Author: JK Parkin

Gert returns for more mayhem in a new ‘I Hate Fairyland’ series

Skottie Young and Brett Bean chronicle the adventures of an adult Gert who has returned to the real world.

Skottie Young’s fairy tale gone horribly wrong, I Hate Fairyland, will return for a second series in November at Image Comics.

While Young will continue to write the series, this time he won’t be drawing it — instead, he’ll be joined by artist Brett Bean on the series. They’ll team with colorist Jean-Francois Beaulieu and letterer Nate Piekos, who worked on the first series.

I Hate Fairyland follows the adventures of Gert, a young girl who ends up trapped in Fairyland and has to go on a quest to find her way home. Some 30 years later, she’s still there, and while she hasn’t aged physically, she has developed a very sour attitude about the place where she’s trapped.

The original series, which won a Ringo Award back in 2017, ran for 20 issues before going in hiatus. Young announced its return on Substack last year, and since then his newsletter has featured Fairyland stories by other creators (such as Fábio Moon and Gabriel Bá. He’s said those side stories will eventually be collected in print as well.

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‘Bob Phantom’ rises again at Archie Comics

A Golden Age hero from Archie Comics’ past returns in a new story by James III and Richard Ortiz.

One of Archie’s earliest superheroes, Bob Phantom, will return in November in a new one-shot by writer James III of Netflix’s comedy sketch show Astronomy Club and artist Richard Ortiz, who worked on Archie’s The Fox.

Bob Phantom debuted in 1939 in the pages of Blue Ribbon Comics #2. The character was created by Harry Shorten and Irv Novick. By day he was theater critic/gossip columnist Walt Whitney, who was very critical of the local police. He was one of the first superheroes published by MLJ, the precursor to Archie Comics.

“With Bob Phantom, I wanted to explore what it means to write news today when everyone gets their news from the headlines on their Twitter feed without reading the articles, and you can’t tell what’s legitimate and what’s fake. (To use loaded terminology.) This might make you question your validity as a journalist and your worth as a person in society,” James III said. “I was heavily inspired by crime stories with news elements like Road to Perdition and Nightcrawler. What brings a person to snap pictures first and provide assistance later or not at all?”

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Sunday Comics | A closer look at the Ignatz Awards nominees

Check out some recent award-nominated comics by Adam de Souza, Mars Heyward, Evan Dahm, Reimena Yee and Amy Kurzweil.

Here’s a round up of some of the best comics we’ve seen online recently. If we missed something, let us know in the comments below.

The nominees for the 2022 Ignatz Awards came out a few days ago, with five webcomics being honored in the “Outstanding Online Comics” category. So let’s take a look at them!

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Matt Kindt’s Flux House will publish ‘Spy Superb’

Kindt and his wife Sharlene will team up once again for the story of a spy who doesn’t know he’s a spy.

Super Spy creator Matt Kindt will go undercover once again in Spy Superb, which stars a different sort of secret agent — one who doesn’t even know they’re a spy.

Kindt will team with his wife, Sharlene Kindt, who he worked with on Dept H. It’ll come out from Flux House, Kindt’s new imprint at Dark Horse.

“In Spy Superb I wanted to explore a character, the idea of a very average person who is under the belief that he is utterly exceptional,” said Kindt. “There is a scientific term for this–The Dunning-Kruger effect–a person who insists they possess knowledge and skills that they obviously do not. What if a super spy was suffering from this? Well…they would of course be a…SPY SUPERB. It was actually really hard for me to keep this character alive past issue #1… there are hit men after him…a super assassin who kills only with rock, paper, and scissors… and a real super spy working in the shadows of our “hero” who may actually be the real spy superb. It feels really great to be drawing a new book–and I’m beyond happy that Sharlene Kindt is painting it. It’s definitely the most ambitious collaboration we’ve ever had.”

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Bendis + Edgar bring ‘The Ones’ to Dark Horse

The four-issue miniseries kicks off in November.

Brian Michael Bendis’ Jinxworld will grow by one this fall as the award-winning writer teams with artist Jacob Edgar and colorts K.J. Diaz for The Ones.

The story will feature characters from multiple mythologies and multiverses who were told they were “The One” — think Buffy the Vampire Slayer, the kid from Good Omens, Highlander, the “One and Only” Richochet from WWE and everyone else given that label — only, not actually those characters, but new ones created for this comic. They’re brought together to defeat, naturally, The One.

“Jacob is an amazing artist and creating this brand-new, fun-as-hell world with him has been one of the greatest delights,” Bendis said. “Wilson and the rest of The Ones are among my absolute favorite creations I’ve ever been a part of and I can’t wait to introduce you to all of them.”

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Mignola + Stenbeck + Stewart return to Hell for new Koshchei miniseries

‘Koshchei in Hell’ kicks off in November.

Mike Mignola, Ben Stenbeck and Dave Stewart will team once again for Koshchei in Hell, a new miniseries set in the Hellboy-verse coming from Dark Horse in November.

The series will star Koshchei the Deathless, who once tried to kill Hellboy at the bequest of the Baba Yaga. This time around, Koshchei must defend his home, Hell, from destruction.

“It’s always a pleasure working with Ben, as he can really do everything,” said Mignola. “And there’s just something about how he does things—something very natural and almost quiet—subtle—til it’s time to NOT be subtle. It just really works with the kind of stories I’m trying to tell. And Koshchei—I just love this guy. I’ve really put him through the wringer, but he keeps on going. And Hell—well, is it odd to say I love that place?”

