Marvel Zombies (comic book)
| Marvel Zombies | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| File:MZTPB.jpg Cover of Marvel Zombies (2006), hardcover collected edition, art by Arthur Suydam | |||
| Created by | Mark Millar Greg Land | ||
| Publication information | |||
| Publisher | Marvel Comics | ||
| Schedule | Monthly | ||
| |||
| Formats | Original material for the series has been published as a set of story arcs in Ultimate Fantastic Four, limited series, and one-shot comics. | ||
| Genre | |||
| Publication date | September 2005 – present | ||
| Reprints | |||
| Collected editions | |||
| Marvel Zombies | ISBN 0-7851-2277-X | ||
| Marvel Zombies: Dead Days | ISBN 0-7851-3563-4 | ||
| Marvel Zombies vs. The Army of Darkness | ISBN 0-7851-2743-7 | ||
| Marvel Zombies 2 | ISBN 0-7851-2546-9 | ||
| Marvel Zombies 3 | ISBN 0-7851-3635-5 | ||
Marvel Zombies is a comic book metaseries published by Marvel Comics. The series features zombie versions of Marvel Universe superheroes who have been portrayed as both protagonists and antagonists through the different limited series within the metaseries.
Publication history
The series of titles begins with two Ultimate Fantastic Four story arcs, "Crossover" (2005) and "Frightful" (2006), by Mark Millar and Greg Land. The story arcs were followed by a Marvel Zombies limited series by Robert Kirkman and Sean Phillips,[1] who also created the prequel Marvel Zombies: Dead Days and sequel Marvel Zombies 2.
A crossover with Army of Darkness, Marvel Zombies vs. The Army of Darkness, was written by John Layman with art by Fabiano Neves, Fernando Blanco and Sean Phillips.
With Marvel Zombies 3, Kirkman and Phillips were replaced by Fred Van Lente and Kev Walker.[2][3] The team continued on to Marvel Zombies 4, a four-issue mini-series starting in April 2009.[4][5] Van Lente then stayed on write the first an last issues of Marvel Zombies Return a series of five one-shots looking at different aspects of the outbreak.[6][7] With Marvel Zombies 5 he teamed up with Kano, with the story picking up from the end of MZ4.[8]
Main series
Ultimate Fantastic Four
In the story arc "Crossover" (issues #21-23), Reed Richards receives contact from an older version of himself from an alternate dimension. After crossing over, Reed discovers he's been duped and that the entire world is infested with blood-thirsty zombies, looking to use the Ultimate Marvel universe as a food source. Reed escapes the zombie universe and prevents the zombies from entering the Ultimate universe.
In "Frightful" (issues #30-32), the zombified Fantastic Four cross over to the Ultimate universe through a dimensional portal. After the zombies are forced back through the portal, Doctor Doom follows, destroying their portal and trapping himself in the zombie universe.
Marvel Zombies
After zombie superheroes eat the human race to extinction, Galactus prepares to eat the Earth. Colonel America, Giant Man, the Hulk, Iron Man, Luke Cage and Spider-Man defeat and devour the Silver Surfer and Galactus. Infused with the Power Cosmic, the "Zombie Galacti" travel the universe to search for more sources of food.
Marvel Zombies: Dead Days
In this prequel, the zombie infection spreads throughout the world, while superheroes try to concoct a plan to save the human race.
Marvel Zombies vs. The Army of Darkness
Set before, and during, Dead Days, Ash Williams is transported to the Marvel Zombies universe, and must fight the zombies while searching for a way to escape the universe.
Marvel Zombies 2
After devouring all life in the universe over the course of forty years, the Zombie Galactus return to Earth to find a way to access other dimension for food. On Earth, they face off against New Wakanda, a colony of humans who survived the zombie onslaught.
Marvel Zombies 3
After zombies invade the Marvel Universe, Machine Man and Jocasta go to the Marvel Zombies universe to retrieve a blood sample from an uninfected human. Unbeknownst to them, a zombie Morbius plans to use the blood to infect the Marvel Universe.
