Comics Lowdown | Cameron Stewart dropped from projects after sexual misconduct allegations surface

Plus: News on the Eisner Awards, new dates for Free Comic Book Day and more.

Multiple women this week accused artist Cameron Stewart of sexually preying on them, including one who was 16 at the time.

Artist and model Aviva Maï said Stewart groomed her, which is when an adult befriends a child to lower the child’s inhibitions with the objective of sexual abuse. She said this started in 2009, when she was 16. Following Maï’s post on Twitter, many other women, including creator Kate Leth, made similar accusations against Stewart.

As a result of the allegations, Bleeding Cool reports, Stewart has been removed from an unannounced project from DC Comics. In addition, Martin Morazzo, artist of Ice Cream Man, said they will no longer use a planned cover by Stewart for the comic’s 20th issue. “We will be donating the commission cost of the cover to Safe Horizons,” Morazzo said on Twitter. He also revealed the replacement cover, which features a parody of The Cat in the Hat cover:

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Can’t Wait for Comics | Jam with Snyder and Capullo on ‘Death Metal’

New comics arrive this week from Michel Fiffe, James Tynion IV, Tom King, Evan Shaner, Mitch Gerads and more.

This week brings another Wednesday without single issues from Dark Horse and Marvel arriving in shops, as they both only have trade paperbacks and graphic novels on their lists for the week. But DC, IDW, Image and other publishers are offering plenty if you’re looking for a single-issue fix.

If you’re wondering what to get this week, check out a few recommendations below. You can check the Comic List page to see what’s arriving in your local shop, and the comiXology new releases page for what’s available digitally. As always, you should check with your local shop on their hours, curbside pick-up, etc. due to the coronavirus pandemic. Stay safe out there.

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Mail Call | James Stokoe is doing a Clownhunter story for a ‘Joker Wars’ one-shot

Plus: News from Image, Aftershock and the CBLDF.

Mail Call is a roundup of the announcements we’ve received from publishers in our mailboxes recently. Hit the links for more information.

Batman: The Joker War Zone #1 is a collection of short stories that tie into the upcoming “Joker Wars” storyline in Batman. The 48-page one-shot will include stories by James Tynion IV, John Ridley, Guillem March, James Stokoe, Joshua Williamson, David Lafuente and more.

The artwork above is from Stokoe’s contribution, a story featuring the new character Clownhunter. In the press release, DC says this is “the brutal full debut of the mysterious new anti-hero known as Clownhunter.”

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‘Detective #1027’ celebrates 1,000 issues of Batman

An all-star team of creators will contribute to this landmark issue.

Batman made his first appearance in Detective Comics #27 more than 80 years ago, and DC will celebrate a huge milestone for the character in Detective #1,027, a 144-page, $9.99 issue.

Detective #1027 has been a massive undertaking, and I’m really excited for fans to see what editors Paul Kaminski and Dave Wielgosz have in store come September,” said Ben Abernathy, Batman Group Editor. “A great combination of writers and artists are putting in their best work on the book and fans should pay close attention to these stories, since some of them will plant the seeds for both Batman’s future and that of the DC universe.”

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DC boots up ‘DC Cybernetic Summer’ anthology for July

The robots will rise in a new summer-themed anthology.

DC’s next seasonal anthology will celebrate the summer in style — robot style. The publisher has revealed DC Cybernetic Summer, a collection of stories featuring Red Tornado, Robotman, Cyborg and other mechanically themed heroes, as well as Superman, Wonder Woman and others of a non-mechanical nature.

Here’s a rundown of what you can expect to find in the anthology:

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Mail Call | Fantagraphics 40% off sale, Batman, Pearl Jam and more

Rounding up news from IDW, DC, Image and more.

Mail Call is a roundup of the announcements we received from publishers in our mailboxes recently. Hit the links for more information.

Fantagraphics is holding a 40% off clearance sale on their website right now, which ends this Saturday. There’s a lot of good stuff to choose from, including volumes of the Mome anthology, Dungeon Quest, some Michael Kupperman books, Roger Langridge’s Fred the Clown and more.

