Massive-Verse

The Massive-Verse (M-V) is a fictional shared universe, created by Kyle Higgins, which spans a line of comic books (''Radiant Black, Rogue Sun, Inferno Girl Red, Dead Lucky'' and, other spin-offs) published by Image Comics since February 2021, later retroactively established to have begun with ''C.O.W.L.'', first published in May 2014.

Publication history

In November 2020, it was announced that Higgins was writing another creator-owned book for Image Comics entitled ''Radiant Black'', with art by Marcelo Costa. The series officially began publication in February 2021.

The first crossover started with a one-shot crossover entitled ''Supermassive'', written by Higgins, Ryan Parrott, and Mat Groom with art by Francesco Manna and Simone Ragazzoni and colors by Igor Monti released February 23, 2022. The comic served as a backdoor pilot for spin-off titles entitled ''Inferno Girl Red'' and ''Rogue Sun,'' with this comic marking the first appearances of the series' protagonists.

The first of these new books to spawn out of this would be the title ''Rogue Sun'' written by Parrott and illustrated by Abel, with its first issue releasing on March 2, 2022 and ''Inferno Girl Red'' debuting on January 25, 2023, written by Groom and illustrated by Erica D'Urso and colored by Monti. In February 2022, it was announced that another book connected to the Massive-Verse would release in August entitled ''The Dead Lucky,'' written by Melissa Flores and illustrated by French Carlomagno. The first direct spin-off of ''Radiant Black'' would release on March 9, 2022, entitled ''Radiant Red'', with the miniseries written by Cherish Chen and art by David Lafuente and Melissa Flores and illustrated by Emma Kubert, debuted on December 7, 2022. ''C.O.W.L.'', was originally released in 2014 but has since been retroactively designated as part of the Massive-Verse. In December 2022, it was announced that a new series, entitled ''No/One'', would launch in March 2023, with Higgins and Brian Buccellato writing and Geraldo Borges illustrating.

A second ''Supermassive'' event was released in May 2023 written by Higgins, Parrot, Groom and Flores with artwork by Daniele Di Nicuolo. This one-shot features Radiant Black (Nathan and Marshall), Rogue Sun (Dylan) and The Dead Lucky (Bibiana), along with a new character Thomasin (a previous Inferno Girl Red) as they hunt down the Holy Grail. That issue includes a cameo from Medieval Spawn, possibly hinting at a further crossover down the line.

After the end of an official fan voting, and the "Catalyst War" arc, the next Radiant Black story arc will feature Marshall Ward as the permanent titular hero.

Main characters

* Radiant Black (Nathan Burnett) — The original Radiant Black, before a building collapsed on top of him that left him in a coma for 9 months. He eventually became Radiant Black again and is now sharing the Radiant with Marshall. Has the ability to manipulate gravity and shoot energy blasts.
* Radiant Black (Marshall Ward) — Nathan's best friend and the second Radiant Black after Nathan fell into a coma. Has the ability to manipulate gravity and shoot energy blasts. Became the new permanent Radiant Black after winning a fan vote.
* Radiant Red (Satomi Sone) — An Asian-American woman with financial debt. Has the ability of matter-absorption
* Radiant Pink (Eva Reyes) — An Hispanic internet streamer who has the ability to open portals.
* Radiant Yellow (Wendell George) — An elderly African-American man who has the ability to see every probability across time and space.
* Rogue Sun (Dylan Siegel) — The latest Rogue Sun following the death of his estranged father, Marcus Bell.
* Inferno Girl Red (Cassia Costa) — A teenage girl living in Apex City and the current Inferno Girl Red.
* The Dead Lucky (Bibiana "Bibi" Lopez-Yang) — The former captain of the platoon "Dead Lucky" and has the ability to control electrical machinery and can see energy ghosts.
* No/One — A hacktivist/vigilante operating in Pittsburgh.
* Shift (Guy) — A recurring villain who antagonizes Radiant Black and leads his own crime syndicate that sells Radiant tech. Has the ability to "shift" between places.

Titles

Ongoing and limited series

One-shots

Other

Other media

Animated short film

In June 2022, to tie in with the release of ''Radiant Black'' #15, an animated short produced by Tiger Animation and Black Market Narrative entitled ''Versus'' , ''Radiant Black vs. Blaze'' was released, with Higgins directing and co-writing with Alec Siegel and Will Friedle providing the voice of Radiant Black. The short can be viewed on the official Black Market Narrative YouTube channel.

Podcast

In December 2022, it was announced that, to tie-in with the release of ''No/One,'' an in-universe podcast entitled ''Who Is No/One?'' would release with each issue and would feature the voice work of Rachael Leigh Cook as Julia Paige, the host of the podcast, and Patton Oswalt as Teddy Barstow, the Metro Editor for The Pittsburgh Ledger. Loren Lester provides the voice of No/One, while Yuri Lowenthal, Tara Platt, Cristina Vee, Karl Herlinger, Todd Stashwick, and Walter Jones are also cast. The podcast will also feature original art by Mark Englert and music by Kristopher Carter.

Audiobook

In April 2024, it was announced an audiobook adaptation of ''Radiant Black'' would release later that year. Rider Strong is set to play the voice of Nathan with Friedle reprising his role as Marshall from the animated short. Higgins will serve as writer, director, and narrator for the adaptation. Further casting was announced at San Diego Comic-Con 2024, including Kim Rhodes as Mrs. Burnett, Loren Lester as Mr. Burnett, Todd Stashwick as <001>, Melissa Navia as Eva Reyes / Radiant Pink, Anne Yatco as Satomi Sone / Radiant Red, Troy Baker as Guy / Shift, and Ross Marquand as the Radiant Black Colossal.

Feature length film

In July 2024, during San Diego Comic-Con it was announced that a film based on the comic series ''No/One'' was officially in development, under the title ''I Am No/One''. According to TheWrap, the film is set to consist of "sit down interviews, phone and drone footage, news coverage, and first-person GoPro and helmet videography from the “NO/ONE” operation itself". Higgins is set to direct the film, along with co-writing the screenplay with ''No/One'' co-writer and co-creator Brian Buccellato. The film is set to be both a recap of the comic series and its companion podcast, ''Who is No/One?'', while also serving as the final chapter in this multi-narrative experience.

Collected editions

References

External links

Official website

{{Image Comics

2014 in comics