| "Heroes Reborn" | |
|---|---|
 Virgin cover ofOnslaught Reborn #2 byRob Liefeld. | |
| Publisher | Marvel Comics |
| Publication date | 1996–1997 |
| Genre | |
| Main character(s) | Avengers Fantastic Four Loki Doctor Doom Mole Man Red Skull Hydra Hulk Galactus |
| Fantastic Four: Heroes Reborn | ISBN 0-7851-0744-4 |
| Heroes Reborn: Iron Man | ISBN 0-7851-2338-5 |
| Heroes Reborn: Captain America | ISBN 0-7851-2339-3 |
"Heroes Reborn" is a 1996–97crossover story arc amongcomic book series published by the American companyMarvel Comics. During this one-year, multi-title story arc, Marvel temporarilyoutsourced the production of several of its best-known comic books to the studios of artistsJim Lee andRob Liefeld, who had been among Marvel's most popular artists before leaving to form independent companies.[1]
"Heroes Reborn" was an attempt by Marvel to address low sales on some of its titles. WhileSpider-Man andX-Men-related titles sold well, as did some titles under the horror-themed "Midnight Sons" imprint likeGhost Rider, reader interest was comparatively poor onAvengers andFantastic Four. Marvel conceived of an experiment to outsource production for titles with lagging sales to two former Marvel artists,Jim Lee andRob Liefeld, who had left the publisher four years earlier to formImage Comics, and who still enjoyed great popularity among the comics-buying public. The two creators would launch four new titles, withJim Lee'sWildStorm Productions producingFantastic Four andIron Man, andRob Liefeld's Extreme Studios handlingCaptain America andThe Avengers. These books would be set in anew continuity. In-story, it would be explained that these characters had been accidentally transported into a "pocket universe" separate from themain Marvel universe byFranklin Richards, during a battle with the supervillainOnslaught.[2][3]
While the rest of the world believed these characters had died, they in fact were now in a new universe, essentially "reborn", without any memory of their past universe, which allowed Lee and Liefeld to establish new, revisedorigin stories for modern readers. For example,Ben Grimm fought as a pilot in theGulf War instead ofWorld War II, withSusan Storm andJohnny Storm being explained to have been financial backers for Reed Richards' rocket, hence their presence on the mission. In addition, while Richards' goal of becoming the first man to get toMars remained, it was revealed that he secretly aimed to explore the interstellar anomalies of that area.[citation needed]
Marvel ended Liefeld's contract early after six issues, citing low sales on his two titles,[3] which were reassigned to Lee.Walt Simonson took overAvengers when it moved to WildStorm.[4] Although the four titles in "Heroes Reborn" were slated for a 12-issue run,James Robinson wrote a thirteenth and final issue for each book. The storyline, entitled "World War III", was a crossover between the Marvel and WildStorm characters.[citation needed]
At the end of the storyline, which lasted one year, WildStorm's agreement with Marvel ended, at which point the Fantastic Four and Avengers were returned to the mainstreamMarvel Universe, again through the intervention of Franklin Richards, in the storyline "Heroes Return", which included a central miniseriesHeroes Reborn: The Return, by writerPeter David and artistSalvador Larocca.[1]
To promote theCaptain America series, Liefeld produced a piece of promo art depicting that character, which became one of the most famous and mocked illustrations from that period of Liefeld's career. The artwork depicted Captain America with "cartoonish proportions", in particular his stomach, arms,[5][6] and "gaping barrel chest", asComic Book Resources (CBR) put it.[6] Referred to byComics Beat as "the most infamous piece of art in comics history,"[7] Timothy Donohoo of CBR observed that the artwork "showcases the extreme and many times highly unrealistic anatomy seen in the comics of the era", and came to be viewed as emblematic of Liefeld's artwork as a whole. The image went on to become aninternet meme,[6] and was included in critical articles such as "The 40 Worst Rob Liefeld Drawings", "A Gallery of Rob Liefeld's Anatomical Abominations" and "Worst Rob Liefeld Covers", earning Liefeld his status as one of the industry's most controversial comics artists.[8] Liefeld poked fun at the matter in 2016, tweeting, "Of course I'm #teamcap. I didn't give him those big tits for nuthin..."[5][9] He revisited the illustration in September 2023, with aNew York Comic Con variant cover forCaptain America (vol. 10) #1, depicting theSam Wilson incarnation of the character in the same pose. Posting the image on Twitter, Liefeld commented, "Had to get something off my chest."[5][10] In October 2023 the original 1996 artwork was put up for auction withHeritage Auctions,[6][11][12][13] the second time it had been made so available.[6] On November 17,[14] the final piece was auctioned for $132,000USD.[15]
