Summary
Warning: contains spoilers for Timeless (2023) #1Every year Marvel releases a new Timeless one-shot, and this year’s Timeless (2023) #1 reveals an exciting vision of Marvel’s future for the coming year, teasing that the gorgeous characters created for the New Champions Variant Cover series are officially becoming canon. The New Champions Variant Cover series unveiled stunning sidekicks for 22 different Marvel heroes, giving these iconic heroes epic new legacy characters.
While Marvel hinted that the New Champions covers could be a “glimpse into the future of the Marvel Universe,” it wasn’t until Peach Momoko revealed that her New Champion Maystorm will star in Ultimate X-Men alongside Armor that it was clear some of the New Champions would become canon.
Timeless (2023) #1 sees a centuries-old Luke Cage fighting against an all-powerful Immortal Moon Knight, when he gets visions of Marvel’s “past,” revealing a team of New Champions running into battle, confirming a handful of them will enter the main Earth-616 universe.
The New Champions Started As A Gorgeous Series Of Variant Covers
The New Champions Variant Cover series was an opportunity for some of Marvel’s most talented artists to design creative new sidekicks for a variety of Marvel heroes. Fan favorite designs included an iconic all-pink female Magneto sidekick, a roller skating high-tech Ghost Rider, and a magical female Black Panther, and now these gorgeous designs are coming to life, and joining the Marvel Universe. While Marvel’s annual Timeless almost always comes true, it doesn’t mean what they show is exactly what it seems, meaning fans will need to wait for the New Champions to appear to know how they will engage with Earth-616.
While there is a chance that these New Champions could forge a new version of Earth-616’s beloved Champions team – founded by Ms. Marvel, Nova, and Miles Morales – there is no guarantee that is how they will be introduced. The foreshadowing vision in Timeless shows some of the New Champions alongside the new “forgotten” Spider-Man sidekick Spider-Boy, hinting that the young heroes may be forgotten contemporaries of Bailey Briggs, returning to Earth-616 just like he did. Regardless, it is incredibly exciting to see a vision of the New Champions in Timeless, and it must be a blast for these character’s creators to see them coming to life in the Marvel Universe.
The First Canon New Champion Is Ultimate X-Men’s Maystorm
The first hint fans got that Marvel’s New Champions would be transported throughout the Marvel Universe was in the teaser for Peach Momoko’s upcoming Ultimate X-Men series, which revealed that Maystorm would be a major protagonist alongside main character Armor. Maystorm, a young hero inspired by the X-Men’s Storm, appears to be an incredibly powerful mutant high schooler, with Storm’s power of weather – or lightning – manipulation. Maystorm’s starring role in Marvel’s new Ultimate Universe proves that while the New Champions may become canon, they won’t necessarily be on Earth-616.
Whether these brilliantly designed New Champions end up being “forgotten sidekicks” of Earth-616 heroes or heroes from an alternate reality, they will surely make a big splash when they debut on panel. The New Champions Variant Cover series created inspiring and exciting sidekicks for some of Marvel’s most beloved heroes, and their upcoming appearance in Marvel Comics will hopefully make them permanently canon, allowing creators to use the creative heroes in future projects.
Timeless (2023) #1 from Marvel Comics is available now in stores.
Marvel’s New Champions are now officially canon! Read More