Hero Initiative will bring ‘JLA/Avengers’ back into print

Marvel and DC’s biggest and arguably best crossover event returns to print next month in honor of artist George Perez.

JLA/Avengers, arguably one of the greatest comics crossover events ever and, hell, probably a contender for one of the greatest Avengers AND Justice League stories of all time, will find its way back into print later this year thanks to the Hero Initiative.

The organization announced a special limited-edition reprint collecting the stellar miniseries by Kurt Busiek and George Perez, with the intent to honor “one of George Pérez seminal bodies of work and his long-time support of Hero.” Perez is a founding member of their board of directors and has served as chair of its Disbursement Committee, and this of course follows the news from last year that the legendary artist was diagnosed with Stage 3 Pancreatic Cancer.

JLA/Avengers walked a long and winding road to publication, with many speed bumps and false starts along the way.

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‘Thunderbolts’ returns in May from Zub + Izaakse

Jim Zub and Sean Izaakse bring together Hawkeye, Spectrum, America Chavez and more for a new take on the classic team.

A new iteration of Marvel’s Thunderbolts will strike in May, courtesy of writer Jim Zub and artist Sean Izaakse.

The new team springs from the events occurring in Devil’s Reign, the event series featuring New York’s heroes running up against former-crime-boss-turned-mayor Wilson Fisk, aka the Kingpin. In that series, the Kingpin has enlisted his own team of villains to serve as his law-enforcing Thunderbolts, but this new team is another animal completely. While previous Thunderbolts titles have featured, for the most part, villains seeking redemption, this new team is heavy on the heroes.

“My elevator pitch for this series was essentially ‘Ted Lasso by way of the Avengers,'” Zub said in an email. “I wanted to craft a story that was full of heart and interpersonal struggles and I’m incredibly proud of how it’s all coming together. I’ve built a reputation for writing team dynamics well and this book has already been one of the most enjoyable experiences I’ve had doing just that.”

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Mail Call | Say hello to the New (Old) Fantastic Four

Check out news and announcements from Marvel, IDW, AfterShock, Drawn and Quarterly, and more.

Mail Call is a roundup of cool things we’ve received in our mailboxes from comics creators, publishers and more. Hit the links for more information.

Back in the early 1990s Wolverine, Spider-Man, Ghost Rider and Hulk had a brief team-up in the pages of Fantastic Four while the actual Fantastic Four were out of town. It was a fun story by Walt Simonson and Art Adams that only last a few issues. But now Marvel will revisit that team — and time period — in The New Fantastic Four, a limited series by Peter David and Alan Robinson.

“Although their original stint was extremely short-lived, the alternate version of the FF has had its fans for years, including myself,” David said. “I am fortunate Marvel has given me the opportunity to revisit with them and take their battles to new heights in a new location with new allies and new enemies.” 

Like Maestro and X-Men Legends, this story takes place in the past, shortly after the quartet’s first appearance.

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‘Only the Savage will survive’ in Pepose + Magno’s ‘Savage Avengers’

A new team led by Conan the Barbarian takes on an evil Deathlok in the series, which debuts in May.

The Savage Avengers will return in May with an eclectic line-up and a new creative team, as David Pepose and Carlos Magno pit Conan and a new team of “loners, berserkers and killers” against an evil Deathlok cyborg.

Joining Conan on this time trek are Anti-Venom, Black Knight, Cloak & Dagger, Weapon H and Daredevil — aka the assassin formerly known as Elektra.

Pepose, whose credits include Scout’s Honor, Going to the Chapel and The O.Z., makes his Marvel debut on the title.

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Judgment Day, Hellfire Gala + Bloodline headline Marvel’s ‘Free Comic Book Day: Avengers/X-Men’

Kieron Gillen, Dustin Weaver, Danny Lore, Gerry Duggan and more contribute to the title, which arrives for free on May 7.

Marvel has released more details on their third Free Comic Book Day title for 2022, Avengers/X-Men, which will feature three stories.

