All New, All Different Marvel Universe

Historical text from Capes (Optional):

ultrabasurero wrote:12-15-2015, 12:16 PM
ALL-NEW, ALL-DIFFERENT MARVEL UNIVERSE

Written by VARIOUS
Cover by DAVID MARQUEZ

SECRET WARS has ended, and the Marvel Universe has been reborn — better and brighter than ever before! To celebrate, Marvel is proud to present this all-new, all-different guide to the Universe! This edition includes brand-new profiles on Phil Coulson's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Ms. Marvel (Khan), "Spider-Gwen" Stacy, Lash, Parker Industries, Singularity (A-Force), Ghost Rider (Reyes) and more! Plus updates on major characters starring in new titles: Iron Man (Stark), Ant-Man (Lang), Doctor Stephen Strange, the Inhumans, Thor (Foster) and Wolverine (Kinney)! Also featuring a global-sized entry for Doctor Doom's SECRET WARS patchwork planet, Battleworld! Get in on the ground floor of the All-New, All-Different Marvel Universe which starts now!

64 PGS./Rated T+ ...$4.99


Andy E. Nystrom wrote:12-15-2015, 12:31 PM
Looking forward to this. Looks like no Guidebooks this month but given the choice I much prefer the real thing anyway.


vanhornluke wrote:12-15-2015, 12:37 PM
Sweet!!! :-)

Angelicknight wrote:12-15-2015, 12:40 PM
YAY! Hopefully this means the Handbooks are making a comeback!

Eduardo M. wrote:12-15-2015, 02:17 PM
Awesome. Glad to see Jane Foster's Thor is getting a full blown entry so soon.

skippcomet wrote:
12-15-2015, 05:20 PM
To quote Homer, "WOO-HOO!"

JusticeGMH wrote:
12-15-2015, 10:18 PM
So excited! Awesome news!

Sidney Osinga wrote:
12-15-2015, 10:28 PM
This is ggod news, although I don't see a Guidebook out this month. Hmm.

I don't know who Lash is, though. One of the Inhumans?

And I did see Vision on the cover image so I assume he's going to get an update too.

Angelicknight wrote:12-15-2015, 10:31 PM
Lash is one of the Inhumans also appearing on the Agents of SHIELD TV series as well.


skippcomet wrote:12-16-2015, 06:23 AM
Yay!

We really need a handbook devoted just to major updates for characters and teams that need them. Heck, it's been so long since either Spider-Man/Peter Parker or the X-Men received updates that to create any now might take up half a handbook! (Kidding....I hope.)

Anybody want to speculate on who might be featured/updated besides the ones we know about?


mal32 wrote:12-16-2015, 08:22 AM

Angelicknight wrote:

YAY! Hopefully this means the Handbooks are making a comeback!

Let's cross all our fingers...

Andy E. Nystrom wrote:12-16-2015, 10:15 AM

Sidney Osinga wrote:

This is ggod news, although I don't see a Guidebook out this month. Hmm.

I don't know who Lash is, though. One of the Inhumans?

Yes, Lash in an Inhuman. It's not surprising he's in it as he's featured prominently on Agents of SHIELD this season. I noticed the absence of a Guidebook too. Hopefully it's not sales related. It may simply be (and I stress that this is all pure speculation) a combination of not wanting to put out a Handbook and Guidebook the same month (Of course it did happen once already but there was that scheduling quirk with secret Wars being delayed), and Marvel may want to space them out a bit so they don't catch up to the present too quickly. The previous month ends Phase 1's books so March was a logical place to put in a short breather. I do want them to continue but these Handbooks are a lot better.

Considering that the Secret Wars Handbook was the #100th most ordered book for the month, I hope that will mean that we'll see more of them.

Also, just going out on a limb in terms of what we'll see in this one, I'm guessing Spider-Man Noir and/or Spider-Man Captain Britain.

skippcomet wrote:12-17-2015, 07:22 AM
Contents Speculation: Silk (Cindy Moon), Ultimates (post-Secret Wars group), Squadron Supreme (multiversal survivors)

Updates Spec: Daredevil (Matt Murdock), Spectrum (Monica Rambeau)

Blue_Shield wrote:12-20-2015, 09:56 AM
Very exciting news.

