Marvel Comics Relaunches Star Wars Series, Set After Empire Strikes Back
Marvel Comics will relaunch its flagship Star Wars series in early 2020. Along with a brand new creative team comes a new time period, as the relaunched series sets out to fill in the gap between The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi.
First revealed by StarWars.com and announced at the LucasBooks publishing panel at New York Comic Con, the new volume of Star Wars will be overseen by writer Charles Soule (Star Wars: Darth Vader, Star Wars: Poe Dameron) and drawn by Jesus Saiz (Swamp Thing), with RB Silva (Powers of X) providing covers.
Star Wars #1 cover by RB Silva. (Image Credit: Marvel/Lucasfilm)
Marvel’s Avengers’ Ms. Marvel: Hands-On With The Newest Hero
There was a taste of superhero fatigue at the Marvel's Avengers unveiling at E3 this year. Here were the Avengers you know, rendered in their gorgeous MCU costumes, and voiced by facsimile versions of Robert Downey Jr., Scarlett Johansson, and Mark Ruffalo. But something was still missing. Could the video game adaptation be the place to tell a story about someone new? Thankfully, Crystal Dynamics has had an ace up its sleeve this whole time. Her name is Kamala Khan.
Revealed at NYCC, Kamala Khan -- who has donned the Ms. Marvel leotard since 2013, and has quickly become one of the most popular characters in Marvel comics -- is the sixth playable character in Marvel's Avengers (out May 15, 2020 for PC, PS4, Xbox One, and Google Stadia). Not only that, but studio head Scot Amos told me that she'll be serving as the story's "protagonist."
Death Stranding, Sekiro, and Bloodborne Are Getting Cool New Action Figures
One of the coolest things about attending comic conventions is seeing freshly unveiled prototypes of as-of-yet unreleased collectibles. This week, at New York Comic Con, Good Smile Company had a handful of prototypes on display that are so new, they haven't even been painted.
The previously-released Bloodborne Hunter Figma action figure is getting a couple friends in the form of Lady Maria of the Astral Clocktower, who comes with an uncomfortable-looking Victorian chair to sit on, and the protagonist of Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice.
But that's not all! If you were lucky enough to grab the stupidly-hard-to-track-down Bloodborne Hunter, his action figure is getting some DLC in the form of a weapon rack from The Old Hunters. Sadly, still no Threaded Cane, Kirkhammer, alternate head wearing a jaunty top hat, or tattered piece of someone's umbilical cord.
Marvel’s Avengers: Ms. Marvel Trailer Has Personality
Following the announcement at New York Comic-Con of Kamala Khan's Ms. Marvel joining Crystal Dynamics' released the first trailer for Ms. Marvel in Marvel's Avengers. You can watch the new trailer in the video above.
During Marvel Games' New York Comic-Con panel, the company released the first trailer for Ms. Marvel which includes her role in the story, and her powers in action. Like in the comics, Kamala is a huge Avengers fan.
She was devastated to learn they broke up following the events of "A-Day" and the death of Captain America. She then discovers she is an Inhuman with the ability to "embiggen" parts of her body like her arms, which she can use to beat up bad guys.
Mezco’s Action Figures Span the Pop Culture Universe
Mezco Toys is one of many collectibles companies showing off an incredible lineup of collectibles at NYCC. Whether you prefer superheroes, horror villains or classic franchises like Popeye and Scooby-Doo, there's something for you at the Mezco booth.
Check out the slideshow below for a closer look at everything Mezco is showing off this week (photos by Scott Collura):
Much of Mezco's NYCC lineup is focused on the ONE:12 Collective line, which features 1:12 scale figures with Hot Toys-style mixed-media outfits and articulation. Among the many cool figures on display are John Wick, Hellboy, Pennywise, Conan the Barbarian, several characters from The Warriors, and a wide range of Marvel and DC characters. One particularly noteworthy DC piece is the Batman: Supreme Knight figure. This Dark Knight Returns-inspired figure caps off a trilogy of figures alongside the Batman: Ascending Knight and Sovereign Knight figures.
Persona 3 and 4 Protagonists are Boss Fights in Persona 5 Royal
Persona 5 Royal will feature special DLC that will see Persona 5's Phantom Thieves facing off against the protagonists from Persona 3 and Persona 4.
As reported by Polygon, the news was revealed during a Japanese Morgana's Report stream and will see these battles taking place in the Velvet Room as Challenge Battles, which are extra tough.
The trailer shows the Persona 4 (Yu!) protagonist with Izanagi and images from the Japanese Persona 5 Royal website show Persona 3's protagonist (Makoto!) using Thanatos.
Ms. Marvel Revealed As Marvel’s Avengers’ Newest Playable Character
Crystal Dynamics announced Ms. Marvel as the sixth playable character for Marvel's Avengers game at the Marvel Games panel at New York Comic-Con on Friday.
Kamala Kahn's Ms. Marvel will be portrayed in the game, and she was teased earlier this summer at San Diego Comic-Con to make some sort of an appearance in Marvel's Avengers.
Sandra Saad was introduced as the voice actor for Kamala Kahn, and came out on stage during the panel to speak about her personal connection to the fictional superhero.
"I'm a first-generation American like Kamala Khan. With that comes a lot of stuff. You grow up not fully being able to relate fully. A lot of teenage angst, because you're not fully accepted anywhere. There's a struggle that comes with that," Saad said.
Iron Man VR Is Coming Out In February
Iron Man VR finally has a release date. Marvel announced during its Mavel Games panel at New York Comic Con that PlayStation's upcoming Iron Man sim will be released on February 28. 2020. You can watch the new story trailer in the video above.
During a New York Comic Con panel, Marvel finally shared some more details about developer Camouflage's upcoming Iron Man VR game for PSVR. Iron Man VR was first announced earlier this year, but Marvel finally revealed a February 2020 release date. The company also shared the first story trailer for the game as Iron Man VR will have an original story unique to the VR game.
Pokemon’s Original Ash Ketchum Answers 8 Big Fan Questions
It's been over two decades since the Pokemon animated series debuted in Japan and was syndicated around the world, notably making a splash in the United States. Ash's adventures with Pikachu, Brock and Misty left such an indelible impact on our pop culture that it became global news when Ash finally became a Pokemon League Champion earlier this year.
Veronica Taylor, who voiced Ash Ketchum in the English dub for its first eight seasons, held a panel at New York Comic Con where she answered fans' biggest questions for an hour -- many of which have remained a mystery on the series for its 22 years of existence. Read below for her best (and funniest) answers to these age-old Pokemon questions.
Kotobukiya Brings Marvel, Star Wars and My Hero Academia to NYCC
Kotobukiya is among many collectibles companies showing off a wide range of new products at NYCC this week. Koto's lineup covers franchises like Marvel, DC, Star Wars and My Hero Academia.
Check out the slideshow gallery below for a closer look at Kotobukiya's NYCC display (photos by Scott Collura):
Currently, the display doesn't reveal much that wasn't already shown at San Diego Comic Con in July, though we're hoping to see a few new reveals during the course of the con.
Koto's new Avengers ArtFX Premier line continues to impress, featuring 1:10 scale statues with incredible levels of detail and texture and costumes inspired by Marvel's current Avengers comic. We're also taken with the massive new Venom ArtFX statue, featuring Spider-Man's nemesis swinging across the New York skyline.