Marvel Migration - Part 1

Marvel is supposed to be set in our world. While the events of DC Comics occur in fictional locales like Metropolis or Gotham, Marvel stories primarily take place in New York City. Because the Marvel offices were located in New York, Stan Lee decided it would be convenient to have all of his heroes live in the city he knows best. Consequently, fifty years later, 95% of superheroes, supervillains, and superhuman events are concentrated in New York City. For those of us in the rest of the world, this can seem a little unfair. If this continues, Marvel will have to schedule an event to explain why New York City is a magnet for supernatural events.

Marvel has announced that, following the upcoming Secret Wars event, the old Marvel universe will be gone and replaced with something new. At this time, its unclear what that means and the comic community is just hoping its planned better than the New 52. However, my hope is that they make an attempt to diversify their lineup by expanding into new areas of the country and the world at large. Personally, I've never been to New York City, but I'm already sick of it from comics and television. I'd love to read more stories that take place in diverse environments.

So I propose a Marvel Migration, a publishing initiative designed to connect with a wider world by moving their star characters outward. Imagine how much Chicago or Seattle or Las Vegas would appreciate their own local heroes. You could create direct marketing campaigns in each region, but the challenge is choosing the right hero for the right town.

NOTE: I left out some popular heroes for good reason Spider-Man and Daredevil are perfectly suited to New York City, Hulk and Namor are perpetual wanderers, and Avengers can gather anywhere they want. 

The Solo Heroes

Captain America - Washington, DC

This one is pretty obvious. Although Cap is from New York, he represents America and he should operate from our nation's capital. This would surround him by politics and the intelligence community. Whether its Steve, Sam, Bucky, or any combination of the three, it'd make us all feel safer knowing that Captain America is protecting our nation's capital. 

Iron Man - Detroit, MI

Why would America's richest man go to its poorest major city? To buy it.

Imagine if Tony Stark bought every piece of land he possibly could in Detroit and vowed to transform our nation's poorest city into the world's leader of industry. Now, can he do it?

With the help of Pepper Potts, James Rhodes, Bambi Arbogast, and all of his best and brightest, Tony micromanages his new city with the goal of creating a lasting utopia and an example to the world. As if that weren't difficult enough, his greatest enemies are determined to do everything possible to see that he fails.

Strangely, Wolverine is on a lot of Bulls merchandise.

Wolverine - Chicago, IL

While Logan fits in well both in New York and San Francisco, I think it would be fun to see him with his own city to protect, and I can think of no place better than Chicago. Its associations with organized crime, proximity with Canada, and population of angry hairy men make it the perfect fit.

Joined by his best sidekick and Chicago native, Kitty Pryde, Logan discovers evidence that the Weapon Plus program has reopened in the windy city and is selling "custom-made" superhumans for unique clientele through the black market. While Logan and Kitty can hurt their operation badly, the situation is rapidly spiraling out of control toward superhuman gang war.

Doctor Strange - Boston, MA

Doctor Strange is the perfect image of the mid-Atlantic New England sophisticate and there is no major city that fits that image better than historic Boston. The old world architecture lends an air of mystery and the rich (often violent) history of the town could serve as the basis for ghosts, witches, and demonic rituals.

I'd love to see a series where Doctor Strange really lives up to his names, so I'd create a story about a curse that affects the citizens in unique and unusual ways. Doctor Strange arrives to quarantine the area, treat the victims, and eliminate the disease. However, he soon realizes that there is a method to this madness and he needs to figure out what malevolent force is behind this before he loses the battle.

Thor - Seattle, WA

When it came to Thor, I immediately thought of the rainy city. Its like a halfway point between viking fishing villages and the splendorous spires of Asgard.

I imagine yet another reintroduction of Don Blake. Much like Watson in the BBC's Sherlock, Don Blake would be a military doctor who has returned from the Middle East with PTSD. He's opening up a new practice, but he's haunted by images of war, particularly the near death experience that injured his leg and requires him to walk with a cane. As his delusions become more realistic, he sees images of Loki and dreams that he is Thor, god of thunder. The memories of his battles on Earth and his battles on Asgard become inseparable. Eventually, he finds Mjolnir, disguised as a humble stick, and transforms into Thor, but he cannot return to Asgard and has no memory of its fate.