Marvel Zombies 4
The Midnight Sons, under the command of A.R.M.O.R., hunt zombies who have escaped to different universes. Meanwhile, Dormammu commands The Hood to capture the virus for his own ends.[5]
Marvel Zombies Return
The storyline follows from Marvel Zombies 2 when zombie Spider-Man, Giant-Man and Wolverine were teleported to a different universe, and deals with the ramifications of their arrival on a new Earth and the characters' resurgent hunger, which once again drives them to obtain cross-universal teleporters.
Each issue stars its titular characters, though not necessarily the zombified versions of Earth-2149, as seen in the case of Iron Man and Hulk, whose respective issues feature uninfected versions battling zombies.
Marvel Zombies: Evil Evolution
This one-shot will be a crossover between the zombies and the Marvel Apes. It resolves some of the remaining questions over the origin of the zombie plague and is set between Dead Days and Crossover. The story starts in the zombieverse shortly after "Dead Days." Zombie Giant-Man and Wasp discover the Ape-verse (as seen in the previous Apes specials) and take a trip there for an ape snack. We later learn that the Prime Eight scared them back to their dimension.
What's more, the Ape-vengers are now leading a pre-emptive strike into the zombieverse to get the zombies before they get the Apes. There's heavy casualties on both sides. Zombie Reed-Richards is decapitated, but still mobile. He teams up with the Gibbon, Gorilla Girl, Ape-X, Speedball, Spider-Monkey, and the rest of the characters to undo this mess. It turns out zombie Reed doesn't like being decapitated, and wants to alter history so that the Ape and Zombie universe never meet.
The team is successful. History is changed so that the Apes never found Speedball back in the Speedball special, so the zombies never discover either universe. However, Gorilla Girl had to sacrifice herself to change history, so she's apparently ceased to exist.
It is also implied that a dimensional portal Reed Richards had earlier been testing had something to do with bringing the Zombie Sentry to his Earth, though this is not made clear how this fits in with the rest of the Marvel Zombies series. [9]
Marvel Zombies 5
A direct sequel to Marvel Zombies 4. Machine Man returns as zombie hunter, when he is hired by Morbius who wants a cure for his infected friend; Jack Russell. (to be expected in april 2010.)
Other comics
Exiles
A zombie version of Wolverine (From a universe similar to that of Marvel Zombies) appears in Exiles #85-#86 as part of a team of alternate versions of Wolverine.
Head Trip
To save the universe, Deadpool must team up with himself to dodge Hydra operatives, dinosaurs, cavemen and zombie cavemen as he attempts to take his not-so-precious cargo back where it came from: the Marvel Zombies Universe.[10]
Ultimate Civil War Spider-Ham
Spider-Ham travels through the multiverse ending up in the Marvel Zombies universe where he becomes a zombie.
Black Panther
The Fantastic Four (Black Panther, Storm, the Human Torch and the Thing) are teleported by King Solomon's Frogs to the Marvel Zombies universe where they encounter zombies on a Skrull planet.
Marvel Apes
Though not directly related to Marvel Zombies, Marvel Apes was first suggested as a successor to Marvel Zombies by a fan during a convention Q&A session with Joe Quesada.[11]
Marvel Apes: Speedball Special
At the end of the first issue, a glimpse of an unidentified zombie is seen, commenting that he would like to have a bite out of the protagonists, who warp to a different universe.
Marvel Apes: The Amazing Spider Monkey
The issue ends with Red Ghost and the ape Speedball in the ape universe, running away from the recently-appearing zombie versions of Giant Man, the Wasp, Iron Man, Wolverine, and others.
Marvel Apes: Grunt Line
The issue ends with Ape X, The Gibbon, Jane Potter, Gorilla Girl, and the Red Ghost's apes in the Marvel Zombies universe as zombie versions of Wolverine and Colonel America draw closer.
Covers
Most Marvel Zombies issues and trade paperbacks feature covers by Arthur Suydam recreating classic Marvel Comics covers with the characters replaced by zombie versions. The covers of Marvel Zombies 3 by Greg Land feature recreations of posters of classic zombie films featuring zombified Marvel Comics characters.
