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.”
Wolverine: Black, White and Blood #3 comes out in January.
Marvel Action: Captain Marvel will return from IDW Publishing in January, from writer Sam Maggs, and artists Isabel Escalante and Sweeney Boo. The first story will feature a guest appearance by the mega-popular Spider-Gwen, aka Ghost-Spider.
“Writing for Carol — who always has been and always will be my favorite Super Hero — has been a career highlight, and I’m so thrilled to continue her story with the amazing team at IDW,” Maggs said in the press release. “Carol is powerful, self-assured, and independent, but there’s still so much she can learn about playing well with others. One of my favorite things about writing Carol’s Marvel Action adventures has been delving into her relationships with other heroines, and we’ll be continuing that theme in this new series!”
IDW will also launch a new Transformers: Beast Wars comic in February, from Erik Burnham and Josh Burcham. It’s based on the popular 1990s cartoon of the same name.
“Beast Wars was a wonderful and weird pivot from the Transformers setup to which I was first introduced. Big personalities, unexpected twists, and actual stakes all popped up regularly on the show, and those are tools that I enjoy using to build new stories,” Burnham said in the release. “Best of all, the enthusiasm from everyone involved in this project has been so high that I’m feeling constantly inspired!”
The third and final chapter in Kate O’Neill’s Tea Dragon series has been delayed, according to the Oni-Lion Forge Publishing Group. The Tea Dragon Tapestry is now scheduled to arrive next June. The graphic novel was originally supposed to be released this fall, but the publisher has postponed it because it “does not meet our print production standards.”
“While we are extremely disappointed to be delaying such a highly anticipated book, it was an essential move to ensure that Katie’s gorgeous and heart-warming series finale arrived on bookshelves in a package worthy of her artistry and our high production standards,” said publisher James Lucas Jones.
Jackson Lanzing, Collin Kelly and Robbi Rodriguez will team up for The Harbinger, a new title coming from Valiant Entertainment next year. It’ll feature Peter Stanchek, the powerful telepath who has been involved with the Harbingers in the past.
Top Shelf will publish Parenthesis, a new graphic novel from cartoonist Élodie Durand, in January. The story is based on Durand’s real-life experiences with a brain tumor.
IDW takes a well-deserved victory lap for selling 130,000 pre-order copies of The Last Ronin #1. The five-part miniseries is based on an unpublished Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles story concept by Eastman and Laird from 1987, with script by Tom Waltz, layouts by Eastman, pencils and inks by Esau and Isaac Escorza, colors by Luis Antonio Delgado, letters by Shawn Lee and edits by Bobby Curnow. Above is the cover for the upcoming second printing, by Eastman and Esau and Isaac Escorza.
Finally, Erik Larsen and Image Comics have revealed a variant cover for Savage Dragon #253, where the title character endorses Joe Biden and Kamala Harris for president and vice president. This isn’t the first time a politician has appeared on a Savage Dragon cover, as both George W. Bush and Barack Obama have made prior appearances.