Dazzler - Las Vegas, NV

The mutant Dazzler is a successful pop singer and mutant who transforms sound into light. She practically is Las Vegas.

If Celine Deon can have her own stadium built in Vegas, Dazzler could easily become the regular act at a 5-star casino. Since she's a known superhero, its great publicity for the casino in two ways. Of course, once one casino gets a superhero, then the other casinos will want one. Soon, Daimon Hellstrom is performing stage magic down the block, a new Mr. Fixit is playing across town, and more are sure to follow. Pretty soon the town is overloaded with two bit heroes and villains, all of whom are trying to make a quick buck in the glamorous world of Sin City.

Nova - Miami, FL

For America's biggest party town, we need a young and energetic hero. When you include the amusement parks of Orlando, the space program at Cape Canaveral, and just the general inbred weirdness of the rest of the alligator-infested state of Florida, it is a perfect location for an off-beat hero like Nova.

Since Marvel's always looking to diversify racially, the largely Cuban population of Miami would create an interesting environment for the half-Mexican, Sam Alexander, the current Nova. This might just be the perfect place for him to go to college.

Ghost Rider - Phoenix, AZ

Like Hulk before him, Marvel's demonic biker belongs in the deserts of the American southwest. The imagery of biker culture is closely tied to the region, so it would strengthen the imagery (as demonstrated in the best moment from this awful film).

Arizona is also the site of a lot of discriminatory legislation and hostility regarding the Mexican immigrant population. This could be the basis for great storytelling with a message. Not to mention that the long highways of the national border are great for showing chases featuring illegal immigrants, border patrol, minutemen, and drug smugglers.

The Teams

X-Men - San Francisco, CA

Following the Decimation event when the population of mutants was temporarily reduced, the X-Men briefly relocated to San Francisco. And I loved it.

While the X-Men were constantly discriminated against in New York, San Francisco has a history of embracing diversity with open arms. This changed the dynamic of the X-Men drastically. Suddenly, they were working with their community against threats from the outside. They could still face broad discrimination outside of the city, but inside San Francisco, they were home.

Unfortunately, this lasted only about a year, but I'd love to see them return. The last time the X-Men were in town, San Francisco faced riots, military law, and invasion by Sentinels, so they might be a bit more hesitant about having them back. Then again, there are probably a lot of people in San Francisco who appreciate that kind of chaos. This is a home for those who are feared and different, and the X-Men have always seemed most at home when they are there.

I'm sorry, but when I searched "Fantastic Four"
and "Texas," this is the best that I got.

Fantastic Four - Austin, TX

When it came to the Fantastic Four, there were a lot of choices. Little known fact, the team first debuted in the fictional city of Central City, which was mapped at Stockton, CA. I thought their celebrity might be ideal in Los Angeles, then the space program in Houston came to mind. Whenever I think of Texas, I think of the strange liberal bastion of Austin, known for being the antithesis of the largely conservative state. What better place for a post-nuclear family?

Reed Richards purchases a closed NASA facility just outside the city borders and starts retrofitting it as the new headquarters for Fantastic Four Inc., an exploratory and development company. Sue manages the book, Ben is in charge of security, and Johnny lives rent free, as always. Of course, their insatiable curiosity and colorful past has a way of bringing the adventures to them, even though they spend most of their time exploring the universe, as always.

New Warriors - San Diego, CA

As for Marvel's classic junior superhero team, San Diego is a great city for exploring adolescence, and as the home of Comic Con International, it just makes sense to stake a claim to it.

With youth teams, the first thing you have to ask is "Do they have a mentor?" An adult-sanctioned team like the original X-Men or New Mutants has a bit more legitimacy, but lacks the autonomy of an independent group. Since Runaways and Young Avengers have the independent youth team covered, I'd recommend the more traditional route.

I could see orphan and perennial sidekick Rick Jones volunteering to mentor a group of teenage superhumans with ambitions of being a hero. Jones might even choose San Diego because of the relatively low incidents of superhuman crime, but little does he know that a low-level crime boss had the same idea.

Next in Part 2!

We continue with teams, both national and international. No "Avengers West Coast." These are distinct teams with their own brands (even if I borrowed the name from some defunct titles).

What's Left for Marvel Studios?

