Welcome to this Marvel-ous Place!
Feb 13, 2016 18:53:11 GMT
The Kindly Man, Ser Duncan, and 4 more like this
Post by Some Pig No Doubt on Feb 13, 2016 18:53:11 GMT
Editorial Foreword: The seed of this idea was planted some time ago at some other place by some other outside-the-box thinker, I believe our very own Weasel Pie (sandwiches ), who had pointed out in a long-ago Heresy thread at Westeros.org the connection between ASOIAF and George R.R. Martin’s first love: comic superheroes. (I'm hoping WP can dredge up that convo and repost it here.) Anyway, while posters here, there, and everywhere have been prattling on about Arthurian romances and Tudor treacheries and even dissertation-worthy theories of mythical astronomy and geophysics , we have overlooked the presence of GRRM's first and perhaps greatest source of inspiration: the Muse of Marvel.
This insane little ( ) theory I’m about to detail is that ASOIAF is actually an amalgamation of early arcs from the Silver and Bronze ages of Marvel comics, a mass reworking of characters and storylines that originated during GRRM's formative years between 1960 and 1975. Think I’m dreaming? I offer you proof that our dear Gurm was in fact heavily invested in the action comic realm during this time:
THESE letters written to the editors of Marvel comics by a 12-&15yo Martin circa 1963 and 1965.
Think this youthful folly was inconsequential to the blossoming of a future writing career? Think again.
The Man Himself also confirms the span of his comic obsession in his very own Not a Blog post from July 2015 about the recent Ant-Man movie...
...and again reiterates the depth of his fandom on yet another Not A Blog post from December 2015. (Warning: Hugo/Sad Puppy talk in this one.)
(Did you like that disclaimer about not following mainstream comics "much"? Translation: he still follows SOME. !!!)
“What the hell, Pig?” you may be asking. “Snorted too much mud lately?” Well, yes…but no. Oddly enough, this came to mind courtesy of my kids, who are scabby-knees deep into Marvel characters and can’t get enough of Spidey, Wolverine, Hulk, and the like. My husband contributed to their violence quotient and brain-cell decay by scouring eBay for no less than 400 dvds about every Marvel character ever, and of course within this collection lies the adventures of Doctor Strange: Sorcerer Supreme. OK, so what. Where’s the connection, Porky?
First, after cursorily glancing at the screen during one of the episodes, I noticed that Dr. Strange bears a striking resemblance to the show and GRRM-sanctioned art versions of Petyr Baelish. No, really.
Even the fan art!! Seriously?
I mean, come on. (But don’t get excited – I'm not proposing that Littlefinger is Dr. Strange. He isn't. He’s someone else. LOL)
Then, after finally taking a load off to sit down and WATCH the episodes in full and paying attention to characters and plot, I thought to myself, “Wow, I know these archetypes. I recognize some of this.” Realization dawning, I remembered the convo about GRRM and his beloved superheroes, and also remembered that Dr. Strange is actually one of the older Marvel characters – not Captain America old, but certainly from the era of George’s hippy dippy trippy dawning literary consciousness. So I thought, “I wonder….” and summoned all my powers of Google-Fu to learn more about this strange Dr. Strange. This led me waaaayyy down the rabbit hole to a discovery that is, uh, (third) eye-opening. Like, literally, as you will see.
Note 1: As we are talking Marvel comics with its 1,935,284 characters (intentional hyperbole; the actual number is 40,000+, over a period spanning nearly 70 years), I will do this in segments and provide short Character Recaps for each. When you see a ** after a name, it will have a Character Recap. Unfortunately, characters will lead to sub-characters and sub-sub-characters and side plots and so forth ad infinitum...but the many trails of bread crumbs all lead back to the various arcs in discussion.
Note 2: All of this information has been culled from multiple sources such as Wikipedia, the Marvel Character Wikia, Marvel.com, MarvelDirectory.com, ComicVine, and the Comic Book Database. It has been condensed for length because the Marvel realm is vast and full of details, and I would break the board if I tried to quote and direct-link everything. Other than that the info is straight from the sources and is unchanged beyond minor paraphrasing. The beauty is that the Marvelverse is VERY well documented….so if you are skeptical or don’t believe the info I’ve included here, you are welcome to do exactly as I did – rub some nerd on it and take your own dive into the deep part of the graphic novel ocean. It’s all there.
