The original Marvel Secret Wars comics was published from 1984-1985, and at the time it was one of the first ever comic book events. What we mean by that is that Secret Wars was the first time a comic book had a large plot that structurally changed the way that the characters and the universe were perceived. You could think of it as a form of historical event for the Marvel universe, in a way. It was also the first time that different parts of the Marvel universe such as X-Men, Fantastic Four, and the Avengers were seen in the same place at the same time. This allowed for the answers to a lot of hypothetical questions such as, “How would Wolverine and Spider-Man interact with one another?” If you are curious to hear what happened when Earth’s mightiest heroes and most devilishly evil villains collide, then join us as we break down the original Secret Wars.
The scene starts with the heroes and villains being transported onto two vessels against their wills. On the vessel with the heroes are notably the Avengers (who at the time were composed of Captain America, Captain Marvel, Iron Man, Thor, the Hulk & the She-Hulk, the Wasp, and Hawkeye), the X-Men (Professor X, Wolverine, Storm, Cyclops, Colossus, Nightcrawler, Rogue, and Lockheed the Dragon), The Fantastic Four (excluding Invisible Woman), along with Spider-Man. Also included with the heroes is Magneto, which causes a lot of tension throughout the story. Spider-Woman joins the heroes as well, but she is introduced later instead of being on the original transport vessel. On the side of the villains are notably Doctor Doom, Ultron, Galactus, and Molecule Man, along with others such as Kang the Conqueror, Absorbing Man, Doctor Octopus, the Enchantress, and the Lizard. Two other villains make their first appearance later in this story, Titania and Volcana, and there is the return of Klaw later in the story.
Both vessels are granted a perfect view of a galaxy that seemingly disappears before their eyes. In its place, Battleworld is formed with various pieces of the universe, including Denver, Colorado from Earth, and a proposition is given from what is referred to as the Beyonder: “I am from beyond! Slay your enemies and all you desire shall be yours! Nothing you dream of is impossible for me to accomplish! ” This offer immediately entices Galactus, who wishes to have their insatiable urge to consume removed, and after the giant being had so easily defeated Ultron (who at the time was seen as very powerful with their impenetrable adamantium body) just moments prior, it came as even more of a shock when he was swatted away with ease. This was the proof of the Beyonder’s power, and it immediately caught the attention of everyone present. Before anything else can be said, the heroes and villains are transported onto the surface of Battleworld, and the conflicts begin to arise.
Multiple skirmishes arise between the heroes and the villains, including an entire mountain range being placed on top of the heroes to which the Hulk holds up just long enough for the heroes to make an escape. Magneto leaves the heroes and is eventually joined by the X-Men, who also decided to remain on their own for the time being. Doctor Doom finds two women who were in Denver when it got transformed into part of Battleworld and granted them powers, turning them into Titania and Volcana in an attempt to bolster the strength of the villains. Also transported to Battleworld via their presence on Denver is Spider-Woman, who joins the heroes. Amongst all the skirmishes, Spider-Man also obtains his symbiote suit for the first time, which would later go on to leave him and attach to Eddie Brock to create Venom.
Ultimately, Doctor Doom manages to find a way to siphon Galactus’ powers with the help of Klaw, who Doom found on the ship of Galactus. With the new power, Doctor Doom defeats the Beyonder and takes their power for himself as well. The rest of the villains end up leaving the Battleworld with Denver thanks to the powers of Molecule Man and his realization from Doctor Doom that he can do anything because of his powers. This leaves only the heroes and Doctor Doom on Battleworld, and when they refuse his offer to join him, Doctor Doom completely annihilates the heroes.
At least, that is what he thinks at first. Klaw, now imbued with a piece of the Beyonder, starts to mess with Doctor Doom’s mind and the possibility that he might not have actually killed the heroes if he did not truly want them dead. These thoughts agitate Doctor Doom, and eventually it is revealed that the heroes in fact did survive before being confronted by Captain America. Doctor Doom continuously destroys Captain America, but he keeps being resurrected, either from an outside force or from Doom not actually wanting to kill Captain America. In the moment of vulnerability, the fragment of the Beyonder that lied within Klaw seized the moment to regain its power, and it sends Doctor Doom and Klaw back to where they came from.
After the departure of Doctor Doom and Klaw, the heroes find that residual energies from the Beyonder have allowed the planet to grant wishes to those with a strong enough will. This new power allows for Mister Fantastic to create a portal device that would allow everyone to go back home. With that, the original Secret Wars ends, and She-Hulk takes the place of the Thing in The Fantastic Four while he goes on a journey of his own.
It is no secret that Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame were praised as being “the greatest crossover in media history,” so it is easy to see how excitement is building for the possibility of a Secret Wars film. The film could potentially be an even grander version of the MCU’s grand two-part story, with the inclusion of the X-Men and The Fantastic Four, along with the ability for fans to see many popular villains united together for the first time. However, there are some slight issues with the idea that Marvel is planning to release a Secret Wars movie in the near future.
The biggest indicator that a Secret Wars movie might not be as close as some suspect is that with any good crossover event, it relies heavily on the idea that audiences are going to not only know who the characters are, but care about the characters as well. The last Fantastic Four film was released in 2015, and responses to that film were quite negative. Similar emotions seem to flow into the main-line X-Men films, meaning that if Marvel was to make a film that relies heavily on these two franchises, it might be an uphill battle. This does not even mention the fact that Doctor Doom plays a critical role in this story, and from a visual media perspective, there simply is not much to be had for Doctor Doom. Also missing from the films is Galactus (though films such as Eternals may be leading up toward his arrival to the MCU with their focus on celestials). Thus, the way that Marvel could truly bring forth a movie as paramount as Secret Wars would be to do exactly what they did for Infinity War / Endgame: they would have to slowly build up to it.
With enough time, it is certain that Marvel has the capacity to create a film that surpasses even that of Infinity War / Endgame. If anyone could topple the giant that they created, it would be Marvel themselves. However, this would require an immense amount of time for them to do, and so for the time being, we would recommend that instead of getting excited about a Secret Wars film itself, get excited about the great films and series that would be made in order to build up toward a Secret Wars film instead.