Sam Maggs + Lisa Sterle bring ‘The Wicked Trinity’ to Greendale High

Sabrina’s not the only teenage witch in Greendale.

Sabrina Spellman’s old high school is getting a new class of witches in The Wicked Trinity, a one-shot written by Sam Maggs with art by Lisa Sterle. They’re joined by colorist Ellie Wright and letterer Jack Morelli for the project.

“Real witches writing real witches — that’s how we do things over at Archie Comics!” Maggs said. “I was named after a famous witch — Samantha from Bewitched — and so I grew up absolutely obsessed with everything witchcraft, devouring every book series I could about teen witches. That makes Wicked Trinity a dream project for me.”

The one-shot will feature Amber Nightstone, Jade Kazane and Sapphire Gill, who have appeared in Archie classic, all-ages titles, but this will be their first appearance in Archie’s line of comics for older readers.

“When Editor-In-Chief Mike Pellerito came up with the idea of the Wicked Trinity, I was immediately intrigued,” said Archie’s Senior Director of Editorial Jamie L. Rotante. “I even had the good fortune to work on the script for Jade and Sapphire’s first appearance in last year’s Sabrina Annual Spectacular comic for younger readers. What I especially loved about these magical teens is that they could seamlessly transcend from classic-Archie stories into more mature, even horror stories. I was eager to start developing their world with a modern sensibility, taking cues from the great work of Kelly Thompson and Veronica Fish on our Sabrina the Teenage Witch series, and Sarah Kuhn and Carola Borelli on our recent Darkling one-shot. Inspired by series like Charmed and films like The Craft, I knew there was so much potential to build up this coven in a story that beautifully blends magical fantasy with horror.”

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IDW reincarnates ‘Dungeons & Dragons’ cartoon as a comic book miniseries

David M. Booher, Sam Maggs and George Kambadais will revive the 1980s animated series.

Hank, Diana, Bobby, Uni and the rest of the party from the 1983 Dungeons & Dragons Saturday morning cartoon will return in Dungeons & Dragons: Saturday Morning Adventures from IDW next year.

The four-issue miniseries by David M. Booher, Sam Maggs and George Kambadais celebrates the 40th anniversary of the animated program, which ran for three seasons from 1983-1985. In it, six regular kids were transported into the world of Dungeons & Dragons, where they fought Venger and his evil forces, received guidance from the mysterious Dungeon Master and tried to find a way back home.

“As a lifelong D&D fan, it is an absolute dream to get to work reviving a childhood classic,” Maggs said. “It’s been such a blast working with IDW and the fine folks at Wizards of the Coast to home in on what made the Dungeons & Dragons Saturday morning cartoon such a cult favorite. Setting these characters up for a whole new run of stories has truly been a career highlight, and I hope fans will love seeing Uni (well…all our cool kids, but especially Uni) back in action as much as I do!”

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Final girl next door: Archie announces new horror one-shot featuring Betty

Micol Ostow, Laura Braga and more visit the ‘final girl’ horror trope in a new one-shot.

Archie Horror continues to find new, fun ways to mash up the Riverdale gang with the horror genre and tropes. Their latest project will cast everyone’s favorite “girl next door” as a “final girl” in Betty: The Final Girl.

Archie’s press release defines a “final girl” as “the clever survivor who carries a relentless plot across the finish line, taking it to the bad guy in the last scene.” For reference, see Halloween, Friday the 13th, Scream and any number of slasher movies out there.

Betty won’t be the only Archie character spotlighted in this issue, as the one-shot will include multiple stories, with a framing sequence written by Micol Ostow.

“I’m a diehard horror fan, and I’ve been obsessed with how seamlessly Archie’s been able to integrate different styles, levels, and aesthetics of spookiness into their Archie Horror library,” Ostow said. “And while I don’t have one favorite scary movie or book, I’ve always been a sucker for the ‘final girl’ trope. It hit me that Betty would make a fantastic final girl: blonde, kick-ass, capable!”

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Transformers, My Little Pony will cross over again in April

The Autobots and Decepticons will revisit Equestria in the four-issue series.

Two of Hasbro’s properties will collide again in My Little Pony / Transformers II, a four-issue miniseries launching in April from IDW Publishing.

The creative team for the first issue includes writers James Asmus and Sam Maggs, and artists Jack Lawrence and Casey W. Coller. Ian Flynn, Priscilla Tramontano and Tony Fleecs will also contribute to the series.

“I can’t wait to jump back into this world of magical friendships that really is More than Meets the Eye,” said Maggs. “It’s such a blast coming up with the most fun (and downright weird) pairings of ponies and ‘bots, and I think fans of both series are going to be surprised at what’s we’ve got for them this second time around!”

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Mail Call | John Ridley makes his Marvel debut in January

A round-up of news from Marvel, IDW, Top Shelf and more.

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

Academy Award winner John Ridley has several projects in the works at DC right now, but DC’s not the only publisher he’s doing work for. Marvel has announced that the writer of 12 Years A Slave will have a story in Wolverine: Black, White and Blood #3. The anthology series will feature short stories about the popular mutant, told in black and white … and red. Jorge Fornés is the artist on his story.

“I can think of no better way to kick off my writing relationship with Marvel Comics than by contributing to a truly fantastic anthology series centered around Wolverine,” Ridley told Marvel.com. “Equally exciting is having the story illustrated by Jorge Fornés. I look forward to writing more stories set in the Marvel Universe, and with their roster of iconic characters.”

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Captain Marvel flies over to IDW’s Marvel Action line

Sam Maggs, Sweeney Boo and Brittany Peer create new Captain Marvel stories aimed at middle grade readers.

Captain Marvel will join IDW Publishing’s Marvel Action line in August. The line of comics is aimed at middle grade readers and already includes comics starring the Avengers, Black Panther and Spider-Man.

The comic will feature Captain Marvel, Spider-Woman and the Flerkens, the race of aliens who look like cats but are so much more.

“I feel so privileged to help launch Captain Marvel’s solo title for Marvel Action,” said writer Sam Maggs. “Carol has always been my favorite super hero; I love how she’s truly come into her own, culturally, and is finally being widely-recognized as the star that she is. Being able to write for Carol is the most exciting and terrifying thing that’s ever happened to me. I can’t wait to share this arc with everyone!”

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