Mail Call is a roundup of the announcements we’ve received from comics publishers in our mailboxes recently that we haven’t already covered. Hit the links for more information.
DC Comics released their May solicitations on Friday, and with them came several announcements and reveals throughout the week. In addition to the new Wonder Girl, Mister Miracle and Future State: Gotham projects, DC announced they will release two interesting one-shots — the first being Star Girl one-shot, featuring not only the star of the hit CW show, but also the Seven Soldiers of Victory. It’s by the character’s co-creator, Geoff Johns, and artist Todd Nauck.
Here’s DC’s description: Courtney Whitmore’s spring break plans aren’t like your average high schooler’s. Instead of hanging out with friends, she’s heading out on an adventure with her stepfather, Pat Dugan, a.k.a. S.T.R.I.P.E., and teaming up with his former team, the Seven Soldiers of Victory! The soldiers are forced to reunite again to unearth the secret eighth soldier of victory, but what other secrets lay buried, and what does it all mean for Courtney’s future as Stargirl?
The one-shot arrives May 4.
Also in May comes DC Festival of Heroes: The Asian Superhero Celebration. This 96-page one-shot anthology will feature the work of Ram V, Mariko Tamaki, Bernard Chang, Marcio Takara, Dustin Nguyen, Trung Le Nguyen, Greg Pak, Gene Luen Yang and many more, telling stories featuring Cassandra Cain, Katana, Green Lantern Tai Pham, the Atom, Damian Wayne and more. It arrives May 11.
Oct. 28 will mark the 50-year anniversary of the debut of John Stewart, and to celebrate, DC Comics will publish a hardcover collection of stories featuring the Green Lantern Corps. member. Green Lantern: John Stewart – A Celebration of 50 Years will reprint stories by Denny O’Neil and Neal Adams, Len Wein, Geoff Johns, Judd Winick, Dale Eaglesham, Ed Benes and more. It’ll also include essays by Adams, John Ridley, Geoff Johns, and actor Phil LaMarr, who voiced John Stewart on the Justice League and Justice League Unlimited animated TV shows.
The 368-page hardcover will arrive in stores June 22.
Marvel, meanwhile, is teasing a new Defenders title. It will feature Doctor Strange and the Masked Raider, who appeared in the Marvel #1000 special. Not a lot of other details were revealed just yet, but I’m sure they’re on their way.
Nick Spencer’s long-brewing Kingpin storyline in Amazing Spider-Man will kick off in issue #61 next month, and Marvel revealed it will all come to a head in Giant-Sized Spider-Man, which arrives in May and features art by Rogê Antônio.
“If you thought 2020 held some huge Spidey surprises (the return of the Green Goblin, the reveal of Kindred as Harry Osborn, the Sin-Eater’s reign of terror), you ain’t seen nothing yet,” Editor Nick Lowe said. “Nick Spencer is telling the biggest stories in Amazing Spider-Man history and they can’t fit in a normal comic, so we’re GIANT-SIZING, starting with the cacophonous climax of ‘King’s Ransom!’”
The Curse of the Man-Thing story continues in April with a Spider-Man one-shot and will wrap up in May with one featuring the X-Men. Well, kind of — it features Magik and several mutants: Marrow, Forearm, Shark-Girl, Wolf Cub and Mammomax. It’s by Steve Orlando, Francesco Mobili and Marco Failla.
“It all comes together with X-Men: Curse of the Man-Thing, and I can’t wait for you all to see it! Andrea Broccardo’s work bringing to life not just Man-Thing and his new nemesis Harrower, but Krakoa’s iconic Magik and her team of Dark Riders has been nothing short of sensational!” Orlando said. “Regrown from nearly nothing, Man-Thing has returned to celebrate his 50th anniversary with a focus and intensity like we’ve never seen. Maybe he can stop the world from burning, but the real final showdown will be between him and the supernatural zealot that hijacked his powers: Harrower. Luckily, he’ll have help in the form of Magik, intent on repaying a debt the Marvel Universe never knew was owed until now. Monster Mutant Mayhem as Man-Thing’s 50th reaches its climax!”
The Guardians of the Galaxy are getting a new mission and an expanded roster in April, and Marvel revealed just who will be guarding the galaxy this time around. It’s a fun mix of the expected Guardians — the ones you’ve seen in the movies — along with past members, other cosmic characters and — surprise! — Doctor Doom. Al Ewing and Juan Frigeri will debut the new team in issue #13-15.
“One of these things is not like the others, one of these things just doesn’t belong. What’s Doctor Doom doing here… and why? There’s only one way to find out,” Ewing said.
Oni Press will publish Cheer Up! Love & Pom Poms by Crystal Frasier and Val Wise in August, about — you guessed it — high school cheerleading. Here’s the description:
Annie is a smart, antisocial lesbian starting her senior year of high school, and for her it’s all about the college applications. Who has time for extracurriculars when you’re trying to be top of the class? But when her high school counselor informs her she needs to do more than just be an ace student, she decides to suck it up and join the cheerleading squad. Her former friend BeBe is a people-pleaser—a trans girl who must make her parents happy with her grades and social life in order to keep their support of her transition. Through the rigors of squad training and amped-up social pressures (not to mention microaggressions and other queer youth problems), the two girls rekindle a friendship they thought they’d lost and discover there may be other, sweeter feelings springing up between them.
Look for it on Aug. 11.
Top Shelf will publish Rivers by Dan Berry and David Gaffney, about three people who meet on the internet and realize they’ve been having the same dream. The 176-page graphic novel arrives this summer.
Marvel has recruited Mark Bagley to draw several ’90s-style trading card variant covers for the upcoming Heroes Reborn event miniseries, where the Squadron Supreme takes center stage in a world where the Avengers never existed:
Any comic fan of the ’90s will likely recognize the vibe coming off those covers, if they spent any time at a comic or card shop (or bought boxes of cards to see if they could get the complete set). And Bagley drew his fair share of trading cards back in the day. Like these connecting Spider-Man cards:
The series of nine covers will form one image, with one of them blacked out in the teaser image … so who could that be?
Marvel has revealed more details on upcoming issues of X-Factor and X-Men. Above, you’ll see that X-Factor is heading back to the Mojoverse in issue #9, which guest stars Dazzler and Lila Cheney.
Then, in X-Men #20, Nimrod returns!
Artist Jen Bartel has been busy not only with DC’s Immortal Wonder Woman, but also in creating several variant covers to celebrate Women’s History Month. Marvel previously showed us four of them, and now Marvel has revealed four more, for Kushala, shown above, as well as Black Cat, Shuri and Spider-Woman:
The covers will appear on King in Black: Ghost Rider #1, Black Cat #4, Black Panther #24 and Spider-Woman #10, which all arrive in March.
Deadpool turns 30 this year, and to celebrate, Marvel will release Deadpool: Nerdy 30 #1, featuring creators who have worked on the character previously — including Gail Simone, Daniel Way, Skottie Young, Joe Kelly, Gerardo Sandoval, Fabian Nicieza, Paco Medina and, of course, Deadpool creator Rob Liefeld. Check out some preview pages:
Deadpool: Nerdy 30 comes out in March.
Finally, DC released several teaser images for Infinite Frontier #0, the one-shot due out in March that will kick off the next era of DC’s storytelling. These included a glimpse of the Scarecrow’s new look, Wonder Girl, Jonathan Kent, some Green Lanterns and Titans Academy.
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