The indefatigable Stan Lee is back with yet another galaxy of superheroes. This time it's The Guardian Project, 30 new superheroes, each based on a franchise of the National Hockey League. The individual Guardians will each have five powers including one that relates directly to the team they represent. The Calgary Flames dude will have control over fire, while the Philadelphia Flyers Guardian will be able to soar through the skies. Presumably the Edmonton Oilers character will be extra greasy and difficult to hold.



The entire posse of hockey-based heroes will be unveiled at the NHL All-Star game. They were created to appeal to hockey’s current fan base, but more importantly they target tween boys and are designed to attract young fans to the sport of hockey. As the chief NHL marketer put it: “We are looking at how we cultivate a relationship with the next generation of fans.”



Plans call for comic books as well as animated TV, film, and mobile phone apps as well as a robust online presence. The L.A.-based Vicon House of Moves, a leading motion-capture animation house that does tons of video game work, is handling production of The Guardian Project animation, which will be teased when the project is revealed at the New York Comic Con.



The Guardians will work together (reluctantly at times) to defeat a number of villains, and like all good Stan Lee superheroes, they will have, as their creator put it to USA Today, “their own personal problems and hang-ups” (once again, acne would appear to be a likely challenge for the Guardian from Edmonton).