A year since Marvel re-launched a number of their titles under the Marvel NOW! banner, the second wave of titles have been announced called All-New Marvel NOW!,
USA Today reports. Marvel NOW! was conceived as a jumping on point for new readers wanting to get into Marvel comics with a host of brand new first issues for popular titles. Many of the re-launched series featured the company's most famous characters including Spider-man, Hulk, The Avengers and The X-Men, but also included lesser-known characters like Nova and the Guardians of the Galaxy. The idea was to make readers aware of the range of characters Marvel's back catalogue contains.
"Our catalog rolls deep," says Marvel Editor in chief Axel Alonso, "and it's giving people fresh, new voices, breathing new life into characters that quite frankly just deserve their own spotlight."
The titles have proven so popular with readers that Marvel have followed up their success with a second wave of re-launched titles to include Black Widow, Silver Surfer, the Inhumans, and All-New Invaders. The second wave begins in December with Avengers #24NOW, a new Avengers story arc by Jonathan Hickman followed by Matt Fraction's Inhumans and James Robinson's All-New Invaders in January with new titles being released until April. Also, certain NOW series will come with a digital code for the first collection of issues allowing new readers to catch up on the stories before getting into the new story arcs. Marvel Executive Editor Tom Brevoort said:
"If you haven't been reading Hulk or Captain America or Thor, here's a spot where you can start cleanly and get on board,"
The Inhumans are currently featured in Marvel's latest Event, Infinity, who will then star in their own series written by Hawkeye writer Matt Fraction and artist Joe Madureira.
"There is something alien in the Inhumans, something other, something not from around here," says Fraction, adding that it's "the secret kingdom stuff, the weird powers, the mixture of science fiction and pure fantasy that makes up their history" that makes them so cool. "You can tell the mark of a quality human being by their enjoyment of the Inhumans. Like being a Velvet Underground fan."
With the previously little-known Guardians of the Galaxy proving to be an enormous hit with readers this year, Marvel is hoping for a repeat with Inhumans and All-New Invaders. Marvel Editor-in-Chief Axel Alonso said:
"My favorite thing is showing people why those characters that aren't necessarily household names like the Falcon and Silver Surfer should be, and why they're every bit as vital to the Marvel mythology as Spider-Man and the Avengers."