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Taylor + Robertson have a ‘twisted’ John Constantine story coming in September

‘Hellblazer: Rise & Fall’ brings the Vertigo bad boy to DC’s Black Label for a three-issue series.

DC Comics has announced Hellblazer: Rise & Fall, a new three-issue Black Label series by Tom Taylor (Suicide Squad, DCeased) and Darick Robertson (The Boys, New Warriors). The story involves a police detective, Aisha Bukhari, trying to solve the mystery behind the bodies of billionaires falling from the sky — with some help from her childhood friend, John Constantine.

If there’s any character who screams “Black Label,” it’s gotta be John Constantine.

“This is a very twisted book,” said Taylor. “But, I actually want to give people exactly the John they’ve seen before. I want to write the bloke who steps out of the shadows with the smirk, the lit cigarette and all the answers. I want a story of shocks and sadness and triumph in the face of utter horror.”

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Comics Lowdown: Can Disney stop cops from using the Punisher symbol?

Plus: News on Al Jaffe, Uncivilized Books, awards and more.

With police brutality once again in the public eye, many fans on social media have called out Disney/Marvel to put their litigious muscles to work and prevent cops from using the Punisher logo — a popular emblem with some members of law enforcement, despite the fact that Frank Castle is a criminal and a killer.

First, you can find some history of both the character and its popularity with police here. That piece’s writer, Brian Cronin, is not only a contributor to CBR, but also a lawyer, and he offers his thoughts on why he doesn’t think Disney would have much success in an article titled “There’s Not Much Marvel Can Do About Cops Using Punisher’s Logo.” Cronin writes:

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Diamond, others respond to DC’s direct market decision

Retailers, publishers and industry react to DC dropping Diamond as a distributor.

DC’s announcement that they’ve ended their relationship with Diamond Comics Distributors in favor of working with Lunar and UCS, the two distributors that sprung into being during the coronavirus pandemic, sent shockwaves through the industry yesterday.

Diamond founder Steve Geppi responded to the news with a message of his own to retailers:

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DC Comics drops Diamond as they shift completely to Lunar, UCS

After 25 years, DC will distribute their comics to shops without the help of the industry’s traditional distributor.

DC Comics is cutting ties with Diamond Comics Distributors and will use the two new distributors that came into existence during the coronavirus pandemic to deliver comics to retailers.

Lunar Distribution and UCS Comic Distributors, the distributors with ties to comics retailers Discount Comic Book Service and Midtown Comics, will distribute periodicals to stores. Retailers can also order books through Penguin Random House, who handle DC’s trades and graphic novels for the book trade.

“After 25 years, DC and Diamond Comic Distributors are ending their long-standing relationship,” a spokesperson from DC told The Hollywood Reporter. “Moving forward, comic book retailers can obtain their DC books from Penguin Random House, or their books and periodicals through Lunar or UCS comic book distributors. DC continues to be committed to providing the Direct Market with best in class service and the fans with the world’s greatest comic books.”

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DC launches a Batman ‘prelude’ comic on Instagram

The story leads into ‘Batman’ #92, which arrives in June.

Batman made his Instagram debut this week in a comic that will serve as a “prelude” to Batman #92, which is set to land in stores on June 9.

“Hey! While on break, I cooked up a handful of prelude stories with Guillem March to give you a taste of Gotham while you’re waiting for Batman to return next month,” writer James Tynion IV said on Twitter. “They’ll be on DC’s Instagram, in their stories. The first of them is up now, featuring PUNCHLINE!”

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Can’t Wait for Comics | Going ‘MAD’ on a ‘Rogue Planet’

Marvel returns to comic shops this week, as some DC books are delayed.

Another week brings more comics back to comic shops, as this week Marvel will have new print comics in comic shops for the first time in weeks. A couple DC books, however, look like they’re delayed this week, including Flash and Aquaman. Stores getting their books from DC’s other distributors have been asked to not put them on sale yet, according to the report from Newsarama.

If you’re looking for some recommendations on what you should get, here are some thoughts from the Smash Pages crew. You can check the Comic List page to see what’s arriving in your local shop, and the comiXology new releases page for what’s available digitally.

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