There's more secrets behind the '80s event Secret Wars, and Marvel is about to share

You'd think that, four decades after its conclusion, you'd know everything there was to know about a major comic book crossover event.

You'd be wrong.

This fall, Marvel returns to the event that marked the '80s, gave us symbiotes, and set the tone for many future summer crossovers: Secret Wars (or SUper Heroes Secret Wars, if you're being formal). The new limited series Marvel Super Heroes Secret Wars: Battleworld promises to expand upon the classic comic cage match, adding depth we never knew was there.

Here's what Marvel said in an announcement dated July 21:

"Get ready for an ALL-NEW cataclysmic battle from when SPIDER-MAN first got his ALIEN COSTUME, when a mysterious being called the BEYONDER assembled super heroes and villains from Earth to do battle on a patchwork planet – yes, witness now an untold adventure set during the original SECRET WARS! MARVEL SUPER HEROES SECRET WARS set the standard for Marvel Comics events (as well as action figures and the characters existing on the forefront of pop culture), and this new story will at last reveal some secret connections and MISSING CHARACTERS going back to the 1984 original series, just in time for its 40th Anniversary! What SECRET TEST are the BEYONDERS conducting…and how will SPIDER-MAN, the HUMAN TORCH and the whole cast determine the fate of the universe? (PLUS: Surprise super-villain appearances inside!)"

Sounds like whatever's in store is on the level of the first Secret Wars, but will it make the same impact? That's up to creative team, but considering that the writer Tom DeFalco is a former Editor-in-Chief of Marvel and the artist, Pat Olliffe was responsible for cult hit Spider-Girl, we have high hopes.

The secrets of Marvel Super Heroes Secret Wars: Battleworld begin unraveling when the first issue of the limited run hits shelves November 2023.

Speaking of returns, Marvel is headed back to its Ultimate Universe.