Tag: Marvel

A new D-Squad assembles for the ‘Dark Droids’ Star Wars event

Marc Guggenheim, Salva Espín and David Messina will pit R2D2 and a squad of droids against the Scourge.

Marvel’s upcoming Dark Droids crossover event will resurrect a concept from the Star Wars: The Clone Wars TV series — the D-Squad. Marc Guggenheim, Salva Espín and David Messina will enlist a group of droids to help R2D2 battle the Scourge, the virus spreading through the galaxy’s droid population that’s making them turn homicidal.

While Dark Droids has been billed as a horror story set in the Star Wars universe, Guggenheim says the D-Squad miniseries will have a different tone.

“It’s high adventure mixed with as much humor as I could conjure. I approached it like the first Avengers movie, but with droids instead of superheroes,” he told StarWars.com.

The original D-Squad was a group of astromech droids, which is the type of droid R2D2 is. This time around the squad will feature several different types of droids, including two bounty hunters.

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J. Michael Straczynski returns to Marvel this fall to write ‘Captain America’

Jesús Saiz joins the writer for a story set in Steve Rogers’ past and present.

After more than a decade writing for other publishers, J. Michael Straczynski will return to Marvel to write Captain America in September.

Artist Jesús Saiz will join Straczynski on the title, which will feature Steve Rogers. In an interview with io9, Straczynski said he’ll focus both on current-day Steve Rogers as well as a younger, pre-World War II Cap prior to gaining his super powers.

“One thing about Steve Rogers that’s never really been addressed is the period between when his parents died, and when he became Captain America,” Straczynski said. “We’re talking about a sickly, skinny 17 year old kid, trying to survive on his own for because he’s stubborn and independent, on the street for several years, hustling for any gig he can get, even if it’s bigger than he is, trying to afford food and a place to stay. So we will counterpoint a present-tense story in which Captain America faces off against a new villain of supernatural origin, with a story about his younger self, with both stories tightly interwoven.”

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Chaos reigns in Marvel’s annuals this summer

Scarlet Witch, Wolverine, Spider-Man, Captain Marvel and more will be drawn into a plot by Agatha Harkness in ‘Contest of Chaos.’

There’s nothing like a good old-fashioned summer annual crossover, nor is there anything like a good old-fashioned superhero tournament. And Marvel has both going on this summer.

In the spirit of Atlantis Attacks and Contest of Champions, this summer will bring Contest of Chaos, which will run through several Marvel annuals and features a rejuvenated Agatha Harkness using her chaos magic to cause “Let’s you and him fight” confrontations between different Marvel characters.

Stephanie Phillips is spearheading the event, which will kick off with a prelude issue in Scarlet Witch Annual #1 by Steve Orlando and Carlos Nieto. It’ll then run through eight other Marvel annuals, including the big finale in Avengers Annual #1 in September.

Here’s a rundown of who is fighting who, and when and where …

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Get a better look at the characters from ‘G.O.D.S.’

Several variant covers arriving in August offer a look at the cast of the new series coming from Jonathan Hickman and Valerio Schiti.

A series of variant covers released by Marvel gives us our first good look at the characters who will appear in the upcoming G.O.D.S. by Jonathan Hickman and Valerio Schiti.

The upcoming series, which will launch sometime in the fall, was previewed on Free Comic Book Day, where we got out first look at a character named Wyn. But the variant covers, all of which will land in August, reveal several more characters interacting with some old favorites from the Marvel U.

“When I came back to Marvel a few years ago, I wrote two series bibles. The first was House of X and the other one was G.O.D.S.,” Hickman said back in March. “To say that I’m excited to finally be able to share this story with everyone is a massive understatement. G.O.D.S. takes place in its own special corner of the Marvel Universe — in the cracks that lie at the intersection of science and magic — and revisits some characters and concepts that we’ve reimagined for a more modern, continuity-driven audience.”

Here’s a look at the covers:

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Now the Micronauts are getting an omnibus, too

Following this week’s Rom announcement, Marvel announces plans to collect stories featuring the team that ‘came from inner space.’

With a Rom omnibus (Romnibus?) on the horizon, it isn’t too surprising to see that Marvel and Hasbro will also collect the original Micronauts series, also in the omnibus format.

Micronauts: The Original Marvel Years Omnibus Volume 1 will arrive in April 2024. And just like Rom, Marvel was also re-release the very first issue of Micronauts as a facsimile edition in September.

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Marvel will collect its ‘Rom: Spaceknight’ run for the first time

An omnibus of the first 29 issues will arrive next January.

Now this is interesting — Marvel has announced, in collaboration with Hasbro, plans to collect their early 1980s series Rom: Spaceknight in a series of omnibus volumes.

Rom: The Original Years Omnibus Volume 1, coming next January, will collect Rom #1-29, as well as Power Man and Iron Fist #73. Marvel is also planning to reprint the first issue as a “facsimile edition” in September.