Well, Marvel just announced their "Phase 3" in the Marvel Cinematic universe. And Phase 2 still has two more films to debut with Avengers: Age of Ultron and Ant-Man. Of course, there is also Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., now featuring comic character Mockingbird, as well as the upcoming spin-off series Agent Carter. And don't forget the Netflix deal featuring Daredevil, Luke Cage, Iron Fist, and Jessica Drew all teaming up as the Defenders.

All of this leads me to ask... what's left? Naturally, the X-Men, Fantastic Four, and Spider-Man properties are out of reach, with each planning long-term franchise films under other studios, so what properties does Marvel Studio have left that could translate well to film or television?

10. The Eternals

If Thor's tale is truly coming to an end, as the title Thor: Ragnarok would suggest, it could be just the right time to introduce Jack Kirby's other pantheon. Although not initially written as part of the Marvel universe, The Eternals created a rich mythology of cosmic beings as only Jack Kirby could envision.

When a race of faceless titans from space known only as the Celestials visited the planet Earth, they manipulated the DNA of early hominids to create two incredible races: the Eternals and the Deviants. The Eternals were perfect immortal beings living high in the mountains while the Deviants were hideous mutated creatures living deep underground. Locked in ageless conflict, their tales gave birth to the myths of man. Greek myth, in particular, was inspired by names like Ikaris, Sersi, Thena, Ajak, and Makkar. Every few thousand years, the Celestials would return space to judge their creation either by blessing or destruction. Like the comic, a film would center around the latest (and perhaps, final) judgment of the Celestials.

Additionally, this could be an interesting way to introduce the character of Hercules to the Marvel Universe. Although not a part of these stories in the comics, Hercules debuted years earlier as part of a more traditional Greek pantheon and a counterpart for Thor. Since the Greek gods have not had the same level of development as the gods of Asgard, this could be a clever way to streamline the character.

9. Squadron Supreme

If Marvel really wants to stick it to DC, they will produce a Squadron Supreme film. Although it wouldn't be set in the same Marvel universe, this could be a way to expand into the Marvel multiverse.

The Squadron Supreme began as blatant counterparts of the Justice League from another universe as a means to have the Avengers fight their competition from another company. Years later, in the 12-issue Squadron Supreme miniseries, their story was expanded as a cautionary tail of a small group of well-intentioned people who think they can run the world. This was revamped more recently as Supreme Power by J. Michael Straczynski which focused on the alienation and manipulation suffered by the heroes of this world prior to their authoritarian take over.

As a film, it could easily be seen as a criticism of the Distinguished Competition's more grim and gritty approach to filmmaking.

8. Runaways

Runaways is a huge fan favorite Marvel series created by Brian K. Vaughn and featuring such writing talents as Joss Whedon and Terry Moore. The series focuses around a group of teenagers who discover that their parents are supervillains. They come together as a team to foil their plans before running away to live on their own.

Since the characters of Runaways have no costumes or codenames, they are very easy to adapt into other media, but perhaps they would do best as television show. As a companion to Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Runaways would be an easy sell to a younger demographic, and with a cabal of villains at the heart of the premise, it would be easy to work in new characters with powers of their own.

The only thing that might give Disney pause is the fear of promoting running away from home as a solution to your problems.

7. Ghost Rider

Now that Marvel has the license back to Ghost Rider, it's just a question of where they will use it. No doubt that Doctor Strange will open the doors to the supernatural world of the Marvel universe, so will Ghost Rider be there to drive through them? Will they continue to use the character of Johnny Blaze after the last two films?

Although Blaze has the strongest origin and longest association with the character, Ghost Rider actually soared to popularity with the introduction of teenager Danny Ketch as the host of the Spirit of Vengeance... although that probably has more to do with his dramatic redesign. In those comics, Johnny Blaze returned as a drifter with a shotgun that fired hellfire. I could definitely see that approach inspiring the Marvel films, especially if they want to distance themselves from Nicholas Cage.

6. New Warriors

One popular element of superhero comics that is sorely underrepresented are teenage superheroes... and, particularly, teenage superhero teams. Since they don't have access to X-Men or Spider-Man, Marvel is likely eyeing their remaining teenage superheroes and none have a longer history than the New Warriors.

The New Warriors were an unsupervised, unsanctioned group of teenagers who took their inspiration from the Avengers. Although coming from different backgrounds and heroic origins, they came together to fight for justice, but often make mistakes along the way. Their most infamous mistake was  joining a reality TV series which led directly to a botched mission, their own deaths, and the deaths of many civilians, including children.

