Author: JK Parkin

Slugfest | DC’s Dark Crisis expands with additional tie-ins, one-shots

Check out recent announcements about ‘Batman Inc.,’ ‘Survival Street’ and more.

With Justice League: Road to Dark Crisis now available this week, DC has announced some additional tie-ins and specials associated with the event.

First come two new one-shots, starring the sons of Superman and Batman:

The Supersons are going on separate missions to stop Pariah’s attacks on the Multiverse! In October’s Dark Crisis: The Deadly Green #1, Jon Kent joins forces with Swamp Thing, John Constantine and more to explore the spread of the Great Darkness’s influence on the Multiverse and beyond. While in November’s Dark Crisis: The Dark Army #1, Damian Wayne, Doctor Light and a ragtag team of heroes cross enemy lines to steal control of the Dark Army from Pariah. But in the process uncover a secret about Doctor Light’s place in Crisis on Infinite Earths that rocks the future of the DCU! Creative talent teams for both issues will be announced at a later date.

They also announced that The Flash crossover issues will expand by an issue:

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Quick Hits | Comixology removes in-app purchases from Android app

Plus: People moves at AWA Studios and Image, Joshua Williamson, Al Madrigal and more.

Digital Comics | Similar to a move they made on iOS devices about eight years ago, Comixology has announced that they have removed the ability to purchase comics from their Android app. The email to users said that the change was made to “remain in compliance with updated Google Play Store policies,” which, as The Beat points out, are intended to close loopholes that allowed companies to sell items in their Android apps without paying fees to the Google Play Store. The move follows those made by two other Amazon entities, Audible and Kindle Books, earlier this year.

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Fireball + the Superteens team up in ‘World of Archie Jumbo Comics Digest’ #120

Check out an exclusive preview of two new stories coming in next week’s digest.

When a friend goes missing at a beach party, it’s up to Archie and the gang to find her. Meanwhile, the Eliminators have recruited some fiendish new members, and they’ve placed Fireball and the Superteens into a death trap! Writer David Gallaher returns to the world of the Mighty Crusaders for a new story featuring not only the flaming hot hero, but also the super-powered alter egos of Archie and the gang.

Courtesy of Archie Comics, we’re pleased to present an exclusive look at next week’s World of Archie Jumbo Comics Digest #120, which features 192 pages of comics, including two new stories. The first, “Beach Party Mystery,” is by Francis Bonnet, Jeff Shultz and Jim Amash, and the second, “The Heat of the Moment,” is by Gallaher, Bill Galvan and Bob Smith.

Below you’ll find previews of the new stories, as well as a complete Frank Doyle/Stan Goldberg story from the archives. Enjoy, and you can find it in stores June 8.

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Skybound will publish a ‘Creepshow’ miniseries this fall

The five-issue anthology series will feature stories by Paul Dini, Chris Burnham, Kelley Jones and more.

Shudder’s Creepshow TV series will jump from the screen to the printed page in a new five-issue miniseries from Skybound, who have recruited an impressive array of talent to scare the pants off of readers.

“Creepshow has consistently been one of the best things in horror for the last 40 years, and for Skybound to be able to carry on such a rich horror tradition is an absolute thrill,” said Jon Moisan, editor at Skybound. “We knew a franchise this prolific would require the best talent in the industry, so we assembled a collection of creators that will do the Creepshow name proud. The stories they have planned are going to scare the absolute hell out of people.”’  

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Three Count | Outlaw’s Apprentice, Woodland Creatures, They Can Talk

Check out three things to see, to support and to read today.

1. To see: Chris Schweizer teases Outlaw’s Apprentice

Over the past few months in various online places like his website, on Facebook and through his Patreon, Chris Schweizer has started to share artwork for a new project — Outlaw’s Apprentice, a “high-adventure fantasy series in the spirit of some of my favorite types of stories: swashbucklers, episodic westerns.”

It looks fun as heck:

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TCAF un-invites special guest Pink Cat after social media backlash

“We made a mistake.”

Three days after announcing “viral artist” Pink Cat would attend as a special guest, the Toronto Comic Arts Festival has “rescinding its invitation” to the Instagram cartoonist, citing code of conduct violations and “concerns expressed by the comics community.”

