Ben Caldwell (Wednesday Comics, The Dare Detectives) posted a sneak peek at some projects he’s got coming up this year, including the above, censored image labeled, “apokolips, baby!” That should make some New Gods fans happy. Or at least some Ben Caldwell fans eager to see him do more work at DC.

Black Racer

Tom Scioli’s name might not have popped up in DC’s big list of creators for this September’s relaunch, but maybe it should have. The Godland artist has posted a “decreasingly jokey open letter” to the publisher on his blog, suggesting that maybe he’d be a good choice for a New Gods series.

And he’s got the art to back it up, like the above image of the Black Racer; click over to his post to see more.

DC's VP – Art Direction & Design Mark Chiarello (photo by Brian Walters)

Rumors began to swirl about a sequel to Wednesday Comics as soon as DC’s weekly anthology debuted in July 2009. But now we finally have confirmation from a contributor that something’s in the works.

Bleeding Cool picked up on word from the Facebook page of Steve Rude that the Nexus artist is working on a New Gods strip for a new Wednesday Comics. Years ago Rude and writer Mark Evanier were in line to do a New Gods series but it fell through (although they did do a Mister Miracle Special sometime back). For Wednesday Comics 2 there’s no word yet whether Rude is writing and illustrating or working with someone else.

The book’s editor Mark Chiarello confirmed last June, as the collected edition was released, that thought has gone into a sequel. All this  begs the question — who else is in the book? Let’s put some pieces together …

Earlier in this year Jill Thompson told Newsarama she was approached to do a Wonder Woman strip for the first series but had to turn it down due to working on Beasts of Burden. However, she asked to be considered if Wednesday Comics came back.

During a panel at Baltimore Comic-Con in 2009, Chiarello and some of the contributors to the first series spitballed some ideas of what they’d like to see in the sequel. Read Comic Book Resource’s full report, or follow on for who recommended who:

• Kevin Nowlan recommended Adam Hughes
• Joe Kubert recommended his other son Andy Kubert
• Brian Stelfreeze recommended Mike Mignola, Bernie Wrightson and George Perez
• Chiarello recommended Tim Sale, Darwyn Cooke and Walt Simonson, returning not as a writer but as an artist
• Simonson recommended Frank Miller, Stan Sakai, Sergio Aragones and Perez

Chiarello even said he had a conversation with Harlan Ellison about wanting to do a Doctor Fate strip with Simonson.

That’s who the pros would like to see in a Wednesday Comics sequel, and back in 2009 Robot 6 weighed in — but what creators and characters are on your wishlist?

Superman/Batman #8

If you needed more proof that the DC Comics animated DVDs are, in fact, continuing, TV Guide reports that a sequel to last year’s Superman/Batman: Public Enemies will come out on Sept. 28.

And just as that first film was based on the first arc of the Superman/Batman comic, this one adapts the second arc of the Jeph Loeb-written comic, which reintroduced Kara Zor-El, AKA Supergirl, to the DC Universe. Superman/Batman: Apocalypse will again star Tim Daly and Kevin Conroy as Superman and Batman, and Firefly/Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles actress Summer Glau as Supergirl.

The movie follows Batman: Under the Red Hood, which comes out at the end of July.

Update: And not even 30 minutes after posting this, Warner Home Video sends out a press release on the animated film, which adds Ed Asner and Andre Braugher to the voice cast. You can read it after the jump.

*****

THE END IS NEAR!
WORLD’S FINEST WAGE WAR WITH DARKSEID IN ALL-NEW DC UNIVERSE ANIMATED ORIGINAL MOVIE SUPERMAN/BATMAN: APOCALYPSE
AVAILABLE FROM WARNER HOME VIDEO SEPTEMBER 28, 2010!

Andre Braugher, Summer Glau, Ed Asner join popular voices Kevin Conroy & Tim Daly;
New DC Showcase GREEN ARROW on Special Edition Blu-ray & 2-Disc Special Edition DVD

BURBANK, CA, (June 29, 2010) – To save an earthbound Kryptonian, the Man of Steel and the Dark Knight unite once again – this time to battle the powerful forces of Darkseid – in Superman/Batman:Apocalypse, the ninth entry in the popular, ongoing series of DC Universe Animated Original PG-13 Movies coming September 28, 2010 from Warner Premiere, DC Comics and Warner Bros. Animation. The highly anticipated, full-length film will be distributed by Warner Home Video as a Special Edition Blu-Ray™ and 2-Disc Special Edition DVD as well as single disc DVD. The film will also be available On Demand and for Download.

Fan favorites Tim Daly (Private Practice) and Kevin Conroy (China Beach) return to their seminal roles as Superman and Batman, respectively. The celebrity-laden guest cast is headed by Andre Braugher (Men of a Certain Age) as the daunting Darkseid. Sci-Fi heroine Summer Glau (Serenity/Firefly, Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles) provides the voice of Supergirl, and seven-time Emmy Award winner Ed Asner (Up) reprises his Superman: The Animated Series/Justice League role as Granny Goodness.

Based on the DC Comics series/graphic novel “Superman/Batman:Supergirl” by Jeph Loeb, Michael Turner & Peter Steigerwald, Superman/Batman: Apocalypse is produced by animation legend Bruce Timm and directed by Lauren Montgomery (Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths) from a script by Academy Award-nominated screenwriter Tab Murphy (Gorillas in the Mist).

