2000AD
The Dredd prop auction has begun
2012 will be remembered in some quarters as the year of some of the most overrated comic book movies ever. Fancy grabbing yourself a piece of permanent reminder from easily the best and most underrated of last year’s crop? Then eBay is the place for you, as DNA Films and the Prop Store are auctioning off over 200 props and costumes from Dredd over the next fortnight. In time you’ll be able to buy yourself a (hopefully fully working) Lawmaster motorbike, but the first batch includes the only complete Judge Dredd costume that’ll be available in the auction.
No word from anyone involved yet, but this sale may well be tacit confirmation that DNA has no intention of developing a sequel to the film, despite its recent success both as a download and in DVD and Blu-Ray sales, a second bite of the cherry that will probably result in putting the movie in profit after its initially disappointing international box office takings.
What Are You Reading? with Landry Walker
Hello and welcome to What Are You Reading?, where the Robot 6 crew shares their picks for the Royal Rumble … I mean, talks about what comics we’ve read recently. Today our special guest is Landry Walker, writer of Danger Club, Supergirl: Cosmic Adventures in the Eighth Grade, Batman: The Brave and the Bold, Little Gloomy, Tron and more.
To smell what Landry and the Robot 6 crew are cookin’, click below.
Food or Comics? | Steak or Star Wars
Welcome to Food or Comics?, where every week we talk about what comics we’d buy at our local comic shop based on certain spending limits — $15 and $30 — as well as what we’d get if we had extra money or a gift card to spend on a splurge item.
Check out Diamond’s release list or ComicList, and tell us what you’re getting in our comments field.
Star Wars #1
Chris Arrant
If I had $15 (big “if” this week!), I’d take a break from the struggles of adult life and find sanctuary in the pages of high mythology thanks to Jason Aaron and Esad Ribic’s Thor: God of Thunder #4 (Marvel, $3.99). Aaron and Ribic have really build up an excellent foil for Thor in the God-Killer, and also snuck in the idea of Young Thor and Old Thor – something I’d love to see expounded upon in their own series or one-shot (hint-hint). Second up would be the startling potent promise of Star Wars #1 (Dark Horse, $2.99). I never thought I’d see Brian Wood do a Star Wars comic, but I’m so glad he is – and seemingly doing it on his own terms. Thinking of him writing Princess Leia, and the potential there specifically has been rolling around in my brain for weeks. Third, I’d get two promising artist-centric series (at least for me) in B.P.R.D.: Hell On Earth — Abyss Time #1 (Dark Horse, $3.50) and TMNT: Secret of the Foot Clan #1 (IDW, $3.99). James Harren and Mateus Santolouco, respectively, are two artists I’ve been keen on for the past year and both of these books look like potential breakouts to a bigger stage. On the TMNT side, I’ve always thought Shredder and the Foot Clan to be one of the most overlooked great villains in comics, so I’m glad to see some focus on that and some potential answers.
If I had $30, I’d continue my super(comic)market sweep with Womanthology: Space #4 (IDW, $3.99). This series has two things I love: new, young creators and a space theme. I’ve been on a space opera/sci-fi kick for a while now thanks to Saga and re-reading some Heinlein, so this anthology series comes to me most fortuitously. Next up would be Legend of Luther Strode #2 (Image, $3.50). Luther Strode is a real down-and-out kind of hero, like some sort of action-based Charlie Brown. Tradd Moore’s artwork really makes this sing, too. Finally, I’d get two Marvel books with Secret Avengers #36 (Marvel, $3.99) and Wolverine and the X-Men #23 (Marvel, $3.99). I’m gritting my teeth on the latter – not because it’s bad, but because it isn’t as good for me as the previous arcs. For Secret Avengers, I feel Rick Remender and Matteo Scalera’s run on this has been sadly overlooked in the wave of Marvel NOW books, but this mega-arc about the Descendents and now Black-Ant has been great. I’d love to see Black-Ant as a permanent part of the Marvel U.
