After years away, the Big Hero 6 team will return to comic books -- but not where you might expect.

IDW Publishing announced both on Facebook and its Saturday night panel that it will publish comic books starting in 2018 based on the upcoming Big Hero 6 animated series on Disney XD. No creative team or release date has yet been announced, as the series is "still in development," but the publisher promises more details in the near future.

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This is a surprising move since the Big Hero 6 characters originated in Marvel Comics, created by Steven T. Seagle and Duncan Rouleau and first seen in 1998's Sunfire & Big Hero 6 #1. The characters haven't starred in a comic book series since a 2008 Big Hero 6 miniseries, and last appeared in a small role in the 2012 Amazing Spider-Man storyline "Ends of the Earth."

Disney's 2014 Big Hero 6 animated feature film adapted the characters to the big screen, but was billed strictly as a Disney production, with the Marvel logo not appearing in the film's marketing. The movie was a hit with critics and fans, winning an Academy Award for Best Animated Feature and grossing $657.8 million worldwide. Marvel did not release any tie-in comics related to the film.

The Big Hero 6 animated series doesn't currently have a release date, but is expected to debut before the end of the year.