Last April, Marvel’s Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing David Gabriel told comics retailers that after the controversial Secret Empire, Marvel would put major events “away for quite a while,” and that the publisher hadn’t even discussed a new event “for 18 months, at the very least.” So... surprise?
Yes, Marvel has officially unveiled new details on February’s Infinity Countdown Prime, the one-shot comic from the newly announced team of Gerry Duggan and Mike Deodato Jr. that will lay the groundwork for 2018's summer event series, Infinity Countdown. Try to put on your best shocked face, because here’s another surprise: the event is about Thanos and the Infinity Stones. Gee, I can’t possibly imagine why, in 2018, we’re getting a comic about Thanos and the Infinity Stones! I just can’t. But hey, least Adam Warlock and Kl’rt the Super Skrull are back, judging by the cover to Infinity Countdown.
Countdown Prime will pick up where Duggan’s recently canceled Guardians of the Galaxy series left off, tying together the threads laid throughout Marvel’s Legacy roster of comics this winter, which have seen the Infinity Stones return to the Marvel Universe after their disappearance during the run-up to the Secret Wars event in 2015. Here’s the solicit’s description, courtesy of Newsarama:
The Infinity Stones. Individually, they grant their wielder great power. Together, they grant the power of a god. Newly reformed and scattered throughout the universe, these artifacts allow the ones who claim them their heart’s desire. Now, as their locations are discovered, forces converge for a battle that will begin the universe down a dark path to the end.
Jump onto this exciting ride that will lead to the biggest Infinity yet! Plus: The saga of the Infinity Stones - what they are and how they came to be! From creation to destruction to re-creation, this prose primer will tell you everything you need to know about the legendary cosmic gems!
Guardians of the Galaxy recently revealed that the Nova Corps have been guarding a gigantic version of the Power Stone in secret. Meanwhile, the newly resurrected Wolverine has the Space Stone, Captain Marvel’s recent arc has seen the Reality Stone in the hands of an alternate-universe Star-Lord, and the latest issue of the Thanos ongoing series saw a future version of the Mad Titan and his Ghost Rider herald possessing the Time Stone.
That means there’s just two stones (Mind and Soul) to be found before they’re all revealed, and new art released for Countdown Prime shows what could be at least one of the stones in the possession of an unknown character. But, hear me out, I bet before Infinity Countdown begins in March, we’ll have all the Stones gathered and ready for Thanos to do in the comics exactly what he’s preparing to do on the big screen in Avengers Infinity War.
But hey, I hope you enjoyed your seven-month break between all-consuming Marvel Events, during which a bunch of smaller events have begun to, or will, kick off! Because turns out, this maddening cycle will never truly end, no matter how bad these blockbuster events get.