The comics of Comic-Con, Part 2: Marvel really likes events

With all of the TV and movie news coming out of Comic-Con, it's easy to miss the flurry of comic book news that happens under the same roof. Be sure to read Part 1, which covered preview night and Day 1 of the convention. Part 2 is all about Marvel, simply because the publisher made a deluge of announcements spread across all four days of the convention.  

Marvel has several events on the horizon, and accompanying each of those big stories is a dizzying amount of new titles, both ongoing and limited. For the most part, there are three big ones this fall: Spider-Verse, The Death of Wolverine, and Avengers NOW. These events have been in the making for some time now, but there was one very big surprise.

Spider-Verse

This November's Spider-Verse event promises to feature "every Spider-Man ever," and as such we'll be seeing a number of new titles where some of those Spider-Men (and Women) will be featured. New books include Spider-Verse Team-Up, a three-issue limited series by writer Christos Gage and various artists that will feature a number of Spideys working together, spinning out of the events of the main Spider-Verse series.

Also tying into Spider-Verse is Scarlet Spiders, by Mike Costa and Paco Diaz. The limited series will focus on Spider-Clones Kaine, Ben Reilly, and Ultimate Universe Jessica Drew as they embark on a special mission to save reality.

New ongoing series Spider-Woman, by Dennis Hopeless and Greg Land, will also tie into the big Spidey extravaganza, at least initially. It'll feature Jessica Drew in the lead, with some support from other Spider-Women like Anya Corazon and the recently introduced Silk. For those fatigued by the prospect of so much Spider-Verse (there's also the previously announced, actually-kind-of-interesting Edge of Spider-Verse miniseries), it'll be interesting to see where Hopeless and Land will take Jessica Drew once the big Spider-Event is over.

Everything Avengers-related

With the recently announced shakeups on the way for Marvel's flagship team, there are surprisingly few changes being made to the Avengers lineup of books.

In addition to succeeding Steve Rogers in All-New Captain America, newly appointed Captain America Sam Wilson will be taking the lead in Al Ewing and Luke Ross' Captain America and the Mighty Avengers. The book will be a relaunch of Ewing's Mighty Avengers run, and will continue the story of Marvel's most diverse Avengers lineup. For a bit on what to expect, check out Ewing's interview with Comics Alliance.

Also announced was Angela: Asgard's Assassin, by the writing team of Marguerite Bennet and Kieron Gillen with art by Stephanie Hans and Phil Jimenez. It's a great creative team for a character whose creation has a far more complex history than the actual stories she's appeared in. (For the uninitiated: Angela was created by Todd McFarlane and Neil Gaiman in 1993 for McFarlane's Spawn over at Image. For 20 years the character's ownership was disputed, until a settlement was reached in 2012. Gaiman then brought Angela over to Marvel Comics in March 2013.) The new series will focus on defining Angela's place in the Marvel Universe, which co-writer Kieron Gillen describes as "Asgardian Black Widow."

Also Avengers-related: the characters from the ABC television series Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.  will be getting their own comic book. Simply titled S.H.I.E.L.D., the book will be written by Mark Waid with a rotating team of artists.

Death of Wolverine

A quick recap: Wolverine is dying this September in a weekly, four-issue limited series by Charles Soule. That series will be followed up by Death of Wolverine: The Logan Legacy, a seven-issue, three-month limited series by a wide range of creators examining the fallout of the character's death.

At Comic-Con, Marvel announced a third limited series spinning out of Death of Wolverine. Death of Wolverine: The Weapon X Program, by Charles Soule and Salvador Larrocca, is a five-issue limited series that will focus on the program that turned the late (for now) hero into a living weapon. Writer Charles Soule views The Weapon X Program as part of a 12-part series with The Logan Legacy, together forming one big story about the aftermath of Wolverine's death.

Wolverine is going to be dying for a very long time, folks.

Star Wars

But Marvel's biggest surprise had nothing to do with superheroes. While it's been known since January that the Star Wars license would be moving from Dark Horse Comics to Marvel in 2015, Marvel's plans for the license remained unknown. No longer. Marvel announced three Star Wars titles at Comic-Con, each paired with some of the most acclaimed creators working with Marvel right now.

Star Wars, by Jason Aaron and John Cassaday, will tell stories set between A New Hope and Empire Strikes Back, from the heroes' perspective. Set during the same period is Star Wars: Darth Vader by Kieron Gillen and Salvador Larocca. Gillen's series will focus on Vader's growth from the man who got beaten at the end of A New Hope to the unstoppable force of Empire Strikes Back.

Finally, Star Wars: Princess Leia by Mark Waid and Terry Dodson will be a five-issue limited series that will more fully explore the character's personal journey in the aftermath of her home world's destruction in A New Hope.

Coming up: A roundup of several other notable publisher's big announcements.