The rumors of Marvel Legacy had been many, another line-spanning crossover that isn’t even waiting for the last one, Secret Empire, to be finished before it starts. Or rather, it will transition from that (somewhat unjustly) reviled story with a Captain America leading the fascist Hydra into Generations, which will have every legacy hero meet up with their original antecedents — Ironheart meeting a younger Tony Stark as Iron Man, Sam Wilson’s Captain America time traveling to World War 2 and encountering Steve Rogers, and more along those lines. Then it becomes Legacy, with the consequences of those meetings and a new status quo that Marvel says will affect their stories for the next few years.
We’ve heard it before — Marvel says this offers “a renewed sense of hope (and) heroics,” which they said a while back about the Age of Heroes about ten years ago. And DC said about DC Rebirth a year ago. Both companies missed the point in their chasing of trends. They need to focus on just producing good books. I’m not saying the new Legacy books won’t be good, but when you look at the homages to classic covers, I have to wonder “who is this really for?”
Once again, they say they want fans old and new, but I guess the thing is that new fans are quite happy with Ms. Marvel, Ironheart, the Totally Awesome Hulk, and Spider-Man. And Marvel is already doing a good job with them. You want good books that honor the legacy of the heroes that came before? Read [amazon text=Champions&asin=1302906186], or the excellent but admittedly awkwardly named [amazon text=Occupy Avengers&asin=1302906380]. Or [amazon text=All-New Guardians of the Galaxy&asin=1302905449], which does a good job of merging the dynamics of the comic book characters with the movie characters. Remember, those weren’t the original Guardians of the Galaxy at all.
Keep looking forward, because the old fans, the fans you think you lost — they’re probably not coming back anyway, or stopped buying comics long before they heard Steve Rogers went fascist (but they got outraged anyway) or that Thor was a woman (but they got outraged anyway).
As for the new fans, returning to legacy numbering is an interesting experiment. It may expose as a lie the industry canard that fans come in for new first issues, and that high numbering turns off buyers. Maybe that was true at one time, but Marvel and DC have overused it so much that now, we all just want them to tell us a good story. They’re out there. We just don’t need to buy all of them. (But in case you do, Marvel has provided a handy dandy checklist that I find a little overwhelming.)
All that said, Marvel suckered me in with the idea of the Avengers from 1,000,000 B.C. and a potential revival of Marvel Two-in-One. But that’s just me. I loved [amazon text=Agents of Atlas&asin=0785122311] for a similar reason, and [amazon text=Marvel 1602&asin=0785141340] as well. Give me the twist, the spin, something that makes me look at old concepts a new way, instead of just selling me old concepts with new packaging. I want that sense of hope and heroics; I really do. But publishers seem to treat it as a trend, instead of a core value of what they do.
From Marvel:
You demanded it, we listened! Beginning this fall, prepare for an exciting new initiative that spans the entire Marvel Universe! Every hero! Every title! Every story! Honoring the past while proudly moving towards the future, MARVEL LEGACY will offer fans, both current and new, a renewed sense of hope, heroics, and dozens and dozens of returns of the heroes fans have been demanding! MARVEL LEGACY ushers in the next few years’ worth of stories from Marvel with everything fans could want and more. You asked for it, and now is the time to Make Mine Marvel!
“I love the concept of returning to the classic characters as they were originally portrayed, without losing the brilliance and excitement of Marvel’s newest generation of heroes,” said Chairman Emeritus Stan Lee. “Excelsior!”
Simply put MARVEL LEGACY will offer
· The most spectacular character returns
· Epic stories adding to the next chapter of the Marvel Universe by the industries’ top talent
· Heroes fighting villains
· Clean jumping on points for all readers clearly displayed using dynamic new trade dress
· The return to original numbering for many series
· Did we mention the most spectacular character returns that comic fans have demanded
And that’s just the beginning! It all starts with MARVEL LEGACY #1.
Journey to the dawn of time, as Marvel introduces you to the first Avengers from 1,000,000 BC – when iconic torch-bearers such as Odin, Iron Fist, Starbrand, Ghost Rider, Phoenix, Agamotto, and Black Panther come together for the startling origin of the Marvel Universe, in MARVEL LEGACY #1 on sale this September in comic shops everywhere!
“MARVEL LEGACY #1 isn’t simply a history lesson,” says SVP and Executive Editor Tom Brevoort. “Rather, it’s the starting gun to a bevy of mysteries, secrets, and revelations that will reverberate across the Marvel Universe in the weeks and months to come! No character, no franchise will be untouched by the game-changing events that play out across its pages. Jason and Esad pulled out all the stops to fat-pack this colossal issue with as much intrigue, action, surprise, mystery, shock, and adventure as possible!”
The acclaimed team of writer Jason Aaron (Mighty Thor) and artist Esad Ribic (Secret Wars) reunite for an all-new 50-page blockbuster one-shot that will take you through time to the current Marvel Universe, showing you how it’s “all connected.” A true homage to Marvel’s groundbreaking past and the vast expanse of current storytelling greats.
“MARVEL LEGACY #1 will present all fans – new readers and current readers – with an exciting and accessible entry point,” says Marvel Editor in Chief Axel Alonso. “Jason and Esad have crafted an epic story that’s chock full of reveals and twists and Easter eggs that are sure to ignite a fire across the industry. The next stage of Marvel’s evolution starts here.”
MARVEL LEGACY #1 will provide
· The single most important first step for any fan to jumping into MARVEL LEGACY
· Shocks, twists, clues, and Easter eggs
· A blockbuster story that sets the stage for the coming years of Marvel storytelling
· The introduction of the 1,000,000 BC AVENGERS
· The most talked about return in comics
· A brilliant tale by the legendary team of Jason Aaron and Esad Ribic
· The set-up for 53 Marvel Universe series
· Those character returns you’ve asked for, many of them get cued up here
And there’s still so much more to come, we’ve merely scratched the surface with a few words, a few teases, and a few dazzling quotes. Sit tight for in the coming weeks, there will be more exciting announcements devoted to MARVEL LEGACY featuring all the epic new entry level story arcs, the dynamic creative teams, the legacy numbering guides, the returns, the searches, the battles, the foes, dynamic new nostalgia based promotions guaranteed to drive all fans into comic shops. This fall, get ready to cheer MAKE MINE MARVEL!