Melou 12-21-2015, 04:46 AM
Great news!

skippcomet wrote:

We really need a handbook devoted just to major updates for characters and teams that need them. Heck, it's been so long since either Spider-Man/Peter Parker or the X-Men received updates that to create any now might take up half a handbook! (Kidding....I hope.)

I was kind of hoping an "All-New X-Men Handbook", after the Avengers one.

Sidney Osinga wrote:12-22-2015, 01:31 AM
I'm also going to guess the young "All-New" X-Men will be covered. Also, could it be possible that we may finally get to see the much delayed entry for Red Ronin?

Andy E. Nystrom wrote:12-22-2015, 11:38 PM

Sidney Osinga wrote:

I'm also going to guess the young "All-New" X-Men will be covered. Also, could it be possible that we may finally get to see the much delayed entry for Red Ronin?

I'm hoping they will be covered, but it may depend on if Marvel has decided if they diverged or not. It's hard to imagine that they haven't by now, but if there's still the chance of them going back to the 616 past I can see Marvel holding off.

Sidney Osinga wrote:12-23-2015, 08:09 PM
I saw a page from this book in the newest Marvel Previews. If any of you heard a tortured scream around 11:40 AM EST, it came from me.

rplass wrote:12-24-2015, 06:39 AM
I saw it too. I did not hear a scream because I was screaming at the same time and couldn't hear your scream over my scream. Mine was more of a yelp, for the record I'm really looking forward to this new book!

Andy E. Nystrom wrote:12-24-2015, 03:21 PM
Hmm, the glass half full is most of the stats are still there, it's just more in the Guidebook layout, so shorter History, Powers section and the like. But definite preference for the format we've seen the past few years.

skippcomet wrote:12-25-2015, 08:23 AM
Any chance this sample entry is online?

Andy E. Nystrom wrote:12-25-2015, 08:39 AM

skippcomet wrote:

Any chance this sample entry is online?

Doesn't appear to be so far. It's the entry for Lash.

Angelicknight wrote:12-26-2015, 10:57 PM
Sample page
http://s34.photobucket.com/user/Lonewol ... i.jpg.html

Eduardo M. wrote:12-29-2015, 01:16 PM
Not feeling the use of the Guidebook layout. I wonder why the change?

Andy E. Nystrom wrote:12-29-2015, 09:13 PM

Eduardo M. wrote:

Not feeling the use of the Guidebook layout. I wonder why the change?

Probably a sales decision. I'm not thrilled but I get the reasoning. The diehard Handbook fans will keep buying them and they're hoping the new layout will attract more readers.

zuckyd1 wrote:12-29-2015, 10:44 PM

Andy E. Nystrom wrote:

Probably a sales decision. I'm not thrilled but I get the reasoning. The diehard Handbook fans will keep buying them and they're hoping the new layout will attract more readers.

Did the MCU guidebooks sell especially well?

skippcomet wrote:12-30-2015, 08:07 AM

Andy E. Nystrom wrote:

Probably a sales decision. I'm not thrilled but I get the reasoning. The diehard Handbook fans will keep buying them and they're hoping the new layout will attract more readers.

Even before this, I was wondering if the Handbook format was going to evolve again...

Stuart V Thu Jan 14, 2016 1:05 am
The new format is, as suggested above, a sales decision. The Sales department feel that the Guidebook format sells better than the Handbook format used up until now.

Capes (Optional) Thu Jan 14, 2016 6:31 pm
Sorry, Stuart, the original was lost listing somehow. It will be reposted once it is formatted.

Please accept my apologies.

Capes (Optional) » Fri Jan 15, 2016 12:11 am
And now it is back!

bigvis497 » Sat Jan 23, 2016 6:43 am
I have to say, I hate this new format and it may be enough to turn me off for good. I don't understand how changing the format will help sales as handbooks are such a niche project I don't feel casual readers will care what the layout looks like. A reference book is a reference book to them. All this does is alienate the longtime fans. If it ain't broke...

Man I was really excited to be a part of this community again then I see this...

Andy E. Nystrom » Sat Jan 23, 2016 5:38 pm
Welcome back, bigvis497!

I'm not thrilled either but I'm guessing that it's either this format or no Handbook at all. The glass half full is that it's still the writers we've come to know and trust.