If I could splurge, I’d throw practicality out the door and shell out big bucks for the Black Incal deluxe hardcover (Humanoids, $79.95). There’s few times I’d spend nearly 80 bucks on a comic, but this classic story by Alejandro Jodorowsky and Moebius is one of those once-in-a-blue-moon kind of things. This has been reprinted numerous times (I have an older one), but I’m re-buying the story here for the deluxe treatment this volume has with its large size.
What Are You Reading? with Joshua Williamson
Hello and welcome to another edition of What Are You Reading?, where each week we talk about comics and other stuff we’ve been checking out lately. Today we welcome special guest Joshua Williamson, writer of Masks and Mobsters, Captain Midnight (which has been running in Dark Horse Presents), Uncharted, Voodoo and much more.
To see what Joshua and the Robot 6 crew have been reading, click below …
Comics A.M. | Shuster attorney appeals Superman decision
Action Comics #1
Legal | A federal judge this week made final his Oct. 17 decision that the heirs of Superman co-creator Joe Shuster surrendered the ability to reclaim their 50-percent interest in the property in a 1992 agreement with DC Comics, triggering an almost-immediate appeal to the 9th Circuit by Shuster estate lawyer Marc Toberoff. Jeff Trexler delves into the legal strategy behind the attorney’s motion for final judgment. [The Hollywood Reporter]
Legal | Todd McFarlane has settled his lawsuit against former employee Al Simmons, who earlier this year released a book in which he claimed to be the inspiration for Spawn. McFarlane had accused Simmons of violating the terms of his employment pact and breaching his duty of loyalty. Settlement terms weren’t disclosed. [The Hollywood Reporter]
Conversing on Comics with Andy Diggle
In any entertainment field, the only thing more difficult than breaking through and scoring that first hit is doing it again and again. And in comics, one of the people I’ve marveled at for his ability to top his previous hit and reinvent himself, all while staying true to himself and his style, is writer Andy Diggle.
He’s done a lot during his 15 years in comics: He helped to turn around then-flagging 2000AD with a back-to-basics approach. He dusted off a forgotten set of DC Comics characters and re-made them into a popular Vertigo series with The Losers. He gave readers a modern vantage point for DC’s archer Green Arrow. He took Marvel’s Daredevil to the darkest point. And at this year’s New York Comic Con, he was the belle of the ball in terms of announcements with four new titles, and several more already in the works.
The Middle Ground #130 | Thank you, friends
This isn’t a “Best of 2012″ list, because (a) 2012 isn’t finished yet, and (b) every time I attempt to put “Best of” lists together, I inevitably end up forgetting something that I utterly adore and feel guilty about it afterwards. Instead, inspired by Thursday’s upcoming holiday and the fact that you might be thinking about buying things on Friday for some reason, here are five things in comics from this year that I’m thankful for.
Robot 6 Q&A | Brendan McCarthy on ending The Zaucer of Zilk
Last week, IDW Publishing released the second and final part of The Zaucer of Zilk, a heady psychedelic brew of a type all-too-seldom seen on the shelves of comic stores. Editor-in-Chief Chris Ryall is both a confirmed Anglophile and a fan of Brendan McCarthy, so it was no real surprise the first non-Judge Dredd publication to come out of his company’s agreement with 2000AD was a quick-turnaround reprint of the comic, deemed an instant classic by many longtime readers of the venerable U.K. anthology.
2000AD doesn’t do superhero stories too often (I could count them all on one hand, and half of them had The Zaucer of Zilk‘s Al Ewing attached as writer), and this one is so genre-bending that it barely qualifies. The Zaucer may well gadabout in a form-fitting costume of primary colors, but as McCarthy wrote on the pitch sketches for the series, it’s also “Elric meets Time Bandits meets Yellow Submarine meets The Wizard of Oz.”
Robot 6 spoke to Brendan about the series’ inception, its conclusion, and its potential future. And as usual for McCarthy, the interview came with a side order of strong opinions, controversy, and some good news for fans of the legendary work he produced in the 1980s with Pete Milligan.
