Secret War Reading order

[jackolover]

I know this probably is going to be futile, but I have my reading order like this:

Secret Wars #0
Secret Wars #1
Secret Wars #2
Where Monsters Dwell #1. (Shows effect of Last Incursion on The Far East Earth), or
MODOK Assassin #1. (The first story page gives the first thorough look into Doom and origins of Battleworld)

After those last two, you could read anything, but I like the refreshing intro to A-Force and Arcadia, so that is my 3rd alternative for after SW#2. (Ultimate End #1 also has an Incursion anomaly like Where Monsters Dwell. MODOK could as well, with that Asteroid shower).

So after SW#2, what book should be the one that gives the best lead into Battleworld?

It should be noted, 616 and 1610 Manhattan was incoming at the Last Incursion as region 20, so regions directly around it (Doomstadt, Higher Avalon, the City and Doomgard) should have registered its arrival in a big way.

[Batgirlfan]

I do not even know where to start, I would love to read what came before Secret Wars itself, but then realized that there is just to much in the upcoming Previews to read everything. So I think I will just completely skip Secret Wars and wait until the new Marvel Universe returns in what, September?? Mind you I would love to buy and read everything, but I didnt even keep up with DC's Convergence, still need to finish picking up all that.

Ugh.

[TickTock]

It should be noted, 616 and 1610 Manhattan was incoming at the Last Incursion as region 20, so regions directly around it (Doomstadt, Higher Avalon, the City and Doomgard) should have registered its arrival in a big way.

You assume that Battleworld wasn't formed with all of the realities joining at once. I haven't seen any references to other domains noticing the arrivals of new neighbors.

[jackolover]

You assume that Battleworld wasn't formed with all of the realities joining at once. I haven't seen any references to other domains noticing the arrivals of new neighbors.

Me either, but there were Battleworld maps before Secret Wars that showed blank regions as "incoming regions", so they were still waiting for the Last Incursion to fill in the last few spaces from Secret Wars #2. What we have noticed was things falling from the skies, like an Ultron head in OML, Thor Angela fell into Killville, and Singularity fell into Arcadia. Something happened there in outer space.

[CZor]

Me either, but there were Battleworld maps before Secret Wars that showed blank regions as "incoming regions", so they were still waiting for the Last Incursion to fill in the last few spaces from Secret Wars #2. What we have noticed was things falling from the skies, like an Ultron head in OML, Thor Angela fell into Killville, and Singularity fell into Arcadia. Something happened there in outer space.

That was just Marvel teasing us on reveals as when the "incoming regions" were in place the new books weren't announced yet....as implied in Secret Wars #2, this whole world feels like it has been it for millions of years (the Cabal Raft gave a carbon date of even an older time).

[Taral-DLOS]

I know this probably is going to be futile, but I have my reading order like this:

Secret Wars #0
Secret Wars #1
Secret Wars #2
Where Monsters Dwell #1. (Shows effect of Last Incursion on The Far East Earth), or
MODOK Assassin #1. (The first story page gives the first thorough look into Doom and origins of Battleworld)

After those last two, you could read anything, but I like the refreshing intro to A-Force and Arcadia, so that is my 3rd alternative for after SW#2. (Ultimate End #1 also has an Incursion anomaly like Where Monsters Dwell. MODOK could as well, with that Asteroid shower).

So after SW#2, what book should be the one that gives the best lead into Battleworld?

It should be noted, 616 and 1610 Manhattan was incoming at the Last Incursion as region 20, so regions directly around it (Doomstadt, Higher Avalon, the City and Doomgard) should have registered its arrival in a big way.

So, regarding your last point, I'm not 100% sure that these worlds "arrived", to the shock and awe of others, so much as they were always there. In that, it appears that, with the exception of those few characters in Ultimate End, everyone is acting like Battleworld is all that has ever been. Nobody seems to know anything beyond Battleworld and Doom as God, the current status quo.

So even if the world was created fairly "recently", built from the amalgams of worlds lost in incursions, their memories are such that the world was always there.

Now, Ultimate End sort of undermines that, as the 616 and 1610 people seem to know what's going on. But note that New Attilan appears to be the one from 616 (part of the same domain, unless it's true that MANY universes can be part of individual domains, ruled over by one Baron), and they appear to be fully built into what's going on.

I'm wondering if the people in Ultimate End who know what's up are just the people who happened to fully understand the incursions and were actively trying to fight them? Maybe because they were actively participating in the final incursion they were immune to the memory issues? Either that or Ultimate End happens later on in the series (and maybe they have their memories due to a Layla Miller-in-House of M-style memory reveal. I suspect that Secret Wars 3 will shed a bit more light.

Regarding a reading order, I think it will be difficult to really hammer one down. The beginning is easy:

Secret Wars 0
Secret Wars 1
Every Last Days issue (except Silver Surfer; these all happen more or less simultaneously)
Last Days: Silver Surfer (I think this happens AFTER the end of the multiverse)
Secret Wars 2

Your next two seem fair, if they show incursions or more details into Battleworld.

I'm hoping that the various Battleworld tie-ins should have a decent reading order we can cobble together. There are a few intersections between them that might prove useful (we see characters from other domains in Inhumans: Attilan Rising, we see 1602 Kate Bishop relegated to the Shield in SW Journal 1, where she'll appear in Siege 1, etc.)

