(Image Source: Marvel / Paco Medina)
Marvel Comics built their brand on young superheroes. At a time when their distinguished competitor only featured teen heroes as sidekicks, Spider-Man was saving people on his own. That tradition continues in the House of Ideas’ latest superhero team book, New Champions.
Written by Steve Foxe, with art by Ig Guara, New Champions #1 starts by reintroducing Liberty, Cadet Marvel, Moon Squire, and Hellrune. First introduced in the pages of Spider-Woman, the four teen heroes were originally part of a team called The Assembly. However, after learning they had been assembled as part of a HYDRA plot, they went off on their own. As this issue opens, their team has already adopted their new name. However, their ranks are far from full, and more young heroes are on the way.
The main cover and first five pages of New Champions #1 may be viewed below.
(Image Source: Marvel Comics / Gleb Melnikov)
(Image Source: Marvel / Ig Guara)
What separates New Champions from earlier young hero teams
(Image Source: Marvel / Federico Vicentini)
As noted, Marvel has a long tradition of teen heroes. From Peter Parker and Kitty Pryde, to Miles Morales and Kamala Khan, the publisher is famed appealing to young readers. What marks New Champions as notable, however, is the redemption theme and most of its members seeking to separate themselves from a bad past.
“I’ve been dying to write a teen hero team my whole career,” explained Foxe. “It’s the time in everyone’s life when we’re figuring out who we really are. And adding Norse magic or jet-powered punches or accidental hell portals to that search for identity is a recipe for storytelling gold.”
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“What really excites me about this project is the opportunity to bring fresh faces into the Marvel Universe, and explore something completely new,” agreed Guara. “These young heroes have their own stories to tell, and I’m looking forward to seeing how they’ll grow and evolve visually as the series unfolds. I hope readers will enjoy reading our pages as much as I will enjoy illustrating them!”
New Champions #1 arrives in comic shops everywhere on January 8, 2025.
