise of this book without knowing the intricate moves that initiated it.

Having not finished the most recent issues of Avengers, I found myself scratching my head at some of the exposition all the different factions represented here are having in their conversations. However it didn’t dramatically hinder my enjoyment of the action and tension Secret Wars #1 was filled with. When you compare Secret Wars to DC’s Under the Dome; Marvel is making up serious ground. Though DC’s Convergence had more emotion in their opening; the current slow pace isn’t doing it any favors. While Secret Wars doesn’t quite live up to the hype, Marvel opened it with action movie like entertainment, and sometimes that’s all you really need to get hooked.

Note: Though we can’t talk about the tie-in series just yet. It’s important to note that after reading some of those #1s, Marvel is so far keeping to their promise of keeping Secret Wars main series as the only one you need to read. Check back later today and we’ll post a code for a digital copy of Secret Wars #1

Marvel’s A-Force #1 from G. Willow Wilson and Marguerite Bennett with art from Jorge Molina features a stable of the publishers mightiest female heroes — and Captain Marvel punching a shark. The comic takes place during Battleworld in the upcoming Secret Wars event, which see’s nearly every Marvel character converging (haha) on one singular planet. The warriors attempt to defend their section of Battleworld, and Marvel notes that they have to fight off a mysterious horde. Nestled in the preview art is a mysterious woman in the back of the roster (five points to anyone who can figure out who she is in the comments!) The title includes a large roster of characters including familiar faces like She-Hulk, Spider-Woman, Rogue, Dazzler, Phoenix, Pixie, Captain Marvel, Medusa and more. The new comic is set to debut at local comic shops on May 20, 2015 at a $3.99 price point. Cover artists include Jim Cheung, Jorge Molina, Stephanie Hans, Russell Dauterman, Adam Hughes, and more. Thanks to CBR for the preview. More importantly, Captain Marvel punches a shark in this comic…you’re welcome.

A-FORCE #1 (MAR150665)
Written by G. WILLOW WILSON & MARGUERITE BENNETT
Art by JORGE MOLINA
Inhumans 50^th Anniversary Variant by ADAM HUGES (MAR150666)
Variant Covers by RUSSELL DAUTERMAN (MAR150667) STEPHANIE HANS (MAR150668)
JORGE MOLINA (MAR150669) and SKOTTIE YOUNG (MAR150670)
Blank Variant Also Available (MAR150671)
FOC – 04/27/15, On-Sale – 05/20/15
As the Secret Wars begin, the Avengers as you know them are no more – and a new team will lead the way! In a secluded corner of Battleworld lies Arcadia, an island nation fiercely protected by a team of Avengers the likes of which has never been seen before!
So who are the Marvel powerhouses taking center stage? “She-Hulk, Dazzler, Medusa, Nico Minoru and other fan favorites, will take charge,” says series co-writer G. Willow Wilson. “We’ve purposefully assembled a team composed of different characters from disparate parts of the Marvel U, with very different power sets, identities and ideologies.”
And there came a day unlike any other, when Earth’s Mightiest Heroines found themselves united against a common threat. Fighting to protect the small sliver of their world that’s left, they stand tall, shoulder-to-shoulder, ready to take on the horde. Ushering in a new day with a rallying cry heard across Battleworld – A-FORCE ASSEMBLE!

Rounding out Marvel’s Secret Wars themed panels was “Warzones” and to do this editors Jake Thomas, Jon Moisan, and Nick Lowe were joined by James Robinson, Marguerite Bennett, Dan Slott, and Dennis Hopeless.

The presentation kicked off with Rick Remender’s Hail Hydra, a series that shows a piece of the Battleworld where Hydra rules all. It’s a book that does those things creators always want to explore but never could in exploring a world where evil always triumphs.

Marvel then announced a new series, Hank Johnson, Agent of HYDRA, which will be written by Curb Your Enthusiasm executive producer David Mandel with art by Michael Walsh. It features a cover by Amanda Conner. The book is billed as an everyman who just so happens to work for the most villainous organization on the planet.

Dennis Hopeless moved into his book, Inferno. “Inferno has been raging for five years and it’s like Colossus in ‘Escape From New York,’ said Hopeless. Art was shown from the book that featured Colossus squaring off against an army of demons. The group also touched on his other book, House of M.

Lowe then talked about Infinity Gauntlet. Gerry Dugan is reinventing the cosmic side of the Marvel U for Secret Wars. He’ll tell a new story about the culmination of all the Infinity Stones (yep there calling them stones). Lowe also praised the work of series artist Dustin Weaver.

Old Man Logan was up next as the panel showed off interior artwork. The story is more of a continuation than a retelling as the book will deal with trying to dethrone all the super villains who’ve taken over. Bendis was eager to take on the story to try and one-up original writer Mark Millar.

Nick Lowe talked a bit about the 2099 universe and how Peter David’s book, Secret Wars 2099, was one of the first stories to be solidified for Secret Wars. He teased the appearance of characters we know and characters we’ve never seen, but also that the series could move into post Secret Wars Marvel.

A-Force interior art from Jorge Molina appeared, featuring high-flying action including Captain Marvel. The showing was a crowd favorite and writer Marguerite Bennett talked about the cast which features Dazzler, She-Hulk, Medusa, Nico Minoru and a new character named Singularity.

Planet Hulk was brought up and the group talked about how brutal the series is shaping up to be. The book will see all the Hulks gathered on a patch of planet called “Greenland”. Writer Sam Humphries also cast a gladiator Captain America that’s thrown right in the middle of all the savagery.

Another tease for the Spider-Verse series was given by Dan Slott. The book which is written by Mike Costa will feature Arana, Spider-UK, Spider-Man India, Spider-Ham, Spider-Man Noir, and Spider-Gwen. It’s an over-sized continuation of what Slott set up at the end of Spider-Verse.

