This spring, the big two comic book publishers are unleashing their giant crossover events for 2015. As with most crossover events, both publishers are going for big, crazy, earth-shattering, “things will never be the same” events, when universes collide in both the DC and Marvel books. Here’s a quick guide to what’s coming up, thanks to excellent panels at this year’s Emerald City Comicon.
DC Comics: Convergence (April 1, 2015)
As most DC Comics fans know, there are multiple universes, past and present, that make up the DC universe. Brainiac, the mastermind behind Convergence, has been bringing cities in those past universes on the brink of destruction into his own collection. But don’t take my word for it; here’s Dan DiDio in the video that kicked off DC Comics’ panel at ECCC.
What this means for longtime fans is that some of our favorite past characters who didn’t make it into The New 52—Stephanie (Spoiler) Brown with her previous history, Oracle and Nightwing, Renee Montoya as The Question—are now back and have new stories to tell.
All regular DC Comics titles will be postponed in April to tell those stories, beginning with Convergence #0 this Wednesday.
Not a longtime fan of DC’s multiple universes and worried about feeling lost? A fan in the audience posed this very question to the panel of DC Comics creators at the convention.
Jeff King, writer of the main Convergence series, admitted that he himself was new to writing in the world of comics, but that the crossover inspired him to learn more about the DC universe and the landmark books in it. New readers may be moved to do the same, thanks to the event. Naming Flashpoint, Red Son, and more, King cited those as books that “stand on their own right.” He also felt that Convergence could be used as a starting point for new readers, “leading them to the June books [when regular issues resume] and fill in the knowledge” of the characters.
Stuart Moore, writer of the two-issue Convergence: Superboy and the Legion of Super-Heroes, also talked about how the other titles during the event are meant to be accessible for all readers. “The mandate was to tell a self-contained story,” he said, “meant to be picked up and read by anyone.”
40 different two-issue titles will be released over the next two months.
Marvel Comics: Secret Wars (May 2015)
Goodbye, Earth-616.
The Marvel universe as readers know it, along with the Ultimates universe, is ending. There’s only Battleworld, where the remnants of those universes have come together after they collide. The eight-issue main event series from writer Jonathan Hickman and artist Esad Ribic kicks off in May and ends in September.
“It’s an opportunity to take things and twist them in new and interesting ways,” said Charles Soule at Emerald City Comicon. “I’m having a lot of fun with it.”
Soule is tasked with telling a new version of Civil War, the conflict between Captain America and Iron Man. Soule wondered what would have happened had Cap not surrendered. “If it kept going, the entire world would have gotten involved,” he said. His Civil War, now expanded to involve humans along with heroes, builds upon the theme of security versus freedom that framed the original series.
Kelly Sue DeConnick will be tackling a different Captain Marvel than the one we’ve seen recently in Captain Marvel & The Carol Corps. Co-writing the series with Kelly Thompson, DeConnick puts Carol Danvers in a world with no stars in the sky and strong allies at her side.
Captain Marvel’s ongoing series is one of 33 that ends as the crossover event begins, leading many to wonder and worry what’s next for the characters in those books. “This anxiety and uncertainty is our marketing plan,” DeConnick said. But C.B. Cebulski assured fans, “Every book in your longbox will still count.”
