A new limited series from Marvel Comics will thrust iconic heroes like The Avengers, Wolverine, and Moon Knight into the horrifying tournament known as Murderworld, run by the vicious yet wacky X-Men villain Arcade, starting with Murderworld: Avengers #1.
Murderworld, the ever-evolving amusement park deathtrap run by the wicked Arcade, first appeared in 1977s Marvel Team-Up #66, and has been used repeatedly since then by the assassin-for-hire to take out innocent civilians and heroes alike. Arcade, one of the X-Men’s oldest villains, has made Murderworld parks under Manhattan, in the Caribbean, and in England. One of the more famous Murderworlds was made for Avengers Arena, the Hunger Games-style series that saw Aracade pitting heroic teenagers against each other.
Now Marvel has announced the upcoming five-part Murderworld series – co-written by Jim Zub (Thunderbolts, Conan the Barbarian) and Ray Fawkes (Constantine, One Soul) with the first issue being illustrated by Jertho Morales (Marvel’s Voices: Young Avengers Infinity Comic). The impeccably violent event will feature four one-shot comics starring the Avengers, Wolverine, Moon Knight, and Spider-Man, before a final issue connecting them all together. Marvel revealed that the series, set to be released this coming November, will be hyper-violent, “Overloaded with gut-wrenching twists, unbelievable deaths, and bloodied and bruised Marvel heroes,” as the heroes uncover decades old secrets about Murderworld including, “...shocking truths behind the countless victims that have found themselves trapped there.” Writer Jim Zub, who is also writing the upcoming heroic Thunderbolts relaunch, revealed on Twitter that he and Fawkes first pitched this comic to Marvel all the way back in 2004. “We were young writers full of youthful energy trying to make our mark,” he said, and that they couldn’t be more excited to finally be able to tell the story.
Zub and Fawkes went on to say:
“When I first saw Murderworld in an issue of UNCANNY X-MEN, I was fascinated by its colorful corniness mixed with deception and violence,” Zub explained. “Many years ago, Ray and I chatted about a twisted thriller-survival story set in Arcade’s deadly playground and now, starting with MURDERWORLD: AVENGERS, we’re finally getting the chance to unleash it!”
“Murderworld is one of those stealthy, ultra-compelling concepts that always made the Marvel Universe so fascinating to me – the gaudy, family-fun veneer slapped over a deadly threat. When Jim and I were discussing it, ideas to make it more and more frightening and exciting just kept coming to us. I’m thrilled to bring them to readers in all their horrible glory!” Fawkes added.
The official Marvel solicit gives even more information about Muderworld: Avengers #1:
READY. SET. DIE! Hundreds are killed every year in an elaborate secret tournament run by a sadistic man with nearly limitless resources at his fingertips. It’s not an urban legend. It’s not a myth – MURDERWORLD is real! It’s online, and the gruesome truth has been hidden from everyone except its victims – until NOW. Meet Paul Pastor, the extraordinary young documentarian who’s going to expose it all…with some super-powered help, starting with the Avengers! In MURDERWORLD: AVENGERS, the Black Widow has a personal grudge to settle with Murderworld mastermind Arcade – but can she stop this game before it kills again?
Arcade was last seen in issue #11 of the X-Men series Hellions, where he was manipulated by both Mastermind and Mister Sinister. He also made an appearance in Kelly Thompson’s Black Widow series, which is most likely where Natasha’s personal grudge stems form. Arcade and Murderworld have typically been seen in X-Men or Spider-Man comics, so it will be especially interesting to see how the super-heroic Avengers team does in the arena. The cover image shared for the first issue sees Steve Rogers standing over a dead body with blood smeared on his shield, implying that Captain America had to kill someone within Murderworld, something the hero generally tries to avoid doing, even with his worst and most vile enemies. Throughout Marvel Comics publication Murderworld has always been an underground, secretive place, but it seems like one of the main protagonists of this new series will be a documentarian named Paul Pastor who is determined to expose the horrors of Murderworld to the public.
This fall the secrets of Murderworld and the X-Men’s longtime villain Arcade, a psychotic game master who is somehow both terrifying and zany, will be revealed with the help of some much-needed violence from the Avengers and other heroes like Wolverine, Moon Knight, and Spider-Man.
Murderworld: Avengers #1 from Marvel Comics will debut in November 2022.
