Agatha Harkness Conjures Up A Contest Of Chaos In Scarlett Witch Annual #1

[JayC]

Teased last week in a promotional image by artist Bryan Hitch, chaos will reign this summer in the new Marvel Comics saga, CONTEST OF CHAOS! The story will star the newly rejuvenated Agatha Harkness, fresh off her exciting role in Midnight Suns, as she attempts to craft a new Darkhold book using chaos magic. Led by writer Stephanie Phillips (Rogue & Gambit, Cosmic Ghost Rider), CONTEST OF CHAOS will unfold in multiple annuals throughout the summer by a host of all-star creators, beginning with a prelude issue in SCARLET WITCH ANNUAL #1.

Spinning out of writer Steve Orlando and Sara Pichelli’s hit SCARLET WITCH ongoing series, SCARLET WITCH ANNUAL #1 will be written by Orlando and drawn by Carlos Nieto, a rising star who recently made his Marvel Comics debut in Murderworld: Wolverine. The exciting prelude will see Agatha, reenergized and more motivated than ever before, put her bold new plans for the Marvel Universe into motion as she reunites with Scarlet Witch for the first time since her rejuvenation. When she learns of Wanda’s recent absorption of Chthon, she decides to educate her former student on the dangers of such an endeavor. But Wanda is not the meek pupil she once was – and Agatha’s intentions are not so straightforward. This epic clash between Marvel’s most powerful witches will set off a chain reaction that will erupt across special annual issues of Marvel’s hottest ongoing titles.

The CONTEST OF CHAOS annuals will center around Agatha’s quest to bring Chaos magic to the forefront so she can take her rightful place as one of the universe’s greatest sorcerers. In order to do so, she’ll orchestrate a mystically-charged challenge involving your favorite heroes. Watch as Wolverine, Spider-Man, Venom, Iron Man, Captain Marvel, Cyclops, Storm, Moon Knight, Ghost Rider, Human Torch, Taegukgi, Ghost-Spider, White Fox, and Deadpool are corrupted by chaos and pitted against eachother in a thunderous tournament! Each annual will introduce a new matchup with each showdown upping the stakes and building toward an explosive final round, all part of Agatha’s grand scheme to reinvent Marvel magic!

"CONTEST OF CHAOS is the kind of story I would absolutely sprint to the comic store to buy as a reader,” Phillips said. “There's action, mystery, magic, and my favorite characters from all over the Marvel Universe. To be spearheading the storyline is just incredibly cool for me as a creator. It's going to be big with ramifications for the larger universe… See you this summer - THWIP!"

Check out Russell Dauterman’s SCARLET WITCH ANNUAL #1 cover below and stay tuned for more news about CONTEST OF CHAOS!

SCARLET WITCH ANNUAL #1 – “Contest of Chaos” Prelude
Written by STEVE ORLANDO
Art by CARLOS NIETO
Cover by RUSSELL DAUTERMAN
On Sale 6/21

[leokearon]

At least Orlando is writing the Wanda Annual, I would hate for all the good that has happened to Wanda do be ruined by an event, especially another Hero Vs Hero one. Also not keen on Marvel's attempts to turn Agatha into the MCU version 

[GarimusPrime]

On 3/2/2023 at 3:01 PM, leokearon said:

At least Orlando is writing the Wanda Annual, I would hate for all the good that has happened to Wanda do be ruined by an event, especially another Hero Vs Hero one. Also not keen on Marvel's attempts to turn Agatha into the MCU version 

I absolutely hate when they try to turn the comics into the movies. They disregard literal decades of character history to promote a movie or series that people won't care about a year after it comes out. It doesn't bring in new comic book readers, it just pisses off the already loyal ones.

[Atlantis]

On 3/3/2023 at 11:10 AM, GarimusPrime said:

I absolutely hate when they try to turn the comics into the movies. They disregard literal decades of character history to promote a movie or series that people won't care about a year after it comes out. It doesn't bring in new comic book readers, it just pisses off the already loyal ones.

Truth! They're disregarding that WE are the ones that got them to the point where they could even MAKE those movies.  Agatha Harkness was a silver haired old crone and you did NOT want to cross her. She doesn't need to be some younger version. 

[leokearon]

On 3/3/2023 at 8:10 PM, GarimusPrime said:

I absolutely hate when they try to turn the comics into the movies. They disregard literal decades of character history to promote a movie or series that people won't care about a year after it comes out. It doesn't bring in new comic book readers, it just pisses off the already loyal ones.