U.K. World Book Night features comics for first time, selects Judge Dredd: The Dark Judges
Since it was first announced in the United Kingdom in 2010, World Book Night has quickly established itself as a big deal indeed, a headline-grabber, something that has re-energized the national debate here about books and literature (always a good thing). Each year, a team of more than 20,000 “givers” volunteers to distribute a million free books, selected by a committee of experts, and donated by their publishers. The charity is partnered with the BBC, which regularly features the run-up and the event itself throughout its current affairs and cultural output: The booklist was featured last night on The One Show, and will be debated tonight on Newsnight Review. Doubtless someone on the panel will look baffled by its inclusion, like a caveman presented with the keys to a Ferrari.
The books announced yesterday as next year’s selection include, for the first time, some comics in the form of 2000AD/Rebellion Publishing’s Judge Dredd: The Dark Judges. Inclusion in this event could be seen as trumping Free Comic Book Day, with tens of thousands of copies of an entire graphic novel distributed freely across the entire nation in a hail of publicity. This edition features some stone-cold classics by John Wagner, Alan Grant, Brian Bolland, Brett Ewins and others, and includes the most celebrated panel ever in Bolland’s career at the venerable British anthology:
The Middle Ground #128 | Redrawing the ground beneath your feet
This week sees the release in the United Kingdom of Rogue Trooper: Tales of Nu Earth Vol. 3, a collection of the final days of the original run of 2000AD‘s cloned science fiction soldier. Re-reading the book this weekend, it struck me how little the kid who read these strips at the time they were published appreciated some of the greatness they offered, how oddly ahead of its time Rogue Trooper was during the period these strips came from, and how surprisingly educational this book is for wonks like me who like to see how the comics sausage is made.
Let’s start with that greatness. Look at this art by Jose Ortiz:
What Are You Reading? with Salgood Sam
Tale of Sand
Hello and welcome to What Are You Reading? Today our guest is Salgood Sam, who has just relaunched his independent personal anthology series Revolver. He is also completing the last chapter of a graphic novel called Dream Life after a successful Indiegogo funding drive to finance it. He also publishes the Canadian-centric comics blog Sequential. As he told me, he “usually has too many projects going on and does not get enough sleep.”
To see what Salgood Sam and the Robot 6 crew have been reading, click below …
2000AD super-fan plants coded messages in letters pages
Tharg, as drawn by Henry Flint
Reed Beebe is a huge fan of the British sci-fi comic 2000AD. How big a fan? Here, let him explain it:
To celebrate 35 years of 2000 A.D., I furtively encoded Tharg the Mighty’s name in fan letters published in 35 comics, over a ten month period. In my fan letters, I used an acrostic (the first letter of each sentence in the body of my fan letter together spell out “THARG”). For example – “The Shadow is back? Hallelujah! And Garth Ennis is the writer? Right on! Get this book in my hands ASAP!” These “Tharg Code” fan letters can be found in the letter columns of 35 comics from six publishers.
Tharg the Mighty is, of course, the real editor of 2000AD, a space alien who has human minions such as editor Matt Smith carry out his wishes.
Beebe told me in an e-mail that he has been writing letters to the editor of his favorite comics for about two years now, and he has been playing around with adding little puzzles and poems to them, but the 35th anniversary of 2000AD inspired him to do a longer, more ambitious project.
His letters can be found in comics as diverse as B.P.R.D., Vampirella, Fantastic Four, Savage Dragon and, closer to home, Judge Dredd Megazine; there’s a complete list of issues with coded messages at the link above.
Comics A.M. | Brett Ewins out of jail; Ali Farzat continues to fight
Brett Ewins
Creators | Former 2000AD artist Brett Ewins has been freed on bail after a judge reduced his charge to assult. Ewins, who has been diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia, was accused of stabbing a police officer in a January altercation that left the 56-year-old artist hospitalized in serious condition. Because Ewins has already served nine months, part of it in a hospital (where he was in a coma), it’s unlikely he’ll have to go back behind bars. [Sex, Drugs, & Comic Books]
Creators | Syrian cartoonist Ali Farzat, who escaped to Kuwait after the Syrian security police beat him and broke his hands, is now living in Egypt and continuing to draw cartoons supporting the Syrian revolution. “Fear has been defeated in Syria when the people marched 19 months ago against tyranny,” he said. “I began to directly draw people in power including Assad and his government officials, to break the barrier of fear, that chronic fear that Syrians suffered from for 50 years.” [Reuters]
Food or Comics? | Multiple Warheads of lettuce
Welcome to Food or Comics?, where every week we talk about what comics we’d buy at our local comic shop based on certain spending limits — $15 and $30 — as well as what we’d get if we had extra money or a gift card to spend on a splurge item.