I apologize in advance for the length, but seriously, the Marvel Multiverse is like ASOIAF on mutant-level steroids. Stay with me; I think you will find it rewarding in the end.
DISCLAIMER: This enterprise is not intended to debunk or discredit other theories floating around out there, or imply that all other parallels from all other sources are invalid. That is clearly, obviously, simply not true. GRRM has often cited the real-life Wars of the Roses, and Norse mythology, and Greco-Roman history, etc as sources of influence. Aerys II's entire storyline is for the most part the Rise of Emperor Nero meets the Fall of King Xerxes I….read the history and it’s clear where the background of the Mad King originated. I’ve no doubt that there is even truth to the symbolism around lunar events /celestial patterns / heliotrope /Joyeuse Garde and all that other stuff, too. (And football....gods, don't forget football.) As poster freyfamilyreunion noted in another thread, “I basically think that ASOIAF is an homage to everything that Martin finds interesting.” It totally is....but some things were clearly more interesting than others.
Keep in mind, though, that the authors and illustrators of Marvel comics drew from the same deep well of information – our own history, lore, and legend has spawned many an archetype and many a classic tale that far predate and have much greater dispersion than anything related to ASOIAF. Therefore, it shouldn’t be a surprise that the same stories/characters/plotlines show up in the same places.
My goal is merely to highlight those remarkable and numerous similarities, reveal the resolution of the similar arcs IN THE COMICS, and generate some fun discussion about the endgame of ASOIAF...maybe even place some friendly non-wagers on speculation about the outcome of the series based on the outcome of the comics.
I will begin the journey with what I will refer to as the Great Arc, which parallels the conflict surrounding Bran, Bloodraven, R’hllor, and the Great Other. The Great Arc is going to segue into/overlap with what I call the Origin Arc, which is the history of the North, the North’s relationship with the Valyrians, the Valyrians themselves, and the CotF. I will conclude with the Modern Arc, covering events around Robert’s Rebellion and up to current day.
Editor’s note: these three arcs do not always directly intersect in the Marvelverse….the worlds exist contemporaneously, events are occurring simultaneously, and there is character crossover in many cases, but I believe George is doing what perhaps he wishes the comics had done – tie all these cool stories together into one gigantic tale.
A Word on Entities and Origin Stories:
There has been much discussion on fan sites of the potential beginnings and backstories regarding several of the more nebulous characters in ASOIAF: the CotF, R'hllor, the Others, the Night's King, etc. We have gotten some background in the main series and in TWOIAF, although the majority of the explanation falls into the "myths and legends" category as per the maesters...and per GRRM himself through various interviews and SSMs. He cautions readers as to what these are: stories thousands to tens of thousands of years old, that may or may not contain some grains of truth, and that cannot be verified one way or another (possibly because they haven’t been written yet ).
The Marvel Multiverse operates the same way - there are beings and non-beings and races that inhabit/come from worlds and spheres and dimensions beyond that of Earth. There is no debate about origin in the Marvelverse; whatever is merely IS. Regardless of what entity might zap itself through whatever portal to overtake the mind of whichever character, the other characters simply shrug it off without really questioning the existence of this entity: "So this Satannish is a malevolent energy-demon that resides beyond the limits of time and consciousness? Sweet, let's get rid of this fucker!" They don't spend countless hours discussing the realm from which Satannish came or how he could have possibly evolved to end up currently flinging fistfuls of demon-shit at the Avengers. It’s a comic. Ain't nobody got time fo'dat.
Given the amount of inspiration that GRRM has drawn from Marvel, I think it behooves us as readers to adopt that same mindset with regard to certain elements of ASOIAF - those already referenced in the story and those possibly yet to come. George's cautionary tale over the years has been consistently "because fantasy", which is the Marvel premise in a nutshell. As I lay out the Great Arc and the Origin Arc in particular, try to push the confines of reality to the back of your mind and let imagination take over. That's what George did as a youth when eagerly poring through the pages of a new issue, and I believe that's what he wants us to do as well.
