A new teaser suggests Miracleman’s long-awaited arrival in Timeless will have far-reaching consequences for the Marvel Universe’s future.
A new teaser suggests Miracleman’s appearance in Timeless will leave an impact on the greater Marvel Universe.
In Timeless #1 by Jed MacKay, Kev Walker, Greg Land, Mark Bagley and Ariana Maher, Kang the Conqueror meets with an author named Anatoly Petrov, who is writing about the greatest supervillains in Marvel history. After embarking on a journey across the timestream, Petrov finishes his work, emblazing his novel with a mysterious MM symbol that he glimpsed through his travels. The mark is the iconic emblem of Miracleman, a long-lost comic book hero with decades of history. Now, Marvel has begun hinting at more appearances from the hero, releasing a teaser that asks, “How will Miracleman affect the future of the Marvel Universe?”
Miracleman last appeared in the pages of Marvel Comics #1000, which celebrated 80 years since the dawn of Marvel’s superhero universe. In a story by writer Neil Gaiman and artist Mark Buckingham, Miracleman drifted through space, reading a copy of Marvel Comics #1 while lamenting the passing of time. As Miracleman fantasized about Marvel’s heroes, he expressed a desire to try to understand their stories, which had seemingly been abandoned by society. Given that this one-page tale was titled “Miracleman: Prelude,” it is possible Marvel’s Timeless teaser may finally be explaining what transpired in Miracleman’s time to bring about the end of their other heroes.
While Timeless doesn’t reveal Miracleman’s current whereabouts, the key to the hero’s future may lie in his past. Originally named Marvelman, the hero was created in 1953 by Mick Anglo as a pastiche of the original Captain Marvel (aka Shazam). Years later, writer Alan Moore and artists Garry Leach and Alan Davis revitalized the character under the name Miracleman for Eclipse Comics before passing the series to Gaiman and Buckingham. Though their run was cut short, the title was given new life when Marvel bought the rights to Miracleman and began reprinting the series. The intention was that these comics would eventually lead to Gaiman and Buckingham resolving their story in new issues. However, Marvel halted the reprints before the new content ever saw the light of day, citing legal hurdles as the cause of the delay. With Miracelman’s rights seemingly sorted, the publisher may intend to release the highly anticipated series at long last.
Alongside the issue’s Miracleman tease, Timeless #1 offers insight into the futures of multiple Marvel heroes. The publisher previously revealed many of these events, such as the Punisher’s alliance with the Hand and Iron Man’s transformation into an Iron God. The validity of these timelines implies those that have not yet panned out will do so in time, such as a new incarnation of the Young Avengers and the apparent return of the long-dead hero Jack of Hearts.
Marvel’s Timeless #1 is on sale now.
Source: Marvel Comics