Roger Ott » Thu Mar 03, 2016 4:27 pm
Having spent the last couple days proofing the All-New Handbook, I can say this: the format grows on you. I wasn't a fan of the decision to change the HB format (I am extremely resistant to change), but as Stuart said, it was a Sales Department edict. However, I have to commend the exhaustive efforts of our coordinator/production guru, Mike O'Sullivan, who has lost a lot of nights putting this book together. It does look good. Different, but good.

Someone mentioned shorter histories, power descriptions, etc from the preview. Not so. The entries get the space they need to give you the relevant information, as always.

So, try to go into this with an open mind regarding the formatting. And even if you don't end up liking the new look at all, hopefully you can take solace in that you're still getting well-researched profiles from the same lovable and dependable writing team, just with a fresh face.

Looking forward to March 30th!

Andy E. Nystrom » Fri Mar 04, 2016 4:16 am
Welcome back, Roger!

Your post reminded me of something I was going to say before: Despite my stated reservations I am going to buy the new Handbook because I trust the writers. That being said, some people will choose not to buy it because of the format and I respect that. BUT if that is the only reason you decide not to buy it, I ask that you let Marvel know that. If you simply don't buy it and don't tell Marvel the reason, the message Marvel gets is the time is not right for a comeback for the Handbooks. But if you explain why you're not buying it, it changes the message. Again, I'm not asking people not to buy the book. In fact as I said in January better a handbook in a less than ideal format than no Handbook; if the new format means they start reappearing regularly, that's a good thing. I'm just saying that if the format truly is a dealbreaker and you can't get past it, let Marvel know.

zuckyd1 » Fri Mar 04, 2016 4:35 am
Have the MCU handbooks been selling significantly better than the traditional ones? IIRC the first MCU handbook (iron Man) was released the same month as the traditional-style Secret Wars handbook, and only sold half as many copies as the Secret Wars one did.

Roger Ott » Fri Mar 04, 2016 3:36 pm

Andy E. Nystrom wrote:

Welcome back, Roger!

Thanks! It's good to be back!

Andy E. Nystrom » Fri Mar 04, 2016 3:51 pm

zuckyd1 wrote:

Have the MCU handbooks been selling significantly better than the traditional ones? IIRC the first MCU handbook (iron Man) was released the same month as the traditional-style Secret Wars handbook, and only sold half as many copies as the Secret Wars one did.

It's a shame that there wasn't a non-Secret Wars book released in a similar time period to compare. Part of it was certainly a format preference I'm sure (the Guidebooks are a bit more in-your-face than the Handbooks to Secret Wars), but it's possible that a Handbook is going to do okay if hooked to a major event. I'm betting a number of people were Secret Wars completists and either told their dealers to order all the Secret Wars books or grabbed every Secret Wars book that was on the shelves.

Andy E. Nystrom » Wed Mar 09, 2016 3:10 am
With the first actual Handbook of 2016 in two weeks, it;'s time for the No-Prize contest. Whoever gives the most correct guesses will be PMed a No-Prize. People who worked on the Handbooks ineligible because, barring interference from Irving Forbush, it's too easy for them to make correct guesses.

Andy E. Nystrom » Tue Mar 15, 2016 2:42 am
Less than ten days now and no one has made any guesses so far. If no one guesses anyone I'll have to award the No-Prize to Irving Forbush, and he might accidentally use the No-Prize create a rift in the space time continuum forcing everyone to to reread the entire Incursions storyline from the first hint to the end of the Secret Wars over and over in an endless loop, with no ads to break up the scenes of heroes standing around talking about destroying inhabited worlds. We really don't want that so let's start the guesses!

mal32 » Fri Mar 18, 2016 2:12 pm

Andy E. Nystrom wrote:

Less than ten days now and no one has made any guesses so far. If no one guesses anyone I'll have to award the No-Prize to Irving Forbush, and he might accidently use the No-Prize create a rift in the space time continuum forcing everyone to to reread the entire Incursions storyline from the first hint to the end of the Secret Wars over and over in an endless loop, with no ads to break up the scenes of heroes standing around talking about destroying inhabited worlds. We really don't want that so let's start the guesses!

