They were always going to do something similar given the huge success of DC's 52 re-launch/boot last year and now Marvel have shown their hand. Typically the likes of BleedingCool (see here) got early wind of it but it was Entertainment Weekly who made the official announcement to the big wide world (see here).
It all comes off the back of Avengers vs. X-Men where, according to Marvel Chief Executive Axel Alonso “Characters are redeemed or not. Characters are changed. The X-Men and
the Avengers are both repositioned for the future. What better time to
shake things up? “. So starting in October, Marvel NOW! will be the banner for a company-wide relaunch slowly rolling out over five months. There will be relaunches for existing titles and new launches for new titles as well as re-designed costumes.
It looks like Marvel are attempting to have their cake and eat it on this event: obviously a relaunch in a single month is more news and buzz worthy but when DC did it there was some criticism from customers who felt overwhelmed. Also, unlike DC's decision to wipe away some of the existing stories so that new readers could genuinely feel they were starting at the beginning, Marvel's back continuity remains intact - less newsworthy to the "outside world" perhaps but just a touch less risky. Expect preview art and a confirmed list of all titles in the weeks to come...
While I'll give it a chance I'm not too thrilled. I think this is just going to prove confusing for new and old readers alike. It will be fun as usual though to count the number of titles wolverine appears in.
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