A Word on Characters/the Avengers/Defenders/Fantastic Four:
Unless you have been living under an action comic rock from pretty much the moment of your birth, you are familiar with the group of superheroes known as the Avengers - perhaps less so with the Defenders, although I'm sure you may recognize a few of its high-profile members such as Hulk and Dr. Strange - and the F4. The Avengers tended to be the "big guys", the main protagonists of Marvel arcs, whereas the Defenders were a ""non-team" of individualistic "outsiders", each known for following their own agendas." (The Fantastic Four were, well, the Four.) The takeaway for all of these groups is that 1) they battled foes, both real and mystical, and 2) a rotating roster of members is more or less their hallmark (exception being F4 who remained pretty consistent over time). Also important to note is that alliances were always shifting with these guys, something I will touch on in this essay with regard to one character arc in particular. Anyway, I believe The Man Himself expressed it best:
With that in mind, I will put forth the caveat that for the most part, unlike The Great Arc, you will NOT see many 1:1 character counterparts here. Most of these Marvel characters have such distinctive stories and powers that it's almost impossible to recreate them in a medieval setting and have it flow, which is why I assume GRRM didn't do it. Try as I might, I just can't find you the Westerosi equivalent of the Silver Surfer, sorry.....and I'm not about to make some wild-assed hair-thin connection like, "Thor has a hammer, and Robert Baratheon has a hammer, so Robert is Thor!!!" That's not how it works. (In fact, I’m fairly certain that the ASOIAF “Thor” is the least Thor-ish person in the series. )
What I would like you to do, and what I think GRRM has done, is view the characters in amalgamation - look at the makeup of the groups, look at what they're doing and how they intersect with other characters, and what purpose they serve to the overall story. Don't get hung up on character attributes or even names, because those can be deceptive too. For instance, one of the Defenders is Prince Namor the Sub-Mariner (the Marvel version of Aquaman) - so OK, you'd think maybe a "Prince Namor" should be compared to Prince Doran NYMOR Martell, or someone of Dornish origin, right? Wrong. Namor's arc most closely parallels that of Theon Greyjoy, who certainly falls into a ASOIAF Defenders category per the description given above.
Some characters are certainly going to have pretty obvious counterparts, and these characters are going to be interacting with the Avengers/Defenders/F4 (either individually or en toto) in some way. My essay is going to focus on the story arcs moreso than the character identities, so be warned. Also, it's going to be pretty clear early on that a single ASOIAF character can be a hybrid of a few Marvel characters, and/or a single Marvel character's arc can be split between a couple of ASOIAF characters. Again, even back in the 60s GRRM had a huge character pool from which to draw, and draw he did.
A Final Word:
You may be wondering if I am insinuating that GRRM plagiarized the creations of Stan Lee/Steve Ditko/Jack Kirby/Steve Englehart. No, I am not. In my opinion, what he has done with the ASOIAF works and his Planetos world is an 8,000+ page homage of sorts to the places, plots, and people that fascinated him as a youth and became the springboard for his career - he has crafted a very extensive and amazing tribute to these men and their imaginations by way of his own imagination that THEY ignited. He has reinvented and redesigned their worlds with his own spin and touches of flair, merging all of the ideas he loves best from action comics and history and legend to form a unique world of his own. It’s akin to a chef pulling classic recipes from a Julia Childs cookbook, changing the mix a bit and adding new flavors, making it vegetarian or gluten-free or whatever, and then serving those reworked meals as a 7-course meal at a White House dinner. It’s fantastic, fresh, and familiar all at the same time, and everyone who has taken a bite says it’s amazing. It is. Julia would be proud. Stan and the gang would be too.
It’s a beautiful friendship from afar, really. Through each other’s skilled manipulation of the written word, the geniuses at Marvel and the genius that is George R.R. Martin have achieved the greatest gift known to the action hero/fantasy realm: immortality.
So, all that being said, let's begin our journey into worlds mystical, magical, and Strange.
AVENGERS, ASSEMBLE!!
This insane little ( ) theory I’m about to detail is that ASOIAF is actually an amalgamation of early arcs from the Silver and Bronze ages of Marvel comics, a mass reworking of characters and storylines that originated during GRRM's formative years between 1960 and 1975. Think I’m dreaming? I offer you proof that our dear Gurm was in fact heavily invested in the action comic realm during this time:
THESE letters written to the editors of Marvel comics by a 12-&15yo Martin circa 1963 and 1965.
Think this youthful folly was inconsequential to the blossoming of a future writing career? Think again.
“These letters allowed Martin to enjoy a sort of celebrity among comic book fandom. Other fans wrote him letters in reply, and he eventually began writing critical essays for comic fanzines, such as YMiR, Batwing, and Countdown. Martin later went on to write some stories for Star Studded Comics, a fanzine that published original fiction.”
