Jonathan Hickman’s reimagining of Marvel’s cosmic comics adds ‘Imperial War’ one-shots

‘Imperial War: Black Panther’ and ‘Imperial War: Planet She-Hulk’ will arrive in August.

Jonathan Hickman, Iban Coello and Federico Vicentini’s Imperial project is growing in scope, as Marvel has announced the four-issue miniseries will be accompanied by five one-shots that “spotlight individual characters and groups as they navigate the startling developments and explosive conflicts sweeping the stars.”

In case you missed it, Imperial is the latest project from Hickman, the architect of Marvel’s very successful Ultimate Comics relaunch as well as the Krakoa era of the X-Men line. He’s working with Coello and Vicentini to redefine Marvel’s cosmic characters in this new miniseries that kicks off in June.

From what’s been revealed so far, Imperial looks like it’ll showcase a huge battle between various cosmic factions, including the Kree/Skrull Alliance, The Intergalactic Empire of Wakanda and New Sakaar, which will bring characters like Hulk, She-Hulk and Amadeus Cho into space.

The first two one-shots will help flesh out Black Panther and She-Hulk’s roles in the story. Hickman will work with writer Victor LaValle and artist CAFU on Imperial War: Black Panther.

“Working with Jonathan Hickman on an interstellar epic—who wouldn’t be thrilled by that idea?” LaValle said. “I’m excited to start working on the Intergalactic Empire of Wakanda because there’s not enough stories about Black folks in outer space. There could always be more. By the time I’m done, T’Challa and Shuri will have constellations named after them, in some distant galaxy.”

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Ngozi Ukazu returns to Apokolips for ‘Orion’

The sequel to ‘Barda’ will arrive in stores in 2026.

Ngozi Ukazu, creator of the wonderful Check, Please, brought the New God Big Barda, along with others from Jack Kirby’s Fourth World comics, to DC’s young adult graphic novel line last year. That graphic novel, Barda, will get a sequel next year that will focus on another New God — Orion.

In the first volume, Barda started the story as the right hand of Granny Goodness and has been tasked with an impossible task — break their prisoner, the unbreakable Scott Free. But something broke in Barda on the fiery Apokolips in the story of first loves. The new volume details Orion’s life on New Genesis as he his fears about not really belonging there are confirmed when Highfather reveals his true lineage.

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AfterShock Comics emerges from bankruptcy

The company plans to start publishing comics again.

In other bankruptcy news this week, AfterShock Comics has announced that they have emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy and plans to begin publishing comics again.

AfterShock, the publisher of Animosity, Bunny Mask, Babyteeth and more, filed for bankruptcy protection in late 2022 “due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic,” according to the press release. They’ve been fairly quiet ever since, and honestly I figured we’d never hear from them again (although their website has never gone dark in that period).

“The pandemic and subsequent writer’s strike impacted our business in ways nobody could have predicted,” said AfterShock Comics CEO Jon Kramer. “While we still believe that securing financing in the spring of 2020 to grow out our business and keep everyone working was the correct strategic move, business conditions proved unstable and, in spite of positive interest on the investment front from numerous parties, the ongoing uncertainty amidst the prolonged pandemic disrupted our momentum.  Though recognizing the effect it might have on our extremely important relationships with creators, fans, distributors and retailers, the restructuring process was the best avenue we could have pursued to protect our assets and the work of all those who created content for AfterShock.”

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Universal Distribution + Ad Populum complete the purchase of Diamond; begin layoffs

It’s official now: Universal Distribution and Ad Populum, the second-place bidders in the Diamond bankruptcy auction, have completed the purchase of several Diamond assets, including the comics distribution business and Alliance Game Distributors.

Universal will take home Alliance Game Distributors, while Ad Populum gets Diamond Comic Distributors, Diamond Book Distributors, Diamond Select Toys & Collectibles, Collectible Grading Authority and other related assets. Diamond UK remains separate from this sale process.