Exactly, also Marvel don't seem to care that any boost a comic will get from a MCU product is about 3 months

[GarimusPrime]

On 3/4/2023 at 3:01 AM, leokearon said:

Exactly, also Marvel don't seem to care that any boost a comic will get from a MCU product is about 3 months

Not even. Have the movies brought in money? Absolutely, without question. Have the movies brought in new comic book readers? Hardly. So when I see a new Eternals "ongoing" series being promoted, I laugh, knowing that the series won't survive past the one year mark. Case in point, their most recent series couldn't get past 12 issues, and that's even with the writers attempting to use the X-Men and Avengers to boost their sales. If they want to make MCU comics, then by all means, have a separate imprint, such as the Ultimate Universe, and go nuts. You can have your watered-down version of the characters with uglier costumes, and make whatever changes you want. But when you take a comic book that's been around for 40, 50, even 60+ years, and you fundamentally change characters (both by looks and personality) just to synergize with a movie that people will watch once and then forget about? That's a slap in the face to the fans who've been buying the comics and following the stories for decades. Stop watering down the mainstream comics to promote a movie. It's not going to gain you new revenue.

[leokearon]

On 3/4/2023 at 5:52 PM, GarimusPrime said:

Not even. Have the movies brought in money? Absolutely, without question. Have the movies brought in new comic book readers? Hardly. So when I see a new Eternals "ongoing" series being promoted, I laugh, knowing that the series won't survive past the one year mark. Case in point, their most recent series couldn't get past 12 issues, and that's even with the writers attempting to use the X-Men and Avengers to boost their sales. If they want to make MCU comics, then by all means, have a separate imprint, such as the Ultimate Universe, and go nuts. You can have your watered-down version of the characters with uglier costumes, and make whatever changes you want. But when you take a comic book that's been around for 40, 50, even 60+ years, and you fundamentally change characters (both by looks and personality) just to synergize with a movie that people will watch once and then forget about? That's a slap in the face to the fans who've been buying the comics and following the stories for decades. Stop watering down the mainstream comics to promote a movie. It's not going to gain you new revenue.

It is about a three months boost according to the editor of the Marvel Collectors editions in the UK and Ireland, then the sales go back to pre-movie/show levels. Unfortunately for comic companies the more money the better even if it's a short term gain.

[JayC]

Mystical manipulator Agatha Harkness is conjuring up a CONTEST OF CHAOS and some of Marvel’s biggest heroes, including A-Listers, fan favorites, and rising new stars, will be forced to compete!

Crafted by writer Stephanie Phillips, CONTEST OF CHAOS will be an interconnected saga told across eight thrilling Annuals starting in August. Featuring the writing and art of various all-star industry talent, each CONTEST OF CHAOS ANNUAL will spotlight an intense showdown between two characters as the forces of chaos compel them to go head-to-head! Throughout the eight over-sized issues, Phillips and artist Alberto Foche will reveal more and more of Agatha’s twisted scheme in bonus backup stories.

Recently rejuvenated and more powerful than ever, Agatha has more stake in the future of the Marvel Universe than ever before, and readers and characters alike are about to see just how committed she is to reshaping Marvel magic! The drama kicks off in next month’s SCARLET WITCH ANNUAL #1, a CONTEST OF CHAOS prelude issue, by Scarlet Witch writer Steve Orlando and artist Carlos Nieto. After stealing something dark and dangerous from her former pupil, Agatha unleashes her corruption on various unsuspecting heroes!

Here are the matchups fans can look forward to in the coming months:

SPIDER-MAN ANNUAL #1 – SPIDER-MAN VS. WOLVERINE!
Writer Stephanie Phillips kicks off the CONTEST OF CHAOS alongside artist Alberto Foche! First on Agatha’s list is Spider-Man, whose regular day is turned upside down when he involuntarily walks through a portal to a remote, magical city…and is attacked by Wolverine!

IRON MAN ANNUAL #1 – IRON MAN VS. STORM!
Writer Jason Loo and artist David Cutler bring you a clash of titans you won’t want to miss! When the forces of chaos move upon our heroes, the past, present and future come crashing in on them – and only one can emerge victorious! The might of human ingenuity versus the power of the natural universe.

FANTASTIC FOUR ANNUAL #1 – GHOST RIDER VS. THE HUMAN TORCH!
Writer Zac Gorman and artist Alan Robinson bring the Fantastic Four into the mayhem when the Human Torch is pitted against Johnny Blaze! It’s flame versus hellfire when the two heroes face off – but who will emerge victorious?!

MOON KNIGHT ANNUAL #1 – MOON KNIGHT VS. TAEGUKGI!
Current Moon Knight scribe and Taegukgi co-creator Jed MacKay teams up with acclaimed artist Creees Lee for a power-packed showdown! When the champion of a god battles a godlike champion, who will win? The Fist of Khonshu faces off against Tiger Division’s fearless leader!

