Comics / Comics News

Marvel Comics Will Use Avengers vs X-Men to Reboot its Universe

By Hervé St-Louis
January 16, 2012 - 22:14

There, you heard it from The Comic Book Bin first. Marvel Comics will use the Avengers versus the X-Men to reboot its universe in an effort to fight off depressing sales number and steal some of that 52 mojo from DC Comics. Here’s how it’s all going to happen. The crossover will feature several omega class mutants and characters capable of changing and bending reality. Some of those characters have done a lot of damage in the past. Think of the Scarlet Witch, Phoenix. Who knows, maybe the Sentry who demonstrated similar powers and has been a favourite of Brian Bendis will show up and force the hands of the other powerful damsels, Jean Grey and Wanda Maximoff.

Marvel Comics will use this crossover to cap off the several years long run by Brian Bendis where he oversaw the Avengers’ franchise and made it the premiere one in the Marvel universe, past the traditionally number one X-Men franchise. Bendis has been very effective at propelling the Avengers in the front and center of Marvel Comics, notwithstanding a lot of criticism of his work on the various titles under that franchise. It is no surprise that Disney is aching to profit from the Avengers, since they have lost the rights to make movies off the X-Men properties in favour of Fox, and Spider-man in favour of Sony. Sales of Marvel Comics are not as great as they used to be and much of the publisher’s thunder has been stolen by DC Comics’ bold 52 reboot.

New Marvel Entertainment owners, Disney, is probably aching to see its arch-opponent, Time Warner having so much success with DC Comics. Disney may also want to tie up all loose nots and impose a new regime, editorially on Marvel Comics that fits its corporate culture better. That would explain how decades of Marvel Continuity could be jettisoned for a fresh look at the Marvel universe, in time for this summer’s blockbuster The Avengers’ movie.

Critics could complain that Marvel stealing a page from DC Comics’ 52 is not very original but it doesn’t matter in  the end if the Marvel universe is streamlined and only the top properties are elevated. This would also allow Marvel Comics to recreate the entire X-Men mythos and not allow Fox to benefit from the changes. It could also simplify a lot of the Marvel Comics universe. For example, Professor Charles Xavier could be the head of a school for gifted youngsters again. Magneto could be his arch nemesis. Captain America could emerge from his long slumber in the 2010s, instead of in the 1960s.

Sales-wise, a rebooted universe could hurt DC Comics’ 52 efforts very much.  A reinvigorated Marvel Comics could regain its top position as the number one comic book publisher in North America. Because comic book fans are already used to major reboots, in the form of 52, the risk for Marvel Comics is lessened. Fans can expect good things from the so-called Marvel architects that have been tasked to re-imagine the Marvel Comics universe, after the Avengers versus X-Men mini-series.

The mini-series will tie two of Marvel’s main licensed properties against one another. The Avengers were always deemed the main franchise on paper, but the X-Men stole that position in the late 1970s and have kept it until the 2000s, when Marvel Comics began investing more in the Avengers, and characters under them, such Spider-man, Captain America, Thor, Iron Man and the Hulk.

After having written all of this, let me just say, that perhaps my source about this is wrong, but everything points to this story to be real. We'll see in the upcoming months, unless Marvel and Disney decide to pull a Captain Atom at the last minute. Frankly, with all the work involved, its highly unlikely.

Discuss this below. What do you think? Do you think Marvel Comics will use Avengers versus X-Men to reboot its universe?

Last Updated: August 31, 2023 - 08:12