As announced earlier today, the first one will preview the Judgment Day event, in a prelude story by writer Kieron Gillen and artist Dustin Weaver (who drew the preview artwork accompanying the announcement.) The event will feature the Avengers trying to avert a war between the Eternals and the X-Men.

The second story, by Gerry Duggan and artist Matteo Lolli, will serve as the lead-in to this year’s Hellfire Gala. a storyline that’ll take place this summer. Last year’s gala brought a new team of X-Men, the mutant takeover of Mars and the death of the Scarlet Witch — so who knows what will happen this year. Quicksilver, watch your back …

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Marvel officially announces the event series ‘Judgment Day’

Kieron Gillen and Valerio Schiti will bring together the X-Men, Avengers and Eternals for a symphony of destruction.

Marvel will bring together the X-Men, the Eternals and the Avengers for Judgment Day, a crossover series coming this summer from Kieron Gillen and Valerio Schiti.

The story will revolve around conflict between the Eternals and the X-Men, as the latter target Krakoa and the Avengers try to play peacekeeper. With Gillen already writing Eternals and Immortal X-Men on deck, it makes sense that he’d bring them together — and write his first event series for Marvel.

“There’s a classic metaphor to describe the Marvel Universe – a toybox, which creators take toys out of, play with and put back. I get it, but it’s never quite how I’ve seen it – I think ‘play’ in another way. I think of a music shop, with all these instruments with their different qualities suggesting different songs, different stories,” Gillen said. “For all the Marvel instruments I’ve played, I’ve never written an event. Writing an event is something different. It’s not like playing an instrument. It’s having all the instruments in the Marvel music shop. That’s not like writing a song. That’s like writing a symphony.”

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Marvel will preview Wells/Romita Jr.’s ‘Amazing Spider-Man’ on Free Comic Book Day

Following the release of a new ‘Amazing Spider-Man’ #1 in April, Marvel will showcase the new creative team’s work with a free issue in May.

Marvel has announced more details and revealed covers for two of their three Free Comic Book Day titles for 2022.

Last year’s Spider-Man/Venom FCBD title previewed the “Beyond” era of Amazing Spider-Man, where Ben Reilly and the Beyond Corporation took over the Spider-Man name from Peter Parker and Marvel re-introduced a “writer’s room” approach to the comic. With the Beyond era wrapping up soon, Zeb Wells — one of several writers currently writing the title — will team with the legendary John Romita Jr. for a relaunch of Amazing Spider-Man. And Marvel will offer a preview of their run in this year’s Spider-Man/Venom FCBD title.

In addition, like last year, Marvel will preview the work Al Ewing, Ram V and Bryan Hitch are doing on Venom. Here’s a look at the main cover by Romita Jr. and the variant cover for the FCBD issue by Jonboy Meyers. Is this the first time we’ve seen a variant cover on a Free Comic Book Day title? I can’t recall that being a thing before.

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‘Devil’s Reign Omega’ paves the way for a new ‘Daredevil’ series in June

Chip Zdarsky and Marco Checchetto will continue to tell stories about Matt Murdock and Elektra after the event series ends.

Chip Zdarsky and Marco Checchetto will continue their epic run on Daredevil following the end of Devil’s Reign, as both Matt Murdock and Elektra will star in a new title that promises “the darkest Hell’s Kitchen to date.”

Marvel gave the Daredevil comic a break as the two creators turned their attention to Devil’s Reign, the current event series featuring Mayor Kingpin trying to ban, blackmail and arrest all New York City superheroes. But following the end of the big event, Daredevil will be back in June with a new first issue.

“This is the start of our fourth year on the title! And the plan for it is about as big a swing as we could possibly take,” Zdarsky told Marvel.com. “I’m super excited for readers to see where we’re taking our Daredevils!”

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‘X-Men Red’ will focus on Mars’ mutants

Al Ewing and Stefano Caselli head off-world for more merry Marvel mutant adventures on Planet Arakko.

Al Ewing and Stefano Caselli, who worked together on Marvel’s space-themed X-Men title S.W.O.R.D., are going off planet again for X-Men Red, a Destiny of X title that’ll focus on all those mutants up on Mars, aka Planet Arakko.