The Man Himself also confirms the span of his comic obsession in his very own Not a Blog post from July 2015 about the recent Ant-Man movie...
"I was a little disappointed going in when I heard that this would be the Scott Lang Ant-Man and not the original Hank Pym Ant-Man of my youth. Scott Lang came in just about the time when my regular comics reading was falling off, so I did not know the character very well…”
---Hank Pym’s stint as Ant-Man falls within the timeframe upon which I focus in this essay, whereas Scott Lang makes his first appearance in 1979, when GRRM notes his readership was waning.---
---Hank Pym’s stint as Ant-Man falls within the timeframe upon which I focus in this essay, whereas Scott Lang makes his first appearance in 1979, when GRRM notes his readership was waning.---
...and again reiterates the depth of his fandom on yet another Not A Blog post from December 2015. (Warning: Hugo/Sad Puppy talk in this one.)
"Anyone who knows anything about me knows that I am an old time comic fanboy. I was there for the birth of comics fandom in the 60s. I was the first fan to sign up for the first comicon. My first published words were letters to Stan and Jack in the pages of THE FANTASTIC FOUR and THE AVENGERS. [See above, folks!] My first published fictions were prose superhero stories in fanzines like HERO and YMIR and STAR-STUDDED COMICS. I was a member of the Merry Marvel Marching Society. I once won an Alley Award (though I never got it). Decades later, I was a guest of honor at San Diego Comicon and won an Inkpot.
That was a long time ago, however. I fear I no longer follow mainstream comics much.** I still love the stories and heroes I grew up {with}, Silver Age Marvel and DC (hell, even Charlton, the Question and Blue Beetle were great), but there have been way too many retcons and reboots and restarts for my taste. I don't know who these characters are any longer, and what's worse, I don't much care."
That was a long time ago, however. I fear I no longer follow mainstream comics much.** I still love the stories and heroes I grew up {with}, Silver Age Marvel and DC (hell, even Charlton, the Question and Blue Beetle were great), but there have been way too many retcons and reboots and restarts for my taste. I don't know who these characters are any longer, and what's worse, I don't much care."
(Did you like that disclaimer about not following mainstream comics "much"? Translation: he still follows SOME. !!!)
“What the hell, Pig?” you may be asking. “Snorted too much mud lately?” Well, yes…but no. Oddly enough, this came to mind courtesy of my kids, who are scabby-knees deep into Marvel characters and can’t get enough of Spidey, Wolverine, Hulk, and the like. My husband contributed to their violence quotient and brain-cell decay by scouring eBay for no less than 400 dvds about every Marvel character ever, and of course within this collection lies the adventures of Doctor Strange: Sorcerer Supreme. OK, so what. Where’s the connection, Porky?
First, after cursorily glancing at the screen during one of the episodes, I noticed that Dr. Strange bears a striking resemblance to the show and GRRM-sanctioned art versions of Petyr Baelish. No, really.
Even the fan art!! Seriously?
I mean, come on. (But don’t get excited – I'm not proposing that Littlefinger is Dr. Strange. He isn't. He’s someone else. LOL)
Then, after finally taking a load off to sit down and WATCH the episodes in full and paying attention to characters and plot, I thought to myself, “Wow, I know these archetypes. I recognize some of this.” Realization dawning, I remembered the convo about GRRM and his beloved superheroes, and also remembered that Dr. Strange is actually one of the older Marvel characters – not Captain America old, but certainly from the era of George’s hippy dippy trippy dawning literary consciousness. So I thought, “I wonder….” and summoned all my powers of Google-Fu to learn more about this strange Dr. Strange. This led me waaaayyy down the rabbit hole to a discovery that is, uh, (third) eye-opening. Like, literally, as you will see.
Note 1: As we are talking Marvel comics with its 1,935,284 characters (intentional hyperbole; the actual number is 40,000+, over a period spanning nearly 70 years), I will do this in segments and provide short Character Recaps for each. When you see a ** after a name, it will have a Character Recap. Unfortunately, characters will lead to sub-characters and sub-sub-characters and side plots and so forth ad infinitum...but the many trails of bread crumbs all lead back to the various arcs in discussion.
