Dan Abnett, who alongside Andy Lanning helped redefine the Guardians of the Galaxy and Nova as the characters we know today, will return to Marvel’s cosmic arena with Imperial War: Imperial Guardians, a one-shot he’ll co-write with Jonathan Hickman. The duo will be joined by Cory Smith on art.
“It’s great to be back telling cosmic stories as part of the Imperial event,” Abnett said. “My time spent with Nova and the Guardians back in the day was some of the most fun I’ve ever had in comics, and Jonathan’s orchestrating exactly the kind of epic-SF-scale, character-driven and drama-packed epic I love to sink my teeth into. This is quite some ride, and the Galaxy—and the Guardians—won’t be the same again! I’d say it’s the best jumping-on point for Marvel Cosmic since the original Annihilation.”
Imperial Guardians is the fifth one-shot accompanying the Imperial miniseries that finds several cosmic empires dealing with a conspiracy/murder mystery. It will follow issues spotlighting other players in Imperial, including Black Panther, She-Hulk, Nova, and Professor X and Lilandra.
The team title will feature Super-Skrull looking for answers alongside a new team that assembles:
As the events of IMPERIAL explode in fatal fashion, the Super-Skrull finds himself at the center of a seditious scheme with consequences that will be felt by the entire cosmos! But he’s not the only superpower looking for answers—an unlikely team is on the hunt to avert disaster before galactic order is lost for good!
That team will include a confirmed Captain Marvel, Gamora and Darkhawk, along with two other characters who appear to be Adam Warlock and Cosmic Ghost Rider.
Featuring a cover by Francesco Mortarino, Imperial Guardians will arrive Oct. 1. Imperial #2, meanwhile, comes out tomorrow.