2009 July
SDCC ’09 | A peek at Bunn and Hurtt’s supernatural 6th Gun
From "6th Gun," by Cullen Bunn and Brian Hurtt
I haven’t seen any full reports from Thursday’s Oni Press panel — I imagine Comic Book Resource’s coverage will appear later today — but I did catch these tantalizing promotional images for 6th Gun, the just-announced supernatural Western from The Damned team of Cullen Bunn and Brian Hurtt. (You can see the second image after the break.)
I’m a sucker for supernatural-historical stories, so I’m itching to find out more about 6th Gun.
- July 25, 2009 @ 11:34 AM by Kevin Melrose
SDCC ’09 | Allred and Seagle (don’t) announce new project
Allred-Seagle promo
Contrary to what you might’ve heard, Michael Allred and Steven T. Seagle didn’t announce a new project Friday at Comic-Con. Nope. Uh-uh. Or maybe they did:
Mike Allred (Madman) and Steven T. Seagle (It’s a Bird…) confirmed today that they are not announcing a new project at this year’s Comic-Con International. Citing the sheer number of announcements expected to be made at the show this year, the duo expressed concern that announcing a project at this time could be detrimental to all involved. “We’d be lost in the shuffle,” explained Allred who announced his new project for DC/Vertigo last week in advance of other anticipated con announcements. “Some stories should not be told,” was Seagle’s only comment — a sentiment reflected in a flyer the duo will be handing out at the convention specifically to not announce the new project.
Not denying that the book will be a co-production of Allred’s AAA POP, Seagle’s MAN OF ACTION STUDIOS and publisher Image Comics, the duo nonetheless refused to confirm the five issue series was set for 2010. The pair met in 1987 when Allred and his family moved into Air Force Academy housing quarters previously occupied by Seagle as a child. Seagle and Allred have begun work on — but not completed — three previous series: LOOK for shuttered publisher Tundra, JAGUAR STORIES for shuttered publisher Comico, and BIG WORLD, which was not approved years ago by Vertigo.
Honestly, I don’t know what’s going on. But if it involves Allred and Seagle, I’ll check it out.
- July 25, 2009 @ 10:54 AM by Kevin Melrose
SDCC ’09 | Warner Bros. confirms DC Universe animated shorts
Jonah Hex
Perhaps the most interesting news out of Friday’s “DC Universe Animated Super Powers” panel is confirmation that Warner Bros. is developing animated shorts based on DC Comics characters.
A Jonah Hex short written by Joe R. Lansdale will be among the the initial series of shorts. However, Gregory Noveck, DC Comics senior vice president of creative affairs, wouldn’t offer further details.
Rumors about the project began circulating earlier this month. According to Comics Continuum sources, the shorts are being produced for inclusion with DC Universe Animated direct-to-DVD features. “It’s likely the shorts will then be put together for a compilation DVD, which might also include new material,” the website reported.
A comics writer and award-winning author of Western, horror and mystery novels, Lansdale has a long association with the character. With frequent artistic collaborator Tim Truman, he’s three Jonah Hex miniseries, dating back to 1993: Two-Gun Mojo, Riders of the Worm and Such, and Shadows West.
Lansdale also wrote for Batman: The Animated Series, Superman: The Animated Series and The New Batman Adventures.
- July 25, 2009 @ 10:00 AM by Kevin Melrose
SDCC ’09 | Cavalcade of photos
I think I took most of these on Thursday evening about 15 minutes before the dealer room was closing down. The crowds had mostly cleared out, and I was able to sneak down to the Hollywood end of things to snap some shots. Although I was almost caught up in a “free Twilight New Moon poster” scramble that was going on at one of the booths.
The above shot is the Super Hero Squad display at the Hasbro booth.
- July 25, 2009 @ 09:15 AM by JK Parkin
SDCC ’09 | Marvel Anime teaser trailers debut
Marvel Anime poster
Marvel and Japanese animation studio Madhouse have unveiled mind-blowing teaser trailers for Iron Man and Wolverine, the first of four planned anime series.
Okay, Wolverine looks just pretty good; Iron Man is mind-blowing. You really shouldn’t wait: Skip to the end of this post and watch them now.
It was revealed yesterday at the “Marvel Animation” panel that Blade and X-Men will be the next projects in the series, which is expected to debut on Japan’s Animex channel in spring 2010. I’ve not seen word yet as to when the shows will air elsewhere.
