Marvel Zombies Ending Explained (And How It Can Connect To Avengers: Doomsday)

This post contains spoilers for the "Marvel Zombies" season 1 finale.

By the time the first season of "Marvel Zombies" draws to a close, the limb-chomping creatures that were once some of Earth's Mightiest Heroes have consumed most of their home planet, leaving any hope for humanity seemingly dead and buried. After a failed attempt to protect an infinity stone-infused Hulk, what was left of the show's still human heroes did their best to fight the good fight but were no match against an army of gut-guzzlers and the zombie witch leading them. Outnumbered and out of options, one hero was forced to make the tough call, which in turn caused the planet to revert back to a far healthier state in which no one was shuffling around with their shoes untied and bits of people in their teeth. Well, at least, that's what appeared to happen at first.

Yes, as much as it looked like the Earth had been sent back to a time before the zombie virus, there were also glimpses of a very dark present, in turn laying the foundation for a second season of "Marvel Zombies." But just what would the next chapter in this undead saga look like? And who's even alive to restore things to the way they were at this point? Well, we hate to be the bearers of bad news, but the number of heroes without zombie bite marks has plummeted significantly by the time season 1 ends, which suggests that the next battle with the zombified Scarlet Witch (Elizabeth Olsen) — aka the Red Queen — will be even tougher than the one before it. Quite frankly, it's going to take a miracle (or maybe just a Marvel) to save this corner of the multiverse.

Just when it looked like all was lost and swarms of zombies had overwhelmed her superhero pals, Kamala Khan (Iman Vellani) finally gave in to Wanda Maximoff in the hopes of bringing humanity back from the brink of disaster. In an almost "Wizard of Oz" like wake-up call, Ms. Marvel then awoke to find her family safe and sound, with both Riri Williams (Dominique Thorne) and Kate Bishop (Hailee Steinfeld) at her door ready to take her out for the day. It all felt too good to be true ... because it was, much to Kamala's terror.

Sure enough, the veneer of a normal life soon began to break, and Kamala could see fragments of the undead world she thought she'd left behind. More than that, she saw another version of Riri (the one that got left behind in the show's first episode) begging her to wake up while surrounded by zombies. The whole situation recalls the dark deal Ironheart herself made on her own show, except with far greater and more gruesome ramifications. It's fitting, then, that these two seem to be the only heroes still alive following season 1's climactic battle between the living and the undead. But can they set things right on their own and finally put this universe's Scarlet Witch in the ground for good? It's hard to say, really, particularly since the story in "Marvel Zombies" has so far played out considerably different from the one in the animated series' comic book source material.

"Marvel Zombies" marks our second trip to this animated, zombie-oriented section of the multiverse (following the "What If...? episode "What If... Zombies?"), and so far, this world has proven to be quite different from the one in the "Marvel Zombies" comics. Indeed, we got our first glimpse at this hellish realm in the Marvel Comics universe with "Ultimate Fantastic Four," which itself teed up the "Marvel Zombies" comics by Robert Kirkman and Sean Phillips. That story saw several key members of the Avengers infected with a disease of unknown origin and consumed by "The Hunger," leaving them hungry for human flesh. Eventually, though, their cravings reached planet sized proportions, leading them to consume the Devourer of Worlds himself (!), Galactus. After that massive meal, the zombie-fied Giant-Man, Hulk, Iron Man, Luke Cage, Spider-Man, and Wolverine were infused with the Power Cosmic and ventured into outer space in search of unsuspecting worlds to snack on.

For now, however, the "Marvel Zombies" TV series will be staying on Earth thanks to the quarantine arranged by the Nova Corp., who are fully aware the planet and its inhabitants are ... well, a little under the weather and should probably stay right where they are. Even so, there are a handful of elements and characters from the comics that could factor into future seasons of the show, especially when it comes to some of the more notable heroes who wind up undead at some point.

While there's no word yet on whether we'll hear the familiar groan of "Marvel Zombies" again, the show's second season could potentially bring other heroes into the mix to battle the undead alongside Kamala (assuming she can snap herself back to her not-so-pleasant reality). Should season 2 take place after the events of "Avengers: Doomsday," it's possible Ms. Marvel could even get a helping hand from the Fantastic Four, similar to what happened in the original comics. Let's also not forget the likes of She-Hulk, Daredevil, The Punisher, and maybe even Jessica Jones, all of whom would presumably want to chime in about the world going to hell in a hand basket. (With Krysten Ritter returning as Jessica in "Daredevil: Born Again" season 2, now could be the perfect time for the character to get animated as well.)

Moreover, with mutants making their way into the MCU of late (including Storm, who's already shown up in "What If...?"), the likes of Wolverine and Magneto (both of whom play a crucial role in the "Marvel Zombies" comics) and other members of either the X-Men or Brotherhood of Mutants could similarly lend a hand when it comes to stopping the planet from becoming a literal hell on Earth. And speaking of the underworld, is it possible Mephisto himself would step in, should things get too out of hand? Or what about Loki? Not to mention, what would a zombie universe even look like with a little (Doctor) Doom thrown into the mix?

As it stands, all we really have to go on where it concerns the imminent arrival of Victor Von Doom (Robert Downey Jr.) is either rumors or exceptionally blurry photos. What we can confirm, however, is that, thanks to the ending of "The Fantastic Four: First Steps," we know he'll be hopping between realities to cause some chaos. Now, although we're no dimension-traveling specialists ourselves, it seems entirely plausible that Doom could take a wrong turn and find himself in the world of the undead seen in "Marvel Zombies." There's also the chance that one or more of the show's rotters could end up becoming a threat to whatever plans the fearless leader of Latveria has in mind.

Either way, with Doom ripping Marvel's multiverse a new one, there's a chance that the events of both "Avengers: Doomsday" and "Avengers: Secret Wars" could have an impact on other dimensions, the setting of "Marvel Zombies" included. After all, we've already seen an undead Stephen Strange pop up on the live-action side of the MCU (namely, in "Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness"), so there's nothing stopping other characters from getting a scary animated makeover. Either way, there are even more heroes — and villains — who could find their way onto the zombies' menu if and when the show returns. So, here's to hoping that Ms. Marvel can get back on track and assemble a team to take down the Red Queen once and for all (preferably without any of them getting zombie-fied on the way.)

"Marvel Zombies" season 1 is now streaming on Disney+.