This summer, Hela isn’t the only one coming for Knull's throne in the pages of Queen in Black. Marvel Comics has revealed new "Knullbuster Variant Covers," introducing the King in Black's worst nightmare: five iconic Marvel heroes donning symbiote-slaying armour.
The new covers come from some of the industry's boldest artists, including Marvel's Stormbreakers Luciano Vecchio and Gurihiru, along with David Baldeón, Clayton Crain and Zulema Scotto Lavina. The pieces reimagine Black Cat, Doctor Doom, Jeff the Land Shark, Punisher and Deadpool in cosmically enhanced suits specifically designed to end Knull's latest reign of terror.
Additional covers revealed today include two homage pieces by legendary Venom artist and Knull co-creator Ryan Stegman. Inspired by his cover for Venom #3 in 2018, Knull’s first appearance, one version of the cover will be available to order, and the other will be a Blind Bag exclusive.
Other variants revealed include a stunning Swimsuit Variant Cover by David Nakayama spotlighting current Venom host Mary Jane Watson and a Marvel Rivals Variant Cover by NetEase Games.
Queen in Black, the new crossover event from Al Ewing and Iban Coello, launches this July. Knull and Hela's conflict erupts across the cosmos, coming to a head on Earth, where Marvel’s heroes are all that stand in the way of the world being torn asunder by the forces of Light and Dark, both bent on enveloping the universe in their own brand of nothingness.
Here's the official description for the main series:
HEL ON EARTH!
On the farthest edges of the solar system, Knull, God of the Void, builds a brand-new army to destroy Earth...but Hela of Asgard might have gotten there first – as she makes planetfall with a legion of the galaxy’s deadliest symbiotes! Two of the most powerful evils in the galaxy are at war... with Venom, Mary Jane, Dylan Brock and the entire Marvel superhero pantheon caught right in the middle!
During a recent interview, Ewing explained how both his current work on Venom and Thor led to this monumental crossover event. "The two books have very different plotlines, but sometimes the plot of one book provides the opportunity to ramp things up in another one."
"The ongoing Thor plot line, where Thor is dead, and Midgard has forgotten that the Norse Gods ever walked the Earth outside of the myths, has given Hela, Norse Goddess of Death, a golden opportunity to take the realm of Midgard for herself," he continued. "She's going all in by stealing the power of the returned Knull, King in Black, which obviously careens right into Venom."
Check out these new Queen in Black covers below, and stay tuned for more on the series as we have it.