Marvel Comics 2was animprintfromMarvel Comicswhosecomic booksdepict an alternative future timeline for theMarvel Universe.The imprint was spun off from the events ofWhat If?#105 (February 1998), which was the first appearance of the characterSpider-Girl,Spider-Man's daughter from an alternative future. This Earth has been designated asEarth-982.[1]
| Parent company | Marvel Comics |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1998 |
| Defunct | 2011 |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Official website | www |
Publication history
edit
The MC2 Universe was conceived by writer/editorTom DeFalcoas a possible alternate future for the Marvel Universe,[1]set in the present day, with the first appearances of most Marvel heroes having taken place fifteen years earlier than in main continuity. The goal of the line was to produce comic books that were more accessible to a wider audience than Marvel's main line of books and weren't entrenched in years of continuity, which was later repeated with theUltimate Marvelimprint.
Three MC2 titles were launched in October 1998 as twelve-issue maxiseries:[2]
- Spider-Girl,starring the daughter of Spider-Man.
- A-Next,featuring a new team of Avengers who come together after the original Avengers disbanded.
- J2,starring theJuggernaut's son, a heroic teenager.
A-NextandJ2ended after twelve issues and were replaced by:
- Fantastic Five,featuring the expandedFantastic Four.
- Wild Thing,starringWolverineandElektra's daughter.
Spider-Girlmeanwhile continued publication. However, with the collapse of a deal to sell the comics inKmartandTargetbothFantastic FiveandWild Thingwere canceled after five issues, leavingSpider-Girlas the only title in the MC2 Universe still published.[2][3]A few spin-offlimited serieswere launched during the time Spider-Girl was published, such asDarkdevilandSpider-Girl PresentsThe Buzz.
The Spider-Girl title was nearly canceled several times due to low sales. Each time, campaigns by Tom DeFalco and fans of the title prevented cancelation. Fans created a webpage, savespidergirl, to help drum up support for the book. In an effort to boost sales on the title, Marvel reprintedSpider-Girlin small "Digest-sized"trade paperbacks.
A five-issue limited series set in the MC2 Universe titledLast Hero Standingwas printed. In 2006, Marvel released another limited series set in the MC2 Universe titledLast Planet Standing.The series was intended to wrap up all the loose ends in the MC2 Universe and destroy it at the series' conclusion. As a result,Spider-Girlwas slated to be canceled at issue 100, where the character would die.[4]Due to backlash from DeFalco and fans, Marvel quashed the move and announced the relaunching ofSpider-Girlunder the title ofAmazing Spider-Girl.[5]The "Amazing" title lasted until early 2009, when the book was again canceled due to low sales. A third title,The Spectacular Spider-Girl,was then launched. Initially a digital exclusive, theSpectacularbook was incorporated into theAmazing Spider-Man Familyanthology magazine. AfterAmazing Spider-Man Familyand its successor,Web of Spider-Man,folded, a final four-issueSpectacular Spider-Girlmini-series was produced, allowing many of the long-running plot threads from the book to be tied up. The final MC2-oriented story to date, a one-shot calledSpider-Girl: The End,was published in 2010, which gave the title character a happy ending while leaving the door open for further adventures.
In 2008, a prequel strip,Mr. and Mrs. Spider-Man,was launched in the pages ofAmazing Spider-Man Family.DeFalco confirmed on the official Spider-Girl boards that this strip would serve as the definitive continuity of the MC2 Spider-Man timeline. However, theMr. and Mrs. Spider-Manstrips were quickly ended so theSpider-Man Familytitle could make room for the relaunched Spider-Girl book.
American Dreamhas appeared in both her own 2008 limited series and the 2011 five-issue limited seriesCaptain America Corps,marking the first time an MC2 character has met or teamed up with characters from the mainstream Marvel universe.
Spider-Girl returned in theSpider-Versestoryline in 2014. During the story, it was revealed that when she traveled back in time to meet Spider-Man in his youth in her original series, she had entered Earth-616, the mainstream Marvel universe, before the point which it branched out into the MC2 universe. Her father, however, unfortunately died protecting May and Benjy from Daemos. As Daemos drained Peter's life force, May fled with Ben in her arms. Upon May's return home, Mary Jane passes Peter's former costume down to her, though Mayday eventually begins wearing a new outfit and eventually returns to her old one. FollowingSpider-Geddonit is revealed that the Multiversal entity known asThe Otherhas chosen and sought Peter as its host, thus resurrecting him.[6]
The MC2 Universe also appears in theSecret Warsevent in the Spider-Island tie-in backup.