Note 2: All of this information has been culled from multiple sources such as Wikipedia, the Marvel Character Wikia, Marvel.com, MarvelDirectory.com, ComicVine, and the Comic Book Database. It has been condensed for length because the Marvel realm is vast and full of details, and I would break the board if I tried to quote and direct-link everything. Other than that the info is straight from the sources and is unchanged beyond minor paraphrasing. The beauty is that the Marvelverse is VERY well documented….so if you are skeptical or don’t believe the info I’ve included here, you are welcome to do exactly as I did – rub some nerd on it and take your own dive into the deep part of the graphic novel ocean. It’s all there.
I apologize in advance for the length, but seriously, the Marvel Multiverse is like ASOIAF on mutant-level steroids. Stay with me; I think you will find it rewarding in the end.
DISCLAIMER: This enterprise is not intended to debunk or discredit other theories floating around out there, or imply that all other parallels from all other sources are invalid. That is clearly, obviously, simply not true. GRRM has often cited the real-life Wars of the Roses, and Norse mythology, and Greco-Roman history, etc as sources of influence. Aerys II's entire storyline is for the most part the Rise of Emperor Nero meets the Fall of King Xerxes I….read the history and it’s clear where the background of the Mad King originated. I’ve no doubt that there is even truth to the symbolism around lunar events /celestial patterns / heliotrope /Joyeuse Garde and all that other stuff, too. (And football....gods, don't forget football.) As poster freyfamilyreunion noted in another thread, “I basically think that ASOIAF is an homage to everything that Martin finds interesting.” It totally is....but some things were clearly more interesting than others.
Keep in mind, though, that the authors and illustrators of Marvel comics drew from the same deep well of information – our own history, lore, and legend has spawned many an archetype and many a classic tale that far predate and have much greater dispersion than anything related to ASOIAF. Therefore, it shouldn’t be a surprise that the same stories/characters/plotlines show up in the same places.
My goal is merely to highlight those remarkable and numerous similarities, reveal the resolution of the similar arcs IN THE COMICS, and generate some fun discussion about the endgame of ASOIAF...maybe even place some friendly non-wagers on speculation about the outcome of the series based on the outcome of the comics.
I will begin the journey with what I will refer to as the Great Arc, which parallels the conflict surrounding Bran, Bloodraven, R’hllor, and the Great Other. The Great Arc is going to segue into/overlap with what I call the Origin Arc, which is the history of the North, the North’s relationship with the Valyrians, the Valyrians themselves, and the CotF. I will conclude with the Modern Arc, covering events around Robert’s Rebellion and up to current day.
Editor’s note: these three arcs do not always directly intersect in the Marvelverse….the worlds exist contemporaneously, events are occurring simultaneously, and there is character crossover in many cases, but I believe George is doing what perhaps he wishes the comics had done – tie all these cool stories together into one gigantic tale.
A Word on Entities and Origin Stories:
There has been much discussion on fan sites of the potential beginnings and backstories regarding several of the more nebulous characters in ASOIAF: the CotF, R'hllor, the Others, the Night's King, etc. We have gotten some background in the main series and in TWOIAF, although the majority of the explanation falls into the "myths and legends" category as per the maesters...and per GRRM himself through various interviews and SSMs. He cautions readers as to what these are: stories thousands to tens of thousands of years old, that may or may not contain some grains of truth, and that cannot be verified one way or another (possibly because they haven’t been written yet ).
The Marvel Multiverse operates the same way - there are beings and non-beings and races that inhabit/come from worlds and spheres and dimensions beyond that of Earth. There is no debate about origin in the Marvelverse; whatever is merely IS. Regardless of what entity might zap itself through whatever portal to overtake the mind of whichever character, the other characters simply shrug it off without really questioning the existence of this entity: "So this Satannish is a malevolent energy-demon that resides beyond the limits of time and consciousness? Sweet, let's get rid of this fucker!" They don't spend countless hours discussing the realm from which Satannish came or how he could have possibly evolved to end up currently flinging fistfuls of demon-shit at the Avengers. It’s a comic. Ain't nobody got time fo'dat.
Given the amount of inspiration that GRRM has drawn from Marvel, I think it behooves us as readers to adopt that same mindset with regard to certain elements of ASOIAF - those already referenced in the story and those possibly yet to come. George's cautionary tale over the years has been consistently "because fantasy", which is the Marvel premise in a nutshell. As I lay out the Great Arc and the Origin Arc in particular, try to push the confines of reality to the back of your mind and let imagination take over. That's what George did as a youth when eagerly poring through the pages of a new issue, and I believe that's what he wants us to do as well.
