This week has had a TON of new changes announced for the upcoming Marvel Universe. First, Thor handing the hammer to a new female God of Thunder, and then last night, we find out who Steve Rogers is passing his shield to: Sam “The Falcon” Wilson.

That’s right- this fall, we’re getting the first official African-American Captain America since the original prototype super-soldier, Isaiah Bradley!

Sam has been Cap’s modern-day partner in comics for over 40 years, and stood by his friend through challenges from the personal to the cosmic. As an Avenger and a Defender, The Falcon has also seen his fair share of action, making him a veteran in the superhero biz.

The official announcement was made on The Colbert Report, as we all know Steven is the biggest Captain America fan there is. The guy has Cap’s shield on his wall!

This is a huge deal, as Sam has been a B-lister at the most for his comic book carrer. By giving him the title (instead of say, Bucky), Marvel is not only bumping his profile in the series, but showing that they understand, editorially, that representation matters. And that- for however long it lasts- anyone can be Captian America.

And just today, Entertainment Weekley & Mashable have the story of the new Superior Iron Man series, also due out in the Fall. It’s not just a new, more arrogant title- it’s a more arrogant Tony stark we’ll be seeing as the Armored Avenger heads to San Francisco to unleash his vision of high technology for the masses- but at what cost?

The new creative team of writer Tom Taylor and artist Yildray Cinar will be debuting not just Stark’s Extremis App, but a new Iron Man armor design that is, frankly, straight from Silicon Valley- or the bridge of the Enterprise.

These big changes show that Marvel continues to be fearless in (at least temporarily) changing up the status-quo. We’ll see where this roller-coaster goes next!

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