Is this Jonathan Hickman and Valerio Schiti's new Doctor Strange?

Valerio Schiti mystery character designs (Image credit: Marvel Comics)

Update: Marvel's Marvel Fanfare panel at New York Comic Con 2022 has revealed new information about writer Jonathan Hickman and artist Valerio Schiti's 2023 mystery project, unveiling a series of unlabeled character designs - some of which are fairly recognizable.

Here's a gallery of the designs, followed by who we think each character may be:

Image 1 of 6

First off, the guy with the white streak in his hair and cloak seems to be an updated Doctor Strange, whose resurrection was previously foreshadowed.

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Then the young woman with a few different colorful outfits seems to be Zelma Stanton, a protégé of Strange introduced in Jason Aaron and Chris Bachalo's Doctor Strange run.

Next up, the white-haired guy with a silvery outfit. We can't say for sure, but we're guessing that's the character Ultimate Nullifier from 2011's Vengeance limited series, which dealt with the concepts of 'Chaos' and 'Order' in the Marvel Universe. As for who the woman with a similar look is, we're not sure (we're guessing it isn't Emma Frost - but who knows).

That leads us to the guy with the weird face all dressed in black and white. This is likely an updated version of the In-Betweener, a cosmic being meant to maintain balance between Master Chaos and Lord Order, the two embodiments of chaos and order in the Marvel Universe. It could also be a version of Logos, a more recently created cosmic being who was birthed when Master Chaos and Lord Order joined their physical forms.

The idea that it could be one of those characters is also supported by the simple teaser text which accompanies the images, reading "What happens when the powers that be meet the natural order of things?"

Finally, there's the "Thing of Order," an artifact seemingly tied to that concept, and a set of gold badges, presumably worn by characters in the story.

And that's... all we really know, right down to the title.

Stay tuned for more info on Hickman and Schiti's new title as it becomes available, and read on for more about what we know so far, including the title's original announcement.

Original text follows...

Jonathan Hickman is returning to Marvel Comics alongside artist Valerio Schiti in a cryptic new title.

The writer describes the new series as "Sandman for the Marvel Universe," (as quoted by CBR). According to Hickman, he's been working on the title for three years, predating his exit from the publisher's X-Men line as its so-called 'Head of X' writer.

Hickman Schiti 2023 teaser — (Image credit: Marvel Comics)

The announcement was made during Marvel's Next Big Thing panel at Comic-Con International: San Diego, where it was revealed with a teaser displaying the text "What happens when the powers that be meet the natural order of things?", which Hickman explained in the panel would become clear as soon as the first issue arrives.

Hickman and Schiti have worked together several times, and Hickman himself is no stranger to mysterious cosmic tales that bend the fabric of the Marvel Universe as the writer of a long Fantastic Four run, the SHIELD secret history title, and of course 2015's Secret Wars, which remade the Marvel Universe.

Hickman and Schiti's unnamed mystery title is due out some time in 2023.

Stay up on all the Marvel Comics news coming out of Comic-Con International: San Diego with Newsarama's ongoing coverage:

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)