A Word on Characters/the Avengers/Defenders/Fantastic Four:
Unless you have been living under an action comic rock from pretty much the moment of your birth, you are familiar with the group of superheroes known as the Avengers - perhaps less so with the Defenders, although I'm sure you may recognize a few of its high-profile members such as Hulk and Dr. Strange - and the F4. The Avengers tended to be the "big guys", the main protagonists of Marvel arcs, whereas the Defenders were a ""non-team" of individualistic "outsiders", each known for following their own agendas." (The Fantastic Four were, well, the Four.) The takeaway for all of these groups is that 1) they battled foes, both real and mystical, and 2) a rotating roster of members is more or less their hallmark (exception being F4 who remained pretty consistent over time). Also important to note is that alliances were always shifting with these guys, something I will touch on in this essay with regard to one character arc in particular. Anyway, I believe The Man Himself expressed it best:
The Marvel characters were constantly changing. Important things were happening. The lineup of the Avengers was constantly changing. People would quit and they would have fights and all of that, as opposed to DC, where everybody got along and it was all very nice, and of course all the heroes liked each other. None of this was happening. So really, Stan Lee introduced the whole concept of characterization [chuckles] to comic books, and conflict, and maybe even a touch of gray in some of the characters. And boy, looking back at it now, I can see that it probably was a bigger influence on my own work than I would have dreamed.
With that in mind, I will put forth the caveat that for the most part, unlike The Great Arc, you will NOT see many 1:1 character counterparts here. Most of these Marvel characters have such distinctive stories and powers that it's almost impossible to recreate them in a medieval setting and have it flow, which is why I assume GRRM didn't do it. Try as I might, I just can't find you the Westerosi equivalent of the Silver Surfer, sorry.....and I'm not about to make some wild-assed hair-thin connection like, "Thor has a hammer, and Robert Baratheon has a hammer, so Robert is Thor!!!" That's not how it works. (In fact, I’m fairly certain that the ASOIAF “Thor” is the least Thor-ish person in the series. )
What I would like you to do, and what I think GRRM has done, is view the characters in amalgamation - look at the makeup of the groups, look at what they're doing and how they intersect with other characters, and what purpose they serve to the overall story. Don't get hung up on character attributes or even names, because those can be deceptive too. For instance, one of the Defenders is Prince Namor the Sub-Mariner (the Marvel version of Aquaman) - so OK, you'd think maybe a "Prince Namor" should be compared to Prince Doran NYMOR Martell, or someone of Dornish origin, right? Wrong. Namor's arc most closely parallels that of Theon Greyjoy, who certainly falls into a ASOIAF Defenders category per the description given above.
Some characters are certainly going to have pretty obvious counterparts, and these characters are going to be interacting with the Avengers/Defenders/F4 (either individually or en toto) in some way. My essay is going to focus on the story arcs moreso than the character identities, so be warned. Also, it's going to be pretty clear early on that a single ASOIAF character can be a hybrid of a few Marvel characters, and/or a single Marvel character's arc can be split between a couple of ASOIAF characters. Again, even back in the 60s GRRM had a huge character pool from which to draw, and draw he did.
A Final Word:
You may be wondering if I am insinuating that GRRM plagiarized the creations of Stan Lee/Steve Ditko/Jack Kirby/Steve Englehart. No, I am not. In my opinion, what he has done with the ASOIAF works and his Planetos world is an 8,000+ page homage of sorts to the places, plots, and people that fascinated him as a youth and became the springboard for his career - he has crafted a very extensive and amazing tribute to these men and their imaginations by way of his own imagination that THEY ignited. He has reinvented and redesigned their worlds with his own spin and touches of flair, merging all of the ideas he loves best from action comics and history and legend to form a unique world of his own. It’s akin to a chef pulling classic recipes from a Julia Childs cookbook, changing the mix a bit and adding new flavors, making it vegetarian or gluten-free or whatever, and then serving those reworked meals as a 7-course meal at a White House dinner. It’s fantastic, fresh, and familiar all at the same time, and everyone who has taken a bite says it’s amazing. It is. Julia would be proud. Stan and the gang would be too.
It’s a beautiful friendship from afar, really. Through each other’s skilled manipulation of the written word, the geniuses at Marvel and the genius that is George R.R. Martin have achieved the greatest gift known to the action hero/fantasy realm: immortality.
So, all that being said, let's begin our journey into worlds mystical, magical, and Strange.
AVENGERS, ASSEMBLE!!