Although the team's roster has changed dramatically over the years, I would stick with fan favorites like Night Thrasher, Namorita, Darkhawk, Firestar, and Speedball along with the popular duo of Cloak and Dagger.

5. Blade

Like Ghost Rider, Blade was recently reacquired by the Marvel parent company, but his original film kicked off the trend of A-list superhero movies way back in 1999.
Rumor has it that Marvel is considering hiring Wesley Snipes to reprise the role. It certainly makes sense. Snipes redefined this character as much as Robert Downey Jr. redefined Iron Man. Why wouldn't they want him back?

And while my dreams of Captain America/Blade: Howl of the Cap-Wolf may have been deterred by Civil War, I wouldn't be the least bit surprised if we get a cameo in Doctor Strange. Maybe they could even join Ghost Rider as a new version of the Nightstalkers.

4. Moon Knight

One of the last classic solo characters yet to be featured in film or television, Moon Knight was an attempt by Marvel to create their own Batman in the late seventies, but with a supernatural Egyptian curse as the hook.

Marc Spector was a mercenary who betrayed his own commander when they were raiding the temple of Khonshu, a lunar god of vengeance. Beaten nearly to death, Spector was reborn as Khonshu's avatar.

Fighting injustice at night, Spector dressed in the vestments of Khonshu's warriors, but he became increasingly unstable, adopting multiple identities. It is unclear if he is experiencing utter madness or if he has been possessed by spirits beyond his understanding.

3. Young Avengers

While the New Warriors were inspired by the Avengers, the Young Avengers deliberately attempts to recreate that classic dynamic but in an all new generation of young heroes.

The first incarnation of Young Avengers were formed after the dissolution of the classic Avengers. The team is gathered by Iron Lad (a time-traveler from the future) who recruits Patriot (grandson of the prototype Captain America), Wiccan, Hulkling, a new female Hawkeye, and Stature (the size changing daughter of Ant-Man, Scott Lang). Years later, after the team had disbanded, they are reformed by a child version of Loki along with the new additions of Kree warrior Noh-Varr and other dimensional powerhouse Ms. America Chavez.

The one drawback on this concept is that a lot of these characters have their origins based in events that have not yet happened in the Marvel cinematic universe. Not the least of which is that an adult Loki is currently being played by the extremely popular Tom Hiddleston.

Still, with this many characters to choose from, a clever writer could work around these issues and there are a lot of reasons why they should. This team has a history of unstable leadership and tragedy with a very fun and stylish sensibility. It could offer the best elements of Avengers, Guardians of the Galaxy, and Iron Man with the added benefit of youth appeal.

2. Thunderbolts

With all the villains piling up in the Marvel universe and the heroes fighting amongst each other, this would be the perfect time to introduce the Thunderbolts!

Originally, they were the Masters of Evil, villainous counterparts to the Avengers. Yet when the Avengers had seemingly died, they adopted new identities as a superhero team. Yet in playing the role of the hero, many of them began to question their own decisions and even became the heroes they were pretending to be. Led by the disfigured Nazi Baron Zemo disguised as Citizen V, the team included the manipulative psychologist Moonstar, the mechanical genius Techno, the supersuit-flying Mach-5, the size-changing Atlas, and the energy projecting Songbird. After being exposed, the team went fugitive and attempted to redeem themselves, eventually becoming an official government run team designed to give supercriminals the opportunity to reform.

As a film, the Thunderbolts would be an excellent fit if the Avengers were disbanded or disgraced, but the sequel Avengers versus Thunderbolts would be epic.

1. Nova

In some ways, we've already had a preview of this film as Guardians of the Galaxy featured the planet Xandar, home to the Nova Corps.

Led by Nova Prime (Glenn Close), the Nova Corp are the peace-keepers of the universe. The original comic featured Richard Rider while the more recent comics (and Ultimate Spider-Man cartoon) feature Sam Alexander, a younger Hispanic character. In either case, the story is the same: a young man is thrown into the dangerous task of keeping order in the wonderous depths of Marvel universe.

If Guardians of the Galaxy was Marvel's replacement for the Fantastic Four and Inhumans is their replacement for X-Men, Nova would be an excellent choice as a replacement for Spider-Man.