Following right after the pages of Marvel’s year-closing Incoming comic, the Outlawed event will be coming to the Marvel Universe in early 2020. Focusing on the government tackling the “problem” of super-powered youths, it appears as though a new Civil War type scenario is imminent. Only this time, the divide between the superhero community won’t be drawn between those for or against superhero registration. It’s the generation gap that could cause the most division. How will older heroes like Captain America respond in the face of their younger allies being classified as outlaws?
Similar to Civil War, some sort of tragic accident will be the straw that breaks the camel’s back for the US government. This one will presumably involve teenage heroes like Miles Morales, Kamala Khan, or Sam Alexander. Led by Senator Geoffrey Patrick, the government will be looking to push legislation that bans superheroes from taking action until they reach the age of 21. In Patrick’s mind, it’s for the public’s safety, young heroes included. But if the preview is any indication, much of the actual desire to regulate heroes stems from that all-too-real fear of youth in action.
The official preview of Outlawed shows several heroes testifying before the government in regards to the incident in question, and whether or not they think regulation of teenage superheroes should be put into place. The heroes are both young and old, including Steve Rogers himself. He tells the court that he wouldn’t be standing there if he hadn’t been given a chance when he was a teenager. Kids like him were young, fearless, and willing to lay down their lives for freedom by enlisting to fight World War II. They were called the Greatest Generation, and can’t see how the teen heroes of today are any different. Considering his position in Civil War, it’s not hard to believe that Rogers would be on the side of personal liberties over national security.
Now the variant cover for Outlawed has been released, featuring Captain America, Captain Marvel, and Spider-Man doing homework on the young heroes this legislation will target. With Captain America’s words on the stand, does this mean that these older heroes will be going to bat on behalf of their younger allies?
Outlawed is going to be a huge and important event. The real-world parallels are poignant. In this day and age, young individuals like Greta Thunberg, who unofficially cameo-ed in a DC book are dismissed by older generations, and the American government’s own leaders. Regardless of whether you believe in what she has to say or not, willingness to stand up and do something at a young age should be respected as much as it is in the pages of a comic book, with stars like Kamala Khan or Miles Morales. While fictional, they are young people serving as positive symbols. They do the right thing and take positive action, sacrificing themselves for the greater good.
Are they still figuring things out at times? Sure. But that’s part of growing up. Should their desire and current actions be squashed and discredited before they cross an arbitrary age limit? Hopefully not. Thankfully, it looks like Captain America won’t be doing any such thing, and will be a source of support in this upcoming controversy. It should be very exciting to see how Outlawed turns out for a very large part of the Marvel Universe.
Outlawed comes to comic book shelves in March, 2020.
More: Marvel’s OUTLAWED May Be Its Most Important Event In Years
