2009 July
Straight for the art | Jhonen Vasquez draws ‘The Sisters’
The Sisters
2K Games, the makers of Bioshock and its upcoming sequel, have recruited artists to draw “their Rapture,” i.e. scenes and characters from the video game. The first in this series is Johnny the Homicidal Maniac creator Jhonen Vasquez, who drew the creepy Sisters from the game (as well as a Big Daddy, naturally). Vasquez walks through the process for creating his piece on the Cult of Rapture website.
- July 18, 2009 @ 09:03 AM by JK Parkin
The Fifth Color’s 6 Points of Marvel Zombietude for SDCC
You can feel it, can’t you? After the strange wave that is the last week in June for Marvel comics, things seem to be getting… smaller at the shelves. You not walking away with as much. You feel the tide is rolling back. And, if you’re like me, you took home one title this week and when you looked in the calm clear water in your glass at lunch, you saw a ripple. A ripple of things to come.
The ground shook, and you ignored it. People came to you looking for costuming ideas and you ignored that too. Only when hotel rooms started getting bandied about, when the desperate cries for tickets rang out like sirens in the air, only when you felt that hoover-like pull at your wallet and woke to dreams of the fresh salt sea air of San Diego did you understand.
Comic-Con is coming.
This is it, folks. Gird your loins! Hydrate! Deodorize! For the mad press of fan flesh and pro extravaganza is upon us once more! And, of this we can be certain, nothing will ever be the same again. These are the six unmissable Comic Con panels for the Marvel devotee.
Because we can’t be sure of anything in the House of Ideas, these won’t be ranked, just listed by day and time. Synchronized watches…. now.
- July 17, 2009 @ 04:45 PM by Carla Hoffman
Zudist Colony: Talking to this month’s Zuda competitors
Zuda
Today we kick off a bit of an experiment that hopefully will end up becoming a regular monthly feature. It’s called Zudist Colony (thanks to Jeff Mccomsey for the name), and the idea is to interview all the contestants in Zuda’s monthly competition.
Zuda, of course, is DC’s webcomics site, where every month ten comic strips go head-to-head, and the one that gets the most votes goes on to be a regular strip on the site. The site started hosting these competitions in late 2007. Every so often we’ll receive a request from one of the competitors, asking us to interview them, run some artwork, etc. to help them promote their entry — which I certainly don’t begrudge anyone for doing, as getting the word out about your strip is a big piece of the puzzle when it comes to the competition. And it may sound cheesy, but I’ve always felt that it wasn’t fair to showcase one strip over another, that if I interviewed one of the competitors, I really needed to interview all of them. So I turned down the requests.
But I started thinking about it — why can’t I interview all of them? So I dropped a couple of emails, and soon had the email addresses for all the competitors. I should note that I sent the same five questions to all the contestants, and told them that their entire team — writer, artist, etc. — could answer them.
Anyway, that might be a little too “insider baseball” for everyone, so if you’d like to get on with reading their responses, just click on the “Continue Reading” link and have at it …
- July 17, 2009 @ 03:57 PM by JK Parkin
WildStorm debuts Cassaday’s cover for Planetary finale
John Cassaday's cover for Planetary #27
WildStorm’s The Bleed closes out the week with a bang — with John Cassaday’s massive cover for the final issue of Planetary, due out in October. A poster version of the cover will be given away next week during Comic-Con International.
Visit the WildStorm blog to see an extra-large version of the image.
- July 17, 2009 @ 01:42 PM by Kevin Melrose
Dark Horse to publish Rafael Grampá’s Furry Water
From "Furry Water," by Rafael Grampá
After weeks of teasing, the publisher finally has been revealed for Rafael Grampá’s next project — thanks to Dark Horse’s Comic-Con signing schedule.
That’s right, Furry Water, Grampá’s mysterious collaboration with co-writer Daniel Pellizzari, will be released by the Oregon publisher. We’ve previously spotlighted Grampá’s Furry Water character designs here and here.
Grampá, who’s best known to American audiences for Mesmo Delivery and the Eisner-winning anthology 5, has been tight-lipped about the project, which apparently centers on five weapons-wielding brothers.
He confirms today on his blog that he and Pellizzari will sign promotional posters and cards for Furry Water on July 26 at the Dark Horse booth.
(Note to my fellow contributors attending Comic-Con: Somebody needs to get me one of those posters!)
- July 17, 2009 @ 01:19 PM by Kevin Melrose
Strangeways: Murder Moon – Page 12
Art by Luis Guragna. Written by Matt Maxwell
Commenting stuff following jumping thing
- July 17, 2009 @ 01:00 PM by Matt Maxwell
Matt Brady announces his departure from Newsarama
Newsarama
Newsarama Senior Editor Matt Brady announced this afternoon that he’s leaving after nearly 10 years with the comics website.
Newsarama founder Michael Doran will remain. Lucas Siegel, a frequent site contributor and husband of DC Comics assistant editor Janelle Siegel, will step in to Brady’s role.
