How 'Secret Wars' Could Reboot The Marvel Cinematic Universe
Image Source: CultureSlate
Ever since the Russo brothers revealed Avengers: Secret Wars, fans have been wondering how much the movie will reflect the comics. There have actually been two Secret Wars events in comic history. The first comic was released in 1984. Three decades later, the second Secret Wars was released in 2015, and many fans are taking clues from the later comic in anticipation of the movie.
In the 2015 comic, incursions in the multiverse led to just two realities remaining, Earth-616 and Ultimate Universe Earth. However, both these realities are on the verge of colliding. In this situation, the destruction of either Earth would destroy the other as well since the two universes sit in close proximity to each other. To solve this issue Reed Richards constructs liferafts to preserve the next generation. The liferafts arrive at a place called Battleworld, controlled by Doctor Doom who has convinced the residents of this universe that he is their god.
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The Earth-616 life raft houses Peter Parker, Carol Danvers, Jane Foster’s Thor, Star-Lord, a Phoenix Force-powered Cyclops, Black Panther, and Reed Richards. The Ultimate Universe liferaft contained that universe’s more villainous Reed Richards, Thanos, Black Swan, Corvus Glaive, Maximus, Proxima Midnight, Namor, Terrax, and Miles Morales who had secretly stowed away. The residents of Battleworld consist of Sheriff Strange, a Thor corps mae of the multiverse’s Thors, and Molecule Man, who acts as a conduit for Doctor Doom’s power. The arc culminates in a fight between Richards and Doom when they both finally agree that Richards would have done a better job. Molecule Man then transfers Doom’s powers to Richards and resets Battleworld.
Image Source: Comic Book Herald
While Marvel still has to complete multiple steps to bring this version of the multiverse to the big screen, the clues are there. Some fans believe this iteration of Secret Wars will be adapted to the MCU because most of the cast are already present in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Another clue comes from Multiverse of Madness, where the end credits scene reveals an incursion as the result of Strange’s adventure through the alternate realities.
The casting of Robert Downey Jr. as Doctor Doom and the title of the preceding film Avengers: Doomsday point to him being the main villain. With the addition of several heroes including Loki, Monica, America, and Wanda traveling the multiverse, all signs point to Avengers: Secret Wars being an adaptation of the 2015 comic’s plot.
While the MCU is heavily inspired by the comics, not everything is entirely accurate to the comics as film is a much different medium. While 2015’s Secret Wars could be told over several issues released over an extended period, the film is limited to a few hours shown all at once. The movie also has to deal with the continuity of the MCU and some unfortunate real-life tragedies that accompany it. While the multiverse saga alleviates some of this pressure and allows characters to return from the dead, erasing the whole timeline would probably rub fans the wrong way.
If the film largely follows the plot of the comic, it could be a reboot without erasing the Sacred Timeline even if Earth-616 is destroyed. It could also allow Marvel to place the focus on individual heroes from different realities. This would allow Marvel for instance to bring Miles Morales to the big screen without tying the neighborhood superhero to some cosmo’s altering event or already established superhero. That was the chief complaint with Tom Holland’s Spider-Man arc as his journey was dependent on Tony Stark and he had been to space before his second movie outing.
Image Source: Newsweek
The switch to separate stories about superheroes may also bring more viewers to the theaters. The greatest strength and the greatest weakness of the MCU is how everything is connected. Even the most recent Captain America expected viewers to remember scenes from The Incredible Hulk, despite it being largely written off. While this strategy has a large payoff for longtime fans, newcomers feel like they have to sit through hours of television and film to understand what’s happening. Some refer to this suggested watching as homework and give up on the MCU altogether.
If Secret Wars does establish a Battleword or a similar arena, it could serve as a setting for future Avengers projects where heroes from across the multiverse gather for some important mission, and then return to their respective unaltered realities to continue their individual arcs. This could be the best of both worlds as it would give fans the hero team-up they enjoy while allowing newcomers to join the fun without needing to watch over 70 hours of television and film to bring them up to speed. The connected films brought the MCU much success but it comes with the cost of a convoluted story that encourages some new fans to stay in the dark. Secret Wars could be the key to convincing those fans to hop on board.
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