gaWARNING: The following article contains spoilers for Force Works 2020 #1 by Matthew Rosenberg, Juanan Ramírez, Federico Blee and VC's Clayton Cowles, on sale Wednesday, Feb. 26.
Marvel Comics is in the middle of a Man vs. Machine war, with artificial intelligence rallying together against their human oppressors in the Iron Man 2020 event. Coincidentally, the person leading each army also happens to have the last name of "Stark." Tony Stark is leading the charge for the Robot Rebellion while Arno Stark has replaced Tony as Iron Man to defend humanity from the A.I. uprising.
As with most event series, there is no shortage of spinoff one-shots and miniseries to spread the main Iron Man 2020 story to readers. A new one launches next week with the release of Force Works 2020 #1, which revives the older Marvel franchise with a brand new twist.
The original Force Works was itself a spinoff of West Coast Avengers and formed by Iron Man. History looks to be repeating itself, with Iron Man 2020 assigning War Machine to lead a small group of military operatives to prevent any terroristic attacks by the robot rebels. The cover to Force Works 2020 #1 features War Machine, U.S. Agent, Quake and Mockingbird, who all happen to be current or upcoming heroes in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The only one who hasn't appeared yet is U.S. Agent, and he is slated to make his MCU debut in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier Disney+ series.
If you assumed those four MCU heroes are the only members of the new Force Works, then think again. A preview of Force Works 2020 #1 reveals two secret military Avengers who are also on the team.
The preview drops us in as Force Works is busting up a small group of robots plotting an attack on the Supreme Court building at the nation's capital. Before the leader can finish going over the plan, it's taken out by a sniper shot from Force Works' weapons specialist, Solo. The remaining robots try to run for cover, but are stopped by Gauntlet, Force Works' close-quarters combat specialist.
Solo was a member of Deadpool's Mercs for Money mercenary group, and even starred in two short-lived, self-titled series. Along with being an expert with a firearm, Solo can also teleport in short distances. Gauntlet is mostly known for his time in Avengers: The Initiative, which followed in the aftermath of the first Civil War. He was the drill instructor at Camp Hammond's superhero training camp, and his right hand wields the alien gauntlet referenced in his codename.
We now know other heroes will play a part in Force Works 2020 aside from who is featured on the first issue cover. Solo and Gauntlet may be MCU superstars like War Machine, Quake, U.S. Agent and Mockingbird, but it doesn't mean they won't be added to the cinematic universe down the line. With feature films and limited streaming series to introduce characters, the sky is the limit for the MCU.