Avid comic readers know there’s one undeniable truth to any crossover or event featuring Marvel’s merry mutants: prepare yourself for the worst and hope for the best. For every Age of Apocalypse there’s a Utopia, Necrosha or Schism just waiting to drag you down. Tentatively, I dove into last year’s X-Men: Battle of the Atom crossover to see which side of the fence I fell on; the initial fan feedback was divisive, to say the least.

A 10-chapter arc weaving through X-Men, Uncanny X-Men, Wolverine and the X-Men and All-New X-Men and bookended by two one-shots; Battle of the Atom starts with the original, time-displaced team of X-Men deciding (arguing) whether or not they should leave the present day and return to their era. But why settle on past and present when you can have not one but two different X-Men teams from the future join in?

Waaaay back in 2000, Marvel launched a new line of comics focusing on some of their more popular characters set within an alternate universe where anything could happen. Their flagship title, naturally, was Ultimate Spider-Man; and from there the universe continued to expand (and in some cases significantly contract) as scenarios played out without any concern for longstanding repercussions.

It was exciting; it was new and readers really didn’t have a clue what was coming next. 11 years later Peter Parker met his heroic demise, kicking off a new era with a new Spider-Man; this time with high school student Miles Morales at the helm. And this is where we begin…

Admittedly, I like my Spider-Mans to be Peter Parkery; and while I tried to stay on board with Dan Slott’s current Superior Spider-Man arc (spoiler: Spider-Man is NOT Peter Parker there), I struggled to invest in the character I’ve read for thirty-plus years. I’m old school; there, I said it. Luckily, this being an alternate universe, I was able to push my stubbornness aside and plow through.

There’s no doubt that one of the most popular characters in the Marvel Universe is Wolverine. This is true for many reasons, but a lot of it has to do with just how badass he is.

But suppose there were two Wolverines? Who would win in a fight between these two titans if they did fight? Well, you just might get a chance to see in the upcoming 20th issue of X-Men, straight from Marvel comics.

Here’s all you need to know:

Marvel is pleased to present your first look at the action-packed All-New X-Men #20, from the blockbuster creative team of Brian Michael Bendis, Brandon Peterson & Mahmud Asrar! There’s a new student at the New Xavier School – and she’s not too happy her new “campus” is housed inside a former Weapon X facility!

X-23 wants answers – and she’s not going to ask nicely. But before she gets then, she and the All-New X-Men must face down a heavily armed squad of mutant-hunting Purifiers! And Laura may just find comfort in the arms of one of her new teammates – young Cyclops of the All-New X-Men!

We’ve got preview of X-Men #20 right after the break. Look for the comic to hit shelves, and digital, on December 15th.

Another year, another crisis in the X-Men universe. Can’t they all just get along? Fortunately, they can’t and that makes for some great reading for fans.

This new arc looks to carry on the tradition of fine storytelling and we’ve got a preview of the first issue of X-Men: Battle of the Atom for you today. Here’s more from Marvel:

Hank McCoy brought the original X-Men into the present in the hopes of changing the course of history and stopping Scott Summer’s mutant revolution before it even begins. But as the young and confused X-Men try to cope with their devastating futures, the team begins to unravel from the inside.

And just as mutant civil war is about to hit its boiling point, an unexpected third party comes in to change the game – the future X-Men! They’ve traveled back in time with a warning – the originals need to go back to their rightful time or they will be the final nail in mutantkind’s coffin. They risked everything to come to the past and won’t leave until the All-New X-Men are back in the past.

Disney XD will premiere its new animated series Ultimate Spider-Man on Sunday, April 1 as part of its new Marvel Universe line. The show was developed by Marvel Head of Television Jeph Loeb, Marvel CCO Joe Quesada, Paul Dini (“Batman: The Animated Series”), Man of Action Studios, and long-time Ultimate Spider-man scribe Brian Michael Bendis.

Ultimate Spider-Man stars Drake Bell (“Drake and Josh”) as a teenage Peter Parker trying to fit in at high school while secretly working with other heroes at S.H.I.E.L.D. Fans of Marvel’s film canon will recognize the voices of JK Simmons as J. Jonah Jameson and Clark Gregg as Agent Coulson.

Enjoying success with Marvel Animation’s Avengers: Earth’s Mightiest Heroes, Disney XD is planning on launching an entire Marvel Universe programming block with Ultimate Spider-Man as its keystone.

The comic book world is abuzz with anticipation of next year’s battle royal between the Avengers and the X-Men. The event series kicks off with a prologue issue that sets up two of the most critical characters in the series, Hope Summers and The Scarlet Witch. The issue is written by Brian Michael Bendis and Jason Aaron with art by Frank Cho, a veritable dream team of creators.

“This March, fans worldwide cannot miss the prologue to the biggest pop culture comic event of the year as Marvel is pleased to unveil the trade dress and cover to Avengers VS. X-Men #0! Just before the Avengers and the X-Men go head to head, superstar creators Brian Michael Bendis, Jason Aaron & Frank Cho set up the crucial roles of the Scarlet Witch and Hope Summers in the coming storm.

