Warning: contains potential spoilers for Avengers: Twilight #1The Avengers debut the Watcher’s dark opposite, changing Marvel lore forever. The Watcher has been a constant presence in the Marvel Universe for over 60 years, observing and recording its major events, and pledged to never interfere. However, in the future world depicted in Avengers: Twilight #1, fans see a dark spin on the concept of the Watcher, one that grossly perverts his mission.
Avengers: Twilight #1 is written by Chip Zdarsky and drawn by Daniel Acuna. The preview opens in the future, where an aging Captain America meets up with an elderly Luke Cage and Matt Murdock. Along the way, a fan asks to take a picture of Cap, but he hesitates. Arriving at the park, Murdock rails against a new law called “the Watcher Act,” which has turned people with old-style smartphones into “criminals.” Matt also mentions “terror curfews.”
The preview ends there, only giving fans a glimpse of the Marvel Universe to come.
The Watcher’s Arrival Always Signals Trouble Is on the Horizon
Springing from the fertile imaginations of Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, the Watcher was one of the unique concepts that helped launch the Marvel Age of Comics. Hailing from one of the oldest races in the universe, the Watcher (also known as Uatu) observes events unfolding on Earth. This has brought him into contact with many of Earth’s heroes, including the Fantastic Four. While Uatu is sworn to a pledge of non-interference, he has helped Earth’s heroes on more than one occasion. Uatu is a benevolent cosmic figure, even if his arrival means danger is on the horizon.
The preview for Avengers: Twilight #1 remains coy about what exactly constitutes the “Watcher Act,” but whatever it is, Matt Murdock is not happy with it, reopening his legal clinic to help with the influx of cases it has created. It involves smartphones, meaning there could be a surveillance component to it. In the preview, Captain America was reluctant to take a photo with a fan on her phone. Why Cap hesitated to do so is not specified, but for him to turn down a fan, it must be dire. When combined with the terror curfews, this new Watcher Act paints a bleak picture of the future of the Marvel Universe.
Galactus Eating Planets Is Secretly the Watcher’s Fault
Marvel’s favorite all-powerful Watcher could have stopped Galactus eons ago, but chose not to – and now the galaxy is paying the price.
Did Uatu Influence Marvel’s Most Repressive Law?
The preview also remains mum on whether Uatu himself inspired this act, or if the name is simply coincidental. What is clear, however, is that the act corrupts what Uatu stands for. He records historical events for posterity, whereas the Watcher Act is about surveillance and control. The Act has even rattled Captain America and Daredevil, so much they have seemingly abandoned their heroic careers. The world of Avengers: Twilight is a dark and dangerous one, where hope and joy have been squashed, and the Watcher’s dark opposite is introduced.
Avengers: Twilight #1 is on sale January 17 from Marvel Comics!