“We are thrilled to officially welcome Alliance into the Universal Distribution family,” said Angelo Exarhakos, president and CEO of Universal Distribution. “This acquisition marks a transformative step forward in our mission to deliver exceptional service and value to retailers and publishers across North America. By combining Alliance’s respected legacy and expansive network with Universal’s operational strengths and innovation-driven approach, we are poised to elevate the distribution experience across the industry. We look forward to building on the trusted relationships Alliance has cultivated and continuing to support the growth and vibrancy of the hobby gaming community.”

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Nominees announced for the 2025 Eisner Awards

Fantagraphics, DC and Tom King lead the pack this year; winners will be announced at Comic-Con International in July.

Comic-Con International has announced the nominees for this year’s Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards, which will be given out on July 25 in San Diego.

Fantagraphics and DC received the most nominations, followed by First Second Abrams and Pantheon. In terms of creators, Tom King leads the pack with four nominations, while Leela Corman, Bilquis Evely, Emil Ferris, LeUyen Pham, Ram V, Javier Rodriguez, Olivier Schrauwen, James Tynion IV, Gene Luen Yang and Quentin Zuttion each received three nominations.

Here’s the full list of this year’s nominees:

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G. Willow Wilson + Gleb Melnikov steal the spotlight with a new Black Cat series

Felicia Hardy has a change of heart, maybe, in her new solo series as a superhero.

Career thief Felicia Hardy will have a change of heart* in her new solo series by G. Willow Wilson and Gleb Melnikov this summer, as the former super thief takes on some of Spider-Man’s deadliest foes.

The new series will debut in August from Marvel. The stopry will spin out of Joe Kelly and John Romita Jr.’s run on Amazing Spider-Man, as the notorious cat burglar will have a change of heart after Spider-Man’s upcoming battle with the new villain Hellgate. “But is her most recent change of heart for purely altruistic reasons or simply a way to pull off her greatest heist yet?” Well, why can’t it be both?

“As soon as Spider-Man: Black Suit & Blood dropped and people saw the Black Cat story, readers began to ask me, ‘When are you going to write more Felicia?’ Well, the answer is: right now,” Wilson said. “Black Cat is so much fun to work with. She’s a supporting character with main character energy. And she has such a rich history that there are tons of tantalizing story threads to pull on.”

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Can’t Wait for Wednesday | ‘Battle Beast,’ ‘Supergirl,’ ‘Exquisite Corpses’ and more arrive this week

You can find comics by Robert Kirkman, Ryan Ottely, Sophie Campbell, Mark Millar, Rafael Albuquerque, Tim Seeley, Patton Oswalt and more at your local comic shop this week.

Welcome to Can’t Wait for Wednesday, your guide to what comics are arriving in comic book stores, bookstores and on digital.

I’ve pulled out some of the highlights for this week below, but for the complete list of everything you might find at your local comic shop and on digital this week, you’ll want to check out one or more of the following:

As a reminder, things can change and what you find on the above lists may differ from what’s actually arriving in your local shop. So check with your retailer to see what’s arriving at their shop this week.

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Jeph Loeb + Simone Di Meo resurrect the ‘Age of Apocalypse’ this fall

‘X-Men of Apocalypse’ will bring Blink, Sabretooth, Morph and other Age of Apocalypse characters to the 616.

Marvel will return to one of the most popular X-Men crossover events from the 1990s in the upcoming X-Men of Apocalypse miniseries by Jeph Loeb and Simone Di Meo.

The story will be set up in this summer’s Giant-Size Age of Apocalypse, one of several one-shots that’ll explore past X-Men-related events. Loeb and Di Meo will have a back-up story in that issue. Loeb worked on the original Age of Apocalypse storyline, as he wrote the X-Man miniseries and co-created the character with artist Steve Skroce.

Also, in a nod to the original crossover, the story will start with an “alpha” issue, followed by a four-issue miniseries, and will conclude with an “omega” issue.

