Today at a live Marvel event, taking place at Midtown Comics in NYC, Marvel Editor-in-Chief Axel Alonso and Senior Vice President of Publishing and Executive Editor Tom Brevoort confirmed that the eight-issue series Secret Wars would put an end to The Marvel Universe, you know the one we’ve known and loved since 1961, and The Ultimate Universe, as we know them would be ending.

The pair foretold that by the time the gigantic crossover event,  Secret Wars #1 hits stands, every world in Marvel’s multiverse will be destroyed, some pieces of which will form together to create Battleworld, which will be where the Secret Wars storyline will take place.  So what does this mean? Well essentially, anything could happen. Old characters resurrected, new(ish) characters given the axe.

This is a BIG deal people. NOTHING IS SACRED!!! If Marvel has proved anything to us in the past year, it’s that they are not afraid of change. in the past few months alone we’ve gotten a female Thor, and African American Captain America. So, as you can see, change is not necessarily a bad thing…

What are my thoughts on all this? While I am sad to see the old Marvel Universe come to an end…I am cautiously optimistic over Battleworld. Marvel has always been great with their continuity, across many platforms, comics, tv and film, so streamlining the universes seems like the best way to go, right?

This will either be epically awesome or a disaster… either way folks, buckle up, we’re in for one hell of a ride.

-EM