Marvel Launching 3 Teen Superhero Comics From ‘Outlawed’ Storyline

For all that superheroes have done for them, it’s surprising just how much the authorities of Marvel’s comic book universe seemingly dislike superheroes. Not only have the X-Men and other mutants been “feared and hated” since their very inception, but the Mutant Registration Act storyline of the 1980s and ‘90s placed them on an official watchlist. In 2006, all superheroes not employed by the federal government were outlawed for a brief period as the result of the original Civil War comic book. In 2020, we’re back to anti-superhero legislation once more with three new launches this spring.

Each of the three titles spins out of the Outlawed special issue released this March, in which “in the wake of a devastating tragedy, the United States passes a law that will shake the Marvel Universe to its core.” That law — known as Kamala’s Law after Kamala Khan, aka Ms. Marvel — prohibits anyone under the age of 21 from being a superhero, setting up a new status quo for three series based around heroes that fall under that age limit.

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All three series are revivals of existing properties. Both Power Pack, by Ryan North and Nico Leon, and New Warriors, by Daniel Kibblesmith and Luciano Vecchio, are five-part miniseries resurrecting concepts from the 1980s; Power Pack initially launched in 1984, with New Warriors following five years later. By contrast, Champions as a concept dates back to just 2016, although the title was initially used by Marvel for an entirely unrelated series in 1975.

The new Champions series, by Eve L. Ewing and Simone Di Meo, is intended as an ongoing series exploring the post-Outlawed landscape and including Ms. Marvel as a central character as she gathers together like-minded teens to work against the system.

Talking to Screen Rant, Ewing — who also wrote the Outlawed special issue — said, “[Editor] Alanna Smith came to me with this story idea last summer. I was so into it and we were just talking about it as a cool series that I would do. But after I started working on the pitch, it became clear that there was interest from other creative teams in picking up the story, and that was humbling and cool.”

All three series launch in April.