John Romita Jr's Marvel return also brings back "The Trial of Magneto"

'Trial of Magneto' teaser art by John Romita, Jr.
(Image credit: Marvel Comics)

Artist John Romita Jr.'s recently announced return to Marvel Comics also apparently includes a return to one of the stories that helped launch his career with the publisher, 'The Trial of Magneto.'

(Image credit: Marvel Comics)

Marvel has released a teaser featuring art from Romita, promising "the trial that threatens to divide mutantkind!" launching in August, with the title 'The Trial of Magneto.'

It's unclear what the master of magnetism, who is one of the founders of Krakoa and currently serves on its Quiet Council, may do to earn a trial, but Krakoa only has a few laws, and one of them is "don't kill humans." 

With a bunch of humans (including some famous ones) coming to Krakoa in June's 'Hellfire Gala' crossover, that could spell disaster.

As for the original 'Trial of Magneto,' that story took place in Uncanny X-Men #200, part of Romita's long run on the title that helped define the team for the '80s and made a name for the artist. 

On trial for his attempted crimes against humanity, Magneto actually winds up becoming the headmaster of the Xavier Academy as a result of the story (Charles Xavier himself went away to space to be with Lilandra, his Shi'Ar girlfriend). This era marked Magneto's first foray into out-and-out mutant heroism and constituted one of the biggest shake-ups in the X-Men ever at the time.

It's unclear whether Romita will provide art for the new 'Trial of Magneto' story itself, or if he's simply providing the teaser art, but Marvel promises more information next week.

John Romita Jr. is #2 on Newsarama's list of the best Spider-Man artists of all time.

George Marston

I've been Newsarama's resident Marvel Comics expert and general comic book historian since 2011. I've also been the on-site reporter at most major comic conventions such as Comic-Con International: San Diego, New York Comic Con, and C2E2. Outside of comic journalism, I am the artist of many weird pictures, and the guitarist of many heavy riffs. (They/Them)

Read more
Juggernaut and Cyclops.
The Amazing Spider-Man #68.DEATHS is a major turning point for one former X-Men villain
Juggernaut stomps.
Juggernaut meets his maker as the X-Men arrive to fight Cyttorak in Amazing Spider-Man #67
Uncanny X-Men #11
Professor Xavier goes into cardiac arrest as X-Manhunt kicks off in Uncanny X-Men #11
Wolverine and Kitty Pryde #1
Legendary writer Chris Claremont returns for a new X-Men comic that sends Wolverine and Kitty Pryde to Japan
Cover of Giant-Size X-Men #1 which resembles the original 1975 version with Kamala Khan added to the team.
Marvel celebrates 50 years since Giant-Size X-Men #1 by sending Ms. Marvel Kamala Khan through time in an event that "redefines mutant history forever"
Hellgate takes down various Spider-people
Amazing Spider-Man #1 will introduce major new Marvel villain Hellgate, Peter Parker's "greatest challenge in the new era"
Latest in Marvel Comics
Fantastic Four: 1234 #2 cover excerpt
Sue Storm and Namor are officially both in Avengers: Doomsday, and fans are wondering if Reed Richards has something to worry about
Daredevil: Born Again
Marvel may have just sneakily confirmed one of the biggest Daredevil: Born Again fan theories
New Champions #4
Meet Gold Tiger, the young Wakandan hero whose origin will be revealed in New Champions #4
Marvel Rivals: Ignite #1
Marvel Rivals goes manga in a new comic from Peach Momoko and three other Japanese artists that reveals several new in-game costumes
Fantastic Four #30
Thanks to Doctor Doom, Ben Grimm is no longer the Thing and his kids don't even recognize him in Fantastic Four #30
Silver Surfer sitting on his board
Marvel June 2025 solicitations: 10 must-have comics to pre-order this month
Latest in News
Pillars of Eternity
10 years later, in a post-Baldur's Gate 3 and Avowed world, Obsidian is giving its own throwback CRPG Pillars of Eternity a turn-based combat mode
Destiny 2 Lightfall
When Destiny 2 "weekly active users dropped lower and faster than we'd seen since 2018," Bungie assembled an A-Team to put out some fires: "We needed to do something"
Velma, Daphne, Fred, Shaggy, and Scooby-Doo looking at a giant key which is also a clue
Netflix is rebooting Scooby-Doo as a live-action series from the producer of Supergirl and The Flash centered around a "supernatural murder" at a summer camp
Astro Bot
Astro Bot went through 23 pitch iterations before its director promised PlayStation "happy gameplay" and "overflowing charm," though it did once end with robot decapitation that made "some people really upset"
Tomb Raider
5 years after Avengers, 2 years after its last layoffs, and who knows how long before Perfect Dark and Tomb Raider return, Crystal Dynamics announces another round of layoffs
AI Limit
"AI is not as effective as it might appear": Dev of AI-focused Soulslike RPG says they didn't use any AI-generated content and it can't match "genuine creativity"