A mature Superman series by Mark Waid and Bryan Hitch? The artist says it's coming

Superman #23 original art
Superman #23 original art (Image credit: Bryan Hitch (DC))

Bryan Hitch has announced that he is reteaming with writer Mark Waid and inker Kevin Nowlan on a new mature-readers Superman title for DC's Black Label imprint. Hitch mentioned this in passing in a tweet outlining his upcoming plans.

"Venom in October, the introduction to Redcoat in November, Superman Black Label next year with Mark Waid inked by Kevin Nowlan (yeah, spoilers)," Hitch tweets. "Redcoat series and something truly massive I'm not even mentioning. But it’s HUGE. Yeah, I’ve been busy this year."

Neither DC, Waid, or Nowlan have confirmed Hitch's statement so far.

In a follow-up tweet, Hitch says the as-yet-unnamed Superman Black Label project is planned as a three-issue series in DC's 'Prestige Plus' format, with each issue running 46 pages. 

JLA #58 cover (Image credit: Bryan Hitch (DC))

Books in DC's 'Prestige Plus' format are nearly two inches wider than traditional comic books and are printed with a sturdy paper for their covers. They are also squarebound, meaning it has a spine with a book title down the side, allowing you to store it as a comic book or on your bookshelf.

This Superman project would be a reunion, as Hitch and Waid worked together (with inker Paul Neary) on DC's JLA series in 2000 and 2001, as well as the JLA: God's Ladder one-shot. 

This would be Waid's first standalone DC work in 14 years, after a brief reprise with short stories in several anthologies in the past year. The writer worked regularly for DC from 1986 to 2003, first as an editor and then writing such projects as Kingdom Come, Superman: Birthright, The Flash, 52, Impulse, Legion of Superheroes, The Brave & The Bold, and the aforementioned JLA.

Stay tuned to Newsarama for more on this upcoming Superman Black Label title by Waid, Hitch, and Nowlan.

 Make sure you've read all the best Superman stories out there. 

Chris Arrant

Chris Arrant covered comic book news for Newsarama from 2003 to 2022 (and as editor/senior editor from 2015 to 2022) and has also written for USA Today, Life, Entertainment Weekly, Publisher's Weekly, Marvel Entertainment, TOKYOPOP, AdHouse Books, Cartoon Brew, Bleeding Cool, Comic Shop News, and CBR. He is the author of the book Modern: Masters Cliff Chiang, co-authored Art of Spider-Man Classic, and contributed to Dark Horse/Bedside Press' anthology Pros and (Comic) Cons. He has acted as a judge for the Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards, the Harvey Awards, and the Stan Lee Awards. Chris is a member of the American Library Association's Graphic Novel & Comics Round Table. (He/him)