“Mutantkind terraformed Mars, bringing a dead world back to life and changing the Marvel Universe forever,” Ewing said. “Mars is now Planet Arakko, home to an ancient mutant society that spent thousands of years facing war, imprisonment and pain – and home to Storm, who won a place of power on their ruling council. Now Arakko has a chance to find peace at last and forge their own path to the future… but there are those who’d rather see them fenced in and subjugated. Does Mars really need X-Men to save it – or can the mutants of Arakko fight for themselves? Storm’s not the only one who’s asking… and the answers are in X-Men Red.”

Russell Dauterman will provide covers and designed Storm’s new outfit:

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Mail Call | Doctor Strange journeys to the ‘Nexus of Nightmares’ in April

Check out news and updates from Marvel, DC, Image, Jeff Lemire, Brian Michael Bendis and more.

Mail Call is a roundup of cool things we’ve received in our mailboxes from comics creators, publishers and more. Hit the links for more information.

Although Doctor Strange might currently be dead in the Marvel Universe, Marvel still has stories to tell about Stephen Strange’s past. April brings not only rain this year, but also Doctor Strange: Nexus of Nightmares, by Marvel veteran Ralph Macchio and artist Ibrahim Mostafa.

The one-shot will feature the Sorcerer Supreme taking on Nightmare and Baron Mordo, as they attempt to use Strange’s own nightmares against him. The one-shot comes out April 20, with a cover by Todd Nauck.

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Wolverine gets a fun new partner for ‘Destiny of X’

Following ‘X Lives of Wolverine/X Deaths of Wolverine,” Benjamin Percy and Adam Kubert will bring together Deadpool and Wolverine for a wild team-up.

Following the events of X Lives of Wolverine/X Deaths of Wolverine, which kicks off later this month, Benjamin Percy and Adam Kubert will continue as the creative team on Wolverine as the Canadian mutant picks up a new partner — Deadpool.

The team-up kicks off in April’s Wolverine #20, which returns after a brief hiatus due to the X Lives/X Deaths miniseries and is part of the Destiny of X line-up.

“For 10 weeks, the X Lives of Wolverine/X Deaths of Wolverine will take readers on an epic, time-shredding adventure that sets up the next era of the mutant books: Destiny of X. How do you follow up something like that? You keep raising the bar higher. Readers will not only experience a non-stop thrill ride, starting in April, but a kickoff story that is as irreverent and hilarious as it is heart-bruised,” Percy told Marvel.com. “We’ve been teasing Deadpool for some time now, and he’s bullying his way into the pages of Wolverine for a wild (and reluctant) team-up that feels like some cousin to Midnight Run and The Fugitive. Get ready for more Maverick mayhem, more CIA spycraft, and more DANGER (yes, you read that right) at every turn.”

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Spurrier + Bazaldua assemble ‘Legion of X’

The new series, which is part of the ‘Destiny of X’ line-up, debuts in April.

Following the initial announcement of Destiny of X last month and the subsequent news on the creative teams for Marauders and Immortal X-Men, Marvel today shared more details on Legion of X, which will debut in April.

The title spins out of the storylines started in last year’s Way of X and is written by Way of X writer Si Spurrier and drawn by Jan Bazaldua (Winter Guard). They’ll focus on a group of mutants dedicated to bringing “peace, love and justice to Krakoa,” including Legion, Nightcrawler, Pixie and more.

“I’ve wanted to do a precinct-style ensemble story since I first read House of X. For the first time, the Marvel Universe has this densely packed, beautiful (and beautifully volatile) population of superhumans, out in the open, all in one place. It needs peacekeepers, sure… but it’s a mistake to think of them as simply cops. You don’t get far in Krakoa if the limit of your imagination is beating people up or reaching for a gun. Mutant civilization needs those who think differently,” Spurrier told Marvel.com. “That’s where Nightcrawler, Legion, Pixie and Juggernaut come in — along with a rotating cast of your favorite mutants and non-mutants. And a couple of new faces you’re going to want to watch very, very closely…”

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