Slott then moved into Spider-Man: Renew Your Vows. The writer gave more details about the series, “This is Peter in a world where he is father, husband, hero — in that order. That will change everything.”  He made it even more intense by revealing that Peter Parker will be putting on the Black Costume once again.

Some interior art was shown from Skottie Young’s Little Marvel:AvX. The pages showed a glimpse of a battle between baby Archangel and Falcon. The group then briefly mentioned other series such as 1872 and Squadron Sinister before James Robinson talked a bit about Armor Wars. In the part of the Battleworld called Technopolis, everyone who wants to survive has to wear a suit of armor. A murder mystery unfolds when one character finds out the cause of the illness that’s confined their world. The writer also made it clear we’d see just about every incarnation of Iron Man armor that’s come before in addition to some new ones.

Not many new details were given for Years of Future Past and Mrs. Deadpool and the Howling Commandos. However, Lowe did bring up Guardians of Knowhere, a book that will again bring the creative team of Bendis and Mike Deodato. The duo is “reinventing” the location for Secret Wars and will see a new villain that has a future beyond the event.

Captain Marvel and the Carol Corps was brought up. The book is written by Kelly Sue DeConnick and Kelly Thompson featuring art by David Lopez. Not many new details were given about the story but the group talked about how blown away they were by Lopez’s pages.

The big reveal of the panel was Howard the Human, a tie-in book by Jim Mahfood. It’s a book that takes place in an all animal version of the Marvel U with influences from films such as Roger Rabbit and Cool World. Even the city is taken on a new identity, “New Quack City”.

With Secret Wars right around the corner, has Marvel’s announcements and hype machine got you any more excited for their upcoming “Nothing will ever be the same” event?

The second of Marvel’s Secret Wars themed panels focuses on “Battleworld”. Senior Editor Nick Lowe was joined by James Robinson, Joshua Williamson, editors Jake Thomas and Jon Moisan, and Secret Wars writer Jonathan Hickman.

Nick Lowe kicked off the panel by asking Jonathan Hickman to describe the main “Secret Wars” book. The event is the culmination of his grand design for his Avengers run. Hickman also praised his artist Esad Ribic as Lowe showed off pages from issue #1. Pages which featured characters locked in battle. When Hickman was asked to talk about what happens in the opening, he answered by quipping, “Everybody Dies.”

Next up Lowe showed the covers for Inhumans: Attilan Rising, which will be written by Charles Soule with art by John Timms. Soule himself described the book as “in-line with Casablanca.” The cast of characters include an all-new version of the Hulk, Undead G-Man, a Ghost Rider, and Mega-Rad.

Lowe transitioned into Ultimate End, written by Bendis with art by Mark Bagley. Lowe talked about wanting to keep secrets about these series so the twist and turns will have the emotional impact intended. (Maybe don’t start talking about post Secret Wars before the event begins)

More details emerged about Master of Kung-fu from the team of Haden Blackman and Dalibor Talajic. It takes place mostly in K’un-Lun, but in this alternate version of the mystical city, everyone is a martial arts master. This part of Battleworld has several schools of martial arts taught by alternate versions of their characters; including aBlack Panther School, a Spider-Man School and a White Tiger dojo. An underground tournament between all determines who runs this part of Battleworld and Shang-chi will have to go up against his own father. It was mentioned that Talajic is a martial artist and has been waiting years to do a story like this.

In keeping with the fight theme the group talked about the Secret Wars: Battleworld anthology series. The first issue will feature a story by Williamson about a Doctor Strange-powered Punisher fighting a demonic Fantastic Four. Editor Moisan teased more outlandish battles such as Blade fighting Howard the Duck, Egyptian Silver Surfer will take on a crocodile version of Abomination, and old West Deadpool fightingDevil Dinosaur.

Williamson talked a little bit about Red Skull. His book has a version of the character that is supposed to be dead and his influence is still felt in the realm. A group of heroes will enter the deadlines to either verify the rumors or kill the Red Skull.

Next up was Secret Wars: Journal. The series will be a place for parts of Battleworld that don’t have a series of their own. One of Kevin Wada’s covers shows Kate Bishop from the ‘1602’ universe where she is a Robin Hood-esque figure.

The group touched on Thors, but not much was given outside of a bit of art. It’s the series most fans and critics are excited for, especially featuring the art of Chris Sprouse. (Can someone do a Too Many Cooks/Thors mashup?)

James Robinson talked about Marvel Zombies vs. Age of Ultron. The series is about a pocket of humanity in the middle of a war between the undead superheroes and Bendis version of elements of the Age of Ultron. Robinson described it as, “mayhem, violence and black comedy, but there’s also these characters that love each other trying to survive.”

As the presentation started to run long Lowe quickly ran through the other Marvel Zombies book, along with covers for Ghost Riders, and Star-Lord and Kitty Pryde.

Thomas talked about Siege by Kieron Gillen. The series will have three double-paged spreads drawn by guests artists. It’s premise is about a part of the Battleworld called “the Shield” which is attacked by Ultrons and Zombies. The cast which includes versions of Scott Summers, America Chavez, Kang and the 1602 Kate Bishop are forced to be on the wall defending this part of the planet.

The presentation portion ended with the newly announced Secret Wars: Secret Love. It looks like Marvel is going to dive back into romance comics with the cover featuring Ms. Marvel and Robbie Reyes. Creators involved include Katie Cook, Michel Fiffe, Felipe Smith, Jeremy Whitley, and more.

Strange that this title got a Battleworld banner. Now we hope one of these stories mimics the song “Love is a Battlefield” or when they did it on South Park.

Sunday morning, the third part of these Secret Wars panels wraps things up with “Warzones”.

Marvel is bringing their Secret Wars to the second city all weekend at C2E2 2015. Kicking things off are the “Last Days” of the Marvel U. To talk about these events the publisher assembled Dan Slott, Ryan Stegman, Al Ewing, Dennis Hopeless, editor Jon Moisan, and Charles Soule.

