Happy Thanksgiving Popverse readers! As you’re reading this, you might be preparing for your own Thanksgiving plans. Perhaps you’re spending the day in the kitchen or traveling to a relative’s house. We all have our own special ways of enjoying the holiday, even the Marvel superheroes. The Avengers and X-Men have had a rough year, so how are they spending Thanksgiving? We get a glimpse of their feast in Invincible Iron Man #12 (written by Gerry Duggan and penciled by Ig Guara) and their choice of venue was unexpected. What was Thanksgiving like for the Marvel heroes? Let’s dive in…

Warning: Spoilers ahead for Invincible Iron Man #12!

Thanksgiving in the sewers

What’s the oddest place you’ve ever had Thanksgiving dinner? Whatever your answer is, the Avengers and X-Men probably have you beat. This year, the heroes held their Thanksgiving celebration in the New York City sewers, specifically the Morlock tunnels. If you haven’t been keeping up with current continuity, this choice of venue might puzzle you.

The X-Men are currently in exile, thanks to a group called Orchis. The organization attacked the mutant nation of Krakoa during their annual Hellfire Gala, causing the disappearance of over 250,000 mutants (the world thinks they’re dead, but readers know that they’re actually in the White Hot Room). Orchis has also framed mutants for a series of attacks on humanity, forcing the remaining X-Men into exile.

Things aren’t going so well for Tony Stark either. In the past year, the tech mogul lost his company to a corporate raider named Feilong. To make matters worse, Feilong is using Stark’s technology to help Orchis hunt down the fugitive X-Men.

That’s why Thanksgiving is being held in the sewers this year.

The feast was attended by Captain America, Iron Man, Talon, Ms. Marvel. Emma Frost, Synch, Rogue, Deadpool, Quicksilver, along with two other heroes who are slightly out of frame. Although their venue is dark and dirty, the heroes still put together a nice spread for their feast. The table is neatly set, with plenty of wine bottles and a cooked turkey.

Ms. Marvel began the meal by making a toast. “I know it can be hard to see the good around us, but it’s here. This has been such a hard year, but I’m grateful for all of you,” Kamala said.

Tony followed with a special message of his own. “We’ll have hard days ahead. I can’t sugarcoat that. One way or another, come hell or high water, we don’t have too much longer in the shadows. For tonight, let’s eat this wonderful food and try to push aside our troubles and have a thought for all of our friends and family who aren’t here,” Stark said.

What are the Marvel heroes thankful for this year?

The Thanksgiving scene ends before everyone begins feasting. However, my Marvel fanboy brain couldn’t help but wonder what the heroes spoke about during their meal. Did everyone take turns saying what they were thankful for? Since we didn’t see that part of the conversation, I decided to come up with my own version of it. And so, until Gerry Duggan comes out and tells us otherwise, here is what I think each hero said they were thankful for.

• Iron Man – In the past year Tony has lost his company and his reputation, but hey, he recently married Emma Frost! Yes, it’s an undercover marriage meant to help take down Orchis, but it’s still one of the better things to happen to him in the past year.
• Emma Frost – Emma is probably thankful and excited for incoming X-Men editor Tom Brevoort. Who knows, maybe her life will get easier once he begins overseeing the X-titles.
• Rogue – Thankfully for Rogue, her husband Gambit was not one of the 250,000 mutants who disappeared during the Hellfire Gala. X-Men marriages rarely last, yet their union is still strong.
• Ms. Marvel – She’s not dead anymore, which is certainly something to be thankful for. Plus, she’s currently starring in a mini-series written by her MCU actress Iman Vellani. I don’t know about you, but I would be ecstatic if Vellani wrote a comic book about me.
• Deadpool – Wade is probably thankful that the SAG-AFTRA strike is over, and his movie Deadpool 3 can resume production.
• Quicksilver – If you’re reading Uncanny Avengers, then you would know that Pietro recently hooked up with his teammate Penance. Good for him. After everything that went down between him and Crystal, it’s nice to see him getting another shot at love.
• Talon – Laura still has her regenerative healing powers, which certainly makes her life easier.
• Synch – Everett Thomas and Laura Kinney are back together. Sync thought their relationship was over for good when Laura’s Krakoan double was cloned without any memories of their time together. Luckily for Everett, the original Laura returned, and the couple rekindled their romance.
• Captain America – J. Michael Straczynski is currently writing his title, which is something everyone should be thankful for.

They may be spending Thanksgiving in the sewer, but hopefully things will improve for them by New Year’s Eve. Happy Thanksgiving Popverse readers! May it be filled with family, comics, and lots of good food!

An advanced review copy for The Invincible Iron Man #12 was provided ahead of release by Marvel.

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