“After nearly twenty years of covering comics, and ten years with Newsarama, I’ve decided that it’s time for me to move on to other arenas and challenges,” Brady wrote in his farewell message. “And just to cut off the legs of any rumors that may be trying to take root, this is a decision I made, and am leaving the site at my own time, on my own terms.”
Brady and Doran sold Newsarama to digital media company Imaginova in October 2007, but remained to run the website.
Jonah Weiland, executive producer of Comic Book Resources, offered the following words for Brady:
Matt, I hope the future holds as much success for you as you’ve experienced in the past. The job we do is a difficult one, but most people only see the final product and thus we make it look easy. I know how hard you’ve worked over the years having spent numerous conventions trading war stories, so I hope you get some time to relax a bit before jumping to your next venture. And I’ll never forget one of the more fun adventures I’ve had during a convention and you were part of it. It was a Chicago convention, I believe 2004, and after the show on Saturday night I convinced you and CBR staffers Augie De Blieck Jr. and Michael Sullivan to hop on the train with me into downtown Chicago for dinner. There was no plan, no dinner place selected, I had no idea where I was going, but I figured we’d just go and see what happens. Augie was certain we ‘d die or end up bleeding in an alley. Not only did we make it back alive, we had a fun little adventure in Chicago, a phenomenal dinner at an incredible steak house (my pork thing was as big as my head!) and even got to watch them filming aerial shots for Batman Begins as we sat outside. Good times.
Best of luck, Matt! Enjoy the moment.
- July 17, 2009 @ 12:00 PM by Kevin Melrose
Robot reviews: Prince Valiant Vol. 1: 1937-1938
Prince Valiant Vol. 1
Prince Valiant Vol. 1: 1937-1938
by Hal Foster
Fantagraphics Books, 120 pages, $29.99.
Who knew?
Who knew that Prince Valiant, a comic strip I always assumed appeared next to the word “boredom” in the dictionary, was so vibrant, colorful, action-packed and gosh-darned fun? Who knew it was actually any good?
- July 17, 2009 @ 11:50 AM by Chris Mautner
Road to San Diego: Justin Aclin on Hero House and ToyFare
Hero House
Justin Aclin is no stranger to the San Diego Comic Con. As the lead editor for ToyFare, he’s covered the con for the magazine a few times. But this year will be the first time he’s going to be there as a comic book creator, as he’s written a graphic novel called Hero House, drawn by Mike Dimayuga and published by Arcana Comics. The book doesn’t come out until November, but attendees can get a copy early at the con.
Justin is also the head writer of Twisted ToyFare Theatre, and the latest collection, Volume 10, hits comic shops on the first day of the show, with an introduction by Joe Quesada. I spoke with Justin about his plans for the con, both in terms of covering it and promoting his new book.
JK: You mentioned over email that you’ll have copies of Hero House, your new graphic novel, at the Arcana booth in San Diego. What’s the concept behind Hero House?
Justin: Hero House is about Epsilon Epsilon Psi—a college fraternity that trains the superheroes of tomorrow. It’s not nearly as wacky as my day job comic strip, “Twisted ToyFare Theatre.” There’s humor in it, but what I was really hoping to do was just tell a fun superhero adventure with memorable, relatable characters, and luckily in the early reviews, people really seem to be responding to the characters. If you’re a superhero fan, a Twisted ToyFare fan, or you’ve ever been in college, I totally think you should check it out. And it’s been mentioned before around these parts, but you can find out a lot more about the book by checking out my production blog, aclincorp.com.
- July 17, 2009 @ 10:50 AM by JK Parkin
Cornell and Raney to tackle Black Widow: Deadly Origin [Updated]
Black Widow: Deadly Origin
It’s starting to feel as if Comic-Con is starting early this year.
On the heels of yesterday’s announcement of the Punisher MAX relaunch, Marvel reveals Paul Cornell and Tom Raney will team up in November for Black Widow: Deadly Origin.
Cornell tells Geoff Boucher of The Los Angeles Times the four-issue miniseries will present the Soviet super-spy turned superhero as “the most experienced intelligence agent in the world.”
It’s no coincidence, of course, that Black Widow will play a role in next year’s Iron Man movie sequel, in which she’ll be portrayed by Scarlett Johansson.
Black Widow: Deadly Origin is Cornell’s follow-up to the canceled Captain Britain and MI13. Raney most recently worked on the Dark Reign: Hawkeye miniseries.
Update: The LA Times originally referred to the miniseries as Black Widow: Year One. The actual title apparently is Black Widow: Deadly Origin.
- July 17, 2009 @ 09:58 AM by Kevin Melrose
The First Daughter takes her turn as superhero
The First Daughter
The comics industry’s fascination with the First Family takes an interesting turn next week with the debut of The First Daughter, which casts the child of a fictional (yet familiar) president as an action hero.
The Keenspot Entertainment comic stars Tasha — not Sasha — Tasker as the teen daughter of a president who’s “inspired in equal parts by Barack Obama and Arnold Schwarzenegger.” While exploring her new home at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave., Tasha discovers a secret room, and soon begins to display special abilities.
