Eric Wallace to write 'Shazam' one-shot

DC Comics has announced that Eric Wallace will pen a Shazam one-shot for release early next year.

Illustrated by Cliff Richards, the comic follows the exploits of the Marvel family, focusing on the characters Freddy Freeman, Billy Batson and Mary Marvel.

Picking up after the events of the 'Black Adam and Isis' arc in Justice Society Of America, the story finds Batson powerless and Freeman step up as the new Captain Marvel.

"What I love most about Captain Marvel - in all his incarnations - is his integrity," Wallace told CBR. "If there's anyone who is even more of a 'good guy' than Superman, it's Captain Marvel.

"Characters with such inherent goodness have farther to fall when confronted by evil, so it makes them very interesting to write."

He added: "More specifically in the case of Billy and Mary Batson, they've gone through so much recently in the pages of Justice Society Of America that they've become tragic figures. That, in turn, makes them irresistible to write."

Featuring a cover illustration from Cliff Chiang, the Shazam one-shot arrives in stores in January 2011.