A familiar name is about to return to Earth’s mightiest heroes.
After weeks of rumors, Marvel Comics officially announced on Monday that Brian Michael Bendis will be returning to write the main Avengers title in 2026. Not only that, but he will be reuniting on the run with artist Mark Bagley, who he previously worked with on Avengers Assemble and the original run of Ultimate Spider-Man.
This new (but familiar) era will kick off in Avengers #34 in January of 2026, which has the honor of being the 800th issue of Avengers in total. In addition to a story by the current creative team of Jed MacKay and Farid Karami, Avengers #34 will feature a 14-page backup from Bendis and Bagley.
Their story will take place on the anniversary of the founding of the Avengers, bringing together the “Big Three,” Iron Man, Thor, and Captain America, for a high-stakes mission to take down Hydra’s latest weapon of mass destruction. They’re soon joined by many more teammates—past and present—for a thrilling showdown that exemplifies the team’s mission and impact!
“Returning to the pages of Marvel Comics has been an incredible experience,” Bendis said in a statement. “To reunite with the Avengers on the occasion of an anniversary is doubly wonderful because anniversary issues are where we really celebrate our love of the characters and legacy. I made my Avengers debut on Avengers #500. I love the symmetry. AND I get to reunite with my dear longtime Ultimate Spidey AND Avengers collaborator Mark Bagley. Just reuniting would be magical enough, but him coming out of retirement to do this story with me was an incredible gesture. He has already penciled magical pages. It’s been a wonderful reunion between us AND the characters. Thanks to everyone at Marvel for having me back for such an auspicious occasion. This is the first of some truly special Marvel projects that I will be part of in the near future. Stay tuned…”
Avengers ressemble?
Bendis’ impact on Marvel, particularly in the 2000s, can not be overstated. Not only did he co-create pop culture juggernauts Miles Morales, Jessica Jones, and Riri Williams, but he revitalized the main Daredevil title with a five-year run. And then there’s his original tenure on Avengers, which led to landmark events like Secret Invasion, House of M, and Siege.
In 2017, Bendis made shockwaves across the industry with the news that he had signed an exclusive contract with DC. He ended up writing for the publisher for several years, not only on the Superman family of books with Superman and Action Comics, but on other titles like Checkmate and Legion of Super-Heroes.
There had been chatter, as of late, about Bendis potentially returning to Marvel… which would be noteworthy in and of itself, even if he was just taking on a lesser-known solo or team book. But the notion of him coming back to Avengers is something else altogether, especially given the ongoing reverence that people still have for his time on the book. Regardless of whatever the future holds for the larger Marvel universe, Bendis and Bagley jumping onto a book like that definitely has the potential to be something special.
(featured image: Marvel Comics)
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