25 years ago, a fresh-faced young buck named C.B. Cebulski got his start at Marvel Comics working as a consultant on Marvel’s Mangaverse line of books. Now, he’s Editor-in-Chief of the company, and the Mangaverse is back with a weekly event this September bringing back some classic properties and featuring a bookend story by Joe Kelly and his son, Jack Kelly, alongside Kenny Ruiz who isn’t related to either of them.
“Every week my dad and I talk for hours about everything that’s happening in our favorite comics and manga, so being asked to do this for Marvel has been an honor,” said Jack Kelly via press release.
Added his dad, “When Lauren and Mark came to me with the Mangaverse project and specifically offered the opportunity to co-write it with Jack, it was an immediate yes. This project is a love letter to manga and anime via the Marvel Mangaverse, brought to stunning life by artist Kenny Ruiz.”
The books the Kellys are working on are titled Web of Blood and Web of Destiny, which imagines “what if the Mangaverse had been continuously published for 25 years, instead of for two years and then a brief revival/conclusion in 2006?” In the books, Mile Morales, Laure Kinney and Illyana Rasputin — code-named Spider-Man, Weapon X-Tremis and Legion, respectively — are trying to stop the return of the Phoenix, which could bring about the end of the world.
“My job is to live up to what Joe and Jack Kelly and Yuji Kaku Sensei have created, like a poor shonen hero clearly overwhelmed by the challenge,” added Ruiz. “But if you live and breathe manga like I do, you know what to do in those situations: grit your teeth, sacrifice everything, and give it your all. I can’t tell you anything yet, but I can’t stop drawing. This new era of the Mangaverse is demanding everything we have to give—and damn it, we’re not backing down.”
Other than the bookends, Cody Ziglar and Kei Zama will take on Riri Williams, who “protects the streets as Ironheart using a mana-powered suit of armor. After losing a close friend, Riri finds herself traveling down a dangerous path of vengeance alongside the legendary sorcerer known as Moon Knight in MARVEL MANGAVERSE: IRON KNIGHT #1, a shonen-inspired and action-packed one-shot, available September 9.”
Then Ashley Allen and Mirka Andolfo tackle the Avengers, “a reluctant group of sorcerers led by Bucky Barnes, the Winter Soldier. Cursed to defeat and imprison demonic yokai alongside teammates Bloodline and Wiccan, Bucky looks for opportunity to free himself and finally be free from his captor’s control. As a new wave of yokai incursion stretches the team’s resources, Bucky plots his escape, but the sudden reappearance of his former childhood friend, Hawkeye, throws all his plans into disarray in MARVEL MANGAVERSE: ARCANE AVENGERS #1, on sale September 16.”
Finally, Alyssa Wong and Michael YG are pitting Carnage versus Ghostlocke (aka Kwannon with a Shingami bike) in Marvel Mangaverse: Ghostlocke #1 on September 23.
“Every single creator contributing to this celebration are huge manga fans themselves, and many have either come from international manga backgrounds, or have been heavily influenced by manga in their own creative journeys,” added editor Lauren Amaro. “Of course, none of this could exist without the source material that has inspired our creators, so when it came time to cast the main covers, the first person to come to mind was acclaimed mangaka, Yuji Kaku Sensei, who I’ve had the pleasure of working with on Phases of the Moon Knight. Kaku Sensei collaborated with the writers by taking their initial story pitches and character descriptions and creating an absolutely amazing set of covers, setting the tone for each character’s design and helping to modernize Marvel Mangaverse as we return to it 25 years after its debut.”
Check out the covers, premieres dates, and synopsis below.
RETURN TO THE MANGAVERSE – JUST IN TIME TO SEE IT END?!
25 years have passed since our last visit to the Mangaverse and in MARVEL MANGAVERSE: WEB OF BLOOD #1, we discover a world where technology no longer works and magic reigns supreme, where a looming apocalypse threatens to end the world in a sea of flames. That is, unless Miles Morales, Laura Kinney and Illyana Rasputin have something to say about it! But as each attempt to stave off armageddon leads each further down the road of forbidden magic, these friends turned enemies must confront the question of whether their choices really will save the world – or doom it entirely!
MARVEL MANGAVERSE: WEB OF BLOOD #1
Written by JOE KELLY & JACK KELLY
Art by KENNY RUIZ
Cover by YUJI KAKU
On Sale 9/2
MARVEL MANGAVERSE: IRON KNIGHT #1
Written by CODY ZIGLAR
Art by KEI ZAMA
Cover by YUJI KAKU
On Sale 9/9
MARVEL MANGAVERSE: ARCANE AVENGERS #1
Written by ASHLEY ALLEN
Art by MIRKA ANDOLFO
Cover by YUJI KAKU
On Sale 9/16
MARVEL MANGAVERSE: GHOSTLOCKE #1
Written by ALYSSA WONG
Art by MICHAEL YG
Cover by YUJI KAKU
On Sale 9/23
MARVEL MANGAVERSE: WEB OF DESTINY #1
Written by JOE KELLY & JACK KELLY
Art by KENNY RUIZ
Cover by YUJI KAKU
On Sale 9/30
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