Ghaur's plan will impact the lives of the numerous costumed heroes - from the now-nomadic Daredevil to the paralysed Iron Man, from the homeless New Mutants to the veritable army of Avengers - as the story runs through 14 of Marvel's 1989 annuals, with unofficial tie-ins in Marvel Comics Presents (as the Hulk didn't have an annual this year) and a reintroduction to Namor the Sub-Mariner in the pages of the New Mutants, though that tie-in has little impact on the overall story. The story takes place over a lenghty period with other ongoing titles continuing to run between chapters.
It's worth noting that Tigra's appearance in this story is an error as she'd been shrunken down and put in a test tube following her transformation into a wild human-cat form in the pages of Avengers West Coast.
Previous events that directly impact this story:
- YEARS OF GLORY, DAY OF DOOM - First appearance of the Serpent Crown
- NO FINAL VICTORY - The Serpent Crown is lost in the ocean
- ASSAULT ON ATLANTIS - Attuma claims the Atlantean throne from Namor
- THE SAGA OF THE SERPENT CROWN - The history of the Serpent Crown
- New Mutants #76 (tie-in)
- Silver Surfer Annual #2[1/7] * (also see THE KREE-SKRULL WAR II)
- Iron Man Annual #10[1/4] * (also see HEARTBEATEN)
- Iron Man Annual #10[2/4] (tie-in)
- Avengers West Coast Annual #4[4/5] (tie-in)
- Marvel Comics Presents #26[4/4] (tie-in)
- Iron Man Annual #10[3/4] (tie-in)
- X-Men Annual #13[1/3]
- Amazing Spider-Man Annual #23[1/7]
- Punisher Annual #2[1/4]
- Spectacular Spider-Man Annual #9[1/5]
- Daredevil Annual #5[1/5] (misnumbered #4, sometimes referred to as #4B)
- Avengers Annual #18[1/4]
- West Coast Avengers #52 (tie-in)
- New Mutants Annual #5[1/3] (also see HOME!)
- X-Factor Annual #4[1/4]
- Web of Spider-Man Annual #5[1/7]
- Avengers West Coast Annual #4[1/5]
- Thor Annual #14[1/6]
- Fantastic Four Annual #22[1/5]
New Mutants #76 (tie-in)
The New Mutants seek a new direction following the destruction of the Xavier School for Gifted Youngsters (during INFERNO) and their Headmaster Magneto becoming leader of the Hellfire Club. Meanwhile, the X-Terminators uncover the Horn of Proteus on a diving expedition and blow it, summoning a Kraken which drags X-Factor's Ship below the waves. Both the New Mutants and Namor the Sub-Mariner arrive, help the X-Terminators destroy the Kraken. The New Mutants agree to live aboard Ship, while the Sub-Mariner takes the Horn back to Atlantis.
Silver Surfer Annual #2[1/7] *
Iron Man Annual #10[1/4] *
Attuma, ruler of Atlantis, agrees to help Ghaur and Llyra restore the Serpent Crown, seizing the opportunity to invade the surface world. Iron Man and Namor intercede in the ongoing war between Hydra and the Maggia, discovering both organisations are behind the recent sabotage attempts on Stark Enterprises (during HEARTBEATEN). Iron Man learns of Hydra's plan to give free addictive drugs to American citizens, making them dependent on Hydra, but destroys their supply. Iron Man and Namor locate a Hydra ship that's soon attacked by an army of invading Lemurians. Iron Man is too late to save Namor when he boards the Hydra ship just as it blows up. Namor the Sub-Mariner is dead.Iron Man Annual #10[2/4] (tie-in)
At a Los Angeles bar for costumed criminals, customers comment on the TV news coverage of Iron Man's fight with the invading. The villains all express their dislike for Iron Man, but they all quickly leave when Iron Man himself enters the bar.
Avengers West Coast Annual #4[4/5] (tie-in)
A band of Atlantean and Lemurian invaders get lost and end up in Baja, Mexico, after their clash with Namor and iron Man. As they struggle with the heat, they wander into Firebird who melts their weapons and talks them out of invading, taking them safely back to the ocean.