The presentation kicked off with Ms. Marvel #16, which sees the return of artist and Kamala Khan’s co-creator Adrian Alphona on art duties, with co-creator and series writer G. Willow Wilson leading the young Ms. Marvel into her biggest adventure yet of her very brief superhero career. We already know that the young Kamala is part of the All-New All-Different Avengers post Secret War, this arc could however change the direction of the character for the future.

Magneto #18 will begin his journey through his last days arc. The group gave few new details about what we’ll see but did mention Sugarman will be a part of the arc. All the characters we’ve seen in the series will be uniquely affected by the incursion.

Image Credit:
Marvel

A sliver of Black Widow was shown as the group teased issue #19. Her story will feature the character in the present while still showing the beginnings of Natasha’s story. We’ll see one of her most horrible moments during her Red Room days. It looks to be a very emotional last days for Black Widow.

The Punisher’s last days will see the character pushed to his end physically and emotionally. As the entire run will culminate in this story, the team is going all out with balls to the wall action. Now it seems that the series could be ending to make way for a possible new series written by CM Punk.

Al Ewing talked about Captain America and The Mighty Avengers. His goal is to break as many hearts as possible. As he talked about when the announcement was first made, his story will look at the world crumbling around the team. It’s a story told from the readers point of view.

Image Credit:
Marvel

Loki: Agent of Asgard #14-15 will see scores settled between the gods of Asgard in a total war ignited by King Loki. The writer teased a returning element from the Simonson run that will blow readers minds.

Dan Slott in typical fashion played with the crowd by asking if everyone was worried about what will happen post Secret Wars. Jokingly, according to him it’s all “GONE!” He’ll continue working with amazing team of Mike and Laura Allred on the last days of Silver Surfer. He did drop a few tidbits about the upcoming arc. Surfer will survie in the void and be given the power to recreate the universe. This arc will examine the question about what to do with infinite power.

The group announced Ant-Man: Last Days #1, which goes on sale in August. Scott Lang will be teaming up with a golden age hero we’ve already seen but don’t know the identity of. Last Days of Ant-Man will not be a new series but instead just a one-shot with the creative team of Nick Spencer and Ramon Rosanas.

You can watch all the C2E2 goodness through lifestream on their website here. 

Marvel announced via Hero Complex, what will hopefully be the final announcement of Secret Wars tie-in books. Secret Wars: House of M will be written by by Dennis Hopeless and illustrated by long-time X-Men artist Kris Anka.

The series set in Battleworld! will follow the premise of “if House of M never ended” and will focus mostly on the ruling family of Magneto, Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver. It could also mean the continuity changes of Mageneto no longer being their father will be put to the side for the sake of the book. Other mentioned characters in the series include Fing Fang Foom and Namor.

Writer Dennis Hopeless teased a bit of what we’ll see, “The original House of M is about the Avengers waking up in and then bringing down this Magneto dream world. Secrets were revealed, the family was torn apart and Wanda depowered most of the mutants on Earth,” says Hopeless. “Our story is a different thing altogether. This House of M is alive and well. Magneto, Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch have the kind of complicated relationships you’d expect amongst members of a ruling family but their world isn’t crumbling around them. They drive each other nuts for all the normal reasons.”

House of M was also the last announcement among the books that were teased at the end of last year.  Though it doesn’t necessarily mean Marvel is done trying to jam more books into an already overcrowded week.

No official date was given for the book.

Are you hoping we’ve seen the last of the announcements? If you HAD to pick one of the tie-ins to read which would it be? Has Marvel sold anyone on the $500 Secret Wars bundle?

In 2005, few believed that a modern re-launch of the BBC adventure series Doctor Who would be successful. The show broadcast it’s last episode just before Christmas, 1989 after running for 27 years. In reviving the show for a new audience, the casting of Christopher Eccleston was a masterstroke, as the actor was known for his more serious roles in both television and film. Eccleston burst onto the scene as the Ninth Doctor, grabbing former pop-star Billie Piper’s hand and telling her to “run!” Eccleston parted ways with the show after only one season, something never done before or since in Doctor Who history. This left fans of Eccleston’s Ninth Doctor hungry for more. When Titan Comics announced they’d be releasing new Doctor Who comics,  fans reportedly stuffed their email inbox with pleas for the release of a Ninth Doctor comic series.

We spoke with Cavan Scott, writer of the new Ninth Doctor Comic series about what it was like to bring Nine back to life in a new story featuring fan favorite companions Rose Tyler and Jack Harkness.

Edie Nugent:  So, first question: why did you choose this particular moment in the Ninth Doctor’s timeline for your story?

Cavan Scott: For two reasons. First of all, it seemed the only natural gap in the series. Most of the episodes lead straight into each other, like one continuous story. Here, between The Doctor Dances and Boom Town, we have a definite gap where lots of stories are said to have happened that we never saw. Handy!

Secondly, we wanted Jack in there, mainly because we never saw enough of the three of them in the TV show.

Nugent:  I had that thought instantly upon seeing where this story occurred: the fans will be so excited, because this group and moment were so popular.

Scott: Well, I hope so. They’re such a well-oiled machines when we see them in Boom Town too. They’ve obviously been adventuring together for some time.

Nugent: You have a lot of dialogue describing the “science” of the situation up front. Do you have a real interest in the science part of science fiction?

Scott: That question makes me smile because I have an ongoing ‘debate’ with Doctor Who book author Nick Walters where I insist that Doctor Who is fantasy and he throws things at me shouting that its science FICTION!

You know, in this case I didn’t even think about whether there was a lot of pseudo-science in the book. I was just trying to capture the tone of the original series, where they throw a lot of pseudo-science around. I think with Doctor Who, you need to make it sound plausible even if some of the science is dodgy!

