Review: Marvel Universe- The End
Quick Summary
Pros: The book’s first half is exciting. The book’s second half contains an interesting look into Thanos as an individual and provides some unique commentary of the comic book industry. The book’s artwork looks great throughout the collection.
Cons: The book’s first half feels unoriginal and contains several lackluster subplots. The conclusion of this comic aged poorly and knowledge of more modern comics undercuts the book’s main message.
Overall: This is a book with pretty mixed appeal. On the positive side of things, it tells a pretty exciting story and places a very interesting spotlight on Thanos. On the negative side of things, the bulk of the narrative is somewhat unoriginal and the conclusion feels wanting. This book will likely appeal to readers who really enjoy reading about Thanos but will appeal less to readers looking for a fundamentally significant Marvel event, like the “Infinity Trilogy”.
Story
Marvel Universe: The End, by Jim Starlin, has a mix of highs and lows that create a read with unique appeal. The book’s first half is high-stakes action where the fate of the entire universe is in jeopardy, which makes for an exciting read. However, the progression of the story feels a bit redundant after the events of the “Infinity Trilogy” and also contains some pretty lackluster subplots. The book’s second half fares better by taking a deep dive into Thanos’ psyche and explores what he truly wants in life. This is also accompanied by some interesting commentary on aspects of Marvel history, which will likely be interesting for longtime fans. However, this half of the book is undercut by a cursory knowledge of modern comics, which undo the two main sacrifices in this half of the book. In the end, this volume is worthwhile at some points but does not have nearly the universal appeal that Starlin’s other works have.
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The main narrative in The End is focused on an extremely high-stakes battle that has Thanos fighting nearly omnipotent forces. An ancient threat, fueled by an armada of equally powerful beings, declares his supremacy over the entire Marvel Universe, easily dispatching Earth’s heroes and a number of cosmic entities. The overwhelmingly grim odds of this battle and the ultimate victory of Thanos make for a pretty thrilling read.
Unfortunately, there are plenty of flaws to the book’s opening half. The entire narrative feels far too similar to Jim Starlin’s other cosmic odysseys, where ultimate power is eventually subverted by a chance twist of fate. In addition, the speed with which Akhenaten is dealt with makes his entire backstory, Doom’s scheme, and the plans of the gods feel completely unnecessary to the flow of this comic.
The second half of The End shifts the focus from a battle over the fate of the universe to an internal battle within Thanos. Here, readers get a taste of meta commentary, which provides an in-universe reasoning for the cyclical death and rebirth of heroes in the world of comics. In addition, Thanos’ inward reflection yields some unique character development, much of which manages to build on concepts present since Thanos’ first appearances. This portion of the narrative is very interesting and concludes the comic on a note that leaves the reader wondering about the significance of what just happened.
However, much of this is undercut by later comics. The End makes a point to say that the rebirth of various heroes will not happen from this point forward and that Thanos is now dead, both of which were necessary sacrifices in order to maintain the stability of the universe. Yet neither of these promises are upheld by future comics, significantly diluting the significance of these sacrifices. It makes it feel like the universe was saved but nothing was lost in the process, which is the opposite of what the narrative intended.
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Art
The one unambiguously positive element of The End is the artwork. Penciler Jim Starlin, inker Al Milgrom, and colorist Christie Scheele put together a great-looking book with all of the stylistic flare one would expect from an event like this. The characters stand out, the action looks nice, and the pages are all laid out in a way that improves the flow of the narrative. However, the most significant artistic positive comes from the creative way in which the cosmic side of the Marvel universe is portrayed. The cosmos look fantastic throughout this book and the complex metaphysical entities all look as unique and interesting as they should. This is a serious asset to the overall appeal of this collection and is one of the most obvious positives in the book.
Continuity
Marvel Universe: The End is a mostly standalone event. However, it somewhat continues Thanos’ story from the conclusion of the Infinity Abyss event, collected in Guardians of the Galaxy: Road to Annihilation Vol. 1 (Review), which took place sometime shortly before this comic.
The main storyline from this event does not continue in any specific comic. However, the general narrative surrounding Thanos mostly continues in his first solo series, collected in Thanos: Redemption (Review).
This volume also makes references to other comic books, detailed below:
- Thanos became “the most powerful being” in reality twice:
- The first time was during the original “Thanos War”. See ComicBookWire’s “Thanos War Reading Order” to see the issues involved in this venture.
- The second time was in the Infinity Gauntlet (Review) (Reading Order) event.
- Thanos died in Marvel Two-In-One Annual #2, collected in Marvel Masterworks: Adam Warlock Vol. 2 (Review) or in Marvel Masterworks: Avengers Vol. 17 (Review), and was resurrected in Silver Surfer Vol. 3 #34, collected in Silver Surfer: Rebirth of Thanos (Review).
- The X-Men dealt with the “Living Pharaoh” back in X-Men #54, collected in Marvel Masterworks: The X-Men Vol. 6.
- Gamora and Adam Warlock began watching over Atleza at the conclusion of the Infinity Abyss event, collected in Guardians of the Galaxy: Road to Annihilation Vol. 1 (Review)
- Thor became the ruler of Asgard in Thor Vol. 2 #44, collected in Thor: Lord of Asgard.
- Wonder Man died in Avengers #9, collected in Marvel Masterworks: Avengers Vol. 1 (Review). He returned from the dead in Avengers #151, collected in Marvel Masterworks: Avengers Vol. 16 (Review).
- Adam Warlock briefly mentions the Infinity Abyss event, collected in Guardians of the Galaxy: Road to Annihilation Vol. 1 (Review).