Marvel prepares to kick off the beginning of the end of the Avengers as we know them, and the apocalypse’s first instigator has already made himself known. After many close calls protecting Earth from threats like Varnae and Doctor Doom, the Avengers now have to face global instability as total annihilation creeps closer.
Time and again, the Avengers have faced extinction-level crises that test their power and their unity. For instance, in Secret Empire, they endured internal collapse as Captain America’s Hydra-aligned regime threatened to take over the world. In Secret Wars, the very fabric of the multiverse unraveled, forcing the heroes into desperate alliances and last-second gambits. Every time, Marvel’s heroes have learned their lessons and welcomed a fresh start.
Marvel Comics has officially confirmed that 2026 will usher in a new era for the Avengers, beginning with a cataclysmic event series that ties into Logan’s own crisis in Wolverine: Weapons of Armaggeddon.
Avengers: Armaggeddon Is “The Origin Of The End” For Earth’s Mightiest Heroes
Nothing Will Be The Same Once The End Of Times Begins
Launching June 3, the five-issue storyline Avengers: Armaggeddon sets the stage for sweeping transformation for Earth’s Mightiest Heroes across the Marvel Universe, with the publisher promising a clear shake-up to the status quo. Subtitled The Origin of the End, Avengers: Armaggeddon starts with a reset to the Avengers’ public image; the ignition point for a broader shift later on during Marvel Comics’ wider Armaggeddon event.
Avengers: Armaggeddon‘s The Origin of the End follows Red Hulk’s aggressive seizure of Latveria from One World Under Doom, which spirals into a global crisis and threatens to destabilize the fragile balance between nations and superpowered individuals. Writer Chip Zdarsky reunites with artists Frank Alpizar and Delio Diaz to chronicle the escalating conflict that builds on months of narrative groundwork laid in prior storylines. Naturally, the Fantastic Four and the X-Men also find themselves involved.
Crucially, Avengers: Armageddon seems to be both climax and catalyst. Team composition and global standing may be subject to overhaul if this is truly the Armaggeddon for Earth’s Mightiest Heroes. Especially after surviving the threat of Blood Hunt‘s Varnae, One World Under Doom‘s Doctor Doom, and The Avengers‘ Kang the Conqueror, the language surrounding Armageddon promises true change. Now, what exactly leads the heroes to this breaking point is yet to be revealed.
Avengers: Armaggeddon Kicks Off With An Underrated MCU Villain
Red Hulk Gets A Second Chance At Leaving His Mark In The Marvel Universe
Avengers: Armageddon opens with Red Hulk as the inciting force behind global collapse. The Origin of the End features Thunderbolt Ross as the geopolitical catalyst of the apparent end of times. Roughly a year after Red Hulk’s live-action debut in Captain America: Brave New World, Marvel Comics is placing the same character at the narrative center of a systemic crisis, arguably fulfilling the promise that the MCU only partially realized. In both versions, Thunderbolt Ross occupies a seat of institutional power and becomes the fulcrum of international tension.
Both Armaggeddon and Captain America: Brave New World explore Thaddeus Ross as a leader whose security-first mindset and misguided heroism destabilize global order. Both hinge on the idea that a Hulk operating within state authority is inherently volatile. However, where the MCU made Red Hulk a supporting character in a Captain America story, Armaggeddon foregrounds Ross as the ideological and military epicenter of catastrophe. The comic event will also have more time to fully interrogate Ross’s contradictions.
Marvel’s New Hulk Series Will Mark the Hero’s Greatest (& Most Brutal) Era in 20 Years
Marvel is doing wild things with Hulk right now, and it’s the start of his most incredible era in decades, leading up to a huge milestone moment.
Red Hulk works best when portrayed as a morally complex figure, capable of heroism and driven by conviction, yet fatally impulsive. Thaddeus Ross’ tragedy lies in his self-righteousness. He dives headfirst into Latveria to liberate it, regardless if Doctor Doom is alive or dead somewhere out there. However, Ross’ decision doesn’t just stop at planting the US flag on Latverian soil. With Doom dead and his power vacuum begging for conflict, Armaggeddon is set to teach Ross a lesson or two about self-control, both in his Red Hulk and in his human form.
The Avengers Will Likely Be Very Different Following Armaggeddon
A Truly New Team Of Avengers May Await At The Other End Of Armaggeddon
In the aftermath of Avengers: Armageddon, Earth’s Mightiest Heroes likely won’t be able to revert to business as usual. Marvel explicitly markets Armaggeddon as a dividing line between eras, and a political schism severe enough to trigger global war virtually guarantees ideological fallout within the team. A new Avengers break-up could happen through public distrust or irreconcilable strategic disagreements. Either way, the Avengers’ existing lineup may splinter, clearing space for a newly constituted team to emerge from the wreckage.
Armaggeddon‘s philosophical implications may prove even more consequential than the roster changes. A geopolitical crisis spiraling toward world-ending or potentially reality-ending catastrophe, especially if tied to the Ultimate Universe’s Origin boxes, may force the Avengers to confront their limits. Historically, the Avengers have oscillated between global defense force and loosely organized super-group, but an Armageddon-scale collapse suggests that improvisational crisis management is no longer sufficient.
Earth-616 and the Avengers aren’t going anywhere, but something significant will have to change in order to keep the stakes high. With no specific villain to place the full blame on, perhaps Armaggeddon‘s global crisis will be what brings truly permanent changes to the Marvel Universe.
What do you think will happen in Marvel’s Armaggeddon?
- Release Date
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May 4, 2012
- Runtime
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143 minutes
- Producers
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Avi Arad, Chris Brigham, Jon Favreau, Kevin Feige, Louis D’Esposito, Victoria Alonso, Jeremy Latcham