Written by Warren Ellis, Iron Man is set in Tokyo, and deals with a culture clash and the history of weapon design. Wolverine, meanwhile, is rooted in the 1982 miniseries by Chris Claremont and Frank Miller.
Now go watch those trailers. Again and again:
- July 25, 2009 @ 07:04 AM by Kevin Melrose
SDCC ’09 | Day Two
Comic-Con
The second day of Comic-Con was dominated by just two stories: Marvel’s purchase of the rights to the legendary Marvelman, and the 2009 Eisner Awards.
The Marvelman announcement, made during the “Cup O’ Joe” panel, was met largely with a mix of surprise and excitement. After all the property, known in the United States as Miracleman, has been out of print for years, mired in a bog of questions about copyright ownership.
Still, some wondered why the news is considered such a big deal, and even what this Marvelman is. For those, Robot 6 contributor Chris Mautner has put together a handy primer.
Marvel’s plans for the property, or even what exactly the acquisition includes — Mick Anglo’s original tales? The later comics by Alan Moore, Neil Gaiman and company? All of it? — haven’t been revealed.
“This is only Day One,” Editor-in-Chief Joe Quesada told Comic Book Resources. He did, however, mention reprints and new stories.
The other big story, of course, was last night’s presentation of the Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards. Robot 6′s JK Parkin live-blogged the ceremony. You can find the official list of winners here.
In other Friday highlights:
- July 25, 2009 @ 06:14 AM by Kevin Melrose
SDCC ’09 | Robot 6′s Marvelman 101 guide
Marvelman teaser, by Joe Quesada
We’ve noticed some confusion surrounding Marvel’s big announcement about its acquisition of Marvelman. Namely, some are wondering why this is big news, or asking who this Marvelman is anyway.
Fear not, we can help. After the break you’ll find a guide to the whys and wherefores of Marvelman and why this really, truly is a really, really big deal.
Note: Parts of this article originally appeared here, as part of the “Collect This Now!”feature. It’s been refurbished quite a bit, though.
- July 25, 2009 @ 04:00 AM by Chris Mautner
Liveblogging the Eisners!
Eisner Awards
And we’re up! I had some technical difficulties with the wireless in the Eisners very lovely new venue at the new Hilton Bayfront Hotel, but it seems to be working for now.
In any event, here’s who has won so far … these first two were presented by comedian Patton Oswalt:
Best Publication for Kids: Tiny Titans, by Art Baltazar and Franco (DC)
Best Publication for Teens/Tweens: Coraline, by Neil Gaiman, adapted by P. Craig Russell (HarperCollins Children’s Books)
While Eisner winner Neil Gaiman presented these three …
- July 24, 2009 @ 09:03 PM by JK Parkin
SDCC ’09 | Scott Pilgrim video game is on the way
Scott Pilgrim
As announced by Oni Press yesterday, and reported by Attack of the Show, Ubisoft is developing a video game based on Bryan Lee O’Malley’s Scott Pilgrim series.
Described as an old-school, side-scrolling beat-’em-up, the downloadable game will be released next year to coincide with Edgar Wright’s movie adaptation Scott Pilgrim vs. the World.
Expect details from Ubisoft next week.
(via /Film)
- July 24, 2009 @ 06:53 PM by Kevin Melrose
SDCC ’09 | Mark Waid will save us all
You remember the whole Mark Waid is Evil? thing, right?
BOOM!'s last slide
Well, at Comic-Con today, their last slide at their panel teased what appears to be another Mark Waid project of some sort. “Mark Waid is incorruptible.” I figured the guy who wrote Incredibles couldn’t be all bad.
- July 24, 2009 @ 06:21 PM by JK Parkin
SDCC ’09 | Viz Media’s Shonen Jump adds Bakuman and Toriko
Bakuman
Viz Media will add the slice-of-life Bakuman and the action-comedy Toriko to its Shonen Jump magazine lineup.
The announcement was made today during the publisher’s first panel at Comic-Con.
Bakuman, by Death Note creators Tsugumi Ohba and drawn by Takeshi Obata, follows to ninth-grade boys who dream of becoming mangaka. It debuted in August 2008 in Weekly Shonen Jump and has so far been collected in three volumes in Japan.