I am curious... let us know, please

Rayeye » Fri Mar 18, 2016 8:18 pm
With this new Handbook coming, I really hope it will contain updated rosters of the X-Men and Avengers.

skippcomet » Sat Mar 19, 2016 8:30 am
As for possible entries, I'll repeat my earlier predictions of Silk, the Ultimates, and the new Squadron Supreme. Either the new Squadron as a group entry or as possibly some individual entries, like Blur (has a history from the New Universe), Doctor Spectrum (from the Great Society), Nighthawk (from Supreme Power), and Warrior Woman (from her world's Squadron Sinister). (Hyperion has already been covered in the last Avengers-centric handbook.) The blurb mentions "Phil Coulson's new Agents of SHIELD" but doesn't name them individually, so here goes my guesses: Jenna Simmons, Leo Fitz, Melinda May. I'll also guess that the Red Wolf introduced in Secret Wars and now part of the current Marvel Earth's world could be eligible for an entry. Maybe Blue Marvel's former friend/archnemesis Anti-Man, since he's turned up in the pages of The Ultimates. Tyndall from Weirdworld? Synapse from the Avengers titles?

I do hope, someday, to see older characters who either haven't been covered before or who haven't been covered since before 2004 eventually start getting covered again. I'd love to see the likes of Becky Blake, Earth-712's Doctor Spectrum, Astra from the Imperial Guard, Thermo, Piledriver, Captain Spider, and more receive entries.

Andy E. Nystrom » Tue Mar 22, 2016 7:20 pm
Last call for No-Prize picks. The contest ends 7 am PDT/10 AM EDT (and equivalent overseas). Some of skippcomet's choices look like solid contenders but there are a few more possibilities I can think of (but will let others guess first since I'm the one awarding the prizes; I might take a few guesses early tomorrow morning if not enough people have made guesses). The winning No-Prize will be sent via Capes (Optional) mail to your Private Message Inbox.

Obviously that one preview page left people a bit nervous but it's just one page, so maybe we will like how the book as a whole looks!

ultrabasurero » Wed Mar 23, 2016 4:40 pm
Is this out today? I don't think it is. I don't see it listed anywhere.

Andy E. Nystrom » Wed Mar 23, 2016 11:17 pm

ultrabasurero wrote:

Is this out today? I don't think it is. I don't see it listed anywhere.

My mistake. Next week. So the No-Prize contest continues to next week. Glad you've found the new site, ultrabasurero!

Angelicknight » Tue Mar 29, 2016 11:01 pm
With the book set to come out in less than 24 hours i will post my list.

Beetle (Lincoln, Astonishing Ant-Man)
Black Ant (Illuminati)
Blindspot (Daredevil)
Amadeus Cho/Hulk update
Chipmunk Hunk (Squirrel Girl)
Chitauri
Contest of Champions (new)
Falcon (Torres, Captain America: Sam Wilson)
Fantomelle (Wolverines/Inhumans)
Giant-Man (Malhorta, Astonishing Ant-Man)
Flint (Inhumans)
Goletta the Wizardslayer (Weirdworld)
Grid (Inhumans)
Guillotine (Contest of Champions)
Gwenpool
Howling Commandos of SHIELD
Illuminati (Hood's)
Inhumans/NuHumans update [Was Announced in Solicts so this one should be voided]
Iso (Inhumans)
Iso-8/Neutronium (Contest of Champions/Ultimates)
Koi Boi (Squirrel Girl)
Masacre (Deadpool, Mercs for Money)
Moon Girl (Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur)
Mercs for Money (Deadpool)
Naja (Inhumans)
Panacea (Inhumans)
Pod (New Avengers)
Porcupine (Gocking, Spider-Woman)
Ratatoskr (Squirrel Girl)
Reader (Inhumans)
Regent (Amazing Spider-Man)
Red Widow (Mockingbird/Black Widow)
Sera (Angela: Queen of Hel)
Shredded Man (Uncanny Avengers)
Swain (Inhumans)
Tara Tam (Howard the Duck)
Teen Abomination (Superior Iron Man/ Howling Commandos of SHIELD)
Virginia, Vin amd Viv (Vision)
WHISPER (New Avengers)
White Fox (Contest of Champions)
Zodiac update

Andy E. Nystrom » Wed Mar 30, 2016 12:09 am
Just letting people know I won't be able to pick up my copy until Thursday, however, the usual 7 am/10 am rule will still apply for tomorrow. No-Prize will be awarded Thursday. I won't check in on this thread until then but it will be interesting to discuss the new format then.

