When Nancy and Tippy-Toe get human—and squirrel—napped respectively by a planet of alien squirrels about to get eaten by Galactus—long story—Doreen hops on the case! Or, uh, she would be on the case if she knew what the heck was going on.

See, she’s still stuck back on Earth and barely knows what became of her friends when the frickin’ Dread Dormammu shows up and he’s all “I’m gonna destroy you!” and Squirrel Girl’s all, “Oh, haven’t you heard?” Because the name of the comic? UNBEATABLE SQUIRREL GIRL #28.

On January 10, writer Ryan North and artist Erica Henderson present “The Forbidden Pla-Nut Part 2”! To defeat this legendary villain Doreen will seek the help of the new Sorcerer Supreme…Loki? Wait, what does Cat Thor have to say about this…

Ryan North stopped by to fill us in on Cat Thor, but also some other things not Cat Thor-related as well.

Marvel.com: Tell us all about what’s been happening in the “Forbidden Pla-Nut” arc so far!

Ryan North: Just as a warning up front; we tend to pack a lot into our issues. So far Nancy and Tippy have been kidnapped, Squirrel Girl has been trying to find them, she’s fallen in with Loki—who is Sorcerer Supreme now—he tried to help by opening a dimensional portal, but on the other side was the Dread Dormammu who is taking advantage of Earth’s weakness—because come on, Loki as Sorcerer Surpreme instead of Doctor Strange represents a clear opportunity for everyone who wants to destroy the Earth). Whew.

When we left them they were totally getting beaten up by him. And that doesn’t even cover all the things that happened in that first issue!

Marvel.com: How and why did Nancy and Tippy get kidnapped?

Ryan North: The planet that kidnapped [them] is a squirrel world, filled with sentient, technology-using squirrels. They were visited by The Silver Surfer, who told them Galactus was going to eat their world—but that if they gave him some money he’d send them somewhere else.

They didn’t have the money, but they did have teleporters—and they did see Tippy-Toe—and Doreen—defeat Galactus way back in our first issue #4. So naturally they figure Tippy is the only one in the universe that can help them!

Marvel.com: Wait, but hasn’t Galactus hung up his planet-eating bib?

Ryan North: Well, here’s the thing: if that “Silver Surfer asking for bribes” bit in my last answer made you say “that doesn’t sound like the Silver Surfer or Galactus”: you’re right! This isn’t the real Silver Surfer, but some grifters who have realized that for the price of some silver body paint, they can rip off worlds by threatening a visit from Galactus.

So on top of everything we’ve got space grifters too! Of course, seeing as people are using his good name, it makes sense that the real Silver Surfer would want to put an end to that…

Marvel.com: What’s the deal with these alien squirrels? Are they friend squirrel or foe squirrel?

Ryan North: Like all squirrels, they are friendly! You may think there are some Earth squirrels that are not friendly; perhaps they have eaten the siding on your house to break into your attic. I am here to say that among squirrels, that is considered a very high compliment.

Ubeatable Squirrel Girl #28 cover by Erica Henderson

Marvel.com: Could you refresh us again on how in Odin’s green midgard Loki became Sorcerer Supreme?

Ryan North: I believe that story is told in the DOCTOR STRANGE series! We’re just taking advantage of that because come on, that’s amazing. Loki is so pooched.

Marvel.com: Is he going to fight the big bad as Cat Thor? Because the world is ready.

Ryan North: I will say that while Cat Thor doesn’t show up, there is a new form of Loki head that is, dare I say…even better? I’m big into Loki shape-shifting his head. He doesn’t do it often in other comics but when he shows up around Doreen, for some reason, it keeps happening. Anyway, there’s really relevant plot reasons for why it happens! We don’t cotton to random head shape-shifting here.

Marvel.com: Has the fame and fabulousness of the new title changed Loki since we last encountered him in issue #8?

Ryan North: He’s big into his new title—Loki is, it’s fair to say, a guy who craves validation—so he’s excited to show off for Squirrel Girl. And when has an insecure egoist showing off ever backfired?

Marvel.com: Uh oh, that doesn’t exactly sound like a ringing endorsement…will he be able to handle the Dread Dormammu?

Ryan North: Well, [Dormammu is] a cosmic-level threat, and Doctor Strange’s most dangerous enemy, and Loki’s facing him right off the bat! Normally I’d say Loki is totally doomed, but come on: he’s got Squirrel Girl on his side.

