‘Crush & Lobo,’ ‘Cheer Up!’ win at the 2022 GLAAD Media Awards

GLAAD expands to two comics-related categories this year — comics and graphic novels — recognizing titles from DC Comics and Oni Press.

Crush & Lobo from DC Comics and Cheer Up! Love and Pompoms from Oni Press both took home awards in the 33rd annual GLAAD Media Awards, which recognize and honor media for their fair, accurate and inclusive representations of the LGBTQ+ community and the issues that affect their lives.

This year GLAAD doubled their recognition of the comic industry by expanding to two categories — one for comics books and one for graphic novels.

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Russell + Allred send Superman on ‘an unforgettable journey through U.S. history’ in ‘Superman: Space Age’

The three-issue prestige series will offer ‘head-spinning iconography, top tier characters, twists, thrills, and chills,’ according to its artist.

Second Coming co-creator Mark Russell and Madman creator Mike Allred will team up for a unique look at the Man of Steel in Superman: Space Age. The three-issue prestige series kicks off in July.

“This is a dream project for me,” Russell said. “Not only because I get to work with a genius like Mike Allred, but because I’ve always found Superman such a philosophically fascinating character, one which forces us to ask how different would the world be if we chose to be our best selves?”

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Smash Pages Q&A | Otava Heikkilä

The Finnish cartoonist discusses the latest volume of ‘Letters for Lucardo,’ which is currently being crowdfunded by Iron Circus Comics.

Otava Heikkilä has been making the series Letters for Lucardo in recent years, and this week Iron Circus Comics will be crowdfunding the third volume in the series, Letters for Lucardo: The Silent Lord.

The series is about the relationship between a vampire and a mortal, and Heikkilä has brought a unique take and sensibility to the project. It’s a beautiful drawn and very delicately told love story with explicit sex scenes and it’s been striking to see how Heikkilä has grown as an artist and storyteller.

I’ve spoken with Heikkilä in the past, and we spoke briefly about this third volume, which is being crowdfunded starting today through April 28.

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DC’s battle of the comic pitches returns for another round

DC brings back the controversial Round Robin tournament for its second year.

DC has brought back their Round Robin tournament, where they ask fans to vote on which one of 16 pitches will be made into a miniseries. Last year’s winner, Robins by Tim Seeley and Baldemar Rivas, brought together all the heroes who had worn the “Robin” moniker for a miniseries.

Like last year, DC only revealed the title, a brief pitch and the logo for each pitch in this first round. It wasn’t until round two that we found out who the actual creative teams would be for each of them.

Here’s a look at the bracket:

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Peach Momoko’s ‘Demon Wars’ re-imagines Marvel’s ‘Civil War’

The sequel miniseries to ‘Demon Days’ will run for four issues.

Peach Momoko’s Demon Wars, the sequel to her five-part Demon Days saga, will debut in July.

Demon Days re-imagined the Marvel universe through the lens of traditional Japanese folklore, as it followed Mariko Yashida through an unfamiliar landscape filled with familiar characters. Demon Wars will continue Yashida’s journey, as she finds herself in the middle of a war reminiscent of Marvel’s 2006 event series Civil War.

“I am very happy to expand the series and get to show more of the love that I have for Japanese folklore and the way it inspires me with new stories told through my Momoko-verse lens,” Momoko said. “I am also very excited to redesign even more characters because I love character designing!”

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All hail the ‘Birdking’

Daniel Freeman and CROM re-team for a new fantasy graphic novel featuring ‘fire, magic, undead champions, necromancers, skulls and fat swords.’

Raiders creators Daniel Freedman and CROM will soar again at Dark Horse this fall with Birdking, a new graphic novel about a teenage girl and the “mysterious guardian spirit known only as the ‘BirdKing.'”

“When CROM came to me after Raiders with the Birdking, the entire epic unfolded in such an organic way I did not believe it,” Freeman said. “Our collaboration has never been stronger, and while we have thoroughly enjoyed our time exploring this vast and distinct fantasy world, we cannot wait for readers to gain access and bask in the glory that is Birdking.”

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Marvel will relaunch Shang-Chi in July

Writer Gene Luen Yang and artist Marcus To will continue the adventures of Shang-Chi and his family in ‘Shang-Chi and the Ten Rings.’

The current Shang-Chi series by Gene Yang and Marcus To will wrap up with issue #12 in May, but the leader of the Five Weapons Society won’t be gone for long. Marvel has announced that the previously solicited Shang-Chi #13 wll be re-titled and repackaged as Shang-Chi and the Ten Rings #1 in July.

Yang and To will remain the creative team on the series, which, as the title might have given away, will focus on the Ten Rings seen in the Shang-Chi film last year.

“It’s been such a joy to work with Marcus To over the last couple of months.  He’s a brilliant artist.  His characters are vibrant and full of energy, and he’s so good at fight choreography!” Yang said. “We’re all really excited about the new #1!  And about bringing in ten of the most powerful items ever into the Marvel Universe!”

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Smash Pages Q&A | Alisa Kwitney on ‘G.I.L.T.’

The comics writer, novelist and former Vertigo editor discusses her latest comic from Ahoy Comics, which she describes as ‘The Golden Girls’ meets ‘Sex and the City’—by way of ‘The Twilight Zone.’

