DC lays off several in editorial, shutters its collectibles division

Jim Lee will reportedly move to a new role as many employees have been laid off as part of a larger cut in staff by WarnerMedia.

Several outlets including ComicBook.com and The Hollywood Reporter are reporting that DC Entertainment has laid off several staff in editorial and other departments, including Editor-in-Chief Bob Harris and Hank Kanalz, SVP of publishing strategy and support services.

Other staff who have been said to be affected by the cuts include VP of marketing and creative services Jonah Weiland, VP of global publishing initiatives and digital strategy Bobbie Chase, senior story editor Brian Cunningham, executive editor Mark Doyle and editor Andy Khouri.

Jim Lee remains as chief creative officer, but will no longer serve as publisher.

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Holy cowabunga: Batman, Ninja Turtles team up for action figure sets

GameStop will offer these figures from DC Collectibles exclusively this fall.

Batman and the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles have met many times now, both in the pages of comics and in an animated movie. So the only logical place this relationship could go next is action figures.

DC Collectibles will release a series of action figures from both universes, as the Bat family and the Turtles appear in two-packs that’ll be exclusive to GameStop starting in September, with a price of $49.99 each, or $249.99 for the whole set.

Check them out below:

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Comics Lowdown: RIP Monkey Punch, Kazuo Koike

Plus: Bill Mantlo in need, halfway through ‘Saga,’ awards and more.

The manga community has lost two legends in April, as both Lupin III creator Monkey Punch and Lone Wolf & Cub co-creator Kazuo Koike have passed away. Both men died from pneumonia six days apart, and were once considered rivals when their respective manga ran in Weekly Manga Action magazine. They also worked together on the Secretary Bird manga mini-series that ran in the magazine in 1970.

Monkey Punch, whose real name was Kazuhito Kato, was 81 when he passed away. His most famous creation, Lupin III, started as a manga and was later adapted into six animated television series, eight animated feature films, two live-action feature films, two musicals and several video games. He passed away April 11.

In addition to Lone Wolf & Cub, Koike is also known for such titles as Lady Snowblood, Crying Freeman, Samurai Executioner and many other popular series. His work influenced many American creators, including Frank Miller, who drew covers for First Comics’ publication of the series. Koike also worked on a few western series, including a Hulk manga and an issue of X-Men Unlimited. He passed away April 17 at the age of 82.

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Get revved up for DC’s ‘Engines of Chaos’ statue line

New statue line features designs by comic artist Riley Rossmo.

With Toy Fair in full swing, DC Comics has revealed a new line of statues base don the designs of Riley Rossmo (Martain Manhunter). Engines of Chaos will feature “high-RPM transformations” of DC characters, starting with Batman and Poison Ivy:

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DC to debut new ¡Lucha Explosiva! figures at Toy Fair

Superman, Batman, Deathstroke and more will get a Mexican luchadores-style makeover in a new action figure line from DC Collectibles.

In what I can only describe as the perfect marriage of two things I love, DC Collectibles has revealed a new action figure line that re-imagines their characters as luchadores — mask-wearing wrestlers that hail from Mexico.

DC ¡Lucha Explosiva! is “a thrilling and imaginative new universe that blends the action-packed world of Lucha Libre with iconic DC characters.” The first wave of figures includes Batman, Deathstroke, Superman, Metallo II, Wonder Woman and the Cheetah, and they come out in August.

“DC Collectibles is always striving to bring fans imaginative new ways to extend and celebrate DC’s most iconic characters,” said Jim Fletcher, executive creative director of DC Collectibles, said in a press release. “DC ¡LUCHA EXPLOSIVA! is a passion project for us. We’re all huge fans of Lucha Libre, and merging Mexican Luchadores with superheroes seemed like a perfect fit. Besides obvious similarities like masks, capes and secret identities, we also think there is a huge crossover between fan bases.” Heck yeah there is!

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DC Collectibles reveals new statues + props at NYCC

Sean Murphy’s Joker, Greg Capullo’s the Merciless and Batman’s cowls are coming next year.

At the New York Comic Con, DC Collectibles announced several Batman-related additions to their line or statues and props.

On the statue front, the Joker from Sean Murphy’s popular Batman: White Knight comic will debut in June of next year, along with a statue of the Merciless from Dark Knights: Metal by Greg Capullo and Harley Quinn by Frank Cho.

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Two new artists join DC’s Artist Alley statue line

Joe Ledbetter and Chrissie Zullo will tackle a range of DC characters in the popular vinyl figures line next year.

Two new creators are moving into DC’s Artist Alley, as Joe Ledbetter and Chrissie Zullo join the likes of Chris Uminga, HaiNaNu “Nooligan” Saulque and Sho Murase in creating vinyl statues for the line.

