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Launching June 11, New Avengers is Marvel’s latest high-stakes team book — but don’t expect classic heroes and clean-cut teamwork. The series, written by Sam Humphries and with art by Ton Lima, features a volatile lineup of loners and antiheroes: Carnage, Hulk, Namor, Clea, and Wolverine. Brought together by Bucky Barnes and Black Widow, they’re tasked with taking down deranged duplicates of the Illuminati called the Killuminati. What could possibly go wrong?
Plenty, according to Humphries — and that’s exactly the point.
“These are all characters that… it’s gonna be so difficult for them to even be in the same room together without beating the s*** out of each other,” Humphries told me recently over Zoom. “You walk into a room and see all these characters together? You turn around and walk right out.”
For the full interview don’t miss the AIPT Comics podcast on Sunday, June 8!
Not Your Typical Avengers
Originally teased as New Thunderbolts*, New Avengers underwent a rare mid-announcement title change. So, then, is it all a tie-in with the MCU’s Thunderbolts film?
“I do not have any sort of inside MCU connection at all,” Humphries said with a laugh. “The only thing I knew — from the very first conversations I had with Marvel — is they explained the title change.”
So, basically, the title switch was always the plan, he explained.
“It’s never been done before,” Humphries said of the marketing swerve. “But creatively… this has always been New Avengers to me.”
And while the name might recall earlier iterations, Humphries was clear: this is a spiritual successor to both Brian Michael Bendis and Jonathan Hickman’s takes — plus Jackson Lanzing and Collin Kelly’s work on Bucky in Thunderbolts.
“I just wanted to maintain some connection to what they did as well,” Humphries said.
“Heavy Hitters” and Character Chaos
Humphries sees the book as a way to explore how wild things can get when powerhouses and unpredictable forces are pushed into tight quarters.
“You have Namor and Clea and the Hulk together on the same team,” Humphries said. “Just in terms of raw power, that’s a lot.”
He credits some important coordination with editors for making the lineup possible.
We had to ask for everybody,” Humphries said. “Seven different characters from seven different corners of the Marvel Universe means five different editorial offices to coordinate with.”
And while some characters were unavailable due to ongoing stories, Humphries was more than satisfied with the final lineup.
“None of it really crushed me,” Humphries said. “I really did get the team that I want.”
The “Killuminati” Threat
Opposing this unstable squad are the “Killuminati” — fun house mirror versions of Marvel’s secretive Illuminati group.
“They are duplicates,” Humphries said. “They’re deranged and demented versions of the heroes we know.”
The team mirrors the original Illuminati’s cross-section approach — but trades philosopher-kings for “badasses and bastards and broken-nose fighters,” as Humphries explained.
While careful not to spoil details, Humphries teased that these villains “are all just so broken,” adding, “I love it so much.”
Ton Lima Delivers the Goods
It’s not just Humphries that is bringing it, either. Artist Ton Lima’s work has elevated the book’s tone and energy beyond what Humphries hoped for.
“He is putting the pedal to the metal… drawing circles around himself,” Humphries said. “People who think they’re familiar with his work are gonna see how wrong they are.”
From Bucky and Natasha lounging in their underwear to violent splash pages of Wolverine, Lima balances grit and emotion.
“You have to be able to relate to these characters, otherwise you don’t care,” Humphries said. “Nothing sticks.”
Surprises, Romance, and… a Bake-Off?
Asked if the book has a surprise in every issue, Humphries had a rather interesting reply.
“I’d like to think so,” Humphries said. “Whether it’s something big or something small, I hope you come out of each issue being like, ‘Dang, I didn’t really see that coming.’”
That unpredictability extends to the relationships of the characters as well.
“We’re gonna get hot and heavy for sure. We’re also gonna be getting messy,” Humphries said of Bucky and Natasha’s dynamic. “If you have something that’s at the core of your book, you gotta mess with it.”
How much of a mess?
“It’s gonna get very, very messy,” Humphries said. “It’s gonna get messy in ways that people do not expect. And I fully believe they’re not gonna see it coming.”
Aside from “messy” relationships, the book has even more to offer. In one of the interview’s most memorable moments, Humphries played along with a joke about a potential bake-off between the two teams.
“Carnage would make the thing I want to eat the most,” Humphries said with a laugh. “It would be some sort of unholy show where it’s a cookie with a cake inside, but then you bite into it and hot fudge comes out and there’s sprinkles on top… chaos.”
Looking Ahead
Despite the scope and scale of New Avengers, Humphries said his favorite parts have often be the quietest moments/instances.
“My favorite thing to write about them is them just chatting,” Humphries said. “Getting on each other’s nerves and making dumb jokes… they hate being in the same room together, but also, it makes them feel more normal than they usually feel.”
With arcs three through five already mapped out, and characters from across Marvel’s recent canon in play, Humphries is clearly all in.
“I’m having a really great time,” Humphries said. “This is like working in a shared universe on steroids.”
New Avengers #1 hits shelves June 11, 2025. For more updates, follow Sam Humphries on Twitter, Instagram, and Threads at @SamHumphries.
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