Marvel Comics Celebrates CIVIL WAR's 20th Anniversary With Epic New Hero vs. Hero Variant Covers

Marvel Comics Celebrates CIVIL WAR's 20th Anniversary With Epic New Hero vs. Hero Variant Covers

Marking 20 years of the groundbreaking Marvel Comics epic, new "Civil War Celebration Variant Covers" arrive in comic book stores this May, and we have a first look at their epic hero vs. hero clashes.

By JoshWilding - Mar 09, 2026 04:03 PM EST
Filed Under: Marvel Comics

It's been 20 years since Marvel Comics pitted their most legendary superheroes against each other and asked the question "Whose Side Are You On" in Mark Millar and Steve McNiven's Civil War.

This May, Marvel honours the milestone anniversary of the groundbreaking event with Civil War: Unmasked, a recently announced limited series by Christos Gage and Edgar Salazar revealing all-new stories set during the Civil War era, and new "Civil War Celebration Variant Covers."

Illustrated by today's top artists, the new cover collection spotlights epic matchups between both sides of the conflict that tore the superhero community apart. The showdowns depicted include memorable battles from the event, like Captain America vs. Spider-Man and Hercules vs. the infamous clone of Thor, as well as never-before-seen throwdowns like Storm vs Ms. Marvel and Cyclops vs. Wonder Man.

The "Civil War Celebration Variant Covers" will grace some of Marvel's hottest titles and be showcased using the now-iconic Civil War trade dress.

The original Civil War redefined event storytelling and unleashed shockwaves across the Marvel Universe that are still felt today. Millar and McNiven's modern masterpiece went on to become one of Marvel's best-selling collections and the inspiration behind sequels, films, video games, and more. 

Discussing his personal connection to Civil War, Gage explained, "In 2006, I was a rookie comic book writer when a short delay in the production of the epic Civil War event limited series led to me being offered the one-shot Iron Man/Captain America: Casualties of War. It was my first really high-profile project at Marvel, a big hit, and 20 years later, they still haven't managed to get rid of me."

"So it's a thrill and an honor to revisit that troubled time with Civil War: Unmasked, in which I have the privilege of joining with brilliant artist Edgar Salazar and trend-setting original Civil War colorist Morry Hollowell to reveal never-before-told stories from that milestone event," he added.

Check out all ten "Civil War Celebration Variant Covers" below, and stay tuned for more on these 20th anniversary celebrations as we have it. 

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On Sale 5/6

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #28 CIVIL WAR CELEBRATION VARIANT COVER BY ROD REIS
IRON MAN #5 CIVIL WAR CELEBRATION VARIANT COVER BY MIKE MCKONE
STORM: EARTH'S MIGHTIEST MUTANT #4 CIVIL WAR CELEBRATION VARIANT COVER BY LUCAS WERNECK
X-MEN #29 CIVIL WAR CELEBRATION VARIANT COVER BY DIKE RUAN

On Sale 5/13

CAPTAIN AMERICA #11 CIVIL WAR CELEBRATION VARIANT COVER BY LEINIL FRANCIS YU
MORTAL THOR #10 CIVIL WAR CELEBRATION VARIANT COVER BY RYAN STEGMAN
WOLVERINE #20 CIVIL WAR CELEBRATION VARIANT COVER BY AARON KUDER

On Sale 5/20

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #29 CIVIL WAR CELEBRATION VARIANT COVER BY GREG LAND
FANTASTIC FOUR #11 CIVIL WAR CELEBRATION VARIANT COVER BY EMA LUPACCHINO
PUNISHER #4 CIVIL WAR CELEBRATION VARIANT COVER BY GEOFF SHAW

About The Author:
JoshWilding
Member Since 3/13/2009
Comic Book Reader. Film Lover. WWE and F1 Fan. Rotten Tomatoes-approved critic and ComicBookMovie.com's #1 contributor.
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Dotanuki
Dotanuki - 3/9/2026, 4:24 PM
Some really shitty covers. How far Marvel’s artwork has fallen. Most look like amateur hour.
Fogs
Fogs - 3/9/2026, 5:43 PM
@Dotanuki - I call it lunchbox art. Zero personality.
comicfan100
comicfan100 - 3/9/2026, 7:07 PM
@Dotanuki - You must have pretty high standards to consider these "shitty."
Dotanuki
Dotanuki - 3/9/2026, 9:54 PM
@comicfan100 - do you think that Iron Man cover is strong work? This isn’t an interior panel, this is the cover. Poor drawing and coloring. Not dynamic at all. Yeah, it’s shitty.
ModernAudience
ModernAudience - 3/9/2026, 4:48 PM
4 trick pony with Marvel Publishing
BillyBatson1000
BillyBatson1000 - 3/9/2026, 4:56 PM
Anatomically and layout wise; cool. But the first ones would benefit from heavier/more detailed inks. Most look rushed.
Radders
Radders - 3/11/2026, 9:56 AM
@BillyBatson1000 - Anatomically wise I'd refer you to Storm, X-Men and Wolverine - all bad (though with Storm its her face specifically) - but yep rushed is a good shout, I'd add, free comic book day from 20 years ago quality
BillyBatson1000
BillyBatson1000 - 3/11/2026, 2:32 PM
@Radders - Not going to argue. The anatomy thing? It reminds me of wide-angle lens distortion - how things stretch toward the outer edges of the frame. Some of that is done, leaning-in to the direction of the action, like old style animation but modern color techniques / out of focus digital fx hides a lot of really crummy art these days.
IcePyke
IcePyke - 3/9/2026, 4:58 PM
Damn...
20 years....

User Comment Image
EskimoJ
EskimoJ - 3/9/2026, 5:06 PM
Where's the one with Typeface?
BackwardGalaxy
BackwardGalaxy - 3/9/2026, 7:01 PM
F. Twenty?!
dragon316
dragon316 - 3/9/2026, 9:15 PM
Sentry will kick captain americas butt
Biggums
Biggums - 3/10/2026, 9:23 PM
rip Bill Foster sr
Radders
Radders - 3/11/2026, 9:59 AM
To be honest I don't really remember most of the original covers being that iconic but most of these are just bad as covers. Maybe the restricted space compared to a usual cover caused issues with some

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