Marvel.com: What would the super villain trading cards be for the baddies who appear in this issue?

Ryan North: There’s Dormammu, but we showed his card in the last issue. There’s the Silver Grifters, and their card would be something to see, because they’re such jerks. And finally, Squirrel Girl fights a new villain that shows up at the end that I don’t want to spoil!

Explore the Forbidden Pla-Nut once more with Ryan North and Erica Henderson’s UNBEATABLE SQUIRREL GIRL #28—blasting off on January 10!

The future arrives on January 10, 2018.

Well, obviously, because January 10 exists in the future. But for Deadpool and Spider-Man, the far-flung future arrives on January 10!

In SPIDER-MAN/DEADPOOL #26, writer Robbie Thompson and artist Scott Hepburn send geriatric versions of Peter Parker and Wade Wilson to a nursing home. But Old Man Pete and Old Man Wade won’t spend the issue going to pet therapy and eating soft foods, they (gingerly) jump into action like never before!

Or maybe they just go to pet therapy and eat soft foods. We asked Thompson a few questions to find out more.

Marvel.com: Besides Spider-Man and Deadpool’s ages, how have they changed in the future? How has the world changed around them?

Robbie Thompson: The biggest difference is that Spider-Man and Deadpool are super old! And totally retired! They’ve hung up their web-shooters and katanas and live in a retirement community, playing Bingo and working on their crochet skills. The world has changed because it’s seemingly moved on without these two heroes, but we’ll soon see they’re still needed in a big way!

Marvel.com: Did writing older versions of the characters surprise you in any way?

Robbie Thompson: That’s a great question. I have to admit, when I first pitched the idea, I thought the tone would be much lighter. More of a spoof, really. And there’s still plenty of the type of humor folks have come to expect from this team-up in our future story. But I was surprised to find the scripts were a lot more emotional. Getting to hear these guys talk at the end of their careers proved really fascinating. I also got really inspired by artist Scott Hepburn’s preliminary Old Man Wilson and Old Man Parker designs. They looked super fun and dynamic, but there was so much emotional weight to the faces he created. So much history. So much loss.

I just love these two old farts so much, and can’t wait for people to see them.

Marvel.com: As you mentioned, Scott Hepburn brings the story to life in issue #26. How did he help you realize your vision of the future Marvel Universe? How did his collaboration influence your approach to the story?

Robbie Thompson: Collaborating with Scott on this story has been a big bag of awesome. We’d met socially at a convention, but this is the first time I’ve been lucky enough to collaborate with him. It started with the early designs I mentioned—he just clearly got the heart of the characters and the direction of the story. Then, with each issue he’s really elevated both the characters and the world-building. This future hasn’t necessarily been seen yet and Scott’s built it all from the ground up.

We hung out at NYCC this year and hashed out the details of the third chapter together—he has so many great ideas and put together some incredible character designs for some “future” Marvel characters we’ll be seeing down the road. We’re also collaborating with Ian Herring on colors—I had the great fortune to work with Ian on all of SILK, and his work here with Scott is outstanding.

Marvel.com: This story sets the table for a bigger arc—perhaps the biggest arc of the book yet—which arrives in the summer of 2018. What can you tell us about that?

Robbie Thompson: Early on in pitching the book, editors Nick Lowe and Jordan D. White talked about building our first run into a larger story. I don’t know how much I can reveal, but from a plotting standpoint, we wanted to do what Gerry Duggan did in the flagship DEADPOOL book. That team flashed back and revealed untold stories of Deadpool’s past, then brought those stories to the present. In SPIDER-MAN/DEADPOOL, we’re flashing forward and the events of that book will tie back to our present day story. There’s a “big bad” that brings our heroes out of retirement in the future. The last page of issue #26 reveals our “big bad,” and it’s off to the races from there.

Marvel.com: From a creative standpoint, what appealed to you about the future storyline? What storytelling avenues does it open up to you?

Robbie Thompson: One of the things I found myself most drawn to in pitching on this book was trying to drill down on why Spider-Man and Deadpool are friends. I get why Deadpool loves Spidey—I mean, who doesn’t love Spidey? But Wade can be tough to love—he doesn’t make it easy. And yet, despite it all, Spider-Man does have Deadpool’s back. Joe Kelly and Ed McGuinness created such an emotional story and we really wanted to build on that and test their friendship.

