Day: December 15, 2020

Rob Liefeld to create a new ‘Mighty Crusaders’ miniseries at Archie

Four-issue miniseries will re-imagine the Shield, the Comet and more.

Archie Comics has announced that the Might Crusaders will return next year in a new miniseries by Deadpool/Brigade creator Rob Liefeld.

“I’ve been chomping at the bit to work with the folks at Archie and do something with these legendary characters,” Liefeld said. “The Shield is the first patriotic comic book icon, pre-dating Captain America. These are the original comic book superheroes, with a glorious history behind them. I’m so psyched to tell this story and turn my fans on to these characters!”

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DC’s Crime Syndicate steals its own miniseries in March

Andy Schmidt and Kieran McKeown will build a new Earth-3 and Crime Syndicate next year.

We know that the end of Dark Nights: Death Metal will set us up for DC Future State in January, but it will also set up the return of the DC Multiverse — and a new Earth-3, the home of the villainous Crime Syndicate. And this “anti-Justice League” will receive its own miniseries in March, by writer Andy Schmidt and artist Kieran McKeown.

Schmidt said they plan to rebuild Earth-3 from the ground up, showcasing new versions of Ultraman, Super Woman, Owlman, Power Ring/Emerald Knight, Johnny Quick and Atomica (she’s the evil version of the Atom, if the name isn’t as familiar as the others).

“Kieran and I were given a once a lifetime opportunity to build a world from the ground up,” said writer Andy Schmidt. “We’re establishing the Crime Syndicate’s origin story for the first time—how and why they came together. And we’re not taking it lightly. You’ll find that you’ve entered a fully realized world—this is the story of the Crime Syndicate, but it’s also the story of Earth-3 and it moves fast and pulls no punches.”

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The Joker break out into his own monthly series in March

Jim Gordon, Punchline and Harper Row will feature heavily in the new series.

Batman’s worst enemy and best ally will get the spotlight in a new monthly series starting in March. While the Joker gets his name on the marquee, the new comic by James Tynion IV and Guillem March will also prominently feature Jim Gordon.

But wait, there’s more: Each issue will also feature a back-up story by Tynion IV, co-writer Sam Johns and artist Mirka Andolfo, starring the Joker’s latest sidekick, Punchline, and Harper Row, a.k.a. Bluebird.

“When I was approached by DC about the concept of an ongoing series spotlighting The Joker, I thought, ‘What would that book even look like?,’” said Tynion. “I’m excited to share this story in a way that honors everything that a series about The Joker can be, while coming at it from an exciting, unexpected angle. I’m also thrilled to continue working with Sam and Mirka to expand the Punchline story we began in November as a back-up feature in this new ongoing Joker series. The Joker War was only the beginning of the terror and mayhem we’re creating!”

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Smash Pages Q&A: Adrienne Resha

The scholar and critic discusses her comic-related thesis and studies, Muslim and Arab superheroes, and more.

Adrienne Resha is a comics scholar and critic, a Ph.D. candidate in the American Studies program at the College of William & Mary. She serves as President of the Graduate Student Caucus of the Comics Studies Society and is a contributor to and Assistant Editor of Comics Academe at the Award winning website Women Write About Comics. This year Inks: The Journal of the Comics Studies Society, published Resha’s paper “The Blue Age of Comic Books,” which had previously been presented at the first conference of the Comics Studies Society.

Resha and I have corresponded in the past, but I asked her to talk because I continue to ponder some of the ideas she raised in The Blue Age of Comic Books months later, as she tackles not just the content of comics but the medium of comics changing as digital has altered how they’re made and how they’re read. We spoke recently about her work, which focuses on Arab and Muslim representation in media, studying comics and learning to criticize art.

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