Marvel Just Brought Back Their Most-Neglected Team (and It’s a Disaster)

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WARNING: Spoilers for Imperial #3 below.

Imperial #3 is by Jonathan Hickman, Iban Coello, Federico Vicentini, and Federico Blee. The big mystery behind Imperial is who is behind the assassinations of intergalactic leaders. The issue reveals that the Grandmaster, an Elder of the Universe, is one of the people responsible, but the big surprise is that Maximus of the Inhumans is the other puppet master working behind the scenes. And with Maximus back, we also get the return of the Inhuman King, Black Bolt, and their teleporting dog, Lockjaw. After more than five years of being put on the shelf, the Inhumans are looking to re-establish themselves as a major Marvel franchise, but at the cost of all the other cosmic houses.

Black Bolt and the Inhumans Have Turned to the Dark Side

Fans have witnessed the deaths of Hulk’s son, Hiro-Kala, along with Star-Lord’s father, Emperor J’son. The Intergalactic Empire of Wakanda was framed for the murders, sending the Galactic Council into war. Imperial slowly revealed that two individuals in the shadows were orchestrating these events, but no one would have guessed the Inhumans were behind it. Aside from Maximus, the Inhumans are generally thought of as the good guys, especially Black Bolt. But he doesn’t seem to mind that his brother Maximus has been playing a game with Grandmaster as the fate of other empires hangs in the balance.

In fact, an empire is what Black Bolt intends to claim. The Inhumans haven’t been seen since 2018’s Death of the Inhumans. The event series served as a way for Marvel to push the Inhumans to the side, after the publisher spent years building them up in anticipation of Marvel’s Inhumans television series. Since Marvel Studios didn’t have the rights to the X-Men at the time, the Inhumans were picked to take their place as a prominent team. Unfortunately, Inhumans flopped with viewers, and Marvel Comics did Death of the Inhumans to write them off.

Maximus and Grandmaster decide to play a game where Grandmaster has one year to cause a war between the Galactic Council members without anybody knowing they’re behind it. Grandmaster has managed to turn the Shi’ar, Skrull, and Kree against each other. Even though Grandmaster wins the game against Maximus, he chooses not to collect his winnings. Instead, Grandmaster intends to put all the chess pieces back where he found them, which is something Maximus just can’t have. Enter Black Bolt.

With the Inhumans’ numbers decimated after Death of the Inhumans and no empire to call their own, Black Bolt and Maximus have set out to undo this lack of respect in the galaxy. If it happens to come via the downfall of other empires, so be it. It’s a pretty stellar way to reintroduce the Inhumans back into the larger Marvel Universe. After years of being neglected and forgotten about, whether by MCU fans or readers of the comics, the Inhumans are back and are making a statement. They’re done being afterthoughts.

What do you think about the return of the Inhumans? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!