It’s Wednesday, which means it’s not only new comics day, but it’s new Comics Relief day as well! Today we’ve got news on Valiant Comics’ plans for their 25th anniversary, a hilarious new comic from the writer behind Harley Quinn, and the latest Secret Wars info from Marvel. And speaking of Marvel, our first news item has a beloved rebel royal become the latest female lead in a Marvel series…

Marvel Releases J. Scott Campbell Variant Cover For Princess Leia #1

The new Star Wars books have done very, very well so far for Marvel; in fact, 1 in 7 comics bought in the month of January were the first issue of Jason Aaron and John Cassaday’s Star Wars #1, and the pre-orders were also high for the new Darth Vader book. Now Marvel is launching the third Star Wars title, featuring none other than Princess Leia Organa, who is headlining her own comic book series for the very first time. Written by Mark Waid and illustrated by Terry Dodson, Princess Leia #1 doesn’t hit till March, but the pre-orders for this one have already topped 200,000 units. Who says female books don’t sell?

Here’s Marvel’s official description for the new series: “Follow Leia’s journey in the days following the end of Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope as she searches for answers…and for hope. Witness the beginnings of the journey that transforms a princess without a home into one of the greatest leaders in the fight for freedom across the galaxy!”

Marvel has also just released the latest variant cover for Princess Leia #1 by J. Scott Campbell, featuring her worshipfulness in her classic white outfit from the original movie.

BOOM! Studio’s The Big Con Job Coming In March

In what sounds like the most fun comic book of the year, BOOM! Studios has announced The Big Con Job,  a new comic which is coming in March from writers Jimmy Palmiotti (Harley Quinn) and Matt Brady (Buck Rogers), with art by Dominike “Domo” Stanton (Deadpool) The story will focus on a “group of flabby action heroes, aging sex symbols, and sci-fi bit players who have become close friends over the years of working the same convention circuit.” One day, when the opportunity presents itself, these washed-up has-beens decide to rob one of the country’s biggest conventions, in a combination of the movies Galaxy Quest and Ocean’s 11. (I can see the movie of this one being greenlit already.)  Palmiotti & Brady’s The Big Con Job #1 arrives in comic shops on March 4. [Bleeding Cool]

Scribd Launches Its Comics Subscription Service With 10,000 Titles

The digital subscription service Scribd, which has been described as sort of a “Netflix for books”, announced the addition of a comic book section this week, giving users access to more than 10,000 titles from publishers such as Marvel, IDW Publishing, Archie Comics, Top Shelf, Top Cow, Valiant and Dynamite. (No DC yet, but expect them to follow along if this takes off.) This  latest expansion brings the Scribd library to more than one million titles. As part of the $8.99 flat monthly fee, users can now read a variety of comics from some of the most well known publishers, with titles like League of Extraordinary Gentlemen to Afterlife with Archie to Spider-Man.  [Comic Book Resources]

Fight Club 2 Gets Free Comic Book Day Preview Story

The official sequel to Chuck Palahniuk’s cult classic novel Fight Club is coming from Dark Horse Comics, but if you want to get the full story, you will have to get the prelude in Dark Horse’s Free Comic Book Day offering. The FCBD book will feature a comic book retelling of the end of the original novel, which is not the same as the ending of David Fincher’s 1999 movie, and will lead right into Fight Club 2. The first issue of Fight Club 2 is due to hit on May 27th. [Bleeding Cool]

Valiant Entertainment Celebrates 25 Years With New Anniversary Special

Valiant Comics is celebrating a quarter century of publishing this year, and on Free Comic Book Day, they plan to celebrate with an all-new 25th anniversary special, set to arrive on May 2.  The book will feature a new Bloodshot story from writer Jeff Lemire and artist Butch Guice, and additional content will showcase material from popular Valiant titles from over the years like XO: Manowar, Ninjak, Imperium, Divinity, Ivar, Timewalker, Rai and others. There will also be a new series of anniversary variant covers by Rafa Sandoval highlighting the many characters that have made up Valiant’s line over the past 25 years. Check out the promo image for 25 Years of Valiant below. [Comic Book Resources]

Superman Statue to Be Erected In Cleveland, Jerry Siegel & Joe Shuster’s Hometown

Cleveland, Ohio was the hometown of Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, two teenaged friends who together created Superman in the 1930s, and in turn, an entire genre that currently defines our pop culture. In honor of this fact, Cleveland is finally getting a Superman statue to commemorate the city as the hometown of Shuster and Siegel, which will be located near the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

The statue will be made of burnished steel and stretch twelve feet, and  will be placed on a 30-35 foot pedestal base, colored “Superman blue.” In speaking to Cleveland.com, Siegel and Shuster Society member Richard Pace said, “For years people have asked why Cleveland does not have a statue to commemorate the creation of Superman and honor local creators Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster. Now we will.” [Comic Book.com]

Marvel Releases The Latest Secret Wars Teaser, This Time With More M.O.D.O.K

Marvel has released the latest info on their latest Secret Wars series, this time featuring M.O.D.O.K., everyone’s favorite Mental Organism Designed Only For Killing (don’t ask him to do your taxes or figure out how to split the restaurant bill — he’s designed only for killing) in the new M.O.D.O.K. Assassin series.

Set in Killville, “the only place on all of Battleworld where murder is always the correct answer” M.O.D.O.K. Assassin #1 features everyone’s favorite murderous floating head doing what he does best: killin’. In an interview with Marvel.com,writer Chris Yost said, “The fun here is showing how M.O.D.O.K. stands out against some of the worst that the Marvel Universe has to offer;  It’s good to be bad’ is kind of the mission statement here. Can M.O.D.O.K. grow past his design? Would anyone want him to? Those are some big lofty theme-y questions, but let’s be clear…you’re going to see M.O.D.O.K. kill a bunch of people.”

But that’s not the only new timeline being snatched for Battleworld…

New York City Gets A Hellish Make-Over In Secret Wars’ Inferno 

One of the earliest mutant crossovers from Marvel’s X-Men titles was 1988’s Inferno storyline, which had the demon N’astirh transform Manhattan into his own hellish dimension of Limbo, all while corrupting young Ilyana Rasputin and Jean Grey’s clone (and Cable’s mother) Madelyne Pryor into becoming the Goblin Queen. Now, as part of Secret Wars’ Battleworld, the Inferno-ized New York returns, reimagined as if the X-Men had never won and the city has been in a perpetual Hell-zone for years.

According to writer Dennis Hopeless, “In this world, the X-Men lost and vacated the possessed Manhattan five years back; Colossus takes a team in once a year to try and “rescue” his sister but has always failed. This is the story of year five.” Expect lots of demonized versions of your favorite Marvel heroes. [Newsarama]

But wait, there’s more!

Spider-Verse Swings Into Secret Wars

Earlier today, we unveiled the exclusive first look at Spider-Verse #1, Marvel’s newest Secret Wars series, from writer Mike Costa and artist Andre Aruajo. Packed with friendly neighborhood Spider-Men (and Women) like Spider-Gwen, Spider-Ham, and many others, it looks to be one of the most intriguing titles revealed so far. Read our exclusive interview with Mike Costa for more. [Nerdist]

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Excited for the latest Star Wars comic, or any of the other news items in this week’s batch? Let us know in the comments below.