Get out your swim trunks and your flippy-floppys, because Marvel is headed back to the beach for a revived edition of its iconic ’90s swimsuit special that lands 30 years after the previous edition last hit stands.
And as if the promise of some fun in the sun and superhero swimwear isn’t enough to bring you in, the new one-shot, officially titled Marvel Swimsuit Special: Friends, Foes, and Rivals #1, will also debut some steamy new skins coming to smash-hit hero shooter game Marvel Rivals. The comic, which is largely a pin-up gallery, will feature contributions from artists Nic Klein, Marguerite Sauvage, Luciano Vecchio, and more
Here’s a gallery of covers including a wraparound Avengers cover by Adam Hughes and variants by Mark Brooks, Taurin Clarke, and Russell Dauterman that each feature Marvel heroes in their swimmies:
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“THE SWIMSUIT SPECIAL RETURNS!” boasts Marvel’s official solicitation text for Marvel Swimsuit Special: Friends, Foes, and Rivals #1. “Roxxon Comics is at it again when they release their own UNAUTHORIZED SWIMSUIT SPECIAL! Wasp is on the case and seizes the opportunity for Marvel’s heroes to do their OWN swimwear fashion shoot all over the world! But fear not, True Believers, we know what you’re REALLY here for! This super-sized special features splash page after splash page of gorgeous art, but with a story so you can pretend you’re ‘reading it for the articles’…”
Marvel’s really not shying away from the basest appeal of superheroes in swimsuits there. But the publisher is hiding it in a veneer of satire thanks to its mention of Roxxon Comics.
For those who may have missed it, in 2024, Marvel “relaunched” Thor as an extremely satirical corporate superhero named Chad Hammer as part of a storyline in which the fictional Marvel Comics of the Marvel Universe was bought by evil megacorporation Roxxon.
It was pretty silly stuff, and now Marvel is returning to that well to put a humorous spin on the swimsuit special in a framing story from writers Tim Seeley and Tony Fleecs, and artist Nick Bradshaw, which may be exactly what the new version needs to separate it from the well-worn cheesecake of the ’90s edition.
Marvel Swimsuit Special: Friends, Foes, and Rivals #1 goes on sale July 9.
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