Nugent: Nine is showing his most chipper self in this book, is that due to being flanked by the ‘dream team’ of Rose and Jack? Or has he just progressed in his emotional healing from the Time War by this point?

Scott: I honestly think that Doctor number Nine is chipper for the most of the time we see him – or at least he’s trying to give the impression that he is. A lot of people pigeon-hole him as an ‘angry’ Doctor, but he spends a hell of a lot of time smiling and even cracking really, really bad jokes.

Trust me, we’ll see his angry side as the book continues, but I wanted to show the fact that he is enjoying himself again.

Nugent: Sure, but there’s a real difference in tone here from, say, Dalek for instance, which is only 4 episodes earlier.

Scott: Well, the situation in Dalek is pretty grim. Certainly, we see a ‘lighter’ Ninth Doctor in The Empty Child to The Long Game. I think the resolution of The Doctor Dances would have helped as well. There we see the Doctor at his most optimistic. I definitely think he’s enjoying life with Rose and Jack.

Nugent:  This story had a real “hitchhiker’s guide” feel to it, was that intentional?

Scott: Not at all! In fact, I didn’t realise it was there! Never a bad thing though, especially as Douglas Adams’ City of Death was apparently one of the templates for 21st Century Who.

I’m intrigued now. Which elements did you think were Hitchhikers-esque? (Is that a word? It is now)

Nugent: The story set up: they’re beamed into the hold of a sluggish and war-like race, scanned repeatedly to determine who they are, then saved from death only to be sentenced to it a moment later. Reminded me of Ford & Arthur’s first stop after hitch hiking off the earth into the Vogon ship. No poetry from your war-bots though.

Scott: I think the Lect would be particularly bad poets. All those ‘Directives’ and ‘Possibilities’ in their speech patterns will never touch the soul!

Nugent: Your credits are so diverse–was it exciting to be able to tell a self-contained, more adult television episode-style story? Was your approach to the material different as a result?

Scott: It was. In a lot of ways writing the comic was similar to writing Doctor Who audio plays, definitely when I was structuring the plot for all five issues, I went about it the same way as my audio work, working out the big set pieces, working out where the cliffhangers sit.

But – and this is a huge but – the fact that it’s a comic has left me giddy with excitement. Writing a long-form American style series has been a dream for me ever since I first picked up a Marvel UK reprint back when I was a kid.

Nugent:  And what comic was that, do you remember?

Scott: I do. It was Marvel Superheroes Secret Wars issue one. I knew superheroes from TV and films and, even though I was a massive comic fan, it was largely British humour weekly titles. That first issue of Secret Wars literally changed my life, or at least my interests. It opened my eyes to the Marvel universe, which led me venturing into a comic shop and seeking out US comics, both for Marvel and their Distinguished Competition.

Oh, and it had Alpha Flight as the back up strip which introduced me to John Byrne, who I became obsessed about!

Nugent:  That’s a lot of continuity to absorb for a first ever comic experience! Sort of like Doctor Who…

Scott: I think that’s what appealed to me. i like continuity and diving into new universes. It’s why I’ve been enjoying picking up the Valiant books recently.

Marvel’s Transformers comic was another major hook for me. Basically, the UK weekly soon ran out of original US material and so started slipping in extra stories between the US issues – which of course were part of the Marvel Universe too. And the Doctor Who universe for that matter, as Death’s Head first appeared in Transformers and then slipped into Doctor Who and then into the main Marvel U.

You’ll be sorry you asked me about that now! I could talk about this stuff for ages!

Nugent: Well, it is somewhat timely. Are you following the announcements from Marvel about the new Secret Wars? As a comic writer AND fan, you probably have different perspectives on it.

Scott: With a huge amount of nostalgia! I’m certainly intrigued to see what’s coming. The continuity geek in me is having a whale of a time spotting references in what’s been released so far. The writer in me is having heart palpitations about what they’re trying to pull off. I’m looking forward to it. I’m a sucker for these big game-changing events. Again, it’s John Byrne’s fault for Man of Steel!

Nugent: I noticed lots of moments in your story where Rose reaches for the Doctor’s hand & is pulled away. Is this an intentional after-the-fact foreshadowing of the separation from the Tenth Doctor in Doomsday?

Scott: Heh! It might just be. It might not be the last time you see that motif in the series either.

Nugent: So far you’ve written for Doctors: Three, Five, Six, Seven, Eight, Nine, Ten and Eleven. What Doctor would be your top choice to write for next?

Scott: Well, I wouldn’t say no for a chance to write for the current model – but really I’ve got a hankering to complete the set. In fact, I’ve written for another incarnation that I can’t mention yet. Spoilers!

Nugent:  Speaking of spoilers, are there any tidbits you can give our readers regarding events still to come in your Ninth Doctor story?

Scott: Well, there are going to be suns and romans and floating octopi and dinosaurs and masks coming off. And lots and lots of more great art from Blair!

Ninth Doctor issue 1 is available in comic stores on April 1^st.

Marvel held a fan panel for their upcoming Secret Wars event. Their big ECCC panel wasn’t an announcement dropper, but it did reveal some key information readers have been curious about. On the deus was C.B Cebulski, Rick Remender, Kelly Sue DeConnick, and Charles Soule. Moderator, Mike Marts jokingly asked Cebulski how he wanted to start things.

“Fight!” Remender chimed in.

Remender then jumped in to talking about Hail Hydra, his contribution to Battleworld. As we knew, the book will be about Ian Rogers being caught in a Hydra ruled world. Remender gushed about once again re-teaming with Winter Soldier collaborator Roland Boschi.

Soule was up next talking about Attilan Rising He compared it to Casablanca of all things. The writer talked about the book having a civil war in it and also taking part on the Civil War piece of battleworld where Captain America never surrendered to Iron Man.