Check out Diamond’s release list or ComicList, and tell us what you’re getting in our comments field.
Multiple Warheads: Alphabet to Infinity #1
Chris Arrant
If I had $15, I’d dutifully pick up Dark Horse Presents #17 (Dark Horse, $7.99). With all the stories and the variety of genres, this is a comics haul all under one roof. This month’s issue has a great looking Carla Speed McNeil cover, and inside’s star looks to be Richard Corben adapting an Edgar Allan Poe story. Beat that, comics! After that I’d do an Image two-fer with Multiple Warheads: Alphabet to Infinity #1 (Image, $3.99) and Invincible #96 (Image, $2.99). On the Multiple Warheads front, I’ve been salivating over this ever since it was announced – I bought the premature version of this back when it was published by Oni, and it’s built up in my mind as potentially greater than King City … and I loved King City. In terms of Invincible, I feel this book has the best artists working in superhero comics – and the writing’s not to shabby either. They’re doing a lot of world-building here, and having Cory Walker join with Ryan Ottley on this essentially split book makes it the highpoint of the series so far.
If I had $30, I’d double back to Image and get Prophet #30 (Image, $3.99). Of all the prophets, I love Old Man Prophet the best – and this issue looks like a mind-bender. After that I’d get Ghost #1 (Dark Horse, $2.99). Kelly Sue DeConnick and Phil Noto look like a dream team and Dark Horse really scored a coup by getting them together on this book. I was a big fan of the original series (Adam Hughes!) so I’m excited to see if this new duo can make it work in a modern context. Third up would be Secret Avengers #33 (Marvel, $3.99). Make no mistake, I love that Rick Remender is so popular now that he’s graduated to the upper echelon of books, but I’m remorseful he’s having to leave his great runs on this, Uncanny X-Force and Venom. This Descendents arc is really picking up steam. Lastly, I’d get National Comics: Madame X #1 (DC, $3.99). I’m a fair-to-middling fan of Madame Xanadu, but the creators here – Rob Williams and Trevor Hairsine – mean it’s a Cla$$war reunion! Love that book, love these guys, and love my expectations here.
If I could splurge, I’d splurge all over Shaolin Cowboy Adventure Magazine (Dark Horse, $15.99). Can DH do two excellent anthologies? We’ll see… but fortunately they’ve got Geof Darrow’s Shaolin Cowboy to lead the way in this pulpy throwback. Shine on, you crazy super-detailed diamond, shine on.
Big week for Brendan McCarthy fans
Good news for fans of the lesser-spotted psychedelic comics legend Brendan McCarthy. This Wednesday will see the release of IDW Publishing’s The Zaucer of Zilk #1 in the United States, and in the United Kingdom, the new issue of The Judge Dredd Megazine (#329) comes festooned in a wraparound image of Judge Anderson. This cover is something of a warm-up for McCarthy, as he has an Anderson back-up strip in Issue 2 of IDW’s upcoming Judge Dredd comic, written by Duane Swierczynski. Images from both below.
Anyone who missed the U.K. publication of The Zaucer of Zilk is in for a real treat. McCarthy says the work has “been described as Harry Potter meets Yellow Submarine. .. Mix a bit of David Lynch in there and I’ll go along with that.” I’d throw in a recommendation for fans of Dr. Strange (it’s a massive Ditko fan doing a story about a dimension’s Sorcerer Supreme, after all), and McCarthy’s previous cynical hipster superheroes, like Paradax, Zenith and Rogan Gosh.