Big, crazy crossovers are certainly not an anomaly in superhero comic books, but there’s something extra special and strange about the worlds of Black Hammer and Justice League combining. Yes, you read that right: this summer, we’re getting Black Hammer/Justice League: Hammer of Justice, a five-part mini-series written by Jeff Lemire with art from Michael Walsh.

Black Hammer/Justice League: Hammer of Justice #1 Covers 6 IMAGES

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The heroes of the DC Universe are no strangers to interacting with alternate dimensions and weird worlds, but this event is a first for the burgeoning universe of Black Hammer, which follows the weird and wondrous lives of five superheroes who start the series trapped on mysterious farm after a saving the world. Published by Dark Horse Comics, Black Hammer nabbed the Eisner for Best New Series in 2017 and went on to spawn multiple spin-offs.In a lot of ways Black Hammer is a meta-commentary on the DC Universe, but Lemire told IGN that pairing up the two worlds really highlighted the differences in them.“Of course, there are some surface similarities, like both Martian Manhunter and Barbalien being Martian heroes, but when you put them together, it allows the uniqueness of both worlds to really come through,” Lemire said.Details on the plot are being kept sparse for now, but we do know the crossover kicks off when a strange man arrives simultaneously on the Black Hammer Farm and in Superman’s home of Metropolis, both worlds are warped, and DC villain Starro launches an attack. The cast includes heavy-hitters from both worlds, like Batman, Wonder Woman, Superman, Golden Gail and Colonel Weird. The idea of Superman having to interact with Golden Gail (a grown woman stuck in the body of a child who’s prone to smoking and swearing) is more than enough to get us fired up.While this event looks to be insanely epic, Lemire wants Black Hammer fans to know that he has no intention of turning his creation into an endless superhero event machine.“The joy of Black Hammer, for me, and I presume many of its fans, is to read superhero comics that are character driven without endless tie-ins and events,” he noted. “So, I don’t want Black Hammer to become that. But this was an excellent opportunity to tell a really fun story and, hopefully, to bring Black Hammer to a bunch of new readers. I have too many stories of my own that I still want to tell.”That’s not to say that this is an event without lasting repercussions, though. Lemire is quick to point out that what happens in this series will be very real.“Obviously, I want [Black Hammer] to continue to grow and evolve autonomously,” he said. “But that doesn’t mean that this is just a throwaway ‘imaginary story’ either. It will have an emotional impact on both sets of characters, and there is one other aspect that will have a more lasting effect, but I can’t spoil that here.”Lemire is bringing a lot of his friends along for the ride; Black Hammer/Justice League: Hammer of Justice #1 features covers by Michael Walsh, Andrea Sorrentino, Yanick Paquette, Yuko Shimizu, with colors by the mighty Dave Stewart. It’s clear that this thing is going to be huge, which is pretty surreal when you consider how small Black Hammer started. We asked Lemire if he ever envisioned something like this and he was quick to reply that he never imagined it would get this big.“[Black Hammer] started as a simple story of five superheroes stranded on a farm. And it’s important to me that I always keep that in mind. When I grow the Black Hammer Universe, it all has to come from that core, and from that same place of emotional and character-driven storytelling.”Black Hammer/Justice League: Hammer of Justice #1 goes on sale July 10 and is now available for pre-order.