Okay, we need to talk. I just finished diving back into the full Marvel Zombies timeline, and honestly? I’m not okay. I feel like I need a support group or at least a very long nap.
Most Marvel stories end with a "we win" or at least a "we’ll get 'em next time." But this? This is a chronicle of pure, unadulterated loss. It’s not about triumph; it’s about watching the heroes we grew up with fail in the most human ways possible. If you’re looking for a happy ending, close this right now. But if you want to feel the weight of the "ashes of a world," let’s get into it.
My Personal Rating: 7.5/10
(Minus Some points just because my heart can’t take what they did to Kamala. It's cruel and unusual punishment for the readers.)
1. Wakanda Didn't Just Fall; It Shattered
The story kicks off with Peter Parker’s voice aboard a Quinjet, and man, you can hear the soul-crushing guilt in every word. This isn't the jokey Spidey we know; this is a man who has seen too many friends turn. They’re in Wakanda for a final stand, and it’s a total nightmare.
Seeing a zombified Thanos is scary enough, but seeing him clumsy because his brain is rotting? That’s chilling in a way I wasn't prepared for. He has the Infinity Gauntlet, but he can't even remember how to use it properly. When Thor, Rocket, and Groot show up, I actually cheered out loud—but the hope is snatched away almost instantly. Thanos literally flips Wakanda upside down. He cracks the planet's crust to expose the molten vibranium core. The scale of the destruction is just... it's too much.
The moment that killed me? T’Challa. Even at the literal end of the world, he’s still a King. His "Wakanda Forever" as he tackles Thanos into that molten shaft? I was cheering and sobbing at the same time. He saved the universe from the Gauntlet, but at the cost of the only home he had left.
2. San Francisco and the "Dad of the Year" Award
Switch over to San Fran, and it’s total World War Z energy—swarms of infected pouring through the streets like a flood. Watching Shang-Chi go absolute beast mode while trying to protect Katy in Chinatown was incredible, but it's the arrival of Wenwu (The Mandarin) that changes everything.
In the MCU, their relationship is so complicated and toxic, but here, in the face of the literal end, all that remains is a father’s love. Seeing Wenwu sacrifice himself to pass the Ten Rings to a bitten Shang-Chi just to stabilize the infection and buy him a few more minutes... that hit home. "Remember what your mother taught you." I'm not crying, you are. It's a reminder that even the "villains" have a breaking point when it comes to their kids.
3. The New Gen (And the Worst Game of Rock-Paper-Scissors Ever)
Fast forward five years. The world is gone. It's just ruins and silence. We’re following the "Young Avengers" era now: Ironheart, Kate Bishop, and Kamala Khan. I love the chemistry here because it feels so real. They aren't legendary icons; they're kids trying to survive.
They’re scavenging in the ruins of NYC, and they literally play rock-paper-scissors to see who has to reach inside a dead pilot’s body to find a transmitter. It’s that dark, "if we don't laugh we'll scream" humor that only happens in a true apocalypse. But the tension is real—the second that pilot reanimates and a zombified Hawkeye starts hunting them, the tone shifts back to pure terror.
4. Hope is a Dangerous Thing
The journey to Ohio is where the emotional fatigue really starts to set in. Kate Bishop’s unwavering hope is the only thing keeping them moving, but Marvel Zombies loves to punish hope.
When they hit that unnatural storm caused by Ikaris and an infected Captain Marvel, everything falls apart. Kate falls in the panic. Riri (Ironheart) gets bitten. Seeing Riri stay behind, injecting herself with a stabilizer just to buy Kamala a few seconds, while FRIDAY tells Kamala that "the fate of humanity rests on her"... guys, I had to put the book down for a second. It’s just relentless. These characters are sacrificing everything for a 5% chance of success.
5. The Black Widow’s Last Stand
Blade shows up, and he’s the avatar of the moon god Khonshu now (which is a dope twist because it means he’s basically a supernatural tank). They find Yelena Belova at the SHIELD base, surrounded by thousands of "dormant" zombies.
Watching Alexei (Red Guardian) finally get to fight his "idol" Captain America was a weirdly sweet, fanboy moment in the middle of a bloodbath. He actually beats him! But the victory is short-lived. The Zombie Queen (Wanda) arrives, and it's a slaughter. Yelena’s sacrifice, getting pierced by the Queen's spear while holding back the horde, felt like a punch to the gut. It feels like every time we find a character to lean on, the story rips them away.
6. Ocean City: The Ultimate Betrayal
I actually hated Baron Zemo here. Ocean City felt like a breath of fresh air—real food, safety, a submersible fortress—but it was a trap. Zemo was literally using heroes as bait to satisfy the hunger of Namor’s infected Talokan warriors.
The brutality of the fight with Namor was insane. Melina Vostokoff (Iron Maiden) has to manually activate the escape pods, which means she's trapped. Her final message of love to Alexei before being consumed by the water and the infected was the final nail in the coffin for my emotions. At this point, the group is getting smaller and smaller, and the "sanctuaries" are turning out to be more dangerous than the wastelands.
7. New Asgard and the Big Lie
This part was genuinely creepy. New Asgard looks like a thriving paradise, but it’s all a facade run by Wanda. Seeing a broken, unresponsive Thor in the corner—the God of Thunder reduced to a shell—broke my spirit.
Wanda’s manipulation here is top-tier villainy. She tries to gaslight everyone into thinking she's "cured," but the feast she provides is poisoned. When she sheds her "human" skin and reveals her true Zombie Queen form, the horror reaches its peak. But when Thor finally snaps out of it? "You are the last Avenger now." Chills. Absolute chills. He dies so Kamala can live.
8. The Nova Corps Are Jerks
Just when you think help is coming... the Nova Corps appears. You think, "Yes! The cavalry is here!" But nope. They haven't come to save anyone; they've come to "delete" the planet. They literally open fire on the survivors' ship. If it weren't for Spidey and Ant-Man (who survived the Wakanda blast!) pulling a last-minute save through a portal, it would have been game over.
9. The End... or Something Much Worse
The final battle is basically a cosmic-powered Hulk vs. the entire undead world. It's epic and visually stunning, but the ending? The ending is what makes this a true horror story.
Wanda realizes she can't beat the Hulk physically, so she plays on Kamala’s grief. She offers her the power of the Infinity Stones to "fix it all." Kamala is so tired, so broken from losing everyone, that she takes the bait.
Final Thoughts: The Mental Prison
The Zombie Queen didn't just win; she stole the one thing these heroes had left: their reality. The last scene of Kamala drinking bubble tea with her friends, thinking her mom is alive, while the "real" world is a rotting wasteland... it's haunting.
Is Kamala’s fate worse than death? Personally, I think so. Living a perfect lie while your body is likely being used by the Queen is the ultimate "curse" of survival. It turns the entire journey into a tragedy where the heroes didn't just lose—they were erased.
What do you guys think? Could you live in the bubble tea dream, or would you rather face the bleak truth? Let’s talk about it in the comments. Seriously, I need to talk this out. I need a hug.
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