By their own reckoning, Jeph Loeb and Ed McGuinness' new Marvel Comics series "Nova" has been in the works for a long while. And now that the book is finally preparing for its February debut, Marvel is making moves to show off how far the series has come.

Today, after previously releasing pages from the first two issues of the comic, the publisher sent out some new McGuinness pencils from "Nova" #3 focusing on teen hero Sam Alexander's encounter with The Watcher. Combine that with a cover featuring two members of the "Guardians of the Galaxy" series, and the promise of making the new book a central part of Marvel's big cosmic comic push for 2013 seems assured.

Check out the art below, and for more on "Nova" stay tuned to CBR's AXEL-IN-CHARGE column tomorrow afternoon.