Angelicknight » Wed Mar 30, 2016 1:57 pm
Contents

Agents of SHIELD (4 pgs)
Ant-Man update (4 pgs)
Battleworld (10 pgs)
Beetle (Lincoln) (2 pgs)
Darren Cross (1 pg)
Doctor Strange update (2 pgs)
Ghost Rider (Reyes) (2 pgs)
Dawn Greenwood (2 pgs)
Inhumans update (6 pgs)
Iron Man update (5 pgs)
Lash (1 pg)
Ms. Marvel (Khan) (4 pgs)
Parker Industries (3 pgs)
Phantom Eagle (Reality-200111) (2 pgs)
Silk (2 pgs)
Singularity (1 pg)
Spider-Gwen (1 pg)
Thor (Foster) update (2 pgs)
Vision update (3 pgs)
Warbringer (1 pg)
Wolverine (X-23) update (2 pgs)

rplass » Thu Mar 31, 2016 3:34 am
I got my copy! I didn't read many of the SW issues so this will be really useful to fill in my knowledge gaps. I like the new format. I just wish it had more Doctor Strange.
Top

Andy E. Nystrom » Fri Apr 01, 2016 1:52 am
Angelicknight's guess of Beetle was the sole correct guess so your No-Prize is on the way. I think your choices as a whole would make a good A-Z handbook actually.

Not really liking the new format for a number of reasons: the new font seems to take up more space, which means less room for other entries. I think some of the entries could also have been written more concisely without losing much important detail; I don't think for example, Ant-Man really needed four pages of update,and the newer Agents of SHIELD entry was also pretty blow-by-blow; some of these issue summaries might have been a better fit for Index synopses than portions of character histories. In general my eyes aren't liking the new layout. A couple of specific things that jump out: the dots on the Power Grid aren't pleasant and with a few exceptions like Dawn Greenwood, most images don't fit neatly into a horizontal banner (I also have less desire now to see a Stan Lee entry because the one image of his that could neatly fit a horizontal banner is his fake nude on sofa photo ). It's a shame that art credits are no longer linked to specific images. One thing I do like in the interest of brevity is only putting in those Vital Statistics that have changed (though that rule is applied inconsistently to Real Name). There actually seems a bit of a disconnect between the layout and the font: the layout is more in-your-face, like an attempt to attract a younger audience, but the larger font size comes across as an acknowledgement that the readers' eyesights are starting to fail them.

Comments on specific entries (I've read up to Darren Cross):

Agents of SHIELD: While not explicity stated, Agents of SHIELD seems to refer to Coulson's team only; that being a the case a clarifier should probably be added to the headshots for Coulson, Quake, and Mockingbird that the Active issue refers to this sub-team, not SHIELD as a whole.

Battleworld: since more detailed maps have appeared in various titles, it would have been nice to have had a captioned map. The second column of the first page says that Things was trasnformed into the Shield, but the Shield's sub-entry states that Thing is only a part of the Shield, not the entire Shield. The note at the end says that most of the sub-sections were mentioned in Secret Wars #2 but that is only noted within a sub-entry for New Quck City; it should either be noted for all such instances or the reference should be removed from the latter. In most cases the sub-sections are treated as variants of familiar places, but MC2 has the original's first appearance; it this an exception where it's been confirmed to be in fact the original, or an error? Another thing I found puzzling is that Perfection and Perfection-Salvation seemed to be saying almost the same thing in different ways to the point of leaving me feeling they were probably the same place.

Spider-Woman: since Spider-Gwen is only the series' name, not an alias, "Stacy" would have been a better fit for the parentheses.

Sorry to be so critical. I'll still keep getting the handbooks but this one wasn't a favourite of mine. I do like some of the choices like Darren Cross and the Earth-200111 version of the Phantom Eagle.

