Marvel has introduced plenty of bleak possible endings for their characters over the years – with the X-Men’s “Days of Future Past” storyline becoming shorthand for the darkest of them all. Now, one of Marvel’s Spider-Heroes has found themselves trapped in a truly terrifying one, made all the worse by the monster causing the chaos wearing his face the entire time.
Miles Morales is fully introduced to the grim world conquered by his demented clone Selim in Miles Morales: Spider-Man # 38 (by Saladin Ahmed, Christopher Allen, Alberto Foche, Oren Junior, Jose Marzan Jr, Alberto Foche, Brian Reber, and VC’s Cory Petit) and the details revealed paint a particularly dark portrait of Miles’ worst future.
The divergence point for this alternate reality came during Miles Morales’ fateful fight with his evil clone, Selim. It seems it was Shift’s decision to fight for Miles that was a crucial moment, as without Shift’s help Miles was killed in combat. Selim quickly went to work, finding a technology that could isolate Brooklyn from the rest of the world in a pocket dimension. Miles’ friends and family seemingly did their best to fight back against the villainous counterpart to their fallen friend, but things ended up not going so well – especially as Selim showcased a willingness to rely on lethal tactics. By his side remained Shift, a now hulking version of the shapeshifter known as Lord Shift and considered one of Selim’s top agents.
The resistance as introduced is on the verge of defeat, forced into a single block in the former New York borough while the rest falls under Selim’s rule. Most of the heroes are MIA, either presumably dead by Selim’s hand, imprisoned in his empire, or trapped outside of the pocket dimension. Starling was one of the handfuls of heroes whose fate has been confirmed. The young anti-hero became an iconic fighter after the death of Miles and eventually sacrificed her life to ensure the survival of her allies. Ganke became one of the resistance’s greatest leaders, fighting on into the present day. Meanwhile, Billie, Miles’ younger sister, carried on the fight in his stead under the direct orders and supervision of Ganke.
Perhaps most distressing of all is the fate of the other Spider-Man, Peter Parker. While most of Miles’ consistent allies like Ms. Marvel and Nova still appear to be MIA by the end of the issue, Peter is discovered to be within a base supposedly containing the key to Selim’s enduring youth and strength, despite the decades that have passed in this timeline from the present day. Discovered in a small medical room, Parker appears significantly weakened and aged, giving blood samples to seemingly help keep Selim healthy. It’s a truly upsetting fate for Spider-Man, and his refusal to even fight back (unlike the past, where he’d ignore near-death conditions to carry on the good fight) suggests that his loved ones have either been wiped out or are being held in captivity, keeping the Amazing Spider-Man from trying to save the day.
It’s a grim timeline and one that notably avoids the logical holes of most dark alternate realities. By highlighting Selim’s kingdom only covers Brooklyn, Miles Morales: Spider-Man keeps his grasp from exceeding believability. In fact, it makes Selim’s conquest of Brooklyn all the more frightening, as he seems to have genuinely just focused on moving block to block, wiping out any and all resistance he encountered along the way. With Miles and Shift still largely adjusting to this dark timeline, there are plenty of chances to showcase other ways this grim world has changed from the core Marvel Universe – and the fates of Miles’ other loved ones might help make this one of the grimmest dark futures in the Marvel canon.
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