“Aviation Porn” were the words used to describe DeConnick’s Carol Corps book. The intriguing part of the story is that there are no stars in Battleworld’s sky. This made for the interesting conflict of Carol wanting to go up to explore the sky while others wanted to keep her down.

The panel then opened up to Q&A:

It opened with a point many readers have been wondering about. With the current Marvel U ending what memories and continuity will be erased?

Cebulski made it crystal clear, everything that came before will still count. They stood behind their statement of this not being a reboot.

A fan asked about the Fantastic Four’s place in the Marvel Universe and if they’d been downplayed because of the movies?

Cebulsk defended the publishing position of the films not influencing the comics. He even revealed that there would definitely be a Fantastic Four book post Secret Wars.

The question of Secret Wars being used to undo the status quo of Wolverine, Captain America, and Thor was brought up.

Remender interjected, “What comes out of Secret Wars is secret but it will not undo the work we’ve done.” The example of female Thor’s success was given. Jason Aaron will be telling that story for as long as he wants because it stuck with readers.

Another fan asked about Miles Morales being the Marvel U’s main Spidey.

“Peter Parker is still going to be around, he’s not going anywhere.” Said Cebulski.

The last question was about a possible return for Richard Rider (Nova).

Mart’s answered by letting everyone know Duggan has more story to tell with the current Nova Sam Alexander.

The panel wrapped and no matter what Secret Wars is coming. Marvel did try to make it clear that if you want to skip the orbiting books and stick to the spine story; readers can do that. We won’t have to wait long to find out if that’s true as the event is rapidly approaching its launch date.

Are you relieved to find out Peter Parker will still be in the Marvel U? Do you buy that this isn’t Marvel’s reboot? Who do you want for your Captain America going forward?

Today Marvel dropped yet another piece of the Secret Wars. Dan Slott’s Spider-Island gets a piece of Battleworld. Secret Wars: Spider-Island  features a lead story revisiting the “Spider-Island” event by Christos Gage and Paco Diaz, and along with that is a secondary story featuring a return of not just Mayday Parker but the entire MC2 universe, with key creators Tom Defalco and Ron Frenz.

Gage says his lead story in Spider-Island is set in an alternate timeline where Spider-Queen won that day instead of being thwarted by Spider-Man. Spider-Island‘s secondary story featuring Mayday and the return of the MC2, it starts off with Mayday’s decision to transition from the name Spider-Girl to Spider-Woman.

SPIDER-ISLAND #1 & #2
Written by CHRISTOS GAGE & TOM DEFALCO
Penciled by PACO DIAZ & RON FRENZ
Cover by HUMBERTO RAMOS
· The Spider-Queen has turned Manhattan into an island of Spider-Madness and Peter Parker has lost, thanks to Spider-Scribe CHRISTOS GAGE (AMAZING SPIDER-MAN, SUPERIOR SPIDER-MAN) & rising star artist PACO DIAZ (WOLVERINE, SCARLET SPIDERS).
· With Spider-Man defeated and captive, does Flash Thompson, A.K.A. VENOM stand a chance?
· All this, plus visit the MC2 patch of BATTLEWORLD! Mayday Parker and her Spider-Family are back courtesy of classic Spider-Girl team TOM DEFALCO, RON FRENZ & SAL BUSCEMA!
40 PGS./Rated T …$4.99

Today, two more characters were revealed for the All-New All-Different Avengers. So far we’re 2 for 5 in our pool with the reveal of the Vision and Nova. It looks like Marvel isn’t going to wait till FCBD to show the new team off to the world. Expect the entire roster to be revealed within the next week.

Who do you think the remaining figures are and who do those glowing hands belong to? What about Spider-Island, ye or nay? Are there events left you think Marvel should revisit?

Instead of announcing another Secret Wars title, Marvel today opted to tease a bit more about their FCBD All-New All-Different Avengers issue. The cover follows the usual Marvel tease, which shows seven figures lunging towards a almost-unseen opponent. Five of the figures are blacked out in a way familiar to Marvel teasers, but two figures – Ms. Marvel and the female Thor are shown. “Who will be Earth’s Mightiest Heroes when the dust settles from Secret Wars? Find out here!” The issue has already been advertised to feature a back-up feature of Uncanny Inhumans by Charles Soule and Brandon Peterson.

Let’s start with the obvious shadowed figures. In the top center of the image is Sam Wilson (still Cap) and underneath him is a spidey silhouette but with this being “All-Different”, it’s most likely Miles Morales (If so, good for you Marvel!). Over on the left of the image we see an image shaped like a flying Japanese Motorcycle rider is probably Pepper Pots in her Rescue armor, or a female incarnation of Iron Man we’ll meet during Secret Wars. On the bottom right, the gauntlets and helmet point to Sam Alexander bringing Nova into these Avengers. Above him is probably the hardest figure to place. On first glance it looks like Dr. Doom flying with his cape comedically dropped over his head, but a few theories like Hyperion and Dr. Strange have made the rounds on the internet. In sticking with the concept of things we haven’t seen yet, I’d venture to say this could be some new incarnation of the Vision that’s going to be similar to what we’ll see in the upcoming Avengers: Age of Ultron movie.

All-New All-Different Avengers will be a FCBD offering in shops May 2, 2015.

Let’s hear your theories on who these new Avengers are? Does it seem wise to already show the new Marvel U before Secret Wars even begins? Will Marvel announce the end of this new universe before they even destroy the old one?

Marvel announced via Comicbook.com yet another new title debuting in July during Secret Wars. Ian, the adopted son of Captain America, will be starring in Secret Wars: Hail Hydra. The book written by Rick Remender and drawn by Roland Boschi will see the character transplanted from the 616 to Battleworld in a “fish out of water” scenario. He’ll face the dangers of a world run by Hydra.

Remender was coy when asked if current Captain America Sam Wilson would be making an appearance in the book, but did say fans would see characters from All-New Captain America alongside Hydra-fied versions of Marvel favorites. All this in a patch of Battleworld where Hydra has usurped the American ideal.

