Marvel’s The latest, greatest super team, The New Champions, is set to debut early next year – but who exactly are these young heroes, and what will they have to do to earn their place in the Marvel Universe? The series promises to add an impressive line-up of fledgling characters to the publisher’s burgeoning list of next-gen superstars.
New champions #1 will Giving readers the chance to learn more about Liberty, Hellrune, Cadet Marvel and Moon Squire, introduced in an issue of Spider-Woman from earlier this year. Additionally, these characters will be joined by some surprising additional allies – making for an eclectic mix of powers and personalities on the debut roster.
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New Champions #1 (2025) |
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Release date: |
January 8, 2025 |
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writer: |
Steve Fox |
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Artist: |
Ivan Fiorelli; Ig Guara |
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Cover artist: |
Gleb Melnikov |
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Variant covers: |
Paco Medina; Lucciano Vecchio; Federico Vincenti |
While most of the New Champions names are designed to echo classic Marvel counterparts, each of them guarantees to put a new spin on familiar designs and concepts.
Marvel’s latest superteam is about to debut – the new Champions Origins, explained
The “New Champions Variant Covers” series
The character designs featured in New champions have a novel beginning; They first appeared in a series of variant covers, inspired by the success of Spider-Boy, a character introduced as Spider-Man’s “forgotten” sidekick. Marvel tasked its best current artists to Coming up with alternate reality psychics for Marvel’s most popular characters, with the hopes that they would one day enter the Marvel Universe as full-fledged characters. Now, the long-term strategy has paid off, with the debut of a series dedicated to the exciting new heroes.
Series writer Steve Fox had this to say about the team’s origins and the development of their own ongoing series:
As soon as I saw the New Champions variants, my mind started racing with possible origins and powers and codenames for these imagined psychics. Reverse engineering the cast of the covers was unlike any other creative process I’ve ever been involved in, and I’m absolutely stoked to debut a whole new class of Marvel heroes (and a few villains!) in new champions alongside Ivan Fiorelli , which makes each of the new additions feel like they were part of the fabric of the universe.
Fox had previously introduced four of his own New champions Protagonist in this year’s Spider-Woman #7 As “The Assembly,” four superpowered kids are kidnapped and brainwashed into doing Hydra’s bidding. The team stayed together to fight Hydra at the end of this issue, and the new series will be the next step in their journey to be the main Marvel heroes. A big part of what makes them exciting additions to Marvel Comics comes from their character designs and their power sets.
Who are the assembly? New Marvel Heroes Origins and Powers, Explained
First appearance: Spider-Woman #7 – Written by Steve Fox; Art by IG Guara; Color by Arif Prianto; Lettering by Joe Sabino
As shown in Spider-Man #7, Liberty has lightweight wings that allow her to fly, as well as shield against projectiles. She also has an arsenal of hard-light technologies, including a hard-light tracker and light-refracting cloaking devices. Cadet Marvel, meanwhile, has a glowing fist that’s backed up with super strength, a combination he calls a “jet punch.” Hellrune is teased to be an important part of bringing the New Champions together; According to Hydra, a flock of ravens descended on her and gave her powers.
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Helrune is able to control lightning, as well as the ravens, who can transform into different objects, And help her fly. She can also teleport herself and those around her, which could be what brings the New Champions together at the start of the team’s upcoming series. Finally, Moon Squire is able to take light and turn it into crescent darts. His powers apparently come from coming into contact with an Egyptian patron after finding forbidden, ancient texts on the Internet.
Who else is joining the new champions? Explore the mystery heroes of the series
Marvel promises a rapidly expanding list
In addition to the assembly, The New Champions will gain additional allies over the course of the series’ early arcs – Some of them were teased by the synopsis for the first issue. The team will also feature Fantasma, aka Isabella Alvarez, a Brazilian roller skating Ghost Rider; Amaranth, the Scarlet Witch’s current apprentice; and a mysterious runaway from Wakanda. Readers can learn more about the first two letters at Ghost Rider: Robbie Reyes Special #1 and the current Scarlet Witch ongoing series, while the latter remains a complete mystery at this time.
All in all, artist Ivan Fiorelli best summed up the appeal of New championsWith his comments about the series:
I’m really looking forward to diving into New Champions! What really excites me about this project is the opportunity to bring fresh faces into the Marvel Universe and explore something completely new. These young heroes have their own stories, and I look forward to seeing how they will grow and evolve visually as the series unfolds. I hope readers will enjoy reading our pages as much as I will enjoy illustrating them!
Introducing new characters to the Marvel Universe is always a great honor for creators, and the appearance of fresh-faced heroes is always a reason for excitement among the fandom. New champions is no exception; In fact, the series represents one of the most expansive injections of new blood into Marvel’s hero community in years, and the debut issue of the series early next year will set a great precedent for another ambitious year in Wonder.
New champions #1 Will be available January 8, 2025 from Marvel Comics.