Spoilers for Thanos: Death Notes #1 by Marvel Comics
Marvel Comics has revealed Thanos' newest ultimate form, as the publisher just introduced a Mad Titan who rules all of time. In Thanos: Death Notes #1, Iron Man is told his existence is all a facade, as a future version of Thanos is said to be controlling and reshaping time itself. As such, everything that is happening and has happened in the Marvel Universe is said to be the creation of the omnipotent being.
Thanos is the ultimate villain in the Marvel Universe, as his quest to win the affection of the living embodiment of Death has led him to frequent conflicts with Earth's Mightiest Heroes and to use the Infinity Gauntlet to snap half of life from existence. One variant of Thanos, called King Thanos, once killed all the heroes in the universe to please Death - as he appeared to be the ultimate version of the Mad Titan. However, Marvel Comics has revealed Thanos' true ultimate form, who is said to have reshaped time and controlled the universe without anyone knowing.
In the story "All That Is" by Christopher Cantwell, Travel Foreman, Rachelle Rosenberg, and VC's Travis Lanham from Thanos: Death Notes #1 by Marvel Comics, Iron Man's first comic book encounter with Thanos gets a surprise sequel story. Iron Man confronts the robot version of Thanos the Mad Titan used in his first Marvel Comics appearance. When the machine is brought back online, it warns Iron Man that if it's taken offline, the universe will suffer as a result. The robot Thanos tells Tony Stark that Thanos has already ruled supreme over space and time and that the current reality Is just a simulation overseen by the villain. The robot then shows the ultimate version of Thanos, who it claims reshaped time.
Has The Ultimate Thanos Already Gained Control Of The Marvel Universe?
The ultimate version of Thanos is said to have killed all of Marvel's greatest heroes and villains and conquered time, becoming an omnipotent being. The revelation presents quite a moral quandary for Iron Man, who, despite not believing that Thanos rules over him and that he's living in a simulation, doesn't want to risk the robot Thanos' threat. So, instead of taking him offline permanently and melting him down, he opts to cut the robot's head off and live with the secret of Thanos' potential rule for the rest of his life.
It's likely the robot version of Thanos was fighting for survival, and there is no ultimate version of the Mad Titan as it claimed. However, suggesting its destruction would lead to the deadliest Thanos, who it says is secretly controlling everything, making Iron Man suffer "untold torturous agonies for all eternity" if it was destroyed, is quite a threat. In the end, Iron Man refuses to find out if there is an ultimate version of Thanos who rules everything. But the question remains, was the robot telling the truth? Readers can find out more as Thanos: Death Notes #1 by Marvel Comics is in comic book stores now.