What Might The All-New All-Different Marvel Look Like?

Marvel Comics is teasing an “All-New Marvel” following the events of Secret Wars, the world-destroying and rebuilding mega-event that has currently displaced most of the company’s usual publishing line

So what might that universe look like? We don’t know yet. Marvel’s been playing things pretty close to the chest, but a few hints have snuck out here and there.

Here’s our best guesses based on what we’ve seen so far.

Avengers

Free Comic Book Day provided us with a first look at the new post-Secret Wars Avengers lineup. The team consists of Captain America (Sam Wilson), Thor (Jane Foster), Iron Man (identity unknown to us at this point), Nova (Sam Alexander), Spider-Man (Miles Morales), Ms. Marvel (Kamala Khan), and Vision.

In addition to the new team lineup, this also tells us that the status quo for Captain America and Thor will likely remain as it was prior to Secret Wars, with the Odinson still Unworthy and Steve Rogers still without his super serum abilities.

It also tells us that Miles Morales will exist in the mainstream Marvel Universe after his previous home, the Ultimate Universe, ends. So…

Spider-Men?

If Miles is running around with the Avengers, where does that leave Peter Parker? There were recently rumors that Marvel had confirmed two Spider-Men would exist in the Marvel Universe post-Secret Wars, but the story has since been retracted after Marvel claimed their representative was misquoted.

It’s hard to imagine a Marvel Comics universe without Peter Parker. Most likely, he’ll still exist in the Marvel Universe, but it’s unclear in what capacity. Perhaps he’ll be a mentor to young Miles? But if that’s the case, you’d think he’d be on the Avengers with his new apprentice.

Marvel has continually said that the seeds of the new Marvel Universe are being planted in the various Secret Wars series running alongside the main miniseries.  The highest profile Spider-Man-centric series running through Secret Wars is Amazing Spider-Man: Renew Your Vows, which explores a region of Battleworld where Peter and Mary Jane Watson’s marriage was never magically dissolved, and they went on to have a daughter. Perhaps that status quo will continue into the All-New, All-Different Marvel Universe, with Peter semi-retired and serving as a Spider-Man elder statesman, while Miles takes care of most of the day-to-day web slinging.

The Fantastic Four

Marvel cancelled the Fantastic Four comic book just ahead of Secret Wars, and we don’t expect it to return when the event is over. Marvel has hinted that, while the Fantastic Four as a unit no longer exists, the characters that make up the first family will still be present in new Marvel Universe.

We know, thanks to the Free Comic Book Day issue Marvel published, that the Human Torch will be with the Inhumans, and that he’s even in a relationship with the Inhuman queen, Medusa.

Where the rest of the Fantastic Four fits in is less clear. The Invisible Woman has been shown to have a working relationship with S.H.I.E.L.D., so she can easily end up playing for their team. Mr. Fantastic and the Thing? Perhaps they’ll just retire.

The X-Men

Considering that the Fantastic Four just got cancelled, and Marvel doesn’t seem to be on great terms with Fox, X-Men fans are truly anxious to see what becomes of Marvel’s mutants once Secret Wars is done. An early theory posited that the X-Men would be shuffled off to a new universe, separate from the rest of the Marvel Characters. The fact that Cyclops inexplicably showed up in Secret Wars #1 with a Phoenix Egg, an artifact that might be powerful enough to create an entirely new universe, seemed to throw some gasoline on that fire.

Editor-in-Chief Axel Alonso as quick to put that fire out. Alonso made clear that the X-Men were not getting their own universe, and that they were still an integral part of Marvel’s plans going forward.

So then where will the X-Men find themselves post-Secret Wars? It’s hard to say. There are plenty of Secret Wars series featuring the X-Men, but they all seem to be revisiting the characters’ past rather than pointing the way forward. With Brian Michael bendis departing the franchise after Uncanny X-Men #600, we know that the X-Men will be in new creative hands. Who those hands belong to and where they’ll take them…we’ll just have to wait and see.

There are rumors about the X-Men leaving Earth behind altogether and taking to the stars instead. There’s been no official comment from Marvel on that count.

There’s also the matter of Peter Quill’s proposal to Kitty Pryde. They’ve got their own Secret Wars series going on, so I’d check there and start taking bets on whether or not that wedding ever comes to pass.

Daredevil and the Rest of Marvel’s Solo and Street-Level Characters

It’s hard to divine the fates of characters that aren’t intrinsically tied to a major team franchise because they’re not bound to a group dynamic, and because they’re books usually sell just enough that Marvel feels more free to try some crazy stuff every once in a while (Frankencastle anybody?).

Mark Waid and Chris Samnee will be departing Daredevil post-Secret Wars. One has to assume that, with the success of the Netflix series, Marvel will take the character back to the grim and gritty tone that preceded Waid and Samnee, and leave the brightly-colored swashbuckling behind.

I also wouldn’t be surprised if we saw the beginnings of a new Defenders team, one that happens to feature the Netflix TV character – Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage and Iron Fist. This would essentially be Heroes for Hire in all but name, and the inclusion of the TV characters doesn’t necessarily mean that other characters won’t join up as well. Take the Guardians of the Galaxy as an example: the team’s roster has consistently featured the movie cast since Marvel NOW! started, but that hasn’t stopped Marvel from throwing in Iron Man, Angela, Venom, and Captain Marvel to spice things up a bit as well.

That’s our best speculation. What are your predictions for the All-New, All-Different Marvel? Let us know in the comments.