Warning! Spoilers ahead for The Mortal Thor!

Is Marvel returning to its darkest timeline ever? Thor’s current story arc is set to take him to “the worst of all possible worlds” later this year, but is this phrasing just a Voltaire reference, or could it be something more? It’s possible Marvel is about to revisit the bleakest corner of the Multiverse, 31 years after it was introduced.

That is, the Ruins timeline. In 1995, Marvel released the two-shot *Ruins *series, written by Warren Ellis. It’s not so much a story as a collection of the most gruesome possible fates for Marvel’s top characters. Ruins went places the Marvel Universe never had before, and never would again. But now it seems like Thor could be headed back there.

*Ruins *was controversial at the time of its release, and it’s even more divisive in retrospect, three decades later. Still, if Marvel wants to live up to the promise of sending Thor to “the worst of all possible worlds,” then it should return to the world of Ruins. Or, do the unthinkable, and conjure up an even more depraved Marvel timeline than Ellis did in ‘95.

It might seem like more of a longshot for *Ruins *to make a comeback, except there’s one thing that makes it more likely. *The Mortal Thor *author Al Ewing is at his best when he’s digging deep into Marvel history and making forgotten lore central to the modern Marvel Universe. If anyone could use *Ruins *right, it’s Ewing.

Here’s the full synopsis for *The Mighty Thor *#14:

The Serpent has trapped Sigurd Jarlson in the worst of all possible worlds for his greatest trial. Now, without even a weapon in his hand, he must prove himself worthy to enter the Realms of the Gods. Somewhere in the city, a man without even a hammer begins the ultimate quest… the quest for Thor!

Now, “the worst of all possible worlds” is a phrase with a history. It is an inversion of the phrase “the best of all possible worlds,” which is most closely associated with Voltaire’s 18th-century novel Candide. In the book, the character Pangloss is convinced the world is the best it could possibly be, despite the increasingly horrible calamities that befall him. And in fact, Pangloss was a parody of the earlier philosopher Gottfried Liebnitz, who espoused the “best of all possible worlds” idea.

Warren Ellis’ *Ruins *was a similar kind of inversion. It was, to put it bluntly, a mean-spirited response to 1994’s *Marvels *miniseries, written by Kurk Busiek and featuring art by Alex Ross. *Ruins *was done in the same style as Marvels, and even featured the same human POV character, Phil Sheldon, a newspaper photographer. Yet while *Marvels *portrayed the Marvel Universe as a place of wonder, *Ruins *turned it into the setting of utmost tragedy.

In the context of the Marvel Multiverse, Ruins certainly fits the “worst of all possible worlds” bill, with only a few rivals for the title. And there are a few hints that suggest the use of the phrase might be more than just a literary reference or stock language.

The cover for *The Mortal Thor *#14 is by *Marvels *artist Alex Ross. To be fair, Ross has been doing the covers for Al Ewin’s *Thor *saga going back to the previous serious, Immortal Thor. But it would be exactly like Ewing to nod to Ross by revisiting a timeline his work inspired. And it would also be so Ewing to “redeem” Marvel’s darkest timeline.

That isn’t to say save it, or even give it a glimmer of hope. But rather, to use it in a way that matters. *Ruins *was suffering for its own sake. Grittiness toward the end of being gritty. The Mortal Thor could give it a purpose, so many years later. And it would make sense from a story perspective. Thor is currently trapped in the mortal form of his second human alter-ego, Sigurd Jarlson, fighting against a soulless version of Donald Blake, his original human identity.

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Thor is noticeably absent from Ruins, but the series did feature another version of Blake, who was a deranged cult leader in this timeline. That Donald Black could prove to be a fitting addition to The Mortal Thor, as an enemy of Sigurd Jarlson, which would be an apropos reason to bring back ***Marvel’s ***darkest timeline ever.

**The Mortal Thor #14 **will be available in August from Marvel Comics.

**What do you think, Marvel readers? Is Ruins returning, or is the speculation all smoke and mirrors?

Stan Lee, Larry Lieber, Jack Kirby

First Appearance

Journey into Mystery

Thor Odinson, Eric Masterson, Kevin Masterson, Beta Ray Bill, Thordis, Throg, Red Norvell, Jane Foster

Avengers, Warriors Three, Thor Corps, God Squad

Asgardian, Human