After that though, release order might be the best indicator. Especially for Warzones, which are supposed to be completely isolated. Let's say the rough reading order of Warzones' complete series is:

A-Force
Planet Hulk
Spider-Verse
Inferno
Infinity Gauntlet
Old Man Logan
Secret Wars 2099
X-Men '92
Amazing Spider-Man: Renew Your Vows
Armor Wars
Future Imperfect
Giant-Size Little Marvel: AvX
X-Tinction Agenda
Years of Future Past
1602: Witch Hunter Angela
Captain Marvel and the Carol Corps
Mrs. Deadpool and the Howling Commandos (is that a Warzones title?)
Squadron Sinister
Weirdworld
E Is For Extinction
Korvac Saga
1872
Age of Apocalypse
Civil War
Hail Hydra
Spider Island
Captain Britain and the Mighty Defenders (also note sure if Warzone or Battleworld title)
Guardians of Knowhere
Hank Johnson: Agent of HYDRA
House of M
Howard the Human
Secret Wars: Secret Love (not sure if Warzone or Battleworld title)

[resipsaloquitur]

I have the suspicion that this is going to be one of (many) events that will NOT lend itself well to a "reading order." Aside from the sheer volume of publications, there's probably going to be too many events happening simultaneously. I'm sure some books will lead well into others (the banishment in A-Force #1 is probably going to be reflected in SHIELD #1) and there will probably be some key events like the Shield coming down which will reflect in multiple titles at once.

My advice: read the core SW title and maintain a rough awareness of what key events are being reflected in individual books.

[TickTock]

Me either, but there were Battleworld maps before Secret Wars that showed blank regions as "incoming regions", so they were still waiting for the Last Incursion to fill in the last few spaces from Secret Wars #2. What we have noticed was things falling from the skies, like an Ultron head in OML, Thor Angela fell into Killville, and Singularity fell into Arcadia. Something happened there in outer space.

Something probably did happen above Battleworld (there is no outer space anymore), but it wasn't new Domains arriving. We'll probably get more info in books like Guardians of Knowhere and Korvac Saga.

[jackolover]

Well at last, we have one continuity option here this week. In Battleworld #2, Steve Rogers is still in Killville, so this is before Planet Hulk #1, because Doom sends Rogers to Greenland in PH #1.

Now here is the stickler, as of Secret Wars #3. We have now found out the 616 Life Raft arrived 3 years ago, (5 years after Battleworld was first formed), so Ultimate End #1 happened at least 3 years ago since the last Incursion. Anything falling from the skies today, is probably a fairly recent phenomenon.

[jackolover]

Now we have evidence that X-Tinction Agenda #1 happens before SW2, because the dead Old Man Thor, is alive in Doomstadt in this. There is another preview I see Old Man Thor alive as well, (Thors #1), so that's two books before SW2.

[jackolover]

You assume that Battleworld wasn't formed with all of the realities joining at once. I haven't seen any references to other domains noticing the arrivals of new neighbors.

No. It looks like this happened 8 years ago, but it could be as recent as 3 years ago also, from the discovery of the 616 Raft.

[jackolover]

I have since been convinced to agree with other posters that Visions New green Cape uniform is pre-SW. Looking at the cover of Uncanny Avengers #1 you see the moon partially destroyed as it was in Avengers #43-44, so this is still 616. So I can believe Ultron Forever is pre-SW, and Rage of Ultron, are also pre-SW. Then the only post-SW, are the FCBD Avengers, and Uncanny Inhumans set in New Attilan, which only appears in Battleworld for the first time.

[TickTock]

Well at last, we have one continuity option here this week. In Battleworld #2, Steve Rogers is still in Killville, so this is before Planet Hulk #1, because Doom sends Rogers to Greenland in PH #1.

Now here is the stickler, as of Secret Wars #3. We have now found out the 616 Life Raft arrived 3 years ago, (5 years after Battleworld was first formed), so Ultimate End #1 happened at least 3 years ago since the last Incursion. Anything falling from the skies today, is probably a fairly recent phenomenon.

Ultimate End #2 comments on the timeline a bit.
spoilers:

The two Tony's refer to Doom resetting that domain, stating that he's already done it before. Timeline goes out the window, there.

end of spoilers

[JohnLynch]

Now, Ultimate End sort of undermines that, as the 616 and 1610 people seem to know what's going on.

That's just classic Bendis. He never feels the need to actually pay attention to continuity or what other people are doing. I would dismiss it as Bendis doing what he always does and not allow it to inform on your opinion as to how Battleworld is intended to work by every other single author and editor at Marvel.

I have the suspicion that this is going to be one of (many) events that will NOT lend itself well to a "reading order."

Reading orders are always best done in hindsight when it comes to these types of events. You'll always have issues in one series taking 3.5 issues to cover what gets covered in half a page in another book, but if you're willing to be fairly flexible a reading order of some sort will always emerge. I'm reading AvX and it's actually surprisingly well done with regards to following a set reading order (with one possible book being an exception).

[JustJelly]

So far not many of the characters except for Doom and Strange have appeared in multiple titles so the reading order is pretty much the release order at this point.