Then, the events of Secret Empire put Spider-Man and Deadpool into an even more emotional space. Peter down on his luck, Deadpool back to being a bad guy. So, in the present, it’s Spider-Man vs. Deadpool. But in the future story, we can see it didn’t all end in tears. And yet, they’re still up to their old bickering. Old Man Wilson and Old Man Parker started as a sillier idea, but the more we started to dig into this future dynamic, the more it felt like we could talk more about the strengths—and weaknesses—of their friendship and tie it all back to the present in an emotional way.

Marvel.com: If a fan dared to skip this issue, what will they be kicking themselves for missing out on?

Robbie Thompson: Who would dare? Who?! It’s Grumpy Old Men with Super Powers! “The Golden Girls” with boys? Uh…“Cocoon” without aliens, uh, but also there’s fighting?

It’s Old Man Wilson and Old Man Parker! ‘Nuff said! Don’t miss it, fam!

Jump through time with Robbie Thompson and artist Scott Hepburn’s SPIDER-MAN/DEADPOOL #26 on January 10!

With Wilson Fisk as the new mayor of New York, Matt Murdock finds himself between a rock and a hard place. On the one hand, there’s a warrant out for Daredevil’s arrest. On the other hand, he just got an offer from Fisk to become the mayor’s personal lawyer. And here’s the craziest part: He accepted the job!

Is Matt trying to advance his law career or is he playing a two-faced game like the crooked mayor he just agreed to serve? We’ll learn more about it in DAREDEVIL #597 by Charles Soule and Stefano Landini on January 10, 2018. In the meantime, Marvel.com caught up with Charles to get a better grip of what Manhattan looks like under the control of Kingpin.

Marvel.com: Can you give us a quick rundown of the dynamic between Murdock and Fisk as lawyer and mayor?

Charles Soule: I’m trying to set things up in this story as closely as I can to the way things actually work in City Hall. The truth is, there aren’t a ton of checks on the power of the mayor in New York. More or less, if the mayor wants the city to shift in a certain direction, or has policies he or she wants implemented, then the city’s various departments and agencies tend to go that way. So, Fisk has all the power, and Matt Murdock has very little – at least in a political sense. However, he’s got his mind, and of course he’s got all the abilities of Daredevil… so he’s still got a fighting chance.

Marvel.com: Where can we expect this situation to go? Is Matt going to tolerate Fisk’s control of the city for much longer?

Charles Soule: Well, that would be telling. Let’s put it this way – from the moment Matt heard that Fisk had been elected mayor, he was convinced that Fisk was putting something sinister into motion, and he was resolved to stop it any way he could. He could approach it any number of ways – but he knows the one thing he probably can’t do is just go in fists-first. You can’t just beat up the Mayor and hope to achieve anything, even if it is Wilson Fisk.

DAREDEVIL #597

Marvel.com: Is there anyone else out in Manhattan who might be a useful ally in destabilizing the Fisk regime?

Charles Soule: Well, sure. Fisk didn’t win in a landslide. He won by like a percentage point – it was super close. So, that means about half the city didn’t want him in office. Beyond that, there are all the superheroes who run around Manhattan – street-level folks like Spider-Man, Moon Knight, Echo and of course, Matt’s buddies in the Defenders. The problem is that one of the first things Wilson did when he took office was to start building up evidence against New York’s vigilantes, in a move toward making them actual criminals. He’s already got a warrant out for Daredevil’s arrest, which makes things pretty tough too. The city’s changing quickly, no doubt about it.

Marvel.com: What do you think Mayor Fisk has done that greatly benefits the city?

Charles Soule: Well, it’s early days yet. In Marvel Universe time, he’s been in office for maybe like a week. He has plans, but the first thing he needs to do is start convincing people that they should listen to him and trust him – even with all the power of the mayor’s office, tons of people still think of Wilson Fisk as the Kingpin of Crime. If he wants to change the city for the better – and believe it or not, he thinks he does – the first thing he’ll need to do is get more of its citizens on his side.

Marvel.com: In Part 3 of the story, Matt has the chance to serve at the mercy of the mayor. What kind of internal struggle is he going through?

Charles Soule: That’s a lot of the story of Part 3, actually [in DAREDEVIL #597]. At the end of the previous chapter, Wilson Fisk came to Matt Murdock with an offer to actually leave the DA’s office and help him in his work as mayor. Matt accepted – which is completely crazy. It’s throwing himself into the lion’s den. Doing high-wire work without a net. But that’s Daredevil, right? No fear.

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