Nextwave debuted in Nextwave: Agents of H.A.T.E. #1 in March 2006. The twelve-issue limited series was created by writer Warren Ellis and artist Stuart Immonen, with Wade von Grawbadger on inks and Dave McCaig on colors. Published under the Marvel Comics banner, the series was a deliberate departure from the grim and serious tone that pervaded many major comic book events of the mid-2000s, such as civil_war. Ellis conceptualized the series as something that was “an absolute, unremitting, brutal, and cheerfully idiotic barrage of nonsense.” He aimed to create a comic that was pure entertainment, free from the complex continuity and somber introspection of his other works like The Authority or Transmetropolitan. He described it as “Marvel comics as a pure-process pop-art explosion.” The series was designed to be read in collected format, with each two-issue arc forming a self-contained “episode” of a larger season. Immonen's art was a critical component of its success, blending clean, dynamic action with incredible comedic timing and expressive character work. His style perfectly captured the book's manic energy, from a kaiju-sized, pantsless Fin Fang Foom to the silent-film-esque horror of Broccoli Men. Despite critical acclaim and a devoted fanbase, the series ended after its initial twelve-issue run, cementing its status as a beloved, short-lived cult phenomenon.
The formation of Nextwave is a tale of deception, betrayal, and a stolen marketing plan. The in-universe origins are strictly confined to the comic book reality.
The Nextwave squad was assembled by the Highest Anti-Terrorism Effort, or H.A.T.E., a shadowy organization ostensibly created to protect the United States from Unusual Weapons of Mass Destruction (UWMDs). H.A.T.E. was led by the deeply disturbed and violently eccentric Director Dirk Anger, a clear parody of nick_fury. He recruited a motley crew of semi-forgotten heroes to serve as his field team:
The team operated from the Aeromarine, a flying aircraft carrier that was frequently on fire and staffed by henchmen in ludicrous costumes. Their initial missions involved neutralizing bizarre threats across the country. However, the team's entire purpose was built on a lie. During an early mission briefing, Monica Rambeau's energy-based senses allowed her to see through a holographic presentation file. She discovered H.A.T.E.'s most classified secret: the organization was being funded by the Beyond Corporation©, a group that was not only developing and selling the UWMDs but was also a former terrorist cell that had bought its way to corporate legitimacy. H.A.T.E. was not an anti-terrorism unit; it was the marketing and field-testing department for the Beyond Corporation©'s products. Upon this horrifying and absurd revelation, Nextwave immediately went rogue. They stole the Beyond Corporation©'s complete Marketing Plan, which contained a list of every UWMD and terrorist plot in development. They also stole a high-tech vehicle (which they promptly nicknamed the “Shockwave Rider”) and fled the Aeromarine, with Dirk Anger and the forces of H.A.T.E. in hot pursuit. Their new, self-appointed mission was to travel across America, systematically dismantle every one of the Beyond Corporation©'s schemes, and cause as much explosive property damage as possible while doing so.
The Nextwave team does not exist in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The specific organization of H.A.T.E., its leader Dirk Anger, and the Beyond Corporation© as depicted in the comics have no MCU counterparts. The satirical, fourth-wall-breaking tone of the comic is fundamentally different from the more grounded (though still fantastical) reality of the MCU. However, two of the team's core members have been introduced into the MCU, albeit in vastly different interpretations:
The significant tonal and character differences make a direct adaptation of the Nextwave team in the current MCU highly improbable. Any future team-up involving these characters would likely bear little resemblance to the anarchic spirit of the source material.
Nextwave's structure is, by design, a chaotic mess. It is less of a structured team and more of a dysfunctional, bickering family united by a common enemy and a love for explosions.
Nextwave's initial, fraudulent mandate from H.A.T.E. was to “protect the United States from bizarre threats to the American way of life.” In reality, they were unknowing beta testers for the Beyond Corporation©'s weapons. After going rogue, their self-appointed mission became to use the stolen Marketing Plan to find and destroy every UWMD created by the Beyond Corporation©. Their secondary, unspoken mission is to do this in the loudest, most destructive, and most entertaining way possible. There is no subtlety to their methods. Their strategy can be summarized by their unofficial theme song: “Nextwave! Nextwave! Go! Nextwave! Nextwave! Kill! Nextwave! Nextwave! Hate! Nextwave! Nextwave! Die!”
The team consists of five core members, each bringing a unique brand of dysfunction to the group.