Those concerns were raised almost instantly when TCAF announced its second round of guests for their 2022 show, which is scheduled for June 17-19. Their tweet announcing Pink Cat received more than 460 responses, compared to the two or three their tweets about other guests received at the same time.

Much of the backlash centered on Pink Cat’s involvement with NFTs, while others pointed out transphobic and racist remarks made in the past. There were also allegations of plagiarism and tracing other people’s art.

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Joe Quesada announces he is leaving Marvel

The former editor-in-chief and chief creative officer shares his plans for the future.

Joe Quesada, the one-time overseer of the Marvel Knights line who went on to become editor-in-chief and then chief creative officer for Marvel, has announced he’s leaving the company after more than 20 years.

Quesada took to social media to announce his departure, noting that he won’t “ever be too far away, cheering my Marvel family on and contributing from time to time.” He hinted he has a project with them coming later this year:

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Quick Hits | ‘Gender Queer’ remains at the center of Virginia controversy

The American Booksellers for Free Expression responds as politicians continue trying to ban ‘Gender Queer.’ Also: comiXology’s app is ‘annoying,’ the first graphic novel to win the Jhalak Prize and more.

Censorship | The American Booksellers for Free Expression “strongly condemns” a recent decision by a judge in Virginia that the graphic novel Gender Queer and the book A Court of Mist and Fury might be “obscene for unrestricted viewing by minors.” Two politicians in Virginia are attempting to restrict access to the book by minors not only in libraries, but also in bookstores like Barnes & Noble.

Activism | In Washington State, students at Walla Walla High School responded to attempts to ban certain books like Gender Queer from the school library by forming a Banned Book Club. There plan is to read one “banned” book per month, and a local bookstore is giving them a discount on the books they choose.

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Can’t Wait for Comics | Grabbing summer ‘By The Horns’

Check out new comics and graphic novels this week from Joshua Williamson, Markisan Naso, Jason Muhr, James Tynion IV, Gavin Fullerton, Jonathan Luna, Gregg Hurwitz, Devin Kraft, Régis Loisel, Julian Hanshow and more.

Welcome to Can’t Wait for Comics, your guide to what comics are arriving in comic book stores, bookstores and on digital this week. With this being the fifth week of May, it’s a quieter week compared to most, especially for new projects, but there’s still plenty to get excited about.

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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What Are You Reading? | A whole lotta Moon Knight

See what the Smash Pages crew has been reading lately, from Noah Van Sciver, Ed Brubaker, Sean Phillips, Si Spurrier and more.

Welcome to What Are You Reading?, our look at what the Smash Pages crew has been checking off their “to read” list lately. Today’s reviews include a whole lot of Moon Knight, plus Amazing Spider-Man, Brubaker and Phillips’ Reckless and much more.

Let us know what you’ve been reading lately in the comments or on social media.

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Sunday Comics | Looking at recent awards nominees

Check out the online comics nominated for both the NCS Divisional Awards and the Nommo Awards.

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.

Award nominations for both the NCS Divisional Awards and the Nommo Awards came out in the last week, so let’s take a look at what webcomics earned nods from each of them.

I’ll start with the National Cartoonist Society’s annual awards, which are given out every year in conjunction with the Reuben Award. While their categories range from comic books to graphic novels to advertising to greeting cards, they have two categories focused on online comics — a long-form category and a short-form category. Let’s start with the long-form nominees.

First up is Emily Flake, a very prolific cartoonist with comics appearing in places like The New Yorker, The Nib and others (she’s also a comedian/performer). Based on the image on the NCS site, it looks like she’s nominated for her comic “Visions of the Post-Pandemic Future (Revised),” which appeared on the New Yorker website in April of last year.

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Starring in own miniseries, Yoda is

The 10-issue series will chronicle key moments in the Jedi master’s life..

Star Wars Celebration in Anaheim has brought news that Lucasfilm and Marvel plans to publish a 10-issue series about the life of Yoda.

The comic will be told in three arcs by writers Cavan Scott, Jody Houser and Marc Guggenheim and artists Nico Leon, Luke Ross and Alessandro Miracolo. It’ll be set moments before Yoda’s first appearance in Empire Strikes Back, as the ancient Jedi master reflects on key moments in his life before he meets Luke Skywalker.

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