Remender also teased a little bit about what he’s doing post Secret Wars, “I’m working on the big post-Secret Wars project right now, and it allows me to give readers a very clear and true starting point with a beloved franchise. It enables me to pick and choose what I think are the most integral and exciting aspects of that property. Coming out of the other end of Secret Wars, I’ll have the opportunity to do things in a much cleaner fashion.”

No word on how long Hail Hydra will run.

As readers, are you excited for this latest Secret Wars tie-in or will you be skipping it?

We knew Marvel had to thin out their line for Secret Wars, the huge upcoming event from Jonathan Hickman and Esad Ribic, but the degree that the new tie-in miniseries and other books have been paused or moved of the way is slightly maddening. ComicBook.com broke the news yesterday of which books the publisher is cancelling or putting on hold during the Secret Wars. Marvel’s SVP of Sales & Marketing David Gabriel broke the news.

• All-New Captain America
• All-New Ghost Rider
• All-New X-Men
• Amazing Spider-Man
• Amazing X-Men
• Angela: Asgard’s Assassin
• Avengers
• Avengers World
• Captain Marvel
• Cyclops
• Deadpool
• Elektra
• Fantastic Four
• Guardians 3000
• Guardians of the Galaxy
• Hulk
• Inhuman
• Iron Fist: The Living Weapon
• Legendary Star-Lord
• Miles Morales: Ultimate Spider-Man
• New Avengers
• Nightcrawler
• Nova
• Rocket Raccoon
• Secret Avengers
• Spider-Man & The X-Men
• Spider-Man 2099
• Storm
• Superior Iron Man
• Thor
• Uncanny X-Men
• Wolverines
• X-Men

That’s 33 comics on hold for Secret Wars.

In addition, those Secret Wars banners may have been more important than we initially thought, as the books branded as having their Last Days are the ones that are coming to an end. “LAST DAYS titles are creators bringing their stories to their natural conclusions before the destruction of the Marvel Universe.” Then there’s Warzones – which is the stuff that the post-Secret Wars Marvel Universe is made of. “All of which are laying foundations for a new Marvel Universe.” The Battleworld books are the tie-ins, that’s why we have seen so many of those titles announced from the past couple of days.

“For example, during Secret Wars Amazing Spider-Man: Renew Your Vows is the “core” Spider-Man series. That should be pretty obvious considering Dan Slott is writing it.” During the event we are supposed to see the main titles as the Battleworld tie-ins (is that obvious though?)

Finally, Gabriel talked some numbers. “We’re going to surpass a half a million units on the first issue which is amazing. And that’s just selling straight to our Direct Market core retailers.”

Marvel announced, via EW, another Secret Wars tie-in that will change the course of one of their most controversial decisions. In what’s being billed as “The Last Spider-Man Story”, Dan Slott and Andy Kubert will bring back Peter Parker’s marriage and child in The Amazing Spider-Man: Renew Your Vows.

A lot of  information was teased in EW’s interview with Dan Slott, including possible returns of Eddie Brock and other classic characters from Spidey’s history. Here’s a few of the highlights:

“There are legions of Spider-Man fans that arepassionate about changes that have happened to Spider-Man continuity,” says Renew Your Vows writer (and current Spidey scribe) Dan Slott. “They are upset that the baby went missing, that the marriage went away. Spider-Man has been around for fifty years, and the marriage was around for twenty-five. So now we’re seven or eight years into a world without a married Spider-Man. It’s a big itch that people want scratched.”

“You haven’t seen Spider-Man’s classic villains the way you know and love—I wouldn’t be surprised to see Eddie Brock as Venom in this story,” teases Slott. “Or Sergei Kravinoff as Kraven the Hunter in this story. There’s going to be a lot of bullets in the gun for things you wanted to see in a Spider-Man story that you haven’t seen in a while. This is the ultimate classic feel. This is the last Eddie Brock story. The stakes have never been higher for Peter Parker because he’s never had so much to lose. So he has never been this close to the edge. And these are the Last Days.”

Renew Your Vows is set in a region of the world known as The Regency—it’s named for the mysterious villain behind this series. The book looks as though it will also give details to the future of the character post Secret Wars. Slott himself teased “elements from this story will go on into the next incarnation.”

Amazing Spider-Man: Renew Your Vows goes on sale June 3. Here’s the EW preview.

The start of a new week brings work, school, and yes more Secret Wars branded books from Marvel. Today Buzzfeed had the exclusive reveal as Marvel is set to bring the 1602 universe to the event with Asgard’s favorite assassin, Angela.

1602: Witch Hunter Angela brings the Neil Gaiman created character to the Neil Gaiman created timeline for a rewrite of some real world history. The series will be co-written by Kieron Gillen and Marguerite Bennett with main story art by Stephanie Hans. Also included will be five page backup stories drawn by various artist not yet named.

When asked for plot details Bennett had this to say, “Queen Elizabeth has been recently murdered, King James has ascended the throne, and throughout the entire country there’s a persecution of those who are considered witchbreed, which is the 1602 equivalent of mutants. We’re combining this history and this flourishing time of Western literature with the mythology of the Marvel universe.”

We’ll also be seeing new 1602 versions of characters such as Bucky Barnes and the Guardians of the Galaxy. No series length or release date was given.

Marvel announced today, via Polygon, the universe of the Fox kids X-Men animated series would be part of their up coming Secret Wars event. X-Men ’92 will be a digital first series featuring the creative team of writers Chris Sims & Chad Bowers with Scott Koblish on art duties. The series was listed as an ongoing, but no plot details were given.

X-Men Animated debuted in 1992 and produced 76 episodes over five years. The show’s booming popularity went hand in hand with Chris Claremont and Jim Lee’s record shattering X-Men #1, which lead to the over saturation of X-titles in the 90’s. But does anyone still have those Pizza Hut comics and cups?

