Marvel Entertainment on Wednesday released the first information for Infinity Countdown Prime, the comic book one-shot launching its big 2018 storyline in February, and, as the name suggests, it’s something that is likely to appeal to fans excited about the upcoming big-screen effort Avengers: Infinity War.
Originally solicited for order by comic stores without any information beyond title and price point, Marvel released the news to Newsarama that the special issue will be written by Gerry Duggan with art by Mike Deodato, Jr., and feature a storyline spinning out of the now-canceled Guardians of the Galaxy comic book series wherein a number of different characters — including the Guardians, Thanos and a reborn Wolverine — are seeking to collect the various Infinity Stones.
The Stones have already been reappearing throughout Marvel’s comic book universe in recent months, with various Stones being glimpsed in the Marvel Legacy special issue, as well as issues of the Guardians of the Galaxy, Captain Marvel and Thanos series. They are also, of course, at the center of next May’s Infinity War movie.
According to a subsequent tweet by Marvel editor Jordan D. White, Infinity Countdown Prime in February leads into Infinity Countdown No. 1 in March, with a cover that shows Loki, Wolverine, the Guardians of the Galaxy’s Gamora, Captain Marvel and a version of fan-favorite character Adam Warlock in action. (The character on the far-left of the image, by artist Nick Bradshaw, is the Super-Skrull, an alien with the powers of the Fantastic Four.)
THE INFINITY STONES ARE COMING! Get ready for Infinity Countdown Prime in February, and then Infinity Countdown #1 in March! pic.twitter.com/bl1zBLJuhz
— Jordan D. White (@cracksh0t) December 13, 2017
Countdown will be a five-issue series that is itself just a prologue to another storyline, according to a statement from White released by the company. "As we worked on the Infinity Stones’ story, it became clear the story was much bigger than we could contain in the Guardians of the Galaxy series,” he explained. “It starts with the Guardians, but the story extends out into the entire Marvel Universe, with stones popping up in some very surprising places. Countdown is the next step in the story…but as the name implies, it’s leading to something even greater.”
It’s unclear how, or even if, Wolverine’s participation in this storyline ties in with last month’s announcement of “post-credit sequences” across the Marvel publishing line explaining Wolverine’s whereabouts prior to his Marvel Legacy reappearance.
Infinity Countdown Prime will be released Feb. 21 in comic book stores.