SPIDER-GWEN ANNUAL #1 – GHOST-SPIDER VS. WHITE FOX!
Ghost-Spider and White Fox get caught in Agatha Harkness’ tangled web in this roller coaster of a rumble by writer Karla Pacheco and artist Rosi Kämpe! Gwen Stacy technically isn’t even supposed to be in this universe, and now she’s cutting chem lab to go to…a theme park?! Wait, something doesn’t feel right here – and why is this masked fox attacking her?

VENOM ANNUAL #1 – VENOM VS. DEADPOOL!
When the forces of chaos call upon Venom and Deadpool, it becomes an issue of family – and whose deserves to win the ultimate prize. It’s symbiote might vs. frankly awesome assassin skills in an epic showdown you won’t want to miss by current Deadpool scribe Alyssa Wong and artist Sergio Dávila!

X-MEN ANNUAL #1 – CAPTAIN MARVEL VS. CYCLOPS!
The leader of the X-Men and the leader of the Avengers size each other up in this epic brawl from writer Paul Allor and Alessandro Miracolo! Drawn to the Alaskan wilderness by magic neither of them understand, Captain Marvel and Cyclops duke it out! Agatha Harkness’ plan for the Darkhold is slowly taking shape…but will it come at the expense of two of the world’s greatest heroes?! And what can an energy-blasting mutant do against a woman who can absorb the energy of the sun?!

AVENGERS ANNUAL #1 – CONTEST OF CHAOS FINALE!
Stephanie Phillips and Alberto Foche bring the CONTEST OF CHAOS to a fantastical finish as the fate of Marvel magic is decided! When Agatha pits the Avengers against the winners of the previous chaos battles, they realize they must choose between saving their friends and stopping the creation of the new Darkhold. But their choice may have consequences that no one – not even Agatha – could have imagined.

"CONTEST OF CHAOS is the kind of story I would absolutely sprint to the comic store to buy as a reader,” Phillips said. “There's action, mystery, magic, and my favorite characters from all over the Marvel Universe. To be spearheading the storyline is just incredibly cool for me as a creator. It's going to be big with ramifications for the larger universe… See you this summer—THWIP!"

Place your bets and pick up all eight CONTEST OF CHAOS ANNUALS when they hit stands this summer!

[Lord_Scareglow]

So another one of those stories like Contest of Champions/Secret Wars/X-Men Vs. Avengers/X-Men Vs. Inhumans etc, just a baddie or someone/thing manipulating heroes to fight each other, not shocked but...*sigh*

also not shocked Agatha is now young in these new books, to obviously coinside with her MCU apperance, ah she looks good, but... whatever

[ADour]

I don't mind that this is one of those Annual-exclusive events. Keeps things nice and tidy and the story doesn't overstay its welcome, to the point you can even ignore them since they're not impactful stories.

And I'm glad that Iron Man's match-up against Storm is taking place in his own annual, I'm hoping that skews the odds in his favor. Not that I think Tony couldn't have this fight in the bag, but the meta definitely doesn't favor him.

[LordSinister74]

On 5/19/2023 at 5:03 PM, ADour said:

I don't mind that this is one of those Annual-exclusive events. Keeps things nice and tidy and the story doesn't overstay its welcome, to the point you can even ignore them since they're not impactful stories.

And I'm glad that Iron Man's match-up against Storm is taking place in his own annual, I'm hoping that skews the odds in his favor. Not that I think Tony couldn't have this fight in the bag, but the meta definitely doesn't favor him.

I agree. I used to love the annual summer events. Don't like Harkness being a villain like in the MCU now but still liking summer annual event

[leokearon]

Hero Vs Hero + MCU Synergy is a good way for me not to get excited

[RoMe00150]

On 5/20/2023 at 4:18 AM, leokearon said:

Hero Vs Hero + MCU Synergy is a good way for me not to get excited

Same, at least it's been shoved off into annuals so I can ignore it. I wonder at what point do the writers of the movies get a writing credit for the Comics 

[Hogun]

More hero v. hero fights to boost sales cheaply. The only fights I care about are Cyclops v. Captain Marvel (Go Cyclops) and Human Torch v. Ghost Rider (Go Johnny Storm).

[leokearon]

On 5/20/2023 at 9:58 AM, RoMe00150 said:

Same, at least it's been shoved off into annuals so I can ignore it. I wonder at what point do the writers of the movies get a writing credit for the Comics 

The problem for me is that it starts with the Scarlet Witch annual, hopefully I can just get that and probably the conclusion in the Avengers Annual and not bother with the rest.