Popverse's top stories of the day

• Harley Quinn is making April Fools Day 2025 one to remember with a not-so-sweet-smelling DC comic book special
• Watch the D&D, Warhammer, Mega Man, and more anthology panel Secret Level from Prime Video, filmed at NYCC 2024
• Nintendo's long-time Mario voice actor reveals the secret behind voicing Mario's Dad in the movie (and how it goes back to his original audition decades ago)

Things are going to be very different for Peter Parker’s alter-ego in Marvel Animation’s upcoming series Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man, as we discovered during D23 Expo 2024 — but fans that can’t wait for the show can get a head start on getting to know the new Spider-Man in a Marvel Comics miniseries launching this December.

To say that the five-issue series from writer Christos Gage and artist Eric Gapstur will show Peter Parker’s earliest days as a hero is putting it mildly; according to Marvel’s official description of the series, readers “can take the very first steps along with him as he discovers his powers, decides to become a hero, and even picks out his name and costume!” (It’s worth noting that, in the cover released and visible in full below, Spidey isn’t wearing his traditional costume at all… so we’ll see how long that one sticks around.)

“I've had the privilege of writing a lot of Spider-Man's adventures, both in comics and in the Insomniac video games, but one thing I've never gotten the chance to do is recount his earliest exploits,” Gage said in a statement from the publisher. “And the exciting part about this book is it's a brand new take on those formative times. While this is definitely Peter Parker, the Spidey we know and love, he's got a new cast of supporting characters — including Nico Minoru, who you may know from Runaways — and some surprising twists!”

Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man #1 will be available December 11. The release date for the animated series has yet to be officially announced, but is expected before the end of 2024.

Keep up to date on Popverse's Marvel coverage, with these highlights:

• Marvel Studios has accidentally created a new Phase that predates Phases 1 - 6: the MCU Phase Zero
• Overgrown children of the atom: Marvel's X-Men can't evolve past their '90s commercial peak
• The biggest outstanding questions of the Marvel Studios' movies & TV shows
• Donald Trump is the landlord for Marvel's House of Ideas
• Marvel Studios swapping out Doctor Doom for Kang offers the chance to jettison the Multiverse Saga
• What Marvel Studios boss Kevin Feige is saying (and not saying) about the MCU X-Men franchise says a lot about the future of the Mutant Saga
• If Marvel is going to bring Loki back for Secret Wars, it's time to give him an upgrade
• With Daredevil, and spinoffs from Black Panther, What If, and more, Marvel Studios' 2025 Disney+ slate is bigger than ever, and that might be a big deal for the future
• If Kraven the Hunter flops, Sony's Spider-Man Universe could look for a Marvel-assisted reboot
• In 2021, Sony's boss said people won't miss Spider-Man in its Spider-adjacent movie. Turns out, they do.