New Mark Brooks Corner Box Variants Celebrate Marvel’s X-Men & Avengers
by Tony Thornley
Marvel’s two greatest teams of heroes both celebrate their 60th anniversaries in 2023. As part of the celebration, superstar Mark Brooks has created a new series of variant covers for both the X-Men and the Avengers.
The corner box is one of the most popular and long lasting features of comic covers, and Marvel has a fantastic history of them, whether it’s the Vision’s long-time featured role on the cover of the Avengers or the gathered X-Men charging forward. Now, as part of the 60th anniversary, Brooks has created variants for Jed MacKay & CF Villa’s Avengers and Gerry Duggan & Joshua Cassara’s X-Men that will run on covers throughout the rest of the year.
“There are many reasons why I was attracted to comics as a kid and the corner box was a big part of it,” Brooks explained. “I knew what issue number and who I could expect to see in the issue. It was a little preview to tantalize the reader. It was always heads, a full figure, or a micro-scene. No matter what, it enticed me to pick the book up. It’s why I started the #LetMarkCornerbox campaign in earnest on Twitter. It was primarily a joke to express my love for the corner box. It ended up taking on a bit of a life of its own. When C.B. told me that they’d like this to become a reality, I couldn’t pass it up. I’ve penciled well over 100 heads so far. I don’t plan on stopping until Marvel says ‘okay, that’s enough’- LOL!”
Check out the first two covers revealed so far and stay tuned for more throughout the year as the greatest heroes in the Marvel Universe celebrate the milestone!