Las Vegas casino owner Michael Berengetti sends his enforcer, Mister Fixit (secretly the grey-skinned, but still-incredible Hulk) to pick up a 50 grand debt from the gambling-addicted owner of sea park Marlinworld in San Diego. Marlin tries to convince Mr Fixit to invest in Marlinworld. Shandu the Killer Whale, the park's main attraction, eats his trainer during a performance, then turns on the crowd. Fixit grabs the whale and tosses him out to sea where it hits Krang's sub and destroys the device that caused the whale to go crazy. Mister Fixit sees the departing Atlanteans and wonders what he's missed...
Iron Man Annual #10[3/4] (tie-in)
Andromeda returns to Atlantis days after Namor's death and is reunited with her friend and ally Colonel Dakkor who updates her on Attuma's latest plans for war against the surface world. Andromeda confronts her father Attuma, but is quickly forced to retreat. She plans to put an end to her father's mad rule once and for all.
X-Men Annual #13[1/3]
Diamondback left the Serpent Society when Sidewinder was deposed as leader, but now she rejoins the Society under Sidewinder's orders when Ghaur hires them to locate specific items of arcane power. When Diamondback tries to steal one of these items from Mister Jip, he captures both her and Dazzler of the X-Men and swaps their minds into each others' bodies. Using this as leverage, he forces the X-Men into locating the other mystical items before the Serpent Society can. The X-Men beat the Society, though Longshot is lost when he's buried under a rockslide. Jip restores Dazzler and Diamondback to their own bodies and returns Longshot when Wolverine threatens him. Sidewinder teleports in, grabs Diamondback and the magical items, and teleports out. He sells the items to Ghaur and gives the Serpent Society a cut. Jip regrets not being able to use the items to save Dagger from Ghaur's intentions. Ghaur and Llyra relocate to Magneto's old Bermuda Triangle base and prepare to recreate the Serpent Crown...Amazing Spider-Man Annual #23[1/7]
Punisher Annual #2[1/4]
Moon Knight and the Punisher both investigate SOS or 'Save Our Society' - a charity organisation dedicated to helping the homeless. They soon cross paths and agree to team up. Breaking into a clinic in the Bronx run by Madame Hydra - aka Viper - and find a dubious doctor injecting homeless men with a drug that turns them into Serpent-Men. They initially overpower the Serpent-Men until Viper injects the Punisher with her serum. Moon Knight defeat the serpentine vigilante by flashing the reflection off his crescent darts into his eyes. Viper escapes, but het operation is in ruins. Days later, the Punisher recovers at Moon Knight's home, returned to human form.
Spectacular Spider-Man Annual #9[1/5]
Dr Tyrone reveals his true identity to the recently-blinded Dagger and takes her to become one of Ghaur's brides-to-be. Tyrannus steals the book of Keel to gain the power to betray Ghaur and raise Set himself. Spider-Man and Cloak locate Dagger as a stranger in Atlantean armour helps them free her. With Dagger now safe, Cloak turns his back on Spider-Man as he's hypnotised by Tyrannus and shoved in the back of a van...
Daredevil Annual #5[1/5]
One week later, in upstate New York, Doctor Strange convinces the nomadic Daredevil to rescue a man from Dr Tyrone's Save Our Society rehab group that acts as a cover for his 'factory' for Serpent-Men. Daredevil breaks into Tyrannus' compound and immediately fends off a savage Spider-Man. Strange arrives at Tyrannus' sanctum in time to witness him betray Viper and open a portal. But instead of summoning Set, he pulls one of Dormammu's demons, Yiggorum, from the Dark Dimension. Viper throws Tyrannus to the demon to consume him, then Doctor Strange sends the demon back and closes the portal. He magically cures the Serpent-Men and Spider-Man and erases their memories of everything they've witnessed. Daredevil heads back to the road.Avengers Annual #18[1/4] *
New Mutants Annual #5[1/3]
Ghaur sends a team of Deviants who happen to look almost exactly like Wolfsbane, Sunspot and Cannonball of the New Mutants to steal the Horn of Doom from Namorita's care. Namorita and the Atlantean super-team SURF mistakenly pursue the actual New Mutants who have just returned from an unplanned journey to Asgard (during HOME!). Ghaur and Llyra use the Horn of Doom to unleash a creature on Atlantis while its troops are busy attacking the surface world, having intended to betray Attuma all along. Namorita, the New Mutants and SURF destroy the Horn of Doom and bury the creature in a trench, though Atlantis is in ruins. The New Mutants return to the surface to find their way home.
