Black Panther, Captain America, and more become the Phoenix in new Marvel variants

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The Phoenix Force is seeking a new host and Marvel is celebrating with variant covers

(Image credit: Marvel Comics)

With Marvel teasing the next big Avengers story 'Enter the Phoenix' this week, the publisher is also celebrating the legacy of the Phoenix Force – the cosmic entity of rebirth and destruction that has a long history with Jean Grey of the X-Men – with a series of variant covers depicting popular Marvel heroes as new hosts of the Phoenix Force.

(Image credit: Marvel Comics)

"'I am Phoenix!' Those immortal words will take on new life this December when Jason Aaron and Javier Garron’s next great Avengers epic, 'Enter the Phoenix,' begins," reads Marvel's description of the variant covers. "To anticipate the return of the cosmic chaos-bringer, your favorite Marvel characters will be reborn as Phoenix hosts this November in astonishing variant covers by some of the industry’s top artists."

The announcement seems to also include more details of the plot of 'Enter the Phoenix,' stating "Captain America, Black Panther, and She-Hulk are no longer the heroes you knew as they bond with the Phoenix Force to spread rebirth—or destruction—throughout the Marvel Universe."

"In the end, only one will be chosen to wield this terrifying and great power when the Phoenix Force chooses a new host."

Though Jean Grey is the best known host of the Phoenix, many other characters have bonded with the Phoenix Force at least temporarily over the years, including Rachel Summers, Spider-Man, a future version of Wolverine, and even a group of five X-Men - Cyclops, Colossus, Magik, Namor, and Emma Frost - who collectively shared the Phoenix Force's power and took on the Avengers.

'Enter the Phoenix' kicks off in December, while these Phoenix variant covers are due out in November.

The line of variants, seen in the gallery below, includes the following covers, featuring the noted characters:

  • Avengers #38 (Black Panther) – Aaron Kuder and Matthew Wilson 
  • Captain America #25 (Captain America) – Salvador Larroca and Frank D'Armata 
  • Doctor Doom #9 (Doctor Doom) – Declan Shalvey 
  • Immortal Hulk #40 (She-Hulk) – Taurin Clarke 
  • Fantastic Four #26 (Namor) – Kris Anka
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(Image credit: Marvel Comics)
George Marston
George Marston
Entertainment Writer

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)