By the power of ... Powerade: In an announcement that triggers memories of The Adventures Of Kool-Aid Man, DC Comics and Powerade have teamed up for a Powerade Flava 23 promotional comic starring NBA player LeBron James and featuring 10 different covers by the likes of Damion Scott, James Jean, Udon, John VanFleet, Jock and Ariel Olivetti. Four of the covers will be available only through mail-in redemption, four only at Kroger grocery stores, one only at military commissaries, and one at retail and via mail-in redemption. Here's David McKillips, DC's vice president of advertising and custom publishing:

"DC assembled a talented team of comic book veterans and rising stars to create a universe of new villains, competitors and, of course, a new hero named King James that will appeal to athletes, sports fans and superhero fans. With ten different covers and three million copies in print, the King James project is the largest sports-related custom comic book DC Comics has ever created."

ESPN.com has more on James' $2 million endorsement deal with Powerade and Sprite, and makes mention of the King James comic:

"Both Powerade and Nike appear in the promotional cartoon, which could grow into something much bigger for LeBron, who, after seeing the first proof, requested that his character be portrayed with larger muscles."