Marvel has officially announced “Secret Empire”, via ABC, as their next big event series. On the heels of hero vs hero extravaganzas, “Civil War II” and “Inhumans vs X-Men” the team at Marvel is seeking the opportunity to get back to the classic good guy vs bad guy set up with a story that will unite the whole of the Marvel universe. Editor-in-Chief Axel Alonso said, “We saw this moment as our chance to rally the entire Marvel Universe, which has been fragmented as of late.”
Of course, that bad guy is Marvel’s most iconic and beloved hero. So, yeah.
This story will pick on the seeds that have been being sewn since May of 2016 when it was revealed in “Captain America: Steve Rogers” #1 that Rogers is secretly an agent of Hydra, and has been for his entire history. “It’s a pretty juicy turn of events. This character, who is the most respected, the moral compass of the Marvel Universe ….is secretly a viper in the nest?!”, Marvel’s Senior Vice President Tom Brevoort remarked. The readers have been privy to this all along of course but as of April the Marvel Universe will finally be aware of their greatest hero’s greatest secret. Brevoort describes the issue as, “the worst day in the Marvel Universe.”
We’ve watched as Rogers has set the board for his Hydra takeover and it will finally begin to unfurl in the pages of “Secret Empire.” “We’re done with the the covert portion, the buildup portion of the program, ‘Secret Empire’ is the pyrotechnics, the big Michael Bay blockbuster,” said Brevoort of the story. The story starts in April’s issue #0 where three events break out and Rogers, as head of S.H.I.E.L.D., is able to mobilize forces to each of the individual events. “And those three situations represent Hydra’s first move.”
Brevoort and Alonso are both adamant that this story will have effects on “everyone” in the Marvel Universe. They specifically cite the younger generation of heroes, saying that “they will have to grapple with what this means and reset their heroism.” They also stated that while Rogers is the focal point of the story, it will be told from several different perspectives of people dealing with the threat this poses. “Some roles and characters will come to the foreground at different moments in the story and play a big role in saving the day” Alonso added.
“Secret Empire” will be written by “Captain America: Steve Rogers” writer Nick Spencer with art from Steve McNiven, Andrea Sorrentino, Leinil Yu, and “Captain America: Sam Wilson” artist Daniel Acuña. The nine issue series will debut with a #0 in April, and then will ship twice-monthly through August. Below is a sample interior page by Andrea Sorrentino.
