Marvel Mangaverse Celebrating 25th Anniversary with 5 New One-Shots Coming Later This Year

A quarter of a century ago, Marvel Comics launched the Marvel Mangaverse (Earth-2301 for those keeping track at home), and now the Disney-owned publishing company is celebrating that 25th anniversary with a series of one-shots starring Manga-inspired variants of some very famous superheroes.

What's happening:

• The Marvel Mangaverse will be celebrating its 25th anniversary this September with the release of five total weekly one-shots, all edited by Lauren Amaro (Marvel Tōkon: First Strike).
• The stories will be bookended by Marvel Mangaverse: Web of Blood #1 (release date 9/2) and Marvel Mangaverse: Web of Destiny #1 (9/30) by writers Joe & Jack Kelly (The Amazing Spider-Man) with artist Kenny Ruiz (Team Phoenix) and covers by Yuji Kaku (Marvel Rivals: Ignite).
• The three other titles in the series will include Marvel Mangaverse: Iron Knight #1 (9/9) by writer Cody Ziglar (Miles Morales: Spider-Man - Brooklyn's Finest) and artist Kei Zama (Spider-Gwen: Shadow Clones), Marvel Mangaverse: Arcane Avengers by writer Ashley Allen (Tomb of Apocalypse) and artist Mirka Andolfo (Uncle Scrooge: Earth's Mightiest Duck), and Marvel Mangaverse: Ghostlocke #1 (9/23) by writer Alyssa Wong (Star Wars: Boba Fett - Black, White & Red) and artist Michael Yg (Jubilee: Deadly Reunion).

What they're saying:

• Jack Kelly: "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."
• Joe Kelly: "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."
• Kenny Ruiz: "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. 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."
• Lauren Amaro: "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. 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."
• Yuki Kaku: "It is a true honor to draw so many Marvel characters that I grew up reading. I challenged myself to merge Western comic and Japanese manga styles by capturing the core essence of both. It was a rigorous task, but incredibly exciting. I hope you all enjoy my designs!"

• Below are three new promo images released for the Marvel Mangaverse 25th anniversary, featuring the characters of Weapon X-Tremis (Laura Kinney), Legion (Illyana Rasputin), and Spider-Man (Miles Morales).

More Marvel Comics News:

• Acclaimed comic book colorist Paul Becton sadly passed away this week.
• The new symbiote vigilante Comeback returns in The Amazing Venom miniseries this fall.
• Check out Hasbro's latest Marvel Legends action figure announcements, including several inspired by Marvel Comics.