Rayeye » Fri Apr 01, 2016 9:41 pm
Not read all profiles yet, but I was very happy to see another Handbook!
The new format looks to me at some pages a little messy, but I hope I will get used to it.
The choice of profiles was very nice and logical, though instead of Phantom Eagle I rather preferred a more outstanding character who's still active in a comic (like Genesis, Oya or the current Red Wolf).
And the Battleworld profile was very nice! I'm glad to see the Reality-numbers are also included.

Andy E. Nystrom » Tue Apr 05, 2016 9:12 pm

Rayeye wrote:

The choice of profiles was very nice and logical, though instead of Phantom Eagle I rather preferred a more outstanding character who's still active in a comic (like Genesis, Oya or the current Red Wolf).

In fairness, the Phantom Eagle who got a profile had a mini-series at the end of last year (Where Monsters Dwell). A rare case where in the modern Handbooks a counterpart character got a profile before the 616/Prime version, who last had a full profile with the Master Edition (since then the closest he's gotten was an Appendix blurb in the Marvel Knights encyclopedia). Since the Freedom's Five appeared not too long ago (All-New Invaders), hopefully he'll get a profile sooner than later.

A bit of a tangent on what you were talking about, I realize.

frogoat » Wed Apr 06, 2016 12:53 pm
Anyone catch Tom Breevort's comments about Earth-616 now being, like, Marvel Prime? I noticed the Battleworld entry ends with a nod to this. I'm now wondering how this affects other Universe Designations? Because they seem to still be called Earth/Universe-(number) so does it now go Earth-614, Earth-615, Earth-Marvel Prime, Earth-617? I'm also curious about the MC2 being the legit universe during Secret Wars...I mean, Crimson Curse should be dead, so isn't that a clue it's not Earth-982 as we know it?

Stuart V » Wed Apr 06, 2016 10:49 pm
As seen in Spider-Gwen and Web Warriors stories, the old designations are still being used for most realities.

Most people don't know the multiverse crashed, and since they and their realities were restored virtually identical to what they were before, if they knew the old numbers then they would presumably continue to use them. There might be the odd glitch (such as Crimson Curse still being alive), but that happens every time we get a reality skip - we've had a heck of a lot of them over the years. This one was just bigger.

Those who know the multiverse crashed will probably still, for the most part, continue to apply the old numbers. Think of it this way - if you lived in a town where the streets were numbered First Street, Second Street, etc. and then there was a big earthquake that demolished all the streets, but afterwards the entire town is rebuilt identical to how it was before, would you start renumbering all the streets just because they got rebuilt in a different order from their original construction? I doubt it. It'd confuse most of the old residents, especially if most of them didn't know about the destruction and rebuild:
"Ah, when you said Second Street, you meant new Second Street, which was old Fifth Street, not old Second Street which is now Eighth Street."

As for Earth-616 and Prime Earth. When Reed and co. rebuilt things, they put things back almost exactly as they had been. There's the odd individual refugee from another reality left behind, and in one case (Miles Morales and his family) their histories merged into the rebuilt reality. This has happened before (cf Phyla-Vell) without it changing the reality designation. Some 616 residents died and have been recreated - again, this has happened before with the recreations considered the same person resurrected rather than just a really good copy of the old dead person (everyone on Earth bar Dr. Strange got slain then recreated by Eternity some time back, and more recently Thanos slew half the universe during Infinity Gauntlet, then they were brought back).

We've been told that, except where otherwise depicted, all prior history from Earth-616 holds true - though things have been recreated, this is a continuation, not a reboot. However, per editorial instruction, the handbooks are referring to the restored reality as Prime Earth.

Ymmv.

frogoat » Thu Apr 07, 2016 12:41 am

Stuart V wrote:

As seen in Spider-Gwen and Web Warriors stories, the old designations are still being used for most realities.

Most people don't know the multiverse crashed, and since they and their realities were restored virtually identical to what they were before, if they knew the old numbers then they would presumably continue to use them. There might be the odd glitch (such as Crimson Curse still being alive), but that happens every time we get a reality skip - we've had a heck of a lot of them over the years. This one was just bigger.

