Marvel Mangaverse Turns 25 With a Weekly One-Shot Event Built for Maximum Manga Mayhem

Revisit the Mangaverse twenty-five years later with writers Joe and Jack Kelly, Cody Ziglar, Ashley Allen, Alyssa Wong, and artists Kenny Ruiz, Kei Zama, Mirka Andolfo and Michael Yg, this September.

The Marvel Mangaverse is back, and it is not returning quietly.

Twenty-five years after Marvel first introduced fans to manga-inspired versions of its most iconic heroes and villains, the publisher is heading back into that wild, stylish, magic-charged universe with a brand-new weekly event told across five epic one-shot comics releasing throughout September.

This anniversary celebration is not just a nostalgia lap. Marvel is treating the Mangaverse like a world that has been living, evolving, and breaking apart for the last two and a half decades. The result is a massive return built around forbidden magic, fractured friendships, yokai, vengeance, apocalyptic prophecy, and a Phoenix-level threat that may burn the entire world down before fans even get comfortable again.

The five-part event begins with Marvel Mangaverse: Web of Blood #1 and concludes with Marvel Mangaverse: Web of Destiny #1, a two-part story co-written by father-son duo Joe Kelly and Jack Kelly, with art by Kenny Ruiz. Their story reintroduces readers to a Mangaverse where the age of superheroes has ended, technology has failed, and magic now rules everything.

At the center of the storm are three powerful figures: Miles Morales as Spider-Man, Laura Kinney as Weapon X-Tremis, and Illyana Rasputin as Legion. Once friends, they now find themselves divided by clashing beliefs over how to stop a prophesied apocalypse tied to the return of the Phoenix. The big question hanging over the event is simple, brutal, and very Marvel: are they saving the world, or speeding up its destruction?

That is the kind of drama we like. Friendship, fire, betrayal, and the planet possibly turning into a cosmic barbecue. Comics, baby.

For Joe and Jack Kelly, the project carries a personal charge. The two regularly bond over manga, anime, and comics, making the chance to co-write this Marvel Mangaverse anniversary event a natural fit. Jack Kelly called the opportunity an honor, while Joe Kelly described the project as “a love letter to manga and anime via the Marvel Mangaverse,” brought to life by Kenny Ruiz’s artwork.

Ruiz, whose credits include Path of the Lightsaber and Team Phoenix, is fully leaning into the pressure of helping revive and redefine this universe. He compared the challenge to that of a shonen hero facing impossible odds, the kind who has no choice but to grit his teeth and give everything he has. That energy appears to be baked directly into the event’s DNA.

The celebration also brings in acclaimed mangaka Yuji Kaku, known for work including Hell’s Paradise: Jigokuraku and Phases of the Moon Knight, who provides the main covers for the Mangaverse one-shots. Kaku’s designs help establish the tone for this modernized return, merging the spirit of Western superhero storytelling with Japanese manga style.

Following the opening chapter in Web of Blood, the event expands into several corners of the Mangaverse.

On September 9, writer Cody Ziglar and artist Kei Zama take readers to New Chicago in Marvel Mangaverse: Iron Knight #1. The one-shot focuses on Riri Williams, who protects the streets as Ironheart using a mana-powered suit of armor. After suffering a painful loss, Riri finds herself pulled toward vengeance alongside the legendary sorcerer known as Moon Knight. The result is described as a shonen-inspired, action-heavy chapter that adds even more heat to the growing apocalypse.

On September 16, writer Ashley Allen and artist Mirka Andolfo introduce the Arcane Avengers in Marvel Mangaverse: Arcane Avengers #1. This reluctant team of sorcerers is led by Bucky Barnes, the Winter Soldier, who has been cursed to defeat and imprison demonic yokai alongside teammates Bloodline and Wiccan. Bucky is looking for a way out, but when a new wave of yokai attacks and his childhood friend Hawkeye suddenly reappears, his escape plan gets messy fast.

Then, on September 23, things get even darker with Marvel Mangaverse: Ghostlocke #1 from Alyssa Wong and Michael YG. In this chapter, bodies are piling up as Cletus Kasady, better known as Carnage, tears through humans and yokai alike. Standing in his way is Kwannon, also known as Ghostlocke, who rides with a Shinigami bike and channels the Spirit of Vengeance in a desperate attempt to stop Carnage’s blood-soaked rampage.

Finally, on September 30, Joe and Jack Kelly reunite with Kenny Ruiz for Marvel Mangaverse: Web of Destiny #1, bringing Miles, Laura, and Illyana back to the center of the end of the world. With the planet on the edge of destruction, the former friends must decide whether they can put their differences aside long enough to save everything before it all burns to ash.

That is the real hook here. Marvel is not simply dusting off the Mangaverse for a cute anniversary special. This is a full-scale return with stakes, style, and a clear mission to modernize the concept for today’s manga-loving comic fans. The original Marvel Mangaverse stood out because it dared to remix familiar icons through a completely different visual and storytelling lens. Now, 25 years later, Marvel is revisiting that idea with new characters, new conflicts, and a creative team that clearly understands both superhero mythology and manga storytelling language.

The result could be one of Marvel’s most interesting anniversary plays of the year. Instead of just celebrating the past, the Mangaverse is being reintroduced as a world with history, scars, legends, and unfinished business. That gives this event room to honor what came before while also opening the door for something fresh.

And let’s be honest, Miles Morales, Laura Kinney, Illyana Rasputin, Riri Williams, Moon Knight, Bucky Barnes, Wiccan, Bloodline, Hawkeye, Carnage, and Kwannon all getting manga-style reinventions inside a collapsing magic-powered Marvel universe? That is the kind of chaotic comic book buffet we show up hungry for.

Fans can check out the five main covers by Yuji Kaku, along with special promotional artwork spotlighting Miles Morales, Laura Kinney, and Illyana Rasputin. All five Marvel Mangaverse 25th Anniversary one-shots will be available for pre-order through local comic shops.  For more information, visit Marvel.com.

The Mangaverse is back. The heroes are divided. The Phoenix is coming. The apocalypse is warming up.

September is about to go full manga mode.