All of the titles experienced a large upsurge in sales.[16] According to Lee, Marvel proposed continuing the Heroes Reborn lineup indefinitely, but under the condition that Lee would draw at least one of them. Lee refused.[3]
Critically, the storyline was not well received.[2] The changes to the characters were controversial, provoking debates among fans. The change in creative team onCaptain America was also controversial, since the pre-Heroes Reborn team ofMark Waid andRon Garney had already been bringing increased sales and critical acclaim to the series,[17] prompting the question of why it had required a reboot by Liefeld, whose artwork on the title was heavily criticized for its poor anatomy and skill,[2] so much so that it has been subject to parody.[5][8]
The "Heroes Reborn" was followed by "Heroes Return", which consisted of a central, four-issue miniseries,Heroes Reborn: The Return, by writerPeter David and artistSalvador Larocca (December 1997). In the story, theCelestials take notice of Franklin's pocket universe and initially demand that he eliminate one of the two universes, but eventually relent on the condition that all beings native toEarth-616 evacuate the pocket universe and never return.
The heroes are gathered in a massive ship to leave the pocket universe. Characters includingShe-Hulk and several members ofthe Inhuman Royal Family are depicted as returning heroes, even though they were not among the missing heroes fromOnslaught: Marvel Universe. Though it was later mentioned that these versions of them merged with their regular counterparts.
As the heroes travel to their destination, Dr. Doom suddenly escapes the ship with Franklin, hoping to use the siphoning devices he created to steal Franklin's power, but is stopped by Mr. Fantastic and Thor, who rescue the boy. Thor uses his hammer to create a portal, trapping himself and Doom in it.
As soon as the remaining heroes break the boundaries between the two worlds, they all suddenly remember their past lives. Bruce Banner and the Hulk are merged back together into one singular being. The returned Anthony Stark possesses the memories of both the original and teenage Anthony Stark, and thus considers himself to be essentially both of them.[18]
The pocket universe was then placed under the authority ofAshema the Listener.[19] Eventually, Thor is returned to Asgard,[20] while Doom's whereabouts are left unknown.
In 1999, Marvel collectedHeroes Reborn: The Return #1-4 limited series re-titled asReturn of the Heroes trade paperback under the 'Marvel's Finest' banner. It was re-released in 2009 asHeroes Reborn: The Return trade paperback again collecting the 4-issue mini-series, and also theHeroes Reborn one-shot specials from 2000:Doomsday #1,Ashema #1,Masters of Evil #1,Rebel #1,Remnants #1,Young Allies #1, andDoom #1.
In July 2000, Marvel published thetrade paperbackFantastic Four: Heroes Reborn, collectingFantastic Four vol. 2, issues #1-6 (also under the 'Marvel's Finest' banner), but no other "Heroes Reborn" reprints followed for some time.
With 2006 marking the 10th anniversary of the "Heroes Reborn" crossover, Marvel marked the occasion by having the reality-traversingExiles team visit the "Heroes Reborn" Earth, inExiles #81-82. The company reprinted original "Heroes Reborn" series and produced trade paperbacks collecting issues #1-12 (excluding the series finale cross-over "World War III") of the four titles. A new edition ofHeroes Reborn: Fantastic Four trade paperback was released in August 2018 (ISBN 1-302-91333-6). Also,Jeph Loeb andRob Liefeld reunited in November 2006 forOnslaught Reborn, a five-part weeklylimited series that features bothOnslaught and a world similar to the "Heroes Reborn" universe. This was planned to tie in with the memorial scholarship fund established in honor of Loeb's sonSam.[21][22]
In 2021, Marvel published aHeroes Reborn storyline[23] consisting of a central miniseries byJason Aaron andEd McGuinness, though it bears no relationship to the 1996 story beyond its title and some in-story references.[24]