After a spaceship splashes down in Gotham City Harbor, Batman and Superman encounter a mysterious Kryptonian with powers as great as those of the Man of Steel. The Kryptonian is soon revealed to be Kara,
cousin of Superman, who takes her under his wing to educate her about the ways of Earth. However, the villainous Darkseid has other plans. Seeing an opportunity to finally defeat Superman, Darkseid abducts and
gains control of Kara, utilizing the powerful Kryptonian to do his bidding. It’s up to Batman and Superman to save Kara, but they’ll have to take the fight to Darkseid within his hostile world – where unknown, deadly threats lurk around every corner, including a brainwashed Kryptonian able to match Superman blow-for-blow.

In addition to the feature film, the Superman/Batman: Apocalypse Special Edition Blu-Ray™ and 2-Disc Special Edition DVD include the third DC Showcase animated short, Green Arrow. Screenwriter Greg Weisman’s story finds Oliver Queen at the Star City International Airport to pick up his girlfriend, only to be forced into action as Green Arrow to protect the 10-year-old Princess of Vlatava from his old nemesis Merlyn the Magnificent and the League of Assassins. The short features the voices of Neal McDonough (Desperate Housewives) and Malcolm McDowell (Entourage). Bruce Timm is executive producer.

Superman/Batman: Apocalypse 2-Disc Special Edition DVD features more
than 1 1/2 hours of exciting extra content, including:
• Feature film (est. 75 min)
• DC Showcase: Green Arrow (10 min)
• Sneak Peak at the Next DC Universe Animated Original Movie (10 min)
• Featurette: Supergirl: The Last Daughter of Krypton – A comprehensive look at The Maiden of Might from her introduction in the classic age of comics to her death in the “Crisis on Infinite Earths” crossover event to her appearance on Smallville and beyond.
• 2 bonus episodes from animated television series handpicked by Bruce Timm

Superman/Batman: Apocalypse Special Edition Blu-Ray™ will include more than 2 1/2 hours of intriguing bonus features, starting with all of the content available on the 2-Disc Special Edition DVD and adding:
• All-New Featurette: The New Gods – This documentary covers Darkseid’s story, particularly in reference to the adaptation of Superman/Batman: Apocalypse. A primer on the wealth of material and
stories contained in the New Gods series, along with a deeper understanding of why these characters – and especially Darkseid – are so memorable and important to the DC pantheon.
• All-New Featurette Pods
• Orion – The mightiest warrior on either New Genesis or Apokolips, Orion follows an almost Shakespearean arc culminating in the slaying of his father, Darkseid. This mini-featurette shines a light on this
classically tragic character.
Mister Miracle – This mini-featurette focuses on the greatest escape artist the universe has ever known and how he was traded in a peace effort to be raised by Darkseid, the enemy of all New Genesis.
• 2 additional bonus TV series episodes handpicked by Bruce Timm
• Digital copy on disc of the feature film

“Great things happen when powerful entities come together, and the partnership of Warner Premiere, DC Comics and Warner Bros. Animation is proud to continue this popular film series by once again uniting the two most popular characters in the DC Universe in a story that truly tests their strength, trust, loyalty, ingenuity and heroism,” said Matt Bierman, Senior Vice President Production, Warner Premiere.

“It is a testament to the larger-than-life nature of Jeph Loeb’s blockbuster storylines that two of the first nine DC Universe movies are based on his work,” said Geoff Johns, Chief Creative Officer of DC Entertainment. “Superman/Batman: Apocalypse lets us see Superman and Batman in action side-by-side again, but this time along with Supergirl and one of DC’s greatest villains, Darkseid.”

“Just as Superman and Batman stand atop the DC canon of characters, so do the respective seminal voices of Tim Daly and Kevin Conroy in the hearts and minds of fans. Superman/Batman: Apocalypse will no doubt
please comic-centric and mainstream audiences alike – particularly in the performances of Daly and Conroy opposite dynamic actors like Andre Braugher and Ed Asner, and fanboy favorite Summer Glau,” said Amit
Desai, WHV Vice President of Family, Animation & Partner Brands.

Beautiful Dreamer by Richard Howell

A chance encounter at Tunde Adebimpe’s table at the Brooklyn Comics and Graphics Festival led to my discovery of Ben Herman’s impressive collection of Beautiful Dreamer sketches. In his sketchbook’s pages, the lovely telepathic New God from Jack Kirby’s Forever People is given her due by Dan DeCarlo, Dick Ayers, Ramona Fradon, Gilbert Hernandez, Mark Bode, Tania Del Rio, Michael Wm. Kaluta, Danielle Corsetto, John Bogdanove, Todd Nauck and many more. Go feast your eyes, and check out Herman’s entire assortment of ComicArtFans.com galleries — his Star Wars and Avengers sketchbooks are nothing to sneeze at, either.

The Archon by Adam Prosser

Johanna Draper Carlson points out that Adam Prosser has posted his 24-Hour Comics Day comic on the web. It’s one part Kirby’s New Gods, one part Archie Comics and all parts awesome — heck, it’s likely the coolest thing you’ll see today.