Marvel promises "Nothing is sacred" as it teases the resurrection of the original Gwen Stacy, and also a "long-lost loved one" for Jean Grey

A shovel sitting by the open grave of Gwen Stacy — (Image credit: Marvel Comics)

Earlier this week, Marvel teased what seems to be the impending exhumation of the corpse of Gwen Stacy - as in the original, core Marvel Universe one who was killed in a fight with the Green Goblin way back in 1973's immortal story 'The Night Gwen Stacy Died,' originally told in Amazing Spider-Man #121-122.

Here's the Gwen Stacy teaser by Paco Medina and Morry Hollowell, which teases more info next week:

But what the publisher has teased for Jean Grey could be even more monumental in terms of potential returns. As announced by Marvel, Phoenix #11 will feature the "miraculous return" of one of Jean's "long-lost loved ones" - though, crucially, the publisher doesn't say who will be coming back or how.

Article continues below

There are a few possibilities, but there's one somewhat obscure character return that could shake the Marvel Universe - and Jean's life - the most. It could somehow be Annie Richardson, Jean's childhood best friend whose sudden death triggered Jean's psychic abilities, forcing Jean to telepathically connect with Annie at the moment of her death.

Annie has never come back to life (which is surprisingly uncommon in X-Men comics), and her death shaped Jean's life for decades to come, so her sudden return would certainly be a huge twist of fate.

Jean Grey in Dark Phoenix colors on the cover of Phoenix #11 — (Image credit: Marvel Comics)

When it comes to Gwen Stacy, who we mentioned at the top, this isn't the first time we've been asked to believe that the real true original main universe version has come back to life or been desecrated in some way. But all of those previous times have eventually proven to be lies or bait-and-switches involving clones, duplicates, and all manner of comic book trickery.

Still, when it comes to Marvel's oldest, deadest characters who haven't truly come back, Gwen Stacy is up there - and so is Jean's childhood friend Annie.

We'll see what's up with Gwen sooner rather than later, as Marvel has promised more info to come. As for what's going on with Jean, we'll learn the truth in May 14's Phoenix #11 by writer Stephanie Phillips and artist Roi Mercado, with a cover by Lucas Werneck, seen above.

Maybe it means something that Werneck's cover puts Jean in her Dark Phoenix colors...

Stay up to date on all the new Spider-Man comics and new X-Men comics that Marvel has planned for release.

I've been Newsarama's resident Marvel Comics expert and general comic book historian since 2011, and now I'm the Entertainment Writer at GamesRadar+. I've also been the on-site reporter at most major comic conventions such as Comic-Con International: San Diego, New York Comic Con, and C2E2. Outside of comic journalism, I am the artist of many weird pictures, and the guitarist of many heavy riffs. (They/Them)