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Iron Man is ‘Invincible’ again in December relaunch

Gerry Duggan and Juan Frigeri chart a new path for Tony Stark.

Although Christopher Cantwell’s run on Iron Man comes to a close in November, Tony Stark won’t get much of a holiday break. Marvel has announced that the title will relaunch in December as Invincible Iron Man, by the creative team of Gerry Duggan and Juan Frigeri.

“It’s my privilege to try and follow Christopher Cantwell and his collaborators’ stellar run on Iron Man heading into an anniversary year,” Duggan said. “Juan and I are going to introduce a new menace that is gunning for Tony Stark and his greatest creation. We have an epic tale for Stark and plans for old foes, including flashbacks to some of his classic armors. How about a little Silver Centurion for his diamond anniversary? Armor up, you’re gonna need it.”

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Rest in peace, Tom Palmer

The legendary inker of ‘Avengers,’ ‘Tomb of Dracula,’ ‘Uncanny X-Men’ and more died yesterday at the age of 81.

Tom Palmer, the incredible artist known for his work on Avengers, Doctor Strange, Star Wars, Tomb of Dracula and more, passed away yesterday at the age of 81.

The news was reported on Facebook. No cause of death was mentioned.

“We are very sad to share the news that legendary comic book inker and artist Tom Palmer passed away on August 18, 2022 at the age of 81,” the post said. “He will be remembered fondly by his loving family and his many fans.”

That he will. While Palmer’s first work in comics was penciling an issue of Doctor Strange back in 1968, he’s best known as an inker, mainly for Marvel comics throughout the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s. Over the course of his career, he worked with John Buscema, Jim Steranko, John Romita Jr., Tom Grummett, Gene Colan, Neal Adams, Wally Wood and many more.

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It’s the 1990s all over again this November

DC goes all in on celebrating the 1990s in November, but they aren’t the only ones willing to get ‘extreme.’

The decade of pouches, big guns, variant covers and Image Comics will come back in a big way this November at DC — and on a smaller scale at Marvel. Both publishers will get “extreme” in their own ways later this year.

Let’s start with DC, who earlier this week announced a new Black Label Batman miniseries by none other than Marc Silvestri. Silvestri of course is one of the founders of Image Comics and is one of the names synonymous with 1990s comics, when he launched Top Cow and introduced the world to Witchblade, CyberForce, The Darkness and many other comics.

Batman/The Joker: The Deadly Duo finds the caped crusader teaming up with his worst enemy.

“Batman and The Joker are two of the world’s most iconic characters and have been at each other’s throats for more than 80 years,” Silvestri said. “I always thought is would be pretty entertaining to have them on the same side, so I wrote a story about it. Needless to say, stuff happens.”

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Nominees announced for the 2022 Ignatz Awards

The annual Ignatz Awards celebrate outstanding achievement in independent comics and cartooning.

The Small Press Expo, or SPX, has announced the nominees for the 2022 Ignatz Awards.

The Ignatz Awards, which have been handed out since 1997, celebrate the outstanding achievements of independent comics, graphic novels and alternative political cartoons. Named for the mouse that appears in the Krazy Kat comics by George Herriman, the logo changes each year as a new artist draws the mouse and his weapon of choice, the brick. This year’s logo is by Pa Luis.

Nominees were determined by a jury that included Cuyler Hedlund, Breena Nunez, Josh O’Neil, Alex Hoffman and Hazel Newlevant. Anyone can vote on the winners, which will be done over email rather than in person at the show, like it’s been in previous years. You can find more details on the SPX website.

Congrats to all the nominees:

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Can’t Wait for Comics | Riddle me this …

New comics arrive this week from Tom King, Mitch Gerads, Jason Aaron, Kev Walker, Kyle Higgins, Mat Groom, Davide Tinto, Garth Ennis, Russ Braun and more.

Welcome to Can’t Wait for Comics, your guide to what comics are arriving in comic book stores, bookstores and on digital. We’re a little late this week due to some technical issues, but hey, if you’re heading to the comic shop after work today, we’ve got you covered.

I’ve pulled out some of the highlights below, but for the complete list of everything you might find at your local comic shop and on digital this week, you’ll want to check out one or more of the following:

As a reminder, things can change and what you find on the above lists may differ from what’s actually arriving in your local shop. So always check with your comics retailer for the final word on availability.

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Exclusive preview: Balazs Lorinczi’s ‘Doughnuts and Doom’

A struggling witch and a failing musician face curses and love in the new graphic novel, coming from Top Shelf in September.

Courtesy of Top Shelf Productions, we’re pleased to present an exclusive preview of Doughnuts and Doom, the upcoming graphic novel by Hungarian-Scottish cartoonist Balazs Lorinczi.

Described as a “quirky, magical, queer teen romance,” the graphic novel is a love story featuring a struggling witch and a failing musician. Here’s the description:

Margot is a stressed-out witch trying to get her potions business off the ground. Elena is a struggling rock musician whose band is going nowhere. Neither one of them is having a good day when they first meet at the local doughnut shop. Their exchange quickly escalates from words to literal sparks flying as Margot loses her cool. Turns out, accidentally cursing that infuriatingly cute girl at the doughnut shop isn’t a great way to start a relationship. As they work together to disperse this curse, will their initial animosity flare up in their faces or blossom into something sweeter? 

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