With all eyes on Wanda and the Mutant Messiah, both sides have already made up their mind on where allegiances SHOULD lie …but what about those caught in the middle? The drums of war are beating and fans should be ready for the essential opening to the event that will change everything you know about the Marvel Universe in Avengers VS. X-Men #0!”

Check out the awesome full cover after the jump.

Yesterday we brought you the news that British comedian Lucy Punch was getting cast as half of the main detective duo in the upcoming FX adaptation of Brian Michael Bendis’ Powers comic series.

It looks like the network wasn’t stopping with casting Detective Deena Pilgrim, as former hero Christian Walker is also getting a real-life counterpart in 80s actor Jason Patric. Here’s the scoop from THR.

Patric will play Christian Walker, a cop who works in the Powers division of the police force and deals with crimes involving those endowed with special abilities.

The first story in the Powers comic, which is serving as the basis for the pilot, involves the murder of Retro Girl, a superpowered celebrity. Walker, who gets paired up with a rookie on the case, is determined to track down the killer even if it costs him his badge.

With Patric and Punch playing the leads, it looks like FX and series director Michael Dinner is trying to stay away from fan favorites and is going for more of a gritty and off-beat casting style, much like what AMC’s The Walking Dead did. We all know how that turned out.

For what feels like years (and probably is), the idea of a TV series based on the popular dark comic Powers was that of a myth. In the last few months, that idea has become more concrete, as Brian Michal Bendis has pushed to get his famed crime fiction adapted into an ongoing series on the FX network.

Now, things are getting more real as British comedian Lucy Punch (Dinner for Schmucks) has been cast as the lead in the upcoming series. From Deadline.

Lucy Punch has been tapped as the female lead in the FX drama pilot Powers. Based on the graphic novel by Brian Michael Bendis and Michael Avon Oeming, the project, written by Charles H. Eglee and to be directed by Michael Dinner, is a police procedural set in a world where superpowers are relatively common. It centers on two detectives, Christian Walker and Deena Pilgrim (Punch), in a Homicide department that deals with cases involving “powers” (people with superpowers).

Super 8 star Kyle Chandler is currently being pursued to play opposite Punch as Christian Walker, a detective who is put on “powers” cases because he himself was once a superhero.

Here you are Marvel fans, a roundup of all the great comics, trades and whatnot coming out from your favorite publisher on Wednesday. This week there’s lots of Avengers and Iron Man related comics such as Avengers #1, Avengers Assemble #1 and Invincible Iron Man #26. We’re also interested in the new Deadpool, a new X-Factor, a new X-Men Legacy and the new Fall of the Hulks premiere hard cover.

Remember, comics go on sale this Wednesday so get to your nearest comics store early for best selection. Don’t know where your nearest comic store is? Use this handy guide to find one.

Comics On-Sale:

AGE OF HEROES #1 (HA)
AGE OF HEROES #1 HEROIC AGE VARIANT (HA)
AMAZING SPIDER-MAN PRESENTS: AMERICAN SON #1
ANITA BLAKE: CIRCUS OF THE DAMNED – THE CHARMER #1
ATLAS #1 (HA)
ATLAS #1 HEROIC AGE VARIANT (HA)
ATLAS #1 WOMEN OF MARVEL VARIANT (HA)
AVENGERS #1 (HA)
AVENGERS #1 BLANK COVER VARIANT (HA)
AVENGERS #1 DJURDJEVIC VARIANT (HA)
AVENGERS #1 HEROIC AGE VARIANT (HA)

Buffy’s got a brand new bag, Superman makes his pitch for “World’s Greatest Detective” and the Sentry gets to the heart of the matter in this latest edition of The Pull List Comic Reviews! As always, WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD.

PULL OF THE WEEK:

Buffy The Vampire Slayer #32
Dark Horse Comics – $2.99 US
Writer: Brad Meltzer
Artist: Georges Jeanty
Score: 9/10

While the ongoing war against Twilight hits a lull, Buffy and Xander take the break to examine the Slayer’s new power set, much to Dawn’s chagrin. Meanwhile, Giles – along with Faith and Andrew – find themselves in Twilight’s grip and Willow makes a horrifying discovery.

Best-selling author Brad Meltzer – no stranger to comics – kicks off the “Twilight” story arc with this issue in a round-about way. Twilight himself doesn’t factor into the story much, but Meltzer took the “maximum fun” approach in setting up the pieces via tiny revelations sprinkled throughout the issue while focusing on Buffy’s new powers. The result is an incredibly enjoyable read that’s sure to please virtually any fan of comics or comics-related media.

Artist Georges Jeanty continues to pump out the work that has become the glue that holds everything together for this series, and this latest issue is no different. The scenes involving Buffy and Xander, especially, were a hoot, and how could you not love Buffy hovering in mid-air while asking the General to step outside? If this issue doesn’t symbolize having fun while making a comic, I don’t know what will.

Other issues came close – it was a really good week for comics – but this issue took home the Pull of the Week title thanks to an offering that was part major story arc launch and part open love letter to comics; it’s been quite some time that a comic has made me smile this much.