“Thirty years ago, The X-Men of Apocalypse took the comics world by storm and I was lucky enough to be part of it,” Loeb said. “There were new characters! New designs! Heroes who were villains and villains who were heroes! Now, for the 30th anniversary, an all-new, all-different story with spectacular art by Simone Di Meo brings us to this uncanny team that shouldn’t even exist — and they are coming here! Join Gambit, Sabretooth & Wild Child, Blink, Forge and Morph and more as they try to save one universe without dooming another!”

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Mad Cave Studios will serve up ‘Eat Your Young’ this summer

There can be only one in the new series by Brian Buccellato, Mattia Monaco and Buddy Beaudoin.

The battle for immortality will begin in August in Eat Your Young, a knock down, drag out free-for-all between members of an immortal family. The six-issue miniseries by writer Brian Buccellato, artist Mattia Monaco and letterer Buddy Beaudoin will begin in August.

“Eat Your Young is my kind of chaos—immortal family feuds, bloody betrayals, and a violent journey through the pop culture that raised me,” said Buccellato. “It’s been incredible collaborating with Mattia again and bringing it all to life with Mad Cave fully behind us.”

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Reza Farazmand, Sarah Andersen, Manu Larcenet + more nominated in this year’s NCS divisional awards

The National Cartoonist Society has announced the divisional nominees for the 79th Annual NCS Reuben Awards.

The National Cartoonists Society has announced the 2024 NCS Divisional finalists for the 79th Annual NCS Reuben Awards, which annually recognize creators of comic strips, illustrations, comic books and more. This follows the nominees that were announced for the Reuben Award itself last month.

The awards recognize the cartoonist or artists specifically, so you’ll note that the actual comic, the writer and the publisher aren’t called out in the nominations. Also, the comics category can be a bit eclectic compared to other awards programs; the NCS definitely have a type.

This year’s nominees in the comic book category include Jeff Austin and Phil Miller, artists of the independent comic Avenger (New Blood) #1, published by Lenovations Press; George Broderick Jr., creator of Scintillating Tales and Ballad of the Lavender Dot; and Gideon Kendall, the artist of Lester of the Lesser Gods.

In the graphic novel category, the nominees are Jay Fosgitt, creator of Bodie Troll; Manu Larcenet, who adapted Cormac McCarthy’s The Road into a graphic novel that was published last year; and LeUyen Pham, a children’s book author who drew Lunar New Year Love Story, which was written by Gene Luen Yang.

Webcomics creators are recognized in two categories — long form and short form. The long-form nominees are Amy Kurzweil, David Milgrim and Sean Wang. The short-form webcomics nominees include Sarah Andersen, Jen Bateman and Reza Farazmand.

Check out the full list of nominees across all the categories for this year:

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Greg Rucka + Nicola Scott reunite for a Justice League heist story

‘Cheetah and Cheshire Rob the Justice League’ features a group of villains targeting the Justice League Watchtower.

The Black Magick team of Greg Rucka and Nicola Scott will re-team for Cheetah and Cheshire Rob the Justice League, a heist story featuring a group of villains robbing the Justice League Watchtower.

Rucka and Scott will be joined by colorist Annette Kwok and letterer Troy Peteri on the six-issue DC All In series.

“I won’t bury the lede,” said Rucka. “This is a crew of villains, or at least nominal bad guys. Not one of them has access to—let alone would be welcomed aboard—the Justice League Watchtower. We’re not making this easy on them. But for Cheetah especially, this is an all-or-nothing play—she needs to do this job, and she’s not going to let anything, or anyone, keep her from getting what she’s after.”

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Turns out it was ‘New Avengers’ all along

Appropriately, there’s a twist to the New Thunderbolts* comic as well.

Much like the film of the same name that debuted last week, Marvel has revealed that it’s upcoming New Thunderbolts* title won’t actually be called New Thunderbolts.

In a synergistic move, the new title is actually called New Avengers.

“Plot twist, it’s been New Avengers all along,” said writer Sam Humphries. “I promised surprises, and this is the first of many. It’s a thrill and an honor to continue the grand New Avengers tradition of team dynamics that are as explosive as the threats. And this era has two combustible teams: the New Avengers and the Killuminati!”

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