Hey, folks! Welcome back to Comic Deep Dive! During these COVID-related comics dark times, I’ve taken the opportunity to do some strange and exciting comic book reading to fill the time. This week, I’m talking all about Marvel 2099! Here’s the run-down:
The Story
- It was the 90s
- Marvel showed us the future of their main universe
- It was a cyberpunk dystopia
- Ran from 1992 to 1998
The Titles
- 2099 Unlimited
- 2099: World of Tomorrow
- Doom 2099
- Fantastic Four 2099
- Ghost Rider 2099
- Hulk 2099
- Punisher 2099
- Ravage 2099
- Spider-Man 2099, Vol. 2, Vol. 3
- X-Men 2099
- X-Nation 2099
The Events
- The Fall of the Hammer
- 2099 A. D.
The Crossovers
- None, which seems strange in retrospect
The Good Stuff
- Great Peter David scripts
- Interesting character arc for Doom
- Cool “scorched earth” policy when threatened with cancellation
The Bad Parts
- Essentially no meaningful connection to the main timeline
- Gimmicky 90s foil covers galore
- Sub-par art on just about every book
- X-Men 2099 might be one of the worst comics of all time
The Creators of Note
- Stan Lee, Peter David, Chuck Dixon, Warren Ellis, Chris Bachalo, and Humberto Ramos
Characters Off the Page
- Trading cards
- Action figures
The Returns
- Two more volumes of Spider-Man 2099 (written by Peter David)
- Marvel Knights 2099 one-shots written by Robert Kirkman
- Officially became Marvel’s main universe future as of 2019
Overall Thoughts
- This deep dive is something I had attempted several times throughout my childhood as most issues were always available in the bargain bins
- I’ll keep the Doom, Punisher, Ghost Rider, and Spider-Man comics
- My final grade: C
See you next week for another comic deep dive! In the meantime, share your thoughts on Marvel 2099 with us on social media. We’d love to hear from you.