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Marvel’s next ‘Voices’ anthology will spotlight the X-Men

Al Ewing, Greg Pak, Jay Edidin, Jan Bazaldua, Jethro Morales and more will contribute to the anthology.

Marvel’s next “Voices” anthology will turn to the denizens of Krakoa, as the publisher has announced Marvel’s Voices: X-Men.

The anthology series, which followed a podcast on Marvel.com with the same name, has been published since 2020 and has spotlighted “diverse storytellers and their journeys,” as well as characters from diverse backgrounds. This year Marvel began spotlighting specific character groups, like the Spider-Verse characters and the citizens of Wakanda, in stories by diverse creators.

Marvel’s Voices: X-Men will feature stories from the past and present:

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Saladin Ahmed + Aaron Kuder will take over ‘Daredevil’ in September

Chip Zdarsky and Marco Checcetto’s run ends in August.

With Chip Zdarsky and Marco Checcetto’s epic (and Eisner nominated) run on Daredevil coming to an end this summer, Marvel has announced that Saladin Ahmed and Aaron Kuder will take over the title in September.

“I wanted to only take this job on if I felt like I had a new, unique take on Matt and on Hell’s Kitchen,” Ahmed said. “And so that’s at the center of this… him and his world, but it’s the Marvel Universe. What I’ve really enjoyed in talking with other editors, other offices, is finding ways through these first couple of arcs we have planned to keep this centered on Matt, keep this centered on his people, in his world, but to bring (in a very organic and surprising fun way) some familiar Marvel figures that I think are going to blow people’s mind when they pop up on the page!”

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‘Immortal Thor’ faces elder gods + buried secrets this summer

Al Ewing + Martín Cóccolo will tell new tales featuring Asgard’s All-Father starting in August.

Al Ewing will return to his “Immortal” roots this summer as he and artist Martín Cóccolo plot new adventures and uncover old secrets for the God of Thunder in Immortal Thor.

The title mirrors Ewing’s earlier run on Immortal Hulk, which wrapped up in 2021. In an interview with Polygon, Ewing talked about the differences in his approach to the two titles.

“Hulk was horror and tragedy,” he told Polygon, “but Thor tacks more toward fantasy and hope. Bruce Banner is fractured by his origin, going through a hell of his own making to gain the power of a monster — Don Blake becomes the person he truly is inside, and in so doing, gains the power of a god. (An unconventional god! Long hair in the early ’60s was more of a flex than we might credit, though I do remember Jane fantasizing about giving him a haircut.) To put my biblical hat back on for a second — if Immortal Hulk was the Old Testament, Immortal Thor is the New Testament.”

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Slugfest | Frank Miller draws a new variant cover featuring Wolverine

Plus: a manga tribute to Marvel, Star Trek’s ‘Day of Blood,’ Power Rangers, Oni Ronin and Whoopi Goldberg!

Slugfest is a roundup of cool announcements about projects coming to a shelf near you. Hit the links for more information.

It’s been awhile since we’ve seen Frank Miller draw Wolverine. Before moving on to DC to work on Batman: Year One and The Dark Knight Returns, Miller worked with writer Chris Claremont on the character’s first miniseries in the early 1980s, which, along with his work on Daredevil, established Miller as a top-tier creator.

Decades later, Miller has drawn a variant cover for Ghost Rider/Wolverine: Weapons of Vengeance Alpha #1:

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Kelly, Lanzing + Carnero’s final Captain America story arrives in August

‘Captain America Finale’ follows ‘Cold War’ and wraps up the conflict with the Outer Circle.

Collin Kelly, Jackson Lanzing and Carmen Carnero’s time on Captain America will come to an end in August in Captain America Finale #1, which follows the Captain America: Cold War story currently running through Marvel’s two Captain America titles.

Finale will address, according to Marvel, the “explosive aftermath” of Cold War, which features Steve Rogers, Sam Wilson and friends battling the Outer Circle and its newest member, Bucky Barnes.

Kelly, Lanzing and Carnero are the creative team for Captain America: Sentinel of Liberty, which seems to be ending, but the story on Marvel.com does not address the future of its sister title, Captain America: Symbol of Truth. My first thought was, “Is Steve Rogers dying again?” but we know he’s in the upcoming Uncanny Avengers, so I don’t think that’s the case.

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Louise Simonson returns to the X-Men for a Jean Grey miniseries

The four-issue series will tie into the ‘Fall of X’ event.

Louise Simonson, legendary Marvel editor and former writer of X-Factor, will return to a character near and dear to her heart in Jean Grey, a four-issue miniseries with artist Bernard Chang.

The series will launch in August and tie into Fall of X, which Marvel.com describes as a “dark new age of mutantkind” and the potential end of Krakoa. To help save mutantkind, Jean Grey will have to look to her past to save the future, as the series explores different dark events in Jean Grey’s life.

“I loved writing X-Factor and Jean was a pivotal part of those stories, from the escape from her Phoenix-created cocoon to her life and death battle with the Goblin Queen in Inferno. So It’s really exciting to explore Jean’s part in this new mega-adventure,” Simonson said. 

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