Those who know the multiverse crashed will probably still, for the most part, continue to apply the old numbers. Think of it this way - if you lived in a town where the streets were numbered First Street, Second Street, etc. and then there was a big earthquake that demolished all the streets, but afterwards the entire town is rebuilt identical to how it was before, would you start renumbering all the streets just because they got rebuilt in a different order from their original construction? I doubt it. It'd confuse most of the old residents, especially if most of them didn't know about the destruction and rebuild:
"Ah, when you said Second Street, you meant new Second Street, which was old Fifth Street, not old Second Street which is now Eighth Street."

As for Earth-616 and Prime Earth. When Reed and co. rebuilt things, they put things back almost exactly as they had been. There's the odd individual refugee from another reality left behind, and in one case (Miles Morales and his family) their histories merged into the rebuilt reality. This has happened before (cf Phyla-Vell) without it changing the reality designation. Some 616 residents died and have been recreated - again, this has happened before with the recreations considered the same person resurrected rather than just a really good copy of the old dead person (everyone on Earth bar Dr. Strange got slain then recreated by Eternity some time back, and more recently Thanos slew half the universe during Infinity Gauntlet, then they were brought back).

We've been told that, except where otherwise depicted, all prior history from Earth-616 holds true - though things have been recreated, this is a continuation, not a reboot. However, per editorial instruction, the handbooks are referring to the restored reality as Prime Earth.

Ymmv.

Thank you very much for clarifying those points. I believe Mr Frenz might have suggested the Crimson Curse being alive on Battleworld had something to do with there being no other Doctor Doom's bar Earth-616 and thus Curse didn't die as originally depicted. Or perhaps I (or he) misunderstand the nature of the situation.

Andy E. Nystrom » Thu Apr 07, 2016 1:38 am
Thank you for the clarification, Stuart. That is basically what I specuulated in the Q&A thread, the Prime Earth and 616 were essentially one and the same with minor differences, but it's nice to have this confirmed.

I suspect what will happen eventually, and I realize that Tom Brevoort disagrees with this, is eventually the term Earth-616 will become official again. Some writers have continued to use the term and a lot of fans still do (and I doubt that fan sites that use 616 extensively for character profiles are going to painstakingly change each profile's name to [Profile name (Prime Earth)]. Just as writers kept slipping the multiverse back into the DC Universe after Crisis on infinite Earths even before Zero Hour, I'm betting 616 will gradually sneak in here and there until it's official again.

zuckyd1 » Thu Apr 07, 2016 1:59 am
Possibly an error in the handbook?
http://brevoortformspring.tumblr.com/post/142054880033/a-while-ago-you-mentioned-in-here-that-the-sue

zuckyd1 » Thu Apr 07, 2016 7:10 pm

frogoat wrote:

Anyone catch Tom Breevort's comments about Earth-616 now being, like, Marvel Prime? I noticed the Battleworld entry ends with a nod to this. I'm now wondering how this affects other Universe Designations? Because they seem to still be called Earth/Universe-(number) so does it now go Earth-614, Earth-615, Earth-Marvel Prime, Earth-617?

Seems so: http://brevoortformspring.tumblr.com/post/142403131713/i-understand-youve-stated-that-the-main-marvel

frogoat » Fri Apr 08, 2016 6:15 am

Andy E. Nystrom wrote:

Thank you for the clarification, Stuart. That is basically what I specuulated in the Q&A thread, the Prime Earth and 616 were essentially one and the same with minor differences, but it's nice to have this confirmed.

I suspect what will happen eventually, and I realize that Tom Brevoort disagrees with this, is eventually the term Earth-616 will become official again. Some writers have continued to use the term and a lot of fans still do (and I doubt that fan sites that use 616 extensively for character profiles are going to painstakingly change each profile's name to [Profile name (Prime Earth)]. Just as writers kept slipping the multiverse back into the DC Universe after Crisis on infinite Earths even before Zero Hour, I'm betting 616 will gradually sneak in here and there until it's official again.

I suspect you are going to be proven correct in time. It's not something that will simply disappear because of a new policy.

bigvis497 » Fri Apr 15, 2016 4:51 pm

Andy E. Nystrom wrote:

Welcome back, Roger!

