Jeff Lemire is always busy making comics, and this fall he’ll tackle two different projects for DC Black Label featuring the Joker and the Question.
First, he’ll team with his Gideon Falls collaborator Andrea Sorrentino on The Joker: Killer Smile. Lemire told io9 the series will feature “a more grounded, real-world Joker.” He’ll also team with Denys Cowan, Bill Sienkiewicz and Chris Sotomayor on The Question: The Deaths of Vic Sage.
“Regarding The Joker: Killer Smile, I want to assure fans of Gideon Falls that this project will not effect the Gideon Falls schedule at all. Andrea and I are both so far ahead of GF that we were able to take a few months to work on the Joker book without affecting our schedule,” Lemire said on his blog. “So, there will be a double dose of Andrea and I when Joker and Gideon are both published this fall.”
“And, with The Question, all I can really say is that this is a labour of love,” Lemire said. “It’s truly my DC Comics dream project. Denys Cowan and Dennis O’Neil’s run on The Question in the late 80’s and early 90’s was hugely influential on my, and specifically on how I approached my own run on Green Arrow. Getting the chance to team with two legends like Denys and Bill Sienkewicz has been surreal and incredible and we have been putting our hearts into this one!”
The Joker: Killer Smile arrives at the end of October, while The Question: The Deaths of Vic Sage comes out in November.
Update: DC has released the official press release for both projects. The Joker: Killer Smile will run for three issues, while The Question will run four issues.
“Jeff is an excellent writer and this might be one of his best stories so far,” Cowan said in the release. “The series will go through multiple time periods and explore aspects of Vic Sage’s past and present that have never been explored before. Combined with Bill Sienkiewicz’s inks and Chris Sotomayor’s deft color touch, this may be the best version of the Question yet.”
Sienkiewicz adds, “Working with Denys is always a rewarding experience, so revisiting the Question with him after all this time—and in a special format—is the textbook definition of a no-brainer. It doesn’t hurt that I’m also a huge fan of Jeff’s writing and Soto’s fantastic colors. What a team to be a part of.”