Secret Wars

The Beyonder, a cosmic entity of incomprehensible power, grows curious about the nature of human desire. He plucks Earth's mightiest heroes and villains from their homes and deposits them on a patchwork planet he creates in a distant galaxy. The hero roster includes the Avengers, the X-Men, Spider-Man, the Hulk, and the Fantastic Four. Their opponents are Doctor Doom, Magneto, Ultron, the Enchantress, the Lizard, and others. The Beyonder announces that the two factions must fight for his amusement; the victors will have any wish granted. Stranded on the artificial world called Battleworld, the combatants form uneasy alliances, construct bases, and engage in escalating conflicts that test their morals and loyalties. The story builds toward a direct confrontation with the Beyonder, with the fate of Earth and the universe at stake.

Jim Shooter, Marvel's Editor-in-Chief at the time, wrote the series. He conceived it as a direct tie-in to a new line of action figures from Mattel, making Secret Wars one of the first major corporate cross-promotional comic book events. Mike Zeck provided the pencils, with inks by John Beatty and Bob Layton, colors by Christie Scheele, and letters by Joe Rosen. Zeck also painted the covers for all twelve issues. The first issue sold an estimated 500,000 copies, and each subsequent issue sold well over 250,000 copies, making it the best-selling comic in 25 years at the time.

Critical reception upon release was mixed to negative, with many deriding it as a transparent marketing ploy. Carol Kalish, Marvel's Direct Sales Manager, later said: 'Let's be honest. Secret Wars was crap, right? But did it sell?' Over time, however, its historical significance has been re-evaluated. It established the template for all future Marvel crossover events, from Infinity Gauntlet to Civil War. The series famously introduced Spider-Man's black costume, later revealed to be an alien symbiote that bonded with Eddie Brock to become Venom. Battleworld has been reused in later stories, most notably in the 2015 Secret Wars event by Jonathan Hickman. [edit]