Alisa Kwitney is a name familiar to many comics readers. For many years, she was an editor at Vertigo, overseeing The Dreaming and many other projects, in addition to being the Eisner-nominated writer of comics like Vertigo Visions: Phantom Stranger, Destiny: A Chronicle of Deaths Foretold and A Flight of Angels. She’s also written number of other comics, including Token for the short-lived Minx imprint and Mystik U. Kwitney is also a well known novelist of books including The Dominant Blonde, Sex As a Second Language, and Cadaver & Queen, in addition to being one-half of the people behind the Endless podcast.

In the new Ahoy Comics series that launches next week, Kwitney and artist Alain Mauricet introduce us to G.I.L.T. An acronym, we come to learn, that stands for “Guild of Independent Lady Temporalists.” The book opens in 1973 before jumping to 2017 and to say much more would spoil it, but Kwitney was kind enough to talk about the book without, we hope, saying too much.

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Arizona Opera brings Georges Bizet’s ‘Carmen’ to comics

Back the Kickstarter for a new graphic novel adaptation of the classic opera by Alek Shrader, P. Craig Russell and Aneke.

You might not expect an opera to be referenced on a comics blog, but the two art forms have more in common than you might think, according to tenor, director, writer — and comic fan — Alek Shrader.

“Comics and opera have a lot in common,” Shrader told Smash Pages. “Engaging stories, interesting characters, artistic escapism… both art forms exist to communicate in storytelling. BUT, I think it’s the differences between live opera and comics that make graphic adaptation a strong idea. That being said, in their own fashion, both opera and comics tell dramatic and cathartic stories in meaningful, beautiful ways.”

In an effort to help connect more people to opera, the Arizona Opera has turned to Kickstarter to fund their first graphic novel — an adaptation of Carmen by French composer Georges Bizet, which itself was adapted from the novella by Prosper Mérimée.

“It’s a thrill for Arizona Opera to share the work of this remarkable team of artists through the graphic novel format and the timeless story of Carmen,” said Joseph Specter, Arizona Opera’s President and General Director, in a pres statement. “Throughout the pandemic, our company has constantly pursued novel approaches to connecting people through opera, when people need art and meaning the most. Carmen: The Graphic Novel represents an amazing opportunity to extend that focus on innovation, impact, and community.”

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Preview | ‘Mezo: Battle At Coban Rock’ #1

The new miniseries by Tyler Chin-Tanner, Val Rodrigues, Gab Contreras and Varga Tomi debuts in May.

Courtesy of the fine folks at A Wave Blue World, we’re pleased to present a preview of their new title, Mezo: Battle at Coban Rock, which kicks off in May.

The five-issue miniseries by writer Tyler Chin-Tanner, with artwork by Val Rodrigues, Gab Contreras and Varga Tomi, continues the story set up in Mezo: Rise of the Tzalekuhl. Though Mezo has some “show-stopping magical moments,” at its heart it’s a gripping wartime adventure filled with political intrigue and old-world combat, as the daughter of a fallen chief tries to form new alliances to turn the tides against the rising Tzalekuhl empire.

Below, you can check out the cover by Rodrigues, the variant cover by Terry Blas and five pages from the first issue.

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Comics Lowdown | Marvel editors participate in #DisneyWalkout

Plus: ‘Persepolis’ under fire in Pennsylvania school district! David Gallaher, real-life superhero! News on Behemoth, Zestworld, Julie Doucet and more!

Marvel employees joined their colleagues from Pixar, Lucasfilm and other Disney-owned divisions in a walk-out on Tuesday to protest the company’s response to Florida’s Parental Rights in Education act, which has become to be known as the “Don’t Say Gay bill.”

The bill bans lessons about sexual orientation in kindergarten through third grade and prohibits lessons in other grades unless they are “age-appropriate and developmentally appropriate.” Critics say the law could stigmatize LGBTQ+ students, and lead to bullying and attacks. The bill has yet to be signed by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, but it’s just a matter of time, as the governor has expressed his support for it.

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Smash Pages Q&A | Kendra Wells

The creator of ‘Real Hero Shit’ discusses the role-playing origins of the graphic novel, working with publisher Iron Circus, their work at The Nib and more.

For years now, cartoonist and illustrator Kendra Wells has been one of those people making short comics for various outlets including The Nib, where they excel at finding ways to make readers laugh out loud as their blood pressure skyrockets, remembering just how angry they are at what’s happening in the world. Last year they collaborated with writer Sam Maggs on the graphic novel Tell No Tales: Pirates of the Southern Seas, and Iron Circus just released Wells’ debut as a writer and artist, Real Hero Shit.

Real Hero Shit features a mismatched group of adventurers who, in between attacking each other, do actually stumble onto a mystery and manage to help a village. It’s funny and weird, and it manages to walk that very fine line of loving and paying tribute to the genre and its tropes, while also undermining and mocking almost all of them. And while it’s no surprise that Wells is able to write funny dialogue, they deftly manage to juggle writing a long narrative with character moments, humor and making a story that feel familiar but also surprising.

The first of hopefully many such books, Real Hero Shit is out now and next week, a new dating sim game that Wells is the lead writer for, Kiss U, goes live on Kickstarter. They were kind enough to answer a few questions about their book.

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