X-Factor Annual #4[1/4] *
An entranced Marvel Girl telekinetically flies at speed herself the Atlantic Ocean on a tractor beam with the Beast desperately hanging from her ankle. He wakes her which sends them into the depths below. Attuma hopes to claim Marvel Girl for himself, believing her to be the Phoenix who rejected him previously. Andromeda comes to Beast's aid. Marvel Girl wakes in Atlantean attire, with Atuma calling her 'Phoenix' not realising she's quite not the same person he previously encountered. Beast and Andromeda arrive while she's fending him off as he tries to drown her for rejecting him. Beast takes Marvel Girl to the surface where he's met by Ghaur's forces and has no choice by to let him take her in order to save her life. Andromeda is defeated by her father but is snateched right from under him before he can decapitate her. Now Ghaur has six of his seven Brides...
Web of Spider-Man Annual #5[1/7] *
Attuma puts his issues with Ghaur aside and leads a final assault on the surface world. Standing against them in New York harbour are US military armed forces, Spider-Man and the Fantastic Four. While they defend the city from the Atlantean army and the Megasaur, Llyra sends her Lemurian forces to attack the undefended Atlantis to create the ultimate blood sacrifice. Ghaur takes the Invisible Woman as the seventh bride. The mystery Atlantean joins the fight once more. When Attuma hears news that Atlantis has been destroyed by his supposed allies, he orders his forces to retreat and surrenders to the humans. With the Atlantean army still living, Ghaur's intended blood sacrifice didn't pan out the way he'd planned...Avengers West Coast Annual #4[1/5] *
Thor Annual #14[1/6] *
Thor, Quasar, the Thing (actually Ben Grimm in a robotic 'Thing' body) and Doctor Strange arrive on the scene, entering Set's dimension by flying into his mouth and ripping out through his tail-end. Strange, Quasar and Thing fight Set in his inside-out true form, while Thor turns to his attention to rescuing his mother Gaea. He heads to the centre of the Sun to summon Atum, goading him into becoming the god-eating Demogorge. Demogorge consumes Thor, but his face emerges as he takes control of the creature's body. Thor/Demogorge rips off Set's heads and sends them into seven different dimensions. Demogorge then spits Thor out. The heroes return to the Earthly plane and the defeated Ghaur teleports away with the Seven Brides and the Serpent Crown...Fantastic Four Annual #22[1/5] *
The Fantastic Four, Avengers and Doctor Strange fight their way through the Lemurians and Deviant Lemurians in search of Ghaur. Ghaur spins the Seven Brides on a platform above the Serpent Crown to suck their essences into it and release Set. Namor the Sub-Mariner (the mystery Atlantean) bursts into the base and confronts Ghaur and Llyra, saving his courson Namorita from their wrath. The spirit form of Naga (who died wearing the Serpent Crown during YEARS OF GLORY, DAY OF DOOM) bursts from the Crown and appears to annihilate himself, Ghaur and Llyra. The spell over the Brides is broken and they push the Crown into a ravine. With Atlantis in ruins, Namor takes his cousin to find a new life elsewhere.
MCG Note: Major fallout from these storylines is included in black & blue.
Secondary, less-notable fallout from these stories included in grey.
Silver Surfer #28 (1989)
The Silver Surfer returns to the Kree-Skrull War during THE KREE-SKRULL WAR II.
Avengers West Coast #56 (1990)
In a back-up feature, Captain America is reunited with the original Human Torch, just before Iron Man reports back to the team that Namor the Sub-Mariner is dead.
In a back-up feature, Captain America is reunited with the original Human Torch, just before Iron Man reports back to the team that Namor the Sub-Mariner is dead.
