Imperial: Reshaping Marvel's Cosmic Heroes

Marvel's 2025 comic book series, Imperial, marks one of the publisher's most ambitious projects to date, spearheaded by the visionary writer Jonathan Hickman. Known for his transformative work on House of X and the new Ultimate Universe, Hickman is set to redefine the landscape for Marvel's cosmic heroes, including Nova and the Guardians of the Galaxy. To delve deeper into how Imperial will shake up the cosmic realm, IGN had the opportunity to discuss the project with Hickman via email. Below, you can find an exclusive preview in our slideshow gallery, followed by more insights into this exciting new series.

Marvel's Imperial #1 Preview Gallery

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Hickman shared the origins of Imperial, explaining that the project was a timely opportunity to refresh Marvel's cosmic lineup. "I think it was simply time to revisit this corner of the Marvel Universe," he stated. "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."

The success of the new Ultimate line over the past two years provided a blueprint for Imperial. When asked about similarities between the two initiatives, Hickman noted, "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 highlighted a key difference: Imperial is not set in an alternative Marvel Universe, thus avoiding the 'real time' aspect of the Ultimate line.

While comparisons to the 2006 Annihilation crossover are inevitable, Hickman dismisses any direct parallels. "No. Simply because that’s an invasion story and this isn’t anything like that," he clarified. "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."

Despite drawing from elements of his previous works, such as the "Hunt for Xavier" crossover and the Intergalactic Empire of Wakanda, Hickman emphasized that Imperial is not overly reliant on his past narratives. "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."

Imperial also takes the Hulk family back to the cosmic stage, revisiting the war-torn world of Sakaar from the iconic 2006 Planet Hulk storyline. Hickman teased the significance of this setting, noting, "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 sharing the artistic duties on Imperial. "Both of those guys are crushing it," he praised. "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.