Imperial's Impact: Reshaping Marvel's Cosmic Heroes

In 2025, Marvel is set to launch one of its most ambitious projects yet with the new comic series, Imperial. Spearheaded by Jonathan Hickman, the creative genius behind transformative Marvel arcs like House of X and the new Ultimate Universe, Imperial promises to redefine the cosmic landscape of the Marvel Universe, focusing on characters like Nova and the Guardians of the Galaxy. This series aims to establish a fresh status quo, much like Hickman's previous works have done for their respective franchises.

To delve deeper into what Imperial has in store, IGN had the opportunity to discuss the project with Hickman via email. Before diving into the details, take a moment to explore an exclusive preview of Imperial #1 in the slideshow gallery below.

Marvel's Imperial #1 Preview Gallery

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Hickman shared the origins of Imperial, emphasizing that 2025 was the perfect time to re-examine Marvel's cosmic lineup. He explained, “I think it was simply time to revisit this corner of the Marvel Universe. That I was available and interested, and that it’s been of ongoing interest to the company, and that the model of launching something like this had just been done with the Ultimate line, all added up to it feeling like this was an opportunity to do Imperial. It’s come together well and I think people are going to enjoy it. It’s a fun book.”

Given the success of the new Ultimate line over the past two years, it's natural to draw parallels between it and Imperial. Hickman acknowledged these comparisons, noting, “You can, in my opinion, draw a direct line between the two in terms of what we think can succeed with in the current market. A small, tight line of books that readers can invest in and not feel overwhelmed, and where creators can execute their vision for the individual titles without drowning in external continuity seems to be a pretty solid model of how to launch something like this.” He also pointed out a key difference: “The big difference, obviously, is that this isn’t set in an alternative Marvel Universe, so we won’t be doing the ‘real time’ aspect of the Ultimate line. Which has its pluses and minuses, but I think most people will be pleased about.”

While Imperial shares some thematic similarities with the 2006 Annihilation crossover, Hickman clarifies that the two are fundamentally different. “No. Simply because that’s an invasion story and this isn’t anything like that,” he said. “The ‘what-you-get’ end results might be similar in that all of a sudden there are a bunch of Marvel cosmic books you care about. But plot/story-wise? No.”

Imperial draws on elements from Hickman's previous Marvel work, such as the “Hunt for Xavier” crossover in the X-Men line, which led to the resurrection of the former Shi’ar Empress Lilandra and her reunion with Charles Xavier. Additionally, the Intergalactic Empire of Wakanda, first teased in 2015’s Secret Wars and later featured in Ta-Nehisi Coates’ Black Panther series, plays a role in Imperial. However, Hickman noted that the connections to his previous works are not as extensive as one might assume. “Well, I’m kind of notorious for mining my own continuity inside of the greater Marvel one, but I’d say well over half of this is more like me picking up pieces from a bunch of extended stories that have been done over the years by other creators than me just picking up plot threads from my previous books,” he explained. “Sure, there’s some of that in there, but not as much as some people might expect.”

The series also sees the Hulk family returning to the cosmic arena, specifically revisiting the wartorn world of Sakaar, reminiscent of the 2006 Planet Hulk storyline. Hickman teased, “All I’ll say there is we’re coming up on the twentieth anniversary of Planet Hulk and Marvel doesn’t usually let those opportunities pass by.”

Finally, Hickman discussed the collaboration with artists Federico Vicentini and Iban Coello, who are working together to bring Imperial to life. “Both of those guys are crushing it,” Hickman said. “I’ve been very pleased and surprised at how they’ve tackled some of the story beats, character designs, and wild locations this thing has. And with the book having a compressed publishing schedule (we actually moved it forward at the beginning of the year), the only way it could be done was for them to tag team it. The trick there is they have to complement each other and that’s clearly the case here.”

Imperial #1 is set to hit the shelves on June 4, 2025.