When Marvel heroes reflect on their most fearsome villains, the name Arcade is rarely mentioned. That's because Arcade's signature creation; the deathtrap-filled and robotically manned amusement parks known as Murderworld often turn out to be more of a silly nuisance than a truly lethal threat. That doesn't mean Arcade and Murderworld shouldn't be feared though. In the 2012 series Avengers Arena, an eclectic collection of adolescent heroes found out just how dangerous and terrifying Arcade can be. This November, he sets out to teach the entire Marvel Universe the same lessons with a brand new Murderworld that combines remnants of old parks into an unprecedented and deadly creation.
It all begins in Murderworld: Avengers #1 by writers Jim Zub and Ray Fawkes and artist by Jethro Morales. The series will draw Wolverine, Spider-Man, and Moon Knight into Arcade's deadly machinations before culminating in an explosive finale. CBR spoke with Zub and Fawkes about the scope and scale of Arcade's scheme, the design of this latest incarnation of his perilous theme parks, and the appeal of exploring them. Marvel also shared an exclusive look at some of Jethro Morales' uncolored pages from Murderworld: Avengers #1 and Paco Medina's cover for Murderworld: Spiderman #1.
CBR: What inspired this story? What made you want to do a deep dive into the Murderworld concept and characters?
Ray Fawkes: Murderworld always struck me as a rich concept -- and these days, I think a timely one -- because it's about a veneer of harmless fun concealing a deadly threat. I mean, that describes a lot of the world around us these days: social media sites that are Trojan horses to harvest your personal data and host troll farms looking to disrupt democracy, for example. Politicians who look like a joke until they stumble into power and do real damage for another. Murderworld and Arcade are the epitomai of the underestimated threat in the Marvel Universe, a villain and his toys who never pose a real threat to anybody until you find out that all this time, as everybody's been laughing, they've been waiting to show just how dangerous they really are.
Jim Zub: Yeah, exactly what Ray said. The contrast between the playful cartoonish contest and the deadly stakes it sets up has always been compelling. Getting the chance to crank that up in unexpected ways and show even more layers to it all was a really enticing challenge.
Over the years, there have been many Murderworlds with a variety of features. What can you tell us about your titular setting? Are you exploring one Murderworld or many? How much fun are you having with the design of these death traps?
Fawkes: Our iteration is a new Murderworld built on the wreckage of the old ones that heroes have left behind. It's modern, it's mobile, and while it uses all the technology of the old amusement parks, it does so in surprising new ways. Arcade is a diabolically creative man, and we wanted to see what he might do now with the tools he's got.
Zub: We wanted to give a nod to Murderworld's colorful past while also throwing our protagonists into challenges readers have never seen before. That mix of old and new keeps things interesting.
An exploration of Murderworld also means a look at its architect, Arcade, a character who has been played for laughs and has also been utterly terrifying. What's your sense of the character? Which aspects of him are you looking to examine in this series?
Fawkes: It doesn't take much for someone to be treated like a joke - especially if they're a bit odd or they don't quite seem to understand fashion and social niceties. If they also happen to be extremely intelligent and have access to incredible resources, that's Arcade. He's weird, he cracks jokes that don't quite land, and every time people laugh at him instead of with him, he gets colder and angrier and more and more cruel, and he turns his assets to a purpose that satisfies his rage.
Zub: When Arcade was first introduced, his deathtrap games seemed a lot more fanciful and exaggerated, but now in the modern world, his contests seem a lot closer to reality, as people try to gain fame any way they can. The concepts behind danger-as-entertainment and the obsessive qualities we all have around watching these tragedies unfold in front of us make Arcade's twisted contest feel modern despite how long it's been around.
Will Arcade's associates Ms. Locke, Mr. Chambers, and Ms. Coriander be featured in Murderworld?
Fawkes: They're around, but they're not going to take the spotlight away from Arcade.
Zub: Like the rest of our game, there are nods to the past, but with little twists along the way.
Another central character in your series is Paul Pastor, a documentarian. What can you tell us about Paul and his interest in Murderworld?
Fawkes: Paul is one of those people who loves an urban legend, and when he gets the chance to dig up the truth behind it, he jumps at it. Murderworld is something most people in the Marvel world never see with their own eyes, and Paul wants to prove to the world that there really is a maniac out there who builds deadly amusement parks just for kicks. It's a hell of a story.
Zub: Yeah, Paul's our touchstone character here, giving readers insight into how Arcade's latest game is structured and how he's keeping it hidden from anyone he doesn't want [to be] involved.
I imagine the other appeal of this series is the chance to write iconic Marvel heroes against the backdrop of Murderworld like the Avengers, Spider-Man, Wolverine, and Moon Knight. Who are some of the characters you're having the most fun with in this series?
Fawkes: All of them. All of them are fun. You'll see as soon as you read the first issue when the Avengers make their appearance. We're having a blast with them.
Zub: No spoilers. It's brutal and also a bit musical?
What can you tell us about the shape of this story? Is this a tale of investigation where each issue draws Paul deeper into the mysteries surrounding Murderworld and into the orbits of other characters? Or is it something else?
Fawkes: I really don't think we should give much about the story away here. Paul and all the heroes and villains we'll see in the Murderworld park are going to experience the full, true danger of Arcade's imaginative cruelty. They're going to fight with all their strength to survive, and none of them are going to be laughing when it's done.
Zub: Yeah, we've got to keep spoilers to a minimum here. It's a relentless contest, and lives are in the balance. Where the cast starts and where they end are miles apart
Each issue of Murderworld is drawn by a different artist. First up is Jethro Morales, who's doing Murderworld: Avengers. What's it like having Jethro bring this story to life?
Fawkes: It's a real pleasure! When you write a story like this, it's always incredible to see someone bring all the action and emotion out on the page. From start to finish, it's a great experience.
Zub: Jethro has a great handle on character acting and action. Both are needed in a big way in this issue. Jethro's setting the pace for the other Murderworld issues on tap, and it's a hell of a starting pistol.
Can you leave us with any final hints or teases about the scope, scale, and stakes of Murderworld? How dire will things be for the heroes of the Marvel Universe in this book come 2023?
Fawkes: The scope, scale, and stakes are what Arcade has always dreamed of and always promised, realized in full. A lot of folks are going to find their way into Murderworld -- and there will be mayhem, madness, and death on a scale that frankly surprises everyone involved. It won't take long to start happening, either. Readers will see something very unexpected in the first issue.
Zub: Go in with an open mind and a sadistic bit of glee. This is Murderworld on full blast, and no one is walking away unscathed. Ray and I originally brainstormed this pitch eighteen years ago, before either of us had any substantial writing credits. Even though the kernel of the idea came to us a long time ago, it's honestly more relevant than ever. Ray and I have learned a ton working on stories over the years, and now we're really able to unleash its full potential.
Fawkes: You might say it's aged like a fine wine. I think people are going to love it,
Murderworld: Avengers #1 is due out on Wednesday, Nov. 16.