8 Most Important Retcons In Marvel Comics History

In comparison to DC Comics, Marvel Comics handles revisions, or retcons, of superhero stories differently. While DC often uses major events labeled as “Crisis” to completely overhaul their entire universe, Marvel has generally maintained a continuous timeline with only two significant exceptions: Onslaught and Secret Wars. These events brought about substantial changes, but typically, Marvel’s approach involves revising characters’ histories within smaller storylines, primarily focusing on adjustments for individual characters like Spider-Man or teams such as The X-Men. However, some retcons in Marvel Comics history have affected a single character and had far-reaching consequences across the entire universe.

Marvel Comics has significantly altered characters’ backstories due to agreements with supernatural entities and resetting the comic universe. Additionally, it has been revealed that certain characters’ origins have been distorted for years, resulting in what is referred to as a retcon (retroactive continuity revision) within the comics.

8) Brand New Day

In the aftermath of the 2007 storyline, One More Day, a move that sparked much debate in Marvel Comics, took place during the first crossover event of Civil War. During this time, Spider-Man, under pressure from Iron Man, exposed his true identity as Peter Parker to the world. However, this revelation placed his family in peril, and one of Kingpin’s henchmen shot Aunt May. In an attempt to save her life, Peter struck a bargain with Mephisto. This deal involved Peter and Mary Jane erasing their marriage from history, effectively making it seem as though they had never married at all.

As a result of this situation, we saw the arrival of “Brand New Day”. In this scenario, Peter Parker didn’t end up marrying Mary Jane Watson. This was due to Mephisto managing to help a criminal escape during their wedding day, forcing them to call off the event. This drastic shift in Peter’s life had significant consequences. One of these was the return of Harry Osborn from the dead. Yet, what upset many readers most was the ending of Peter and Mary Jane’s marriage. Even 18 years later, this decision remains a point of contention among fans.

7) Donald Blake Was Never Real

As a die-hard movie enthusiast, I’d rephrase that like this: In the epic tale of my favorite superhero, Thor, his origin story unfolds with father Odin exiling him from the celestial realm of Asgard, tasking him to earn his worthiness for a return. The captivating yarn spun in Journey Into Mystery #83 then unfurls as a young, brilliant medical student named Donald Blake embarks on a holiday in Norway. Therein lies the cave where he stumbled upon an ordinary-looking cane. Upon striking it against the ground, it transformed into Mjolnir, the mighty hammer of Thor! In this enchanting twist, Blake hid his identity as the god of thunder and used the cane to metamorphose into Thor, donning the cape of a superhero.

In the comic book Thor #159 (1968), it was revealed that Odin had transformed Thor into the disabled Donald Blake and sent him on a quest to regain his hammer, as a test of character. Further changes were made in Thor #475 (1994), where it was shown that Donald Blake had been stuck in the same cave since he first found the cane, frozen in time. The most significant alteration came in Shattered Heroes, where it was unveiled that Donald Blake never truly existed and was a fictional character created by Odin to teach Thor a lesson. This revelation drove Blake insane, prompting him to seek vengeance against Thor, Odin, and anyone else who stood in his path.

6) Scarlet Witch & Quicksilver’s Origin

Initially, Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver debuted in the X-Men comic books, where they were associated with Magneto’s Brotherhood of Evil Mutants. Later on, they left Magneto and joined The Avengers, eventually becoming heroes. For many years in Marvel Comics, it was established that they were Magneto’s offspring. However, this turned out to be a misconception or something Magneto was mistaken about regarding their parentage.

As a die-hard film buff, I was intrigued by the twist in Scarlet Witch’s backstory revealed in issue #7 of Avengers & X-Men: Axis. Under the sway of an inversion spell, it was me, Scarlet Witch, who aimed to eliminate Doctor Doom. My brothers Magneto and Quicksilver attempted to thwart my actions, but I retaliated with a fatal spell that targeted anyone related to me. Tragically, my brother Quicksilver perished in the crossfire, while Magneto miraculously survived, proving he was never our biological father. However, during the World of Witchcraft storyline in 2016, I uncovered the truth about my maternal lineage. It turned out that my real mother was Natalya Maximoff (the Scarlet Witch), and I inherited my powers from her as well as my grandfather, the Scarlet Warlock.

5) Miles Morales Moves To The 616

In the alternate reality known as Earth-1610, also recognized as the Ultimate Marvel Universe, Miles Morales initially emerged as Spider-Man. Subsequently, Peter Parker met his end, leaving Miles as the sole web-slinger in that universe. Over the course of time, he experienced hardships reminiscent of those faced by Peter in the main Marvel Universe (616). These tribulations were further emphasized when Miles’ mother passed away and his father disowned him upon discovering his secret identity as Spider-Man. However, following the events of Secret Wars, Miles’ entire backstory underwent a significant revision.

