The One Word In ‘Multiverse of Madness’ That Teases The Future Of The Universe

A comic panel displays a wide array of multiverse heroes engaging in combat.

WARNING: Multiverse of Madness spoilers ahead! 

Now that the sequel to Doctor Strange has had time to marinate in our minds, let’s talk about that singular word that tells us what our heroes might be in for down the road; “Incursions.”

While Marvel Studios Phase Four has told stories all over the place and injected each movie into different parts of the timeline, many fans have been eager to know what the next event to bring our favorite characters together will be. What will be the next threat to the universe? In this case, it might affect more than one universe. In fact, if Multiverse of Madness told us anything about the multiverse, it’s that its very fate could be at stake.

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When Doctor Stephen Strange is presented to the Illuminati during the film, Reed Richards, AKA Mr. Fantastic mentions the word “Incursion”, which probably had comic book fans snapping at the screen like a renowned Leonardo DiCaprio meme. What this word brings to the Marvel Cinematic Universe could mean the destruction of the entire multiverse. Incursions were a major part of the newer rendition of the Secret Wars storyline, which was released around 2015.

To give the exact definition from the Marvel Database, an Incursion is when two universes collide. This collision can cause the destruction of both universes, and for the most part can only be stopped by obliterating the Earth before the collision. In the comics, this situation sees the Illuminati having to decide whether or not to destroy another world, which is an interesting predicament to put our heroes in and could be intriguing if done on the big screen. 

Incursions were used in the Jonathan Hickman’s Secret Wars run, which seems to be the next large-scale adaptation for Kevin Feige and the team at Marvel Studios. It’s no coincidence that Multiverse of Madness takes time to explain and even show the effects of an Incursion, while also introducing the Illuminati who are heavily involved, especially in the beginning events of the story. Marvel has also set the course for Dr. Strange to be a major player, or at least hold extremely valuable knowledge about the forthcoming troubles thereof when the post-credits scene sees Clea recruit Strange to help stop an incoming Incursion he created.

Comic panels show a conversation taking place between Cyclops and producer Kevin Feige.

Hickman and Marvel Studios have worked together in the past, both in comic books as well as movies. In an interview with discussingfilm.net, a writer for Mutiverse of Madness (Michael Waldron) mentioned that he looked at some of Hickman’s runs while trying to study the multiversal storylines in the comic books. Waldron also stated in an interview with NBC News that he enjoys “anything Jonathan Hickman” when it comes to his favorite comic books/writers. Feige himself has also worked closely with Jonathan Hickman, as in one of his X-Men comic books the world-renowned producer made a cameo. In the cameo, he attends a party where the mutants are also in attendance and ends up speaking with Cyclops as he tells Feige his story.

There is no clear indication of what could cause the Incursion in the main Marvel universe, or if the catalyst for the collision already took place at some point. Either way, the course seems to have been set, this time around by the use of a single word that we’re certain Kevin Feige did not include by accident. With Waldron having a member of his Illuminati drop that explosive word, as well as giving high praise to the extremely talented writer Jonathan Hickman, it would certainly be no surprise if Secret Wars was incoming.

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