This new Infinite Comic debuts digitally in May and will see print in June. It’ll be fun to see how the creative team closes the open loops the cartoon left behind such as Professor X still in space with the Shi’ar after being infected with the Legacy Virus.

Marvel revealed, via CBR,  yet another classic X-Men story would be coming to Secret Wars. Years of Future Past spins a new path from the Days of Future Past storyline of 1981. This new story explores what would have happened if Kitty Pryde had stayed in the Sentinel dystopia rather than travel back in time to prevent it. We also learned Battleworld will have a new patch known as Sentinel Territories.

The creative team for Years of Futrue Past consists of writer Marguerite Bennett and art by Mike Norton. Not many specific story points were given, but it was mentioned; fans of the original will see some changes to key players while seeing many of the original cast. The book launches in June and as with most of the other titles no word was given on how long the series will run.

Marvel announced two more Secret Wars tie-ins today respectively via their website and FastCompany. First, Marc Guggenheim and Carlos Pacheco bring the Squadron Supreme into the fold with a new series called, Squadron Sinister. The book brings brings back the original and much more villainous incarnation of the Squadron as seen in The Avengers #69 and #70 back in 1969.

The writer teased a battle between Squadron Sinister and a modern Squadron Supreme, which won’t end well for one of the groups. When Guggenheim was asked about the idea behind the series, he responded, “This series is really rooted heavily in the new politics of Battleworld, which you’ll really get more of a sense of in Secret Wars,” Guggenheim told Marvel.com. “Our guys live in a province called Utopolis which they rule with an iron thumb. Basically the ruler of Battleworld gives the barons of the provinces pretty wide birth, but at the same time, if you screw up the repercussions are pretty severe.”

Marvel also announced via FastCompany that the fan favorite combination of writer KellySue DeConnick and Captain Marvel would get a Secret Wars revamp in the form of a new series titled Captain Marvel and The Carol Corps. DeConnick will be joined by co-writer Kelly Thompson and artist David Lopez. The series pairs Carol Danvers with an all-female squadron of fighter pilots. Some of these characters will be returning faces from the Banshee Squadron team introduced earlier in DeConnick’s run. More than just an off-beat story orbiting the event, the book will dive into Carol Danvers past while putting her in conflict with forces all over the Marvel Universe.

Editor Sana Amanat acknowledged the books title as a nod to the groups of fans that have identified themselves as Carol Corps, “It’s really meant to be a celebration of all of the women, and not even just women, all of the fans who flock towards Captain Marvel and Carol Danvers, who are really saluting her while they’re reading about her at the same time.”

Both series will launch in June under the Warzones! banner.

Today via MTV News, Marvel announced a new Secret Wars tie-in. It was about time for Skottie Young to enter the Secret Wars fold with more than just a cover or two, what better title than Giant-Size Little Marvel: AVX #1.

Young will revisit the original one-shot parody he did post AvX. When asked about how the series would fit into Secret Wars the artist was coy in responding:

“Hmmm… There’s just so many SECRETS I don’t know what to say. (Giant Sized Little Pun.) I’m doing what I usually do with my Marvel projects and having fun over in the crazy kid’s sandbox. I wrote this whole series while turning on the TV, sitting with my 5-year-old son, putting on episodes of our favorite cartoons and listening to him pretend and laugh and act up. After a week of that, one of us was crazy… or both. But that gives you an idea of the tone of the book. It’s just a lot fun with the little trouble-making versions of your favorite Marvel characters.”

As with most of the recently announced tie-in books, there was no word on how long the series would run.

GIANT-SIZE LITTLE MARVEL: AVX #1
SKOTTIE YOUNG (w) • SKOTTIE YOUNG (a/C)
• The toughest, funniest, craziest and most adorable Marvel heroes THROW DOWN.
• Featuring all your favorites including Cyclops, Hawkeye, Black Widow, Wolverine! They’re all
there, just shorter!
• Skottie Young brings out the big guns in the series fans have been waiting for!

One of the more obvious teasers run by Marvel in the build up to announce Secret Wars was Dale Keown’s image of Peter David’s Future Imperfect series. Back in 1992, David and George Perez told the tale of a dystopian future where an evil version of the Hulk, known as Maestro, laid waste to the heroes of the Marvel Universe in the Incredible Hulk: Future Imperfect mini series. While he was killed in the  series by the Hulk we know, the character has recently appeared in Spider-Man 2099. Today, Hollywood Reporter announced that a new Secret Wars tie-in would revisit the world of the Maestro.

Set to release on June 3, Future Imperfect by Peter David and artist Greg Land will tell a stand alone tale of the Maestro wreaking havoc on Battleworld. David has also promised a big surprise when readers find out who’s leading the charge against this out of control monster, “I will tell you this: there’s a character in the series referred to as ‘the boss,’ a person who oversees the battle against the Maestro. I feel pretty confident in saying that no-one will be able to guess that person’s identity until it’s revealed on the last page.”

An interior page from the book was also displayed and shows a female Red She-Hulk. Though the writer would not say if the character was Betty Ross as in the current Marvel U.

It was also revealed today that the Maestro is officially the big boss of Marvel’s Contest of Champions mobile game. Currently available on iOS and Android the mobile fighter lets you build a team of heroes or villains as you fight through a tournament in the game’s own Battleworld. The game is free to download and actually is one of their more interesting titles for fighting boredom in convention lines.

You can’t have the end of the world without a few zombies. Earlier, Marvel announced Age of Ultron vs Marvel Zombies as a Secret Wars tie-in book. Today, Bloody Digusting announced a different Marvel Zombies in the never ending line of tie-in series. This book will feature the creative team of Si Spurrier (2000 AD) and Kev Walker (Magic: The Gathering). Marvel Zombies follows Nextwave veteran Elsa Bloodstone as she’s tasked with protecting a barrier part of the Battleworld known as “the Shield” from hordes of Marvel’s undead. All the while protecting her young companion and dealing with the memory of her father Ulysses Bloodstone.