Your post reminded me of something I was going to say before: Despite my stated reservations I am going to buy the new Handbook because I trust the writers. That being said, some people will choose not to buy it because of the format and I respect that. BUT if that is the only reason you decide not to buy it, I ask that you let Marvel know that. If you simply don't buy it and don't tell Marvel the reason, the message Marvel gets is the time is not right for a comeback for the Handbooks. But if you explain why you're not buying it, it changes the message. Again, I'm not asking people not to buy the book. In fact as I said in January better a handbook in a less than ideal format than no Handbook; if the new format means they start reappearing regularly, that's a good thing. I'm just saying that if the format truly is a dealbreaker and you can't get past it, let Marvel know.

Now that I have this in hand I can officially say I hate the new format and after 12 years I will not be buying any more handbooks. And this is coming from somebody who has a 100% complete collection of not just handbooks but also every single Klaws of the Panther, X-Men Legacy, etc TPB I bought solely for new Handbook entries. The layout looks extremely casual and unprofessional. This is not a knock on the writing team, this is a knock on whoever thought this was an improvement. I want professional looking handbooks and these look like those Marvel Encyclopedias. Not a single thing was changed for the better, literally every change made was a negative.

When you say let Marvel know, Is there somebody direct in Marvel to contact? I'm afraid a tweet or an email is just going to get ignored.

The handbooks were the only current things I was still buying from Marvel. Horrible, horrible way to treat your fans.

Andy E. Nystrom » Sat Apr 16, 2016 12:56 am

bigvis497 wrote:

Now that I have this in hand I can officially say I hate the new format and after 12 years I will not be buying any more handbooks. And this is coming from somebody who has a 100% complete collection of not just handbooks but also every single Klaws of the Panther, X-Men Legacy, etc TPB I bought solely for new Handbook entries. The layout looks extremely casual and unprofessional. This is not a knock on the writing team, this is a knock on whoever thought this was an improvement. I want professional looking handbooks and these look like those Marvel Encyclopedias. Not a single thing was changed for the better, literally every change made was a negative.

When you say let Marvel know, Is there somebody direct in Marvel to contact? I'm afraid a tweet or an email is just going to get ignored.

The handbooks were the only current things I was still buying from Marvel. Horrible, horrible way to treat your fans.

While I'm not a fan of the new format, I still like them enough to continue getting them. Hope you'll stick around here still for the discussion.

If you want to ensure you get a response, probably your best bet is Tom Brevoort's Tumbler account (he also has Twttier but that's not good for articulating something at length). Here's a link to his Tumbler (aka his New Forumspring) page: http://brevoortformspring.tumblr.com/ He may not give an answer you like but he probably will address your points.

bigvis497 » Tue May 31, 2016 10:33 pm
So what are the chances of getting the Handbooks restored back to the proper format? I can't be the only one who absolutely despises the new format? I can't think of a single thing that was changed for the better.

Stuart V » Wed Jun 01, 2016 10:57 pm

bigvis497 wrote:

So what are the chances of getting the Handbooks restored back to the proper format? I can't be the only one who absolutely despises the new format? I can't think of a single thing that was changed for the better.

Fairly slim I fear.

Andy E. Nystrom » Thu Jun 02, 2016 1:27 am

Stuart V wrote:

bigvis497 wrote:

So what are the chances of getting the Handbooks restored back to the proper format? I can't be the only one who absolutely despises the new format? I can't think of a single thing that was changed for the better.

Fairly slim I fear.

Disappointing, but I'll keep getting. Maybe even if the old format is not returning, there will be at least a few nip/tucks to the new format. While I'm not a fan of the new format, I'm still getting these. The Handbooks would have to devolve pretty far for me to lose interest entirely.

frogoat » Fri Jun 03, 2016 12:21 pm

Andy E. Nystrom wrote:

Stuart V wrote:

bigvis497 wrote:

So what are the chances of getting the Handbooks restored back to the proper format? I can't be the only one who absolutely despises the new format? I can't think of a single thing that was changed for the better.

Fairly slim I fear.

Disappointing, but I'll keep getting. Maybe even if the old format is not returning, there will be at least a few nip/tucks to the new format. While I'm not a fan of the new format, I'm still getting these. The Handbooks would have to devolve pretty far for me to lose interest entirely.

I agree. I don't love the new layout but I know the quality is still top notch, and that's more than reason enough to pick up the Handbooks/Guidebooks.