Iron Man #246-248 (1989)
Iron Man continues to investigate the plot against Stark Enterprises; Tony Stark finds a way to conquer his paralysis during HEARTBEATEN.
New Mutants #77 (1989)
The New Mutants take Illyana Rasputin back to Russia; the X-Terminators are acknowledged as new members of the New Mutants.
New Mutants #87-88 (1990)
The New Mutants return to the surface and are reunited with X-Factor when their Ship returns to Earth during HOME!
Fantastic Four Annual #22 (1989)
Uatu the Watcher recounts the origin of the Serpent Crown to Gaea immediately following Ghaur's defeat during THE SAGA OF THE SERPENT CROWN.
Uatu the Watcher recounts the origin of the Serpent Crown to Gaea immediately following Ghaur's defeat during THE SAGA OF THE SERPENT CROWN.
Marvel Super-Heroes Special #6-8 (1991)
Emil Blonsky regains control of the Abomination's form.
Emil Blonsky regains control of the Abomination's form.
Doctor Strange #7 (1989)
Doctor Strange's eye is restored by Agamotto.
New Warriors #1 (1990)
Namorita finds a new direction on the surface as a member of the New Warriors.
Avengers West Coast #53 (1989)
Having already just experienced a number of traumatic events, the Scarlet Witch's possession by Set is the final straw and her mind shuts down during ACTS OF VENGEANCE.
Marc Spector: Moon Knight #8-9 (1989)
The Punisher and Moon Knight next team up, facing off against the Flag-Smasher during ACTS OF VENGEANCE.
Magneto takes advantage of the Scarlet Witch's weakened mental state to manipulate her into joining him again, turning her against the West Coast Avengers during ACTS OF VENGEANCE.
Avengers #319-324 (1990)
Tyrak leads the next unsuccessful Atlantean attack on the surface world.
Namor the Sub-Mariner #2-5 (1990)
Avengers West Coast #56 (1990)
Despite Tigra's appearance in the fight against Atlantis, she's still contained in Hank Pym's lab following her capture before the Atlantean invasion took place.
Avengers #319-324 (1990)
Tyrak leads the next unsuccessful Atlantean attack on the surface world.
Namor the Sub-Mariner #1 (1990)
Marine biologist Caleb Alexander saves Namor's life and discovers his hybrid human/Atlantean genetic make-up has been the cause of his emotional instability for all these years; Namor uses the wealth built up by sunken treasure to set up Oracle, Inc and work towards doing more for the planet.Daredevil #283 (1990)
After a cathartic experience in Mephisto's dimension, Daredevil returns to Hel's Kitchen during STREETS OF POISON.
Namorita continues to support Namor's ecological work with Oracle, Inc.
Captain America #382 (1991)
Diamondback chooses Captain America over Sidewinder and the Serpent Society, deciding to become a hero instead of pursuing her criminal career.
Avengers West Coast Annual #5 (1990)
SURF try to free whales from Seaworld until the West Coast Avengers convince them the whales are safe.
New Mutants Annual #7 (1991)
When Namorita next meets the New Mutants, they've been transformed into the paramilitary unit X-Force during KINGS OF PAIN.
What If? #25 (1991)
On Earth-9151, Ghaur's plan works and Set returns to Earth; the heroes struggle to fight back against the Brides of Set and many die; Quasar makes the ultimate sacrifice, trapping himself and Set in the Eye of Agamotto to fight for all eternity; the Brides gives birth to Set's children to who consume the Brides then go on to consume humanity.
Fantastic Four #350 (1991)
The Thing is returned to his more familiar rocky appearance.
The Thing is returned to his more familiar rocky appearance.
Avengers Annual #20 (1991)
Tyrannus is revealed to have escaped the Dark Dimension, though he refuses to show his face during SUBTERRANEAN WARS.
Incredible Hulk Annual #17 (1991)
Tyrannus' separation from the Fountain of Youth is revealed to have made him paranoid about ageing, even though no one else can see the difference when he reveals his face during the SUBTERRANEAN WARS.
Namor the Sub-Mariner Annual #1 (1991)
It's revealed that Attuma returned to what was left of Atlantis as ruler, despite his tactical failures during SUBTERRANEAN WARS.