The title character in Mitsutoshi Shimabukuro’s Toriko is a luxury-food hunter who uses his inhuman abilities to capture rare and ferocious animals in hopes of one day creating the ultimate meal. The series premiered in May 2008 in Weekly Shonen Jump. To date, five volumes have been released in Japan.
- July 24, 2009 @ 04:41 PM by Kevin Melrose
SDCC ’09 | Jeff Smith posts Bone: Tall Tales cover
Bone: Tall Tales
Next to Marvel’s big news today, the best revelation coming out of SDCC for me so far is the announcement that Jeff Smith is going to do more Bone books. And, in case you were wondering what these new series will look like, Smith has the cover art up for Tall Tales and a rough for Quest for the Spark over at his Web site.
- July 24, 2009 @ 04:00 PM by Chris Mautner
SDCC ’09 | Tom Welling to appear on panel (but what’s this about a suit?)
Tom Welling
Smallville star Tom Welling will make his first-ever appearance at Comic-Con, fanning rumors that the actor will debut a new, cape-less Superman costume at the show’s Sunday panel.
According to EW.com’s Michael Ausiello, this will be the first time the entire cast has assembled for the convention.
The news adds a new wrinkle to online rumors that Warner Bros. representatives have been randomly selecting Comic-Con attendees to view a redesigned Superman costume destined to debut in the Season 9 premiere.
However, a source close to the series told Robot 6 that they knew nothing about a suit being shown.
AICN reported speculation in June that The CW is planning a Smallville television movie for Christmas 2010 titled Metropolis, which also might explain Welling’s appearance on the panel.
The Smallville panel will be at 10:30 a.m. Sunday.
- July 24, 2009 @ 03:48 PM by Kevin Melrose
SDCC ’09 | World War Z author to write G.I. JOE miniseries
World War Z
IDW Publishing announced today that Max Brooks, author of the bestselling novel World War Z, will write a G.I. JOE five-issue miniseries next year.
Brooks, who wrote for Saturday Night Live from 2001 to 2003, also is the author of the tongue-in-cheek Zombie Survival Guide. A graphic-novel follow-up will be released in October.
“Both Chris Ryall [IDW editor-in-chief] and I read World War Z and we knew we had to try to get Max to write something for us,” G.I. JOE editor Andy Schmidt said in a press release. “What we didn’t know is that Max is a huge G.I. JOE fan and had expressed interest in writing G.I. JOE to [COBRA writer] Christos Gage. Synchronicity ensued and G.I. JOE has never looked or read so well! We’re very pleased to add Max’s vision to the G.I. JOE canon.”
- July 24, 2009 @ 12:54 PM by Kevin Melrose
SDCC ’09 | Marvel Super Hero Squad calls in all-star cast
Marvel has announced an all-star voice cast for the Marvel Super Hero Squad animated series, which premieres in September on Cartoon Network.
The 26-episode all-ages cartoon stars Tom Kenny (aka Spongebob) as Iron Man, Captain America and M.O.D.O.K., Grey DeLisle (Fairly Oddparents) as Ms. Marvel and the Enchantress, Alimi Ballard (NUMB3RS) as the Falcon, and Charlie Adler (Cow & Chicken, Transformers 1 & 2) as Dr. Doom.
Marvel Super Hero Squad
In addition, guest voices will include:
• Shawn Ashmore (X-Men films) as Iceman
• LeVar Burton (Star Trek: The Next Generation) as Rhodey
• Taye Diggs (Private Practice) as the Black Panther
• Robert Englund (A Nightmare on Elm Street) as Dormammu
• Greg Grunberg (Heroes) as Ant-Man
• Mark Hamill (Star Wars) as the Red Skull
• Tricia Helfer (Battlestar Galactica) as Sif
• Wayne Knight (Seinfeld) as Egghead
• James Marsters (Smallville, Buffy the Vampire Slayer) as Mr. Fantastic
• Adrian Pasdar (Heroes) as Hawkeye
• Kevin Sorbo (Hercules) as Ka-Zar
• George Takei (Heroes, Star Trek) as Galactus
• Michelle Trachtenberg (Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Gossip Girl) as the Valkyrie.
Stan Lee also will appear in the recurring role as the mayor of Super Hero City. Heck, I’ll watch it just for Wayne Knight as Egghead and George Takei as Galactus.
More details will be announced tomorrow at Comic-Con during the 10 a.m. panel.
- July 24, 2009 @ 12:08 PM by Kevin Melrose