Collected editions
There are several trade paperbacks collecting the various stories:
| # | Title | Publisher | Year | ISBN | Reprints |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Marvel Zombies | Marvel Comics | Aug, 2006 | ISBN 0-7851-2277-X |
| |
| Marvel Zombies: Dead Days | Marvel Comics | Apr 2008 | ISBN 0-7851-3232-5 |
| |
| Marvel Zombies vs. The Army of Darkness | Marvel Comics | Sept 2007 | ISBN 0-7851-2743-7 |
| |
| Marvel Zombies 2 | Marvel Comics | June 2008 | ISBN 0-7851-2545-0 |
| |
| Marvel Zombies 3 | Marvel Comics | May 2009 | ISBN 0-7851-3635-5 |
| |
| Marvel Zombies: The Covers | publisher | Nov 2007 | ISBN 0785129081 | Variouse Marvel Zombies series |
Merchandise
There is a range of supporting merchandise based on the characters. Diamond Select have produced Marvel Zombie Minimates, [12] action figures [13] and a number of mini busts. [14]
Notes
- ^ "Talking Marvel Zombies With Robert Kirkman". Newsarama. October 3, 2005.
- ^ "Van Lente talks Marvel Zombies 3". Comic Book Resources. September 5, 2008.
- ^ "Zombies in Florida: Fred Van Lente on Marvel Zombies III". Newsarama. October 3, 2008.
- ^ "Fred Van Lente Talks Marvel Zombies 4". Comic Book Resources. March 20, 2009.
- ^ a b Ekstrom, Steve (March 31, 2009). "Back for Four: Fred Van Lente on Marvel Zombies 4". Newsarama. Retrieved March 31, 2009.
- ^ Richards, Dave (June 23, 2009). "Marvel Zombies: The All-Star Return!". Comic Book Resources. Retrieved June 24, 2009.
- ^ Brownfield, Troy (June 22, 2009). "The Zombies - This Time, With Literate Roots". Newsarama. Retrieved June 23, 2009.
- ^ "EXCLUSIVE: Marvel Zombies 5". Marvel.com. January 15, 2010. Retrieved January 15, 2010.
{{cite web}}:|first=missing|last=(help) - ^ "MARVEL ZOMBIES: EVIL EVOLUTION #1". Marvel Comics. November 13, 2009.
- ^ http://www.marvel.com/catalog/?id=12208
- ^ MyCup o' Joe Week 5, Marvel.com, April 22, 2008
- ^ Marvel Zombies Minimates Boxed Set
- ^ Diamond Select turns Marvel Zombies into action figures, Newsarama, February 9, 2007
- ^ DST Brings Captain America Back from the Grave
References
- Marvel Zombies at the Grand Comics Database
- Marvel Zombies at the Comic Book DB (archived from the original)
- "Marvel Zombies: The Book of Angels, Demons & Various Monstrosities" at the Comic Book DB (archived from the original)
- Marvel Spotlight: Marvel Zombies at the Comic Book DB (archived from the original)
- Marvel Zombies: Dead Days at the Grand Comics Database
- Marvel Zombies: Dead Days at the Comic Book DB (archived from the original)
- Marvel Zombies/Army of Darkness at the Grand Comics Database
- Marvel Zombies/Army of Darkness at the Comic Book DB (archived from the original)
- Marvel Zombies 2 at the Grand Comics Database
- Marvel Zombies 2 at the Comic Book DB (archived from the original)
- Marvel Zombies 3 at the Grand Comics Database
- Marvel Zombies 3 at the Comic Book DB (archived from the original)
- Marvel Zombies 4 at the Grand Comics Database
- Marvel Zombies 4 at the Comic Book DB (archived from the original)
- Marvel Zombies Return at the Grand Comics Database
- Marvel Zombies Return at the Comic Book DB (archived from the original)
- Marvel Zombies: Evil Evolution at the Grand Comics Database
- Marvel Zombies: Evil Evolution at the Comic Book DB (archived from the original)