Imperial's Impact: Reshaping Marvel's Cosmic Heroes

In 2025, Marvel is set to launch one of its most ambitious comic book projects yet: Imperial. Spearheaded by Jonathan Hickman, the mastermind behind transformative Marvel narratives such as House of X and the new Ultimate Universe, Imperial promises to redefine the universe for cosmic heroes like Nova and the Guardians of the Galaxy. To delve deeper into how this series will reshape the cosmic landscape, IGN had the opportunity to speak with Hickman via email. Below, you can find an exclusive preview in our slideshow gallery, followed by more detailed insights.

Marvel's Imperial #1 Preview Gallery

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The genesis of Imperial intrigued us—did Hickman have a burning desire to tell this story, or was he approached by Marvel with the intent to replicate the success of Krakoa and Ultimate Invasion? According to Hickman, 2025 was the perfect moment to reimagine Marvel’s cosmic realm.

"I think it was simply time to revisit this corner of the Marvel Universe," Hickman shared with IGN. "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 has paved the way for Imperial, which aims to establish a new line of cosmic books. We were curious about the parallels Hickman sees between these initiatives and any lessons he's applying from the Ultimate Universe to Imperial.

"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," Hickman explained. "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."

Hickman added, "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."

Imperial also evokes memories of 2006’s Annihilation crossover, which significantly altered the status quo for Marvel’s cosmic heroes. However, Hickman dismisses any direct comparisons between the two.

"No. Simply because that’s an invasion story and this isn’t anything like that," Hickman 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."

Elements of Imperial build on Hickman’s previous Marvel works. For instance, the recent "Hunt for Xavier" crossover in the X-Men line addressed lingering threads from the Krakoan era, setting the stage for Imperial by bringing back the former Shi'ar Empress Lilandra and reuniting her with Charles Xavier to rescue their daughter Xandra. Imperial also introduces the Intergalactic Empire of Wakanda, an element first hinted at in 2015’s Secret Wars and later developed in Ta-Nehisi Coates’ Black Panther series.

Despite these connections, Hickman emphasized that Imperial is not as intertwined with his previous works 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," Hickman noted. "Sure, there’s some of that in there, but not as much as some people might expect."

Imperial also shifts the Hulk family toward a more cosmic direction, with the preview art revealing their return to the wartorn world of Sakaar, reminiscent of 2006’s Planet Hulk. Hickman confirmed that this was no mere coincidence.

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, we inquired about the decision to split the series between artists Federico Vicentini and Iban Coello, and how the creative team is leveraging their talents to bring this epic conflict to life.

"Both of those guys are crushing it," Hickman 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 slated for release on June 4, 2025.