Legendary Japanese superhero Ultraman will continue his Marvel Comics adventures in March 2021 with a limited series following the current one, Rise of Ultraman (whose fifth and final issue goes on sale January 6).
The new limited series, titled Trials of Ultraman, will bring in new supporting characters and villains from Ultraman's long-running canon while building a narrative based around public distrust of Ultraman.
"Ultraman narrowly averted a catastrophe decades in the making. The world was saved – but, also, forever changed. Now…come the consequences," reads Marvel's official description of Trials of Ultraman.
"Much of the populace regard their defenders with suspicion. Enemies hide in plain sight, and even those closest to Shin Hayata don’t necessarily trust the Giant of Light," it continues. "But at last, a long-thought-lost comrade has mysteriously returned! The Rise is over. The training wheels are off, and the stakes have never been higher. The Trials of Ultraman begin here!"
Rise of Ultraman's creative team of writers Kyle Higgins and Mat Groom, along with Francesco Manna, will be returning for this five-issue follow-up.
"In The Rise of Ultraman, we had to create a whole new universe (built on the powerful concepts and characters of the original television shows). Then, in the final issue of Rise, we turned that world upside down," says Higgins and Groom in a joint statement accompanying the series announcement.
"Now, in The Trials of Ultraman, we get to really explore this new universe– the consequences of decisions made in Rise, and the possibilities (as well as tensions) of a newly-fantastical global community," the statement continues. "The introduction is over… now, we'll be diving into the real meat of our Ultraman saga. And the stakes and scale will only continue to grow."
Starting in 1966, Ultraman has been the star of numerous TV shows, animated series, comic books, and more all across the world in a wide variety of incarnations. The Ultra Series, as the Ultraman canon is called in Japan, represents one of the most popular pieces of superhero media in the world.
"We're so grateful that so many existing Ultraman fans embraced our new interpretation, and that new fans took a leap of faith to join us on this journey," the statement concludes. "It's a privilege to continue to contribute to the wider Ultraman canon, and we'll never take for granted that we're only able to do so because of the support of readers. We hope everyone will join us for the next step– there are big things ahead!"
Trials of Ultraman #1 (of 5) is due out in March. Look for Marvel's full March 2021 solicitations later this week on Newsarama.
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