The Uncanny Avengers are fighting a reborn Red Skull in their first arc. Marvel revealed the team will face two more classic villains next. Writer Rick Remender and Editor Tom Brevoort gave a preview of the Ragnarok Now – second arc in which the Uncanny Avengers take on Kang and Apocalypse.
“A lot of this story picks arc from the Dark Angel Saga from Uncanny X-Force, though it’s not a sequel. We’ve spent a lot of time incorporating Kang and also Thor into Apocalypse’s mythology. The fun of Uncanny Avengers is the A meeting the X in a big way,” explained Remender, “You don’t need to have read the Dark Angel Saga to understand this, but if you have, here’s where that picks back up. In that story, Archangel impregnated Pestilence. Whatever she gives birth to is going to be a problem for people and also involve Kang’s machinations and scheming.”
With a story titled Ragnarok Now – expect the God of Thunder to be critical to this next arc.
“I wanted to come up with ways to connect Uncanny Avengers to other books in the Marvel Universe. Young Thor from Jason Aaron’s Thor: God of Thunder and his axe play a major role in Uncanny Avengers,”said Remender “This will connect with some of the stories Jason has been telling. The repercussions will be big.”
“Continuity still matters in Marvel NOW! Things that happened to Havok in Inferno are things I think about. But we’re not slavish to continuity either.” Remender teased.
“Thor has a big role in Ragnarok, he’s deeply involved in the inciting incident, but that doesn’t mean every character isn’t featured as well. Everybody looks to Wolverine as the guy who has gone after the last Apocalypse and is raising one at his school. There is also plenty of stuff on the table for Havok, Rogue, Scarlet Witch and Sunfire. Every single one of our heroes has somebody involved in this story that gives them a personal context for the fight.”
Remender is leaving Uncanny X-Force. Remender teased he will write about Logan’s actions in The Final Execution.
“We explore the fallout of Wolverine killing Daken a lot in Uncanny Avengers. His behavior changes around issue #5. I’m working closely with Jason Aaron to coordinate with Wolverine & The X-Men. The death of Daken is the catalyst for character development. I don’t see him as a preemptive killer again. Do the claws still come out? I want to see him try to make it happen less. What he went through left some mark on his soul. He wants to live up to the path that Charles Xavier set for him.”
“The ghosts of X-Force are going to affect Wolverine as long as I’m writing the character.”
Former X-Man Sunfire is joining the team (along with Wasp and Wonder Man.) A fan asked about Sunfire’s role as a Horseman of Apocalypse (from the Peter Milligan era.)
“Wolverine is also a former Horseman. Sunfire would have been a perfect member of X-Force. He is damaged. Between what Apocalypse did to him, the Marauders, losing his legs…he’s been broken. It’s similar to where Archangel tried to kill Apocalypse in the first arc of Uncanny X-Force.
“Sunfire will be presented with a similar situation. Things do not work out well for everybody.”
I love Marvel history. I even have the Rise of Apocalypse limited series from the 90’s. Remender will take us back to ancient Egypt in this next arc.
“When Apocalypse first rose, it was during the reign of Rama Tut, Kang’s scientific pharaoh persona. They have history. There is more of a relationship than we’ve seen, but they share a common era of origin,” added Tom Brevoort.
The Red Skull is more powerful than ever and a threat to the entire Marvel Universe.
“Without telling you the end of the first story, we have not seen the end of Red Skull. He will be in Ragnarok Now,” said Remender.
“I’m in love with villains. This is a chance to put a shine back on three of the greatest villains in comic books period.”
The child who would be Apocalypse (aka Evan/Genesis) is now part of the cast of Wolverine and the X-Men. Evan’s fate and potential role in the story will not be revealed yet.
“I don’t want to say anything other than that Jason and I are in close contact. We have a conclusion in mind. We might get to it here, we might get to it in a year or two, but we know the end result.”
Daniel Acuna will become the new regular artist starting with this second arc/issue #6. John Cassaday will continue to create covers for the series.
By Editor