In an interview with BD, Spurrier made it clear that while the story will center around Bloodstone’s internal and external obstacles there would be no shortage of horror fanatic zombie moments. Spurrier went into some graphic detail, “And hey, let’s not pretend that we don’t all get a bit of a kick out of simply seeing recognisable characters reimagined as decomposing cerebravores. That’s where Kev and I will get to cut loose on some fabulously icky visuals. Who doesn’t want to see a starvation-mad Sabretooth sucking up his own regenerating guts like spaghetti, or a zombie Carnage entirely composed of crusty bloodclots…? Fun.”

One thing more tie-in creators have been vocal about as of late is how much opportunity they’ve been given in these books to explore new things about both familiar and obscure characters. Instead of web like interconnectivity with the main event; it’s becoming more and more apparent that the majority of these tie-ins will have their own context readers can either pick up as separate tales or simply stay with the main Secret Wars book without feeling left out.

Marvel Zombies launches in June. It’s the second title to bare the Marvel Zombies name in Secret Wars, but no word on how long this series will run.

Wednesday, Comics Alliance announced another Secret Wars tie-in. This one will challenge the surprisingly fun to read Starkat couple. In Star-Lord And Kitty Pryde, writer Stan Humphries puts the pair in the middle of Battleworld, but things may not always be as they seem according to Marvel:

STAR-LORD AND KITTY PRYDE–finally in their own series together! But are they TOGETHER together?! And is this the Kitty Pryde that Peter loves or one from a completely different reality. This series takes place right in the thick of things on BATTLEWORLD and is sure to be a wild ride!

Humphries gave a minuscule amount of story detail in an interview with CA, “I can say that the Kitty Pryde of the title is actually the Kitty Pryde from Age of Apocalypse. I can say this story takes place on Battleworld. I can say it is an action romantic comedy with some big, huge moments between the characters. Emotionally and spiritually, this is the continuation of the Peter/Kitty relationship from Legendary Star-Lord — with a couple really huge twists you won’t see coming. Whatever is about to happen, Peter and Kitty won’t be able to go back to the way they were after this.”

With these characters coming full force into the event, it seems as though the current X-Men/GOTG crossover Black Vortex will have its own ramifications heading in to Secret Wars.

Star-Lord and Kitty Pryde launches in June with art by Marvel newcomer Alti Firmansyah, with the first issue cover by Yasmine Putri. It’s tremendous to see Secret Wars won’t just be about spotlighting obscure ideas, but also giving new talent a launching pad.

Marvel’s buffet of Secret Wars tie-ins just got weird. That’s really saying something when you consider the already announced titles that will be revisiting the publisher’s history or spotlighting obscure characters. Today over on EW, Marvel announced a new series that sounds like it came from Axel Alonso playing with his action figures, Age of Ultron vs Marvel Zombies.

The series, debuting this June, is by the recent All-New Invaders team of James Robinson and Steve Pugh, and will feature one of that book’s stars, Jimm Hammond, the original Human Torch. Taking place on the No Man’s Land part of the patchwork Battleworld planet, Ultron vs Zombies will see how the area becomes a prison of sorts for misfit continuities and battle rule breakers. Robinson described the off-the-wall premise of the story as, “Ultron sees his world as the epitome of perfection and the Zombies are the antithesis of that, so no they don’t get along at all,” says Robinson. “They war for whatever humanity they can find, with Ultron wishing to either control it or kill it and the zombies wanting to eat it.  They’re definitely at war.”

It’s shaping up as though Battleworld will be a place with severe consequences for the losers. Age of Ultron vs Marvel Zombies could potentially be the most fun Secret Wars tie-in to read. Readers will get a book that feels like it has weight in the event while seeing repercussions that may get overlooked in the main line. The series is set to debut on June 3 and was announced as an ongoing title. Although as of late in the Marvel Universe, ongoing just means it’ll get more than six issues.

In addition to the cover, a three page preview was also shown and you can see it all below.

Marvel’s Ghost Rider is a character inexplicably tied to the 1970’s. The best treatments of the character have embraced this silly premise of a dude with a fire-laced whip riding a motorcycle beating up dudes. The upcoming Ghost Racers storyline is mixing the character up with a few friends, but keeping in tune with the psychedelic 70’s roots of the hero. The tale is one of those wackier Secret Wars tie-ins along the tune of Where Monsters Dwell – a previously announced Secret Wars comic with dinosaurs and World War I. The upcoming Ghost Racers comic book see’s a horde of Ghost Riders from several different eras teaming up together to kick butt.

The relatively new Ghost Rider Robbie Reyes is confirmed to play a role in the story alongside author Felipe Smith. Juan Gedeon is tackling pencils for the series that’s launching in June. I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the fantastic cover for the comic illustrated by Francesco Francavilla. While the details on plot for the series are limited as of this moment, Smith went to Newsarama where the story was announced for a fantastic quote on how to depict the visuals of racing when writing for another artist in a static medium. This advice will really come in handy for authors looking to write excellent craft and fans interested in taking a peek behind the curtain of the process within comics.

I see this a lot in articles; people commenting on how hard it is to depict motion (and racing) in comics as a medium. I can’t say that I really agree with that statement [laughs].

But I guess the key to doing it correctly is the pacing of your panels, the sizing and distribution of them across the page, and what moment of the described action you chose to depict visually.

The amount of things you choose to show and not show in a sequence is what determines how quickly the reader’s eye moves through the page and goes to the next one.

Races (and successful action) are fast-paced, and the key is guiding the reader’s eye quickly through the sequence, and then slowing his eye down during certain moments for visual payoffs.

Ghost Riders launches in June.