Two-Gun Kid's recent appearances

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intp
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Two-Gun Kid's recent appearances

Post by intp »

I have been re-reading Dan Slott's run on She-Hulk, and I really enjoyed the part where he has She-Hulk bring Two-Gun Kid into the modern Marvel universe. Still, I wonder about other aspects of that storyline; it seems to contradict the notion that time travel necessarily creates alternative timelines. I also saw Two-Gun Kid pop up in Avengers: The Initiative. I guess I have two questions:

1) is the Two-Gun Kid picked up by She-Hulk the same as the original, from the 1960's series, or is he considered to be part of an alternative timeline?

2) is it still the case that time travel necessarily creates alternative timelines? (i.e. Marvel Two-in-One # 50; Hulk: Future Imperfect). There was an odd reference in She-Hulk # 2 (2006/01) to Charles Czarkowski, who claims to have found "the secret of true time travel. Not alternative timelines." Is there any validity to this, or are these She-Hulk stories just a peculiar anomaly?

Any insight would be greatly appreciated.
DonCampbell
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Re: Two-Gun Kid's recent appearances

Post by DonCampbell »

The idea that time travel ALWAYS caused divergent timelines was part of Marvel's official rules of time travel which were developed and put in place by the late, great Mark Gruenwald. Sadly, in the years since Mr. Gruenwald's death these rules have been increasingly ignored by various writers. However, several storylines in recent years have seemingly established some guidelines for how time travel works in the M.U.

1. Fantastic Four #553 established that time travel does not invariably create parallel timelines. Instead, "only major disruptions of causality necessitate the creation of a branching timeline...but minor ones tend to work themselves out within the original timeline." Also, "timelines are robust, and difficult to disrupt" and that "below a certain threshold, the acts of individuals, no matter how grand, cancel out. It’s the conservation of history."

2. Avengers vs. Atlas #4 established that "certain points of time are fixed while others are malleable...and to interfere with a fixed point only creates a divergence.”

3. Guardians of the Galaxy #25 established that some events can cause time to rewrite itself (i.e. the return of Thanos from death caused the Timeflux War).

To summarize, travelling into the past may or may not result in the creation of an alternative timeline. If someone tries to change a fixed point in history, then a new timeline will definitely be created. However, other (non-fixed) points in time are malleable and minor changes can be made to them without triggering a divergence. It's also possible that major changes made to non-fixed events would cause a divergence. Also, some changes can be so significant that they cause timequakes that alter their entire timelines.

Basically, since there is currently no "consistency cop" on duty at Marvel Comics, the rules of time travel are at the mercy (or whim) of any writer who wants to do a time travel story.

As for the Two-Gun Kid who currently exists in the present-day MU, he could be the same as the original from the 1960's series. Or he could just as easily be from an alternative timeline. It's up the writers to decide.

Don Campbell
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Re: Two-Gun Kid's recent appearances

Post by intp »

I appreciate the response. I had always kind of liked the notiion that the paradoxical nature of 'time travel' could be avoided by the idea that alternative timelines were created; but this new "hybrid" situation that you discuss, where time travel sometimes creates alternative timelines, and sometimes does not, helps explain references in various stories that had confused me (e.g. Dr. Doom telling Morgan Le Fay that he was worried about disrupting the timestream, in Bendis' New Avengers/Mighty Avengers run; sorry, don't have the exact issue in front of me). I think I like Gruenwald's version better, though.

How does the "Time Variance Authority" fit into all of this? I first recall seeing references to this entity in Walt Simonson's FF run; then it prominently featured again in Dan Slott's She-Hulk run. Are there any particularly important or useful stories to read to try to tease out what role the "TVA" plays in all of this? Or is it still just a matter of writer's whim?
wolframbane
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Re: Two-Gun Kid's recent appearances

Post by wolframbane »

For Two-Gun Kid, there must be some kind of divergent counterpart event going on, because sometime after Two-Gun returns to the past, he dies at least twice after the old west, once in 1885 during the Battle of Wonderment (Blaze of Glory #4) and again of old age in 1938 (Marvels Project #1).
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Re: Two-Gun Kid's recent appearances

Post by wolframbane »

In the recent OHOTMU hardcovers, a well researched time travel article was written that takes into consideration most of the time travel events in the MU.
http://www.marvunapp.com/ohotmu/appendixes/ttapp.htm
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