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Home page Highlights,
Interviews and Columns

Wayne Markley

by Wayne Markley

I have been writing about the epic tale of Thanos as told by Jim Starlin that began with the Silver Surfer: renewal of Thanos and went through the Infinity Gauntlet, Infinity Gauntlet Aftermath, and Infinity Crusade. I continue now with the Infinity Abyss and marvel Universe: The End. all of these stories follow each other and do tell a enormous story as they build on each other, so it is better to read all of these stories in sequence. I started writing these columns because of the significance of Thanos in the marvel Cinematic Universe, but to be honest, I had forgotten how pleasurable these stories are. There is certainly a formula to them and reading all of them back to back you can see certain techniques repeated over and over, but the stories are fun and easy to understand cosmic stories, unlike some of the current cosmic stories running in Marvel’s Avengers titles.

Infinity Abyss

First up is the Infinity Abyss. This is a bit of a change from the prior books as Jim Starlin returned to not only writing but also penciling the book with inking by Al Milgrom. The basic story is Thanos continues his reformed status (no longer wanting to kill everyone and everything) but five clones that he created earlier and were mixed with characteristics from other marvel characters such as Dr. Strange, the Gladiator and others, decide to pick up where Thanos failed and destroy all life. Of note is this story once again features Adam Warlock (who narrates the story) and Pip, but also has popular roles played by Gamora, Spider-Man, and Captain marvel (not the original, but his son). There is an appearance by the Galactus Thanos which has to be seen as it is quite a sight. This story introduces the concept of the world holder who is the linchpin of all reality. as with much of Jim Starlin’s stuff, this is grand science fiction and metaphysics and I could spend page after page talking about the concepts that are used here, but I think you are better off reading the books themselves.

One of the criticism’s I often hear about the Infinity Abyss, and practically all the books after Infinity Gauntlet, is the stories are not as good as the Infinity Gauntlet. Well, that is true. but I would argue that these follow up tales are still very good and are very entertaining. Starlin’s art is really suited for this cosmic storytelling and it has a distinct look to it that feels as if all of these books are one very large story. I will grant you at times you get the feeling “like we need another cosmic story”, but in spite of the repetitiveness of the stories I think they hold up. I will make a note though these are not the cosmic adventures that you see in the recent Guardians of the Galaxy movie. For those stories you have to read Guardians of the Galaxy by Abnett and Lanning Vol. 1 (and vol. 2 coming soon). The Abnett and Lanning stories take the pieces that Starlin laid out and throws them in the air and then re-assembles them into a different cosmic marvel world, and their stories are highly recommended as they are clearly the inspiration for the film and they are fun to read.

Marvel Universe: The End

Following the Infinity Abyss is marvel Universe: The End. once again it is the creative team of Jim Starlin and Al Milgrom. this time it is revealed that there is an ancient source of power that goes back to the beginning of time called the Heart of the Universe. This power picks a vessel to include it at select times though out the ages. once it picked a corrupt, ancient Egyptian pharaoh who over time is able to destroy all of the marvel Universe. it all goes blank, or in this case, a white page. Not to worry though, it gets better. The main villain is the Pharaoh Akhenaten and it takes the Defenders along with the Silver Surfer and Thanos to finally stop him and put things right. also involved in the fight is Spider-Man and Daredevil who seem to be there for the sake of being there versus playing a big part in the overall story.

As with Infinity Abyss, this story is told by a first person narrator, this time it is Thanos. To mix things up a bit from the earlier stories, it also features Thor and Zeus, adding a godly dimension to the story and showing how even the gods are powerless against this threat. As the story goes along, doctor Doom tries to get the power away from Akhenaten and Thanos becomes a god. Also, in a subplot that has interesting implications, all of the time travelers – doctor Doom, Kang, Immortus – are all captured so they could not stop the end from coming. This story also guest stars George W. Bush, Saddam Hussein, Vladimir Putin, and Muammar Gaddafi. quite the mix of world leaders, two of whom have because passed away and one who is now back in power. also of note is Thanos lends up giving his live to save the universe, but only aMARKLEY’S FEVERED BRAIN: FROM THE ABYSS, THE end (###) This post is Filed Under:

Home page Highlights,
Interviews and Columns

Wayne Markley

by Wayne Markley

I have been writing about the epic tale of Thanos as told by Jim Starlin that began with the Silver Surfer: renewal of Thanos and went through the Infinity Gauntlet, Infinity Gauntlet Aftermath, and Infinity Crusade. I continue now with the Infinity Abyss and marvel Universe: The End. all of these stories follow each other and do tell a enormous story as they build on each other, so it is better to read all of these stories in sequence. I started writing these columns because of the significance of Thanos in the marvel Cinematic Universe, but to be honest, I had forgotten how pleasurable these stories are. There is certainly a formula to them and reading all of them back to back you can see certain techniques repeated over and over, but the stories are fun and easy to understand cosmic stories, unlike some of the current cosmic stories running in Marvel’s Avengers titles.

Infinity Abyss

First up is the Infinity Abyss. This is a bit of a change from the prior books as Jim Starlin returned to not only writing but also penciling the book with inking by Al Milgrom. The basic story is Thanos continues his reformed status (no longer wanting to kill everyone and everything) but five clones that he created earlier and were mixed with characteristics from other marvel characters such as Dr. Strange, the Gladiator and others, decide to pick up where Thanos failed and destroy all life. Of note is this story once again features Adam Warlock (who narrates the story) and Pip, but also has popular roles played by Gamora, Spider-Man, and Captain marvel (not the original, but his son). There is an appearance by the Galactus Thanos which has to be seen as it is quite a sight. This story introduces the concept of the world holder who is the linchpin of all reality. as with much of Jim Starlin’s stuff, this is grand science fiction and metaphysics and I could spend page after page talking about the concepts that are used here, but I think you are better off reading the books themselves.

One of the criticism’s I often hear about the Infinity Abyss, and practically all the books after Infinity Gauntlet, is the stories are not as good as the Infinity Gauntlet. Well, that is true. but I would argue that these follow up tales are still very good and are very entertaining. Starlin’s art is really suited for this cosmic storytelling and it has a distinct look to it that feels as if all of these books are one very large story. I will grant you at times you get the feeling “like we need another cosmic story”, but in spite of the repetitiveness of the stories I think they hold up. I will make a note though these are not the cosmic adventures that you see in the recent Guardians of the Galaxy movie. For those stories you have to read Guardians of the Galaxy by Abnett and Lanning Vol. 1 (and vol. 2 coming soon). The Abnett and Lanning stories take the pieces that Starlin laid out and throws them in the air and then re-assembles them into a different cosmic marvel world, and their stories are highly recommended as they are clearly the inspiration for the film and they are fun to read.

Marvel Universe: The End

Following the Infinity Abyss is marvel Universe: The End. once again it is the creative team of Jim Starlin and Al Milgrom. this time it is revealed that there is an ancient source of power that goes back to the beginning of time called the Heart of the Universe. This power picks a vessel to include it at select times though out the ages. once it picked a corrupt, ancient Egyptian pharaoh who over time is able to destroy all of the marvel Universe. it all goes blank, or in this case, a white page. Not to worry though, it gets better. The main villain is the Pharaoh Akhenaten and it takes the Defenders along with the Silver Surfer and Thanos to finally stop him and put things right. also involved in the fight is Spider-Man and Daredevil who seem to be there for the sake of being there versus playing a big part in the overall story.

As with Infinity Abyss, this story is told by a first person narrator, this time it is Thanos. To mix things up a bit from the earlier stories, it also features Thor and Zeus, adding a godly dimension to the story and showing how even the gods are powerless against this threat. As the story goes along, doctor Doom tries to get the power away from Akhenaten and Thanos becomes a god. Also, in a subplot that has interesting implications, all of the time travelers – doctor Doom, Kang, Immortus – are all captured so they could not stop the end from coming. This story also guest stars George W. Bush, Saddam Hussein, Vladimir Putin, and Muammar Gaddafi. quite the mix of world leaders, two of whom have because passed away and one who is now back in power. also of note is Thanos lends up giving his live to save the universe, but only a