It's revealed that Attuma returned to what was left of Atlantis as ruler, despite his tactical failures during SUBTERRANEAN WARS.
Captain America #394 (1991)
The Red Skull breaks Viper out of prison.
Marvel Comics Presents #115 (1992)
Dagger purges Mister Jip, ending his obsession with her.
Namor the Sub-Mariner #26 (1992)
Namor's business opponent Phoebe Marrs is haunted by the ghost of her brother, Desmond Marrs.
Namor the Sub-Mariner #40 (1993)
Namor the Sub-Mariner reclaims the throne of Atlantis.
Namor the Sub-Mariner reclaims the throne of Atlantis.
Marvel Comics Presents #121 (1993)
Andromeda and Dakkor continue to fight against Attuma.Namor the Sub-Mariner #48 (1994)
Llyra's return is revealed, though she had been manipulating things from behind the scenes for some time, disguising herself as Phoebe Marrs and the 'ghost' of Desmond Marrs.
Avengers #370-371 (1994)
Ghaur is resurrected by the Deviant Lemurians during WHERE MONSTERS DWELL.
Avengers Forever #1-12 (1998-2000)
Rick Jones taps into the Destiny Force again to defeat the Time-Keepers.
Heroes Reborn: Ashema #1 (2000)
The Dreaming Celestial finds a loophole that allows him to briefly wake up during HEROES REBORN: DOOMSDAY.
The Dreaming Celestial finds a loophole that allows him to briefly wake up during HEROES REBORN: DOOMSDAY.
Marvel Knights #8-9 (2001)
The energy drained by Cloak's cloak is revealed to be feeding Nightmare and his Dream Dimension, rather than the Predator or the Dark Dimension.
Defenders #7 (2001)
Nagala - a descendent of Naga - creates her own version of the Serpent Crown using the energies at the site where the Crown fell.
Defenders #11 (2001)
The Defenders defeat Nagala; Doctor Strange claims Nagala's Serpent Crown.
Mystic Arcana: Scarlet Witch #1 (2007)
X-Men Unlimited #9 (2005)
A flashback reveals a the moment a dinosaur tried to eat Wolverine during the mission to the Savage Land with Dazzler/Diamondback.
Fantastic Four #543 (2007)
Black Panther joins the Fantastic Four during THE INITIATIVE.
From his prison dimension, Set mutates Llyra into new form and charges her with guarding the giant Serpent Crown; Nagala enters the chasm and invokes the seven names of Set to create a new Serpent Crown; Ian McNee claims the Serpent Crown from Nagala and uses it along with other mystical objects to banish Chthon from Earth; it's revealed that the Scarlet Witch almost joined a coven in her youth that would have transformed her into a disciple of Set during MYSTIC ARCANA: RITUAL OF THE SPHINX.
See how this story fits into the wider Marvel Universe with these reading orders:
Fear Itself: Fellowship of Fear #1 (2011)
This handbook reveals that the Predator just gave up trying to convince Cloak to feed on criminals, giving Nightmare the chance to reap the benefits.
Elektra #6 (2014)
Sidewinder forms a new Serpent Society with Anaconda, Black Mamba and Death Adder.
Sidewinder forms a new Serpent Society with Anaconda, Black Mamba and Death Adder.
Major X #2-4 (2019)
SURF are coerced into fighting alongside Nomar against Major X.
Atlantis Attacks #1-5 (2020-2021)
Unrelated to the original event, Atlantis and the Agents of Atlas go to war against each other during PANDEMONIUM / KING IN BLACK.
- ABOMINATION: Emil Blonsky (1967-2014)
- CAPTAIN MARVEL: Monica Rambeau (1982-1994)
- DAREDEVIL: A Touch of Typhoid (1986-1991)
- DAZZLER: Live! Tonight! Sold Out! (1980-1990)
- HULK: Mister Fixit (1987-1990)
- MOON KNIGHT: The Deaths of Marc Spector (1989-1994)
- PUNISHER: Back to the War (1974-1989)
- SHE-HULK: Sensational (1989-1991)
- VISION & SCARLET WITCH: Bizarre Break-Up (1984-1990)
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