As there is no Nextwave team in the MCU, there is no mandate, structure, or full roster to analyze. The existing characters operate within entirely different frameworks:
Nextwave's greatest allies are, ironically, each other. Despite the constant insults, arguments, and physical violence they inflict upon one another, they have forged a powerful bond of loyalty. They are a deeply dysfunctional family that will unhesitatingly risk their lives for one another when facing an external threat. Outside of their own small circle, they are completely isolated. They have burned their bridges with every major superhero organization and are considered rogue agents by the U.S. government. Their network consists solely of the five of them against the world.
Nextwave's antagonists are as bizarre and satirical as the heroes themselves.
Nextwave's only official affiliation was their brief, fraudulent employment by H.A.T.E. Following their defection, they became a fully independent, rogue unit. The past affiliations of their members stand in stark contrast to Nextwave's chaotic nature:
This history highlights how far each character has strayed from the mainstream superhero world, making their placement in a team like Nextwave both a fall from grace and a strange form of liberation.
The entirety of Nextwave's story is contained within their single 12-issue series, which can be broken down into distinct two-issue arcs.
The overarching plot follows the team's journey from H.A.T.E. agents to rogue heroes as they fight their way across America, dismantling the Beyond Corporation©'s schemes one explosion at a time.
This arc establishes the series' premise and tone. It opens with the team already in action, fighting cloned samurai. The story quickly flashes back to their recruitment by Dirk Anger and their subsequent discovery of H.A.T.E.'s connection to the Beyond Corporation©. After defecting, their first mission as fugitives takes them to Abcess, North Dakota, where they confront an army of Broccoli Men and a giant, rampaging Fin Fang Foom. The arc culminates in Monica Rambeau personally dropkicking the colossal dragon into submission, setting the stage for the absurdity to come.
Hunting another UWMD, the team travels to War-Pac, Illinois, a town entirely populated by supervillain-themed gangs. They are forced to confront the New Paramounts, a team of villains led by the ridiculous Doctor Octopus-parody, Number None. The arc features a memorable sequence where the team systematically and brutally dismantles the entire villain team, culminating in The Captain defeating the giant robot Destructon by flying straight through its head. The climax reveals that H.A.T.E. has deployed their own super-team, the C.I.D. (Circulatory System Infiltration Device), to hunt Nextwave, leading to a direct confrontation.
Nextwave infiltrates a H.A.T.E. Re-education Camp disguised as a sleepy holiday resort called “The Helping Hand.” They discover that H.A.T.E. is brainwashing individuals using a giant, monstrous version of Irving Forbush, a.k.a. Forbush Man. The psychic influence of the creature causes the team to experience vivid, disturbing hallucinations reflecting their deepest insecurities. Elsa Bloodstone, immune to the psychic attack due to her cynicism, manages to single-handedly kill the monster, freeing her teammates.
The grand finale sees Nextwave launching a direct assault on the Beyond Corporation©'s space station headquarters. They fight their way through waves of bizarre enemies, including killer koalas and a resurrected, cybernetically enhanced Dirk Anger. The final confrontation is with the CEO of the Beyond Corporation©, a being who reveals his group's true nature as extradimensional thrill-seekers. In a fittingly absurd climax, Aaron Stack defeats the entity by hooking him up to a keg and pumping him full of beer until he explodes. The series ends with the team victorious, having destroyed their enemies and seemingly free to pursue a new life of chaotic heroism, having set off one final, massive “kickplosion.”
The primary variant of Nextwave is the ongoing debate about its place within the main Earth-616 continuity.
The canonicity of Nextwave: Agents of H.A.T.E. is one of the most enduring fan debates in modern Marvel Comics. The evidence is contradictory, allowing it to be both in and out of continuity simultaneously.
The prevailing consensus among fans and creators is that Nextwave exists in a state of “soft canon” or “Schrödinger's Canon.” Its events happened, but the hyper-stylized, satirical tone is understood to be a subjective interpretation of those events. The story is canonical whenever a writer finds it useful or funny to reference it.
During the Secret Wars event, a version of the Nextwave team appeared in the tie-in series Mrs. Deadpool and the Howling Commandos. This version existed in the Battleworld domain of Monster Metropolis and consisted of Elsa Bloodstone, a zombified Captain America, Man-Thing, and Werewolf by Night. This was clearly an alternate reality incarnation and bore little resemblance to the original team beyond Elsa's inclusion.