As Secret Wars drew to a close, it was Miles Morales who provided food for the Molecule Man, demonstrating his compassion. The Molecule Man chose not to aid Doctor Doom, which ultimately brought about an end and reset of Earth-616. In return for Miles’ kindness, the Molecule Man bestowed him a gift: he transported Miles to Earth-616, where he found a new life waiting. His mother had been resurrected, his father was back as a loving figure, and Miles now shared a universe with Peter Parker once more – both of them becoming Spider-Man in this realm.

4) Weapon Plus (Captain America & Wolverine)

In the “Assault on Weapon Plus” plot twist, some aspects of the backstory for two key Marvel Comics characters – Captain America (Steve Rogers) and Wolverine (Logan) – were revised. Originally, Steve Rogers was enhanced with the Super-Soldier Serum to become Captain America. Conversely, Logan underwent the Weapon X program and received his adamantium skeleton and upgrades. However, it turns out that these weren’t the only characters involved in this secretive program, as revealed by the retconning of their origin stories.

The retcon uncovers that these superhero programs had covert government backing in a bid to develop superheroes. Since 1918, both the U.S. and Germany have been secretly researching super-soldier John Steele, making him older than Captain America by more than two decades. Furthermore, it was disclosed that Wolverine and other mutants were subjects of the same experimentation as Captain America’s creation, connecting their origins.

3) Moon Knight’s DID Issues

One intriguing character in Marvel Comics lore is Moon Knight, whose true identity is Marc Spector – a former mercenary miraculously revived by the Egyptian moon god Khonshu after being presumed dead. Enhanced by the lunar powers bestowed upon him, Spector devised an ingenious method to function as a crime-fighter, assuming multiple personas for distinct roles. A wealthy benefactor, Steven Grant, was one such persona, financing his crusade, while Jake Lockley, a street-savvy cab driver, served as another identity, providing him with valuable street intelligence.

In a shift from earlier stories, Marvel Comics revised Moon Knight’s backstory, revealing that instead of assuming these identities to fight crime, they were manifestations of dissociative identity disorder. Although there were hints towards this in previous comics, the official origin incorporating DID wasn’t established until the “Marc Spector: Moon Knight” series in 1989, marking the first time it was depicted that he didn’t have command over his multiple personas.

2) Bruce Banner’s Death & The Green Door

In the initial storyline of The Hulk, it was revealed that Bruce Banner took part in gamma experiments. When a boy named Rick Jones ventured into forbidden zones just as a gamma bomb was about to detonate, Bruce intervened and himself got caught in the blast. This incident caused gamma energy to alter Bruce into The Incredible Hulk. However, it’s worth noting that this backstory has undergone some minor revisions over time.

In a fresh rendition of his backstory, it isn’t the gamma bomb that transformed Bruce Banner into the Hulk; rather, the gamma blast took his life. Instead of reaching Heaven or Hell, Banner was shifted to an alternate realm, colloquially known as the Below-Place. This otherworldly space is separated from Earth by a mystical portal called the Green Door. Upon reviving him instantaneously, the Green Door made it seem as though Banner had never truly died, which explains why his demise was not initially part of his original tale and only came to light with the debut of the Below-Place and the Green Door in Avengers #684, published in 2018.

1) The Sliding Timescale Theory

In the Marvel Universe, there are many alterations or retcons (retroactive continuity changes) that are sometimes not given much attention. For instance, The Punisher, initially introduced as a U.S. Marine veteran of the Vietnam War, was later reimagined as having served in the Iraq War instead. It’s now established that The Punisher fought in the Siancong War, a fictional conflict that could have taken place at any point in history. Similarly, Tony Stark’s transformation into Iron Man originally happened during the Vietnam War. Like The Punisher, this aspect has undergone changes over time and is now also associated with the Siancong War.

This is due to the Sliding Timescale Theory, which Marvel employs to keep its characters contemporary despite their long history. In the comic book series Ultimates #5 (2015), Galactus discussed this concept. Essentially, time is not static but changes over the years, causing a shift in the timeline approximately every 15 years. This allows real-world events to become part of a character’s past, while only a few years have transpired within Marvel Comics. Thus, characters like Franklin Richards age, while others like Kitty Pryde remain young in the Marvel Universe. The concept of fluid time is what enables Marvel to explain such discrepancies in character aging.

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2025-07-18 23:13