Comments on style
editDeFalco explained in an interview his views on the MC2 imprint:[7]
The Pulse:"A lot of people characterize the MC2 universe as having an 'old school' feel. Why do you think" modern "comic readers want to read something that feels like the best of the Silver Age?" DeFalco:"We are 'old school' because A) our heroes act like heroes…B) we don’t believe indecompression…C) we tell single-issue stories with subplots that build from issue to issue… and D) there’s a lot of action and angst in every issue. "
Bibliography
editTitles
edit- What If(volume 2) #105 (Marvel Comics, February 1998)
- Spider-Girl#0–100, (Marvel Comics, October 1998 – July 2006)
- Spider-Girl#½ (Marvel Comics/Wizard Entertainment,1999)
- Spider-GirlAnnual 1999 (Marvel Comics, 1999)
- A-Next#1–12 (Marvel Comics, October 1998 – September 1999)
- J2#1–12 (Marvel Comics, October 1998 – September 1999)
- Fantastic Five(volume 1) #1–5 (Marvel Comics, October 1999 – February 2000)
- Wild Thing#1–5 (Marvel Comics, October 1999 – February 2000)
- Wild Thing#0 (Marvel Comics/Wizard Entertainment, 1999)
- Spider-Girl presents The Buzz#1–3 (Marvel Comics, July 2000 – September 2000)
- DarkDevil#1–3 (Marvel Comics, November 2000 – January 2001)
- Last Hero Standing#1–5 (Marvel Comics, June 2005)
- Last Planet Standing#1–5 (Marvel Comics, July 2006)
- Amazing Spider-Girl#0–30 (Marvel Comics, October 2006 – March 2009)
- Amazing Spider-Man Magazine"#0" (prose story, Marvel Comics, April 2007)
- Avengers Next#1–5 (Marvel Comics, November 2006 – January 2007)
- Fantastic Five(volume 2) #1–5 (Marvel Comics, July 2007 – September 2007)
- American Dream#1–5 (Marvel Comics, May 2008 – July 2008)
- Amazing Spider-Man Family#1-8 (Marvel Comics, October 2008 - September 2009)
- Web of Spider-Man(volume 2) #1-7 (Marvel Comics, December 2009 - June 2010)
- Spectacular Spider-Girl#1–4 (Marvel Comics, May 2010 – August 2010)
- Spider-Girl: The EndOne shot (Marvel Comics, September 2010)
- Captain America Corps#1-5 (Marvel Comics, June 2011)
Collected editions
edit| Title | Material collected | ISBN | Release date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spider-Girl: A Fresh Start | Spider-Girl#1–2 | 978-0785107200 | 1998-31-12 |
| Spider-Girl | Spider-Girl#0–8 | 978-0785108153 | 2001-05-11 |
| Last Hero Standing | Last Hero Standing#0–5 | 978-0785118237 | 2005-12-10 |
| Last Planet Standing | Last Planet Standing#0–5 | 978-0785119982 | 2006-18-10 |
| Amazing Spider-Girlvol. 1:Whatever Happened to the Daughter of Spider-Man? | The Amazing Spider-Girl#0–6 | 978-0785123415 | 2007-30-05 |
| Avengers Next:Rebirth | Avengers Next#1–5 | 978-0785125181 | 2007-13-06 |
| Amazing Spider-Girlvol. 2:Comes the Carnage! | The Amazing Spider-Girl#7–12 | 978-0785123422 | 2007-28-11 |
| Fantastic Five:The Final Doom | Fantastic Five vol. 2#1–5 | 978-0785127925 | 2008-09-01 |
| Amazing Spider-Girlvol. 3:Mind Games | The Amazing Spider-Girl#13–18 | 978-0785125587 | 2008-28-05 |
| American Dream:Beyond Courage | American Dream#1–5 | 978-0785131847 | 2008-15-10 |
| Amazing Spider-Girlvol. 4:Brand New May | The Amazing Spider-Girl#19–24 | 978-0785129745 | 2008-24-12 |
| Amazing Spider-Girlvol. 5:Maybreak | The Amazing Spider-Girl#25-30 | 978-0785131878 | 2009-01-07 |
| Spectacular Spider-Girl:Who Killed Gwen Reilly? | Spider-Man Family#1–8,Web of Spider-Man#1–4 | 978-0785143192 | 2010-24-03 |
