Marvel’s moving forward to expand its cinematic universe with a new teen-oriented TV series, New Warriors on Freeform. The announcement of the series came last month with Squirrel Girl as the first confirmed character, but today, USA Today revealed the rest of the New Warriors — and one of them was actually pretty important to the original Civil War comic first published in 2006.
New Warriors is the second Marvel television series in development for the new cable channel Freeform, which replaced ABC Family last year. Marvel’s Cloak and Dagger, which stars Aubrey Joseph and Olivia Holt, is set to premiere on Freeform in 2018. Executive produced by Kevin Biegel, New Warriors follows a group of teen superheroes who all want to be the next big hero but quickly learn it’s not an easy path, even with superpowers. “Most of them would settle but some of those kids would keep going and get into their 20s with these hopes,” Biegel told USA Today. “It’s hard, and how do you make money doing it?
Meet the heroes of Marvel’s New Warriors:
Doreen Green, aka Squirrel Girl
Described as the “wonderful heart of the show,” sporting acrobatics with super-strength and the ability to talk to squirrels, Squirrel Girl is said to be “openly hopeful and earnest and sweet and optimistic, but smart and very determined that she can make a difference, too. She knows she’s great and if you’re not going to get on board with her, she’ll leave you in the dust.” A fan favorite character from Marvel Comics, Squirrel Girl currently stars in The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl written by Ryan North.
Craig Hollis, aka Mister Immortal
Craig Hollis once called himself “homo supreme” in the comics, and it may be true. Living up to his moniker “Mister Immortal,” Craig Hollis cannot die and is said to be cocky about it. “Craig is a little more jaded and saying things aren’t as rosy and the world isn’t as hopeful as you make it out to be,” Biegel said about Mister Immortal.
Night Thrasher, in Marvel's 'Clash of Champions.'
Dwayne Taylor, aka Night Thrasher
Created in 1989 by Tom DeFalco and Ron Frenz, Dwayne Taylor had a striking resemblance to Batman, except for the part where Night Thrasher gets a little unhinged. New Warriors updates Taylor’s background into a celebrity YouTuber who broadcasts his superheroism even though he has no superpowers. His family’s wealth is also ruining his street cred, says Biegel. “Dwayne is the one who’s enterprising and really trying to figure out the business side of this entire thing … but at the same time he really does care about justice.”
Robbie Baldwin, aka Speedball
In the Marvel Universe, Speedball helped cause Civil War. While filming their trashy reality TV show — think The Real World crossed with Dog the Bounty Hunter — Speedball and the New Warriors ambushed a group of incognito supervillains. They caused a massive explosion in the middle of a Connecticut suburb, with a death toll numbering in the hundreds.
Of course, the New Warriors TV show won’t imitate that storyline since, y’know, Civil War already happened. But Speedball will star in the series as a fanboy who grew up watching Quinjets fly from Avengers Tower. True to his name, Speedball can toss kinetic balls of energy. Says Biegel: “Robbie has these noble aspirations, but can’t quite figure out which one to pursue.”
Zack Smith, aka Microbe
Imagine you can talk to germs. That’s Microbe, a big guy with a big heart who can communicate with germs. In the comics, the much older Night Thrasher adopted Microbe out of compassion, but it seems that in New Warriors, they’re peers of a similar age.” Zack literally is just looking for a connection,” Biegel said, “which is totally part of who you are in your 20s.”
Deborah Fields, aka Debrii
With telekinetic abilities, Deborah Fields was once a Secret Avenger alongside Captain America (at least in the comics). In the TV show, she’s a “low-level telekinetic trickster” who has suffered “serious personal loss” due to the actions of superheroes, which doesn’t make her alone in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. She will also be a queer character as an out and proud lesbian, which Biegel says he hopes teens can relate to.