The first issue, written by Mike Rosenzweig and illustrated by Rob Nix, will be offered next week as a Comic-Con exclusive. It also will be available as a free download this fall from the iPhone App Store. Subsequent issues will be priced at 99 cents.
- July 17, 2009 @ 08:27 AM by Kevin Melrose
ComicsLive | A guide to upcoming comic-related events
Welcome to ComicsLive, a guide to upcoming signings, conventions and other comic-related events. Information on submitting your event can be found at the bottom of this post.
July 17
Multiple cities | Watchmen returns to theaters with additional footage for a limited run in Los Angeles, New York City, Dallas and Minneapolis. Details can be found here.
July 18
Baltimore | Geppi’s Entertainment Museum hosts Secret Identities: The Asian American Superhero Anthology editor Keith Chow, art director Jerry Ma, artist Alex Tarampi and writer Larry Hama from noon to 4p.m. for a presentation, discussion and signing.
Portland | Cosmic Monkey Comics hosts a 24-hour zine challenge beginning at 10 a.m. and ending, naturally, at 10 a.m. the next day.
Jeffrey Brown's Hulk
Puyallup, Wash. | Comic Evolution will host a March of Dimes benefit that includes a silent auction and several artists doing sketches for donations, including Paul Gulacy, Clayton Crain and many more.
San Francisco | Isotope Comics hosts a signing and party for Geoff Johns, writer of Blackest Night, Green Lantern and various other titles. They’ll have free buttons and a selection of Lantern Corps. cocktails. The signing begins at 4 p.m. and the 21+ party begins at 7 p.m.
- July 17, 2009 @ 08:02 AM by JK Parkin
Comics A.M. | The comics Internet in two minutes
Image United #1
Publishing | George Gene Gustines spotlights Image United, the miniseries that reunites six of the seven Image Comics founders, and previews the first five pages of the debut issue. Six more pages will be shown Wednesday at Comic-Con International. [The New York Times]
Publishing | SLG Publishing has placed a freeze on submissions from Aug. 1 to Oct. 1 so Editor-in-Chief Jennifer de Guzman, whose hours have been cut, can catch up on the backlog. [SLG Publishing News]
Publishing | In case you still doubt whether the long-awaited conclusion of Planetary will actually ship in October, writer Warren Ellis assures us he’s seen “the complete lettered book” (which contains extra pages). [Warren Ellis]
- July 17, 2009 @ 07:02 AM by Kevin Melrose
Jason Aaron, Steve Dillon confirmed on relaunched Punisher MAX [Updated]
Punisher MAX #1
Today’s episode of G4′s Attack of the Show confirmed what’s been rumored for more than two months: that writer Jason Aaron and artist Steve Dillon will take on Marvel’s Punisher.
According to “Fresh Ink” host Blair Butler, the two creators will relaunch Punisher MAX with a new No. 1 issue in November. The current mature-readers title, the awkwardly named The Punisher: Frank Castle MAX, appears to be ending in September.
The new series reportedly will feature the debut of Bullseye and Kingpin in the MAX universe — can that be right? — with the first story arc focusing on the rise of Wilson Fisk through the ranks of the criminal underworld and the role Frank Castle plays in his ascent.
Word of the Aaron-Dillon teamup began circulating in early May after colorist Matt Hollingsworth listed “Punisher starting with issue #75,” along with the creators’ names, under the “Current Comics Work” header.
Dillon previously worked with Garth Ennis from 2001 to 2003 on the Marvel Knights imprint version of The Punisher, and later drew the Bullseye: Greatest Hits and Punisher vs. Bullseye miniseries. Aaron, who’s best known for his work on Scalped, Wolverine and Ghost Rider, wrote last year’s Punisher MAX X-Mas Special.
Update: You can watch the “Fresh Ink” segment here.
Marvel.com now has more details in an interview with Aaron: “The [Marvel Universe] Bullseye doesn’t work in the MAX Universe. You can’t have a guy running around in a costume killing people with toothpicks and playing cards. We’re not going to see that, but it’ll still be true to what we know about Bullseye.”
- July 16, 2009 @ 04:31 PM by Kevin Melrose
Back, in black
Grumpy Old Fan
Lisa: Dad, you shot the zombie Flanders!
Homer: He was a zombie?
To paraphrase Milton Berle, of all the universe-shattering events DC Comics has published over the years, Blackest Night #1 (written by Geoff Johns, penciled by Ivan Reis, and inked by Oclair Albert) is certainly the most recent. At the risk of being unfair to the various bits of Green Lantern lore Johns and his collaborators have been outlining over the past five years, Blackest Night is essentially a zombie story. A mysterious, malevolent force “recruits” its members from among the universe’s deceased, giving them black power rings and bidding them to “rise.” Now the Green Lantern Corps, and their colleagues in the superhero community, have seven more double-sized issues (plus ancillary tie-ins in other titles) to stop the Black Lanterns. I thought issue #1 was promising, and I’ll tell you why.
- July 16, 2009 @ 02:45 PM by Tom Bondurant