| Spectacular Spider-Girl:The Last Stand | Spectacular Spider-Girl#1–4,Spider-Girl: The End,and material fromWeb of Spider-Man#5–7 | 978-0785148999 | 2010-24-03 |
| Captain America Corps | Captain America Corpsl#1-5 | 978-0785155638 | 2011-21-12 |
| Spider-Girl: The Complete Collection Vol. 1 | What If? (1989)#105,Spider-Girl#1-15 and #½,Spider-Girl Annual '99 | 978-1302912482 | 2018-07-08 |
| Spider-Girl: The Complete Collection Vol. 2 | Spider-Girl#16-32 | 978-1302918446 | 2019-06-08 |
| Spider-Girl: The Complete Collection Vol. 3 | Spider-Girl#33-50 | 978-1302923716 | 2021-30-03 |
| Spider-Girl: The Complete Collection Vol. 4 | Spider-Girl#51-67 | 978-1302934798 | 2022-12-04 |
Digest size paperbacks
edit| Title | Material collected | ISBN | Release date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spider-Girlvol. 1:Legacy | Spider-Girl#0–5 | 978-0785114413 | 2004-01-04 |
| Spider-Girlvol. 2:Like Father Like Daughter | Spider-Girl#6–11 | 978-0785116578 | 2004-15-12 |
| Spider-Girlvol. 3:Avenging Allies | Spider-Girl#12–16 &Spider-Girl Annual '99 | 978-0785116585 | 2005-13-04 |
| Spider-Girlvol. 4:Turning Point | Spider-Girl#17–21 and #½ | 978-0785118718 | 2005-21-09 |
| Spider-Girlvol. 5:Endgame | Spider-Girl#22-27 | 978-0785120346 | 2006-25-01 |
| Spider-Girl PresentsJuggernaut Jrvol. 1:Secrets and Lies | J2#1-6 | 978-0785120476 | 2006-29-03 |
| Spider-Girlvol. 6:Too Many Spiders! | Spider-Girl#28-33 | 978-0785121565 | 2006-21-06 |
| Spider-Girl PresentsA-Nextvol. 1:Second Coming | A-Next#1-6 | 978-0785121312 | 2006-23-08 |
| Spider-Girl PresentsFantastic Fivevol. 1:In Search of Doom | Fantastic Five#1-5 | 978-0785121329 | 2006-20-09 |
| Spider-Girlvol. 7:Betrayed | Spider-Girl#34-38 | 978-0785121572 | 2006-15-11 |
| Spider-Girlvol. 8:Duty Calls | Spider-Girl#39-44 | 978-0785124955 | 2007-18-04 |
| Spider-Girl PresentsThe Buzz” and “DarkDevil | The Buzz#1–3,DarkDevil#1–3 | 978-0785126010 | 2007-05-09 |
| Spider-Girlvol. 9:Secret Lives | Spider-Girl#45-50 | 978-0785126027 | 2007-31-10 |
| Spider-Girl PresentsWild ThingCrash Course | Wild Thing' #0–5 | 978-0785126065 | 2007-05-12 |
| Spider-Girlvol. 10:Season of the Serpent | Spider-Girl#52-59 | 978-0785132134 | 2009-11-02 |
| Spider-Girlvol. 11:Marked for Death | Spider-Girl#60-66 | 978-0785137412 | 2009-08-12 |
| Spider-Girlvol. 12:The Games Villains Play | Spider-Girl#67-72 | 978-0785144823 | 2010-24-03 |
| Title | Material collected | ISBN | Release date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spider-Girlvol. 1:Legacy | What If?(vol. 2) #105;Spider-Girl(1998) #1-15, #½;Spider-Girl Annual 1999 | 978-1302957957 | 2024-26-03 |
| Spider-Girlvol. 5:Keeping The Faith | Spider-Girl#68-84 | 978-1302959821 | 2024-19-11 |
References
edit- ^abMcMillan, Graeme; Marston, George (May 20, 2015)."Ultimate Ends: 11 Defunct MARVEL Publishing Lines".Newsarama.PUrch. p. 4.Retrieved22 November2016.
- ^abInterview with Tom DeFalco on the MC2 Imprint at ComicBoardsArchived2007-09-27 at theWayback Machine
- ^Comicboards: The inside track... (Tom DeFalco discussing whyFantastic FiveandWild Thingwere cancelled)Archived2006-09-25 at theWayback Machine
- ^Newsarama: SPIDER-GIRL/LAST PLANET STANDING PRESS CONFERENCEArchived2007-09-29 at theWayback Machine
- ^Newsarama: SPIDER-GIRL RETURNS IN AMAZING SPIDER-GIRLArchived2007-06-05 at theWayback Machine
- ^Spider-Geddon#5
- ^"Tom D/Avengers Next interview in the Pulse".ComicboardsArchivedSeptember 27, 2007, at theWayback Machine