Ledbetter will put his signature spin on Batman, Penguin, Catwoman and Robin.

“I’m a huge Batman fan and to have the opportunity to work with DC Collectibles on a set of Batman characters is a huge deal in my world,” Ledbetter said in a press release. “I just love the idea of a bat in a Batman suit, a penguin as the Penguin, etc. There’s something there that’s quite funny and interesting and really excites me. I like to think that these animal Batman characters inhabit a parallel universe where Gotham City is entirely populated by anthropomorphic critters, including the Caped Crusader himself. I think the fun, enthusiasm and love of Batman, Robin, Penguin and Catwoman will shine through on these designer toys and I hope they find a special place on collector’s shelves.”

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DC Universe app to offer comics as well

The new app will include ‘decades of comics creations’ via a subscription service, in addition to new TV shows, classic movies, a community forum and more.

DC Comics has been talking about their forthcoming digital app for a while now, announcing that it will be the home of new TV shows like Teen Titans, Doom Patrol, Swamp Thing and a new season of the animated Young Justice animated series, among others. But today they announced it will be more than a streaming service — it will also feature comics.

While Marvel Unlimited and comiXology Unlimited both offer “all you can eat” subscription models through their services, DC Comics has yet to offer a similar service for their comics. But the new service, DC Universe, will change that.

“DC Universe is so much more than a streaming service. It’s a welcoming place for everyone to immerse themselves in their own level of DC fandom, with the epic characters, stories and experiences they have come to expect from DC,” said Jim Lee, chief creative officer and publisher, DC Entertainment. “We are investing in and creating original, high-quality shows including the new Titans series, and curating the most beloved nostalgic content, while at the same time elevating the comic reading experience to new heights. Nothing this robust has ever been offered to fans before.”

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DC Collectibles adds Flash, Nightwing, Batgirl to their ‘Artist Alley’ statue line

New designer vinyl figures include Chris Uminga’s Flash, HaiNaNu ‘Nooligan’ Saulque’s Nightwing and Sho Murase’s Batgirl.

DC Collectibles has revealed some new additions to their “DC Artist Alley” line, which debuts in about a month.

“The DC Artists Alley line marks our entry into the designer toy market, and we couldn’t be happier with the fan and retailer reception we’ve received thus far,” stated Jim Fletcher, executive creative director of DC Collectibles. “The first wave has nearly sold out at the retailer level, and the figures haven’t even hit stores yet. We’re doubling down on this excitement by adding three new characters to the 2018 lineup.”

DC Collectibles will offer black and white variant editions of The Flash and Nightwing figures, and a vibrant green holiday variant for Murase’s Batgirl design. These new additions will be released in December. Take a look at them below:

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Batgirl and Supergirl hit the road as ‘Gotham City Garage’ statues

DC Collectibles reveals new Gotham City Garage, DC Bombshells merch at Comic-Con.

After announcing a Gotham City Garage comic last week, DC Collectibles revealed two new sculptures at Comic-Con International for the popular series. One features Batgirl showing off her skills, while the other features Supergirl.

“The idea behind Gotham City Garage is to explore the tough and gritty alter-egos of DC’s most iconic characters such as Wonder Woman and Catwoman, and now Batgirl and Supergirl,” said Jim Fletcher, executive creative director, DC Collectibles. “Just like with DC Bombshells, it’s exciting to see these character designs strike a chord with fans and transcend from statues into comic books and beyond, and we’re eager to find out just how far Gotham City Garage can ride.”

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DC Collectibles reveals more Artist Alley statues

At Comic-Con this week, DC revealed new designs by Sho Murase, HaiNaNu “Nooligan” Saulque and Chris Uminga.

Back in May DC Collectibles announced a new line of “Artist Alley” vinyl statues that “merges indie design with the most iconic characters in the DC Universe.” During Comic-Con International this week, they revealed additional sculpts by the artists tapped for the first wave. The new figures revealed this week include Wonder Woman by Chris Uminga, Batman by HaiNaNu “Nooligan” Saulque, and Poison Ivy and Harley Quinn by Sho Murase.

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I can’t express how much I adore this Harley Quinn ‘Expressions’ figure

DC Collectibles releases images of several new ‘Batman: The Animated Series’ figures and toys, including a Jokermobile.

DC Collectibles has been releasing and revealing new action figures based on the Batman: The Animated Series designs that Paul Dini and Bruce Timm made so popular. Some of them fall into the “Expressions” line, where the figures come with extra faces with, as you might guess, different expressions. We’ve seen Batman and Joker, but at Comic-Con International this week they revealed the best one so far — Harley Quinn.

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