Iron Man & Punisher's Huge Origin Retcon Gets In-Continuity Explanation
Warning: contains spoilers for The Marvels #11!
In recent years, Iron Man and the Punisher’s origins were subtly retconned, and now these changes get an in-continuity explanation. Both Marvel heroes' origins were once tied to the Vietnam War, but 2019’s History of the Marvel Universe changed this to the “Siancong War,” and in Marvels #11, readers learn there is far more to the Siancong War than initially thought; leading to stunning revelations about continuity changes that affected not only the Punisher and Iron Man, but the Fantastic Four as well.
The Marvel Age of Comics began in the 1960s, a turbulent decade that saw the United States heighten its involvement in South Vietnam, in an attempt to prevent Communism from gaining a foothold in the country. As such, some characters in Marvel’s first wave reflected this conflict. Iron Man was one such character; years later, the Punisher was revealed to have served in Vietnam as well. However, as the Vietnam War recedes further and further into the past, and Iron Man and the Punisher stay the same age, new socio-political touchpoints were needed, and History of the Marvel Universe provided one: the fictional “Siancong War,” an event that was for all intent and purposes the Vietnam War.
Related: Punisher Taking on Neo Nazis is a Huge Statement About His Future
However, in Marvels #11, writer Kurt Busiek, artist Yildiray Cinar, colorist Guru eFX and letterer Simon Bowland, take this “Siancong War” a step further, revealing the country Siancong was an actual living, entity. At the conclusion of issue ten, a ragtag group of heroes, including Iron Man, Captain America, and Aarkus (the Golden Age Vision) find themselves in an extra-dimensional comic book shop. Brought there by the
Read more on screenrant.com
