Mail Call is a roundup of the announcements we’ve received from comics publishers in our mailboxes recently that we haven’t already covered. Hit the links for more information.
Last summer the “Infinite Destinies” storyline was supposed to run through several Marvel annuals, including Iron Man, Captain America, Black Cat and Thor, among others. The story revolves around the returning “infinity stones,” those pesky don’t-call-them-infinity-gems MacGuffins that regularly take center stage at Marvel.
Anyway, like with many other things, the COVID pandemic and comics industry shutdown threw a wrench in Marvel’s plans, and those annuals were never released. But now it looks like they are back on the schedule for 2021, with an added prelude comic to kick things off — Black Cat #8 by Jed MacKay and C.F. Villa.
“Felicia Hardy- the Black Cat- gets tangled up with the Infinity Stones, some of the most dangerous prizes in the universe. Felicia may be the most accomplished jewel thief on the planet, but when those jewels hold the power of the cosmos, it’s a whole new ball game. Felicia is in a race against the others who would seek to control the stones for their own ends- like Nick Fury (and a secret someone you won’t see coming!),” MacKay said. “Who can cross the world’s most dangerous men, wrangle a pack of villains hopped up on fragments of infinite power, (hopefully) get the job done and look great all the while? The Black Cat, that’s who!”
Part of the purpose of the event was to spotlight some of the new characters who have joined the Marvel universe. The eight annuals the event was originally scheduled to run through, along with their guest star, included:
- Iron Man Annual #1 guest starring Quantum
- Captain America annual #1 guest starring Overdrive
- Thor Annual #1 guest starring Spirit of Corruption
- Black Cat Annual #2 guest starring White Fox
- Avengers Annual #1 guest starring [classified]
- Miles Morales: Spider-Man Annual #1 guest starring Amulet
- Guardians of the Galaxy Annual #1 guest starring Prince of Power
- Amazing Spider-Man Annual #2 guest starring Star
No word yet on whether any of these planned annuals or guest stars have changed.
Dark Horse announces The Witcher: Witch’s Lament
Dark Horse has announced a new The Witcher miniseries, titled The Witcher: Witch’s Lament. It’s by Bartosz Sztybor, Vanesa R. del Rey, Jordie Bellaire and Aditya Bidikar, and it starts in May.
Here’s the description: The Witcher: Witch’s Lament follows famed witcher Geralt after a routine hunt. But when the captured witch is burned at the stake, Geralt is haunted by images of her death, and a harrowing warning begins to take shape. Soon, Geralt finds himself drawn into the mystery surrounding this heinous persecution.
Oblivion Song will end with issue #36
Robert Kirkman and Lorenzo De Felici’s Oblivion Song will end with issue #36, Image/Skybound announced.
“If you’ve been paying attention to the buildup of this story from arc to arc, you might have suspected that we were nearing a natural end point…and we are, issue #36 was always planned to be the final issue,” Kirkman wrote in the letter column of issue #30. “When we conceived of this series, I thought of it as a trilogy of 12-issue arcs. Looking back, you can see the time jumps between #12 and #13, as well as #24 and #25, marked definitive chapter breaks along the way. That was by design.”
Issue #30 just came out this past Wednesday, while issue #31 (for which the cover is shown above) will arrive in June.
AdHouse to publish Steve Christie’s Turtlenecks
AdHouse Books will publish Turtlenecks, a new graphic novel by Steven Christie, in May. It’s about a “heist-based performance art collective” that specializes in stealing conceptual artworks. You can check out preview here.
AfterShock announces followup to ‘We Live’
AfterShock Comics has announced that We Live, the science fiction miniseries written by brothers Roy and Inaki Miranda, will get a followup miniseries this summer. Titled We Live: Era of the Palladions, the new miniseries will continue the story of Tala, who spent the first volume ensuring her brother Hototo left Earth before Extinction Day.
Dc teases 11 new titles
In a press release coming out of the annual ComicsPRO retailer event, DC revealed that their VP of sales, Nancy Spears, teased 11 new titles to retailers. Those titles are:
- Deathstroke Inc.
- Harley Quinn Animated Series sequel
- A Wonder Woman 80th Anniversary title
- Elseworld
- “DC Vampires” (working title)
- Robin and Batman
- Joker: A Puzzle Box
- The Legend of Batman
- Crush and Lobo
- Nubia and the Amazons
- DC Middle Ages
The titles were mentioned as she discussed “an expanded variant cover program” with retailers. She also confirmed that DC will be participating in this year’s Free Comic Book Day.
Justice League #59 gets Snyder Cut variant covers
DC Comics has announced that Justice League #59, the first issue by the new creative team of Brian Michael Bendis and David Marquez, will have three variant covers “in celebration of the highly anticipated feature film Zack Snyder’s Justice League.”
The three covers are by Jim Lee, Liam Sharp and Lee Bermejo.
Keanu voices a new BRZRKR trailer
BOOM! Studios has released a trailer for the upcoming BRZRKR miniseries, voiced by the comic’s co-writer (and actor) Keanu Reeves. The new title kicks off on Wednesday.
Stephanie Hans covers the history of the Black Knight
Marvel has revealed a series of connecting variant covers for the upcoming Black Knight: Curse of the Ebony Blade miniseries. The five covers by Die artist Stephanie Hans featuring the Black Knight in all his various incarnations.
“When I was offered the opportunity to do these five iconic covers for Black Knight: Curse of the Ebony Blade, my main concern was to find a way to link them all together, a strong concept,” Hans said. “Flames are the constant element uniting them all. I tried to make them all as interesting together and as singular pieces. My second concern was to be able to give a solid representation of older designs, considering materials and practicality. I hope I did a good job.”
Erik Larsen remasters Savage Dragon #259
Image Comics has announced that Erik Larsen will “rework and reformat” Savage Dragon #259 and re-release it as North Force #0 in May. The team apparently gained enough popularity in their first flight to warrant their own special issue, which will include bios for team members.
“When North Force was introduced in Savage Dragon #255 I knew they were something special and reader response has been overwhelming,” said Larsen. “This representation of Savage Dragon #259 focuses on the team in a more in depth fashion with bio pages and more!”
Jeffrey Veregge covers Heroes Reborn
In addition to the Mark Bagley trading-card variant covers Marvel revealed earlier this month, the upcoming Heroes Reborn miniseries will also be getting variant covers by artist Jeffrey Veregge.
“My first real encounter with Squadron Supreme as a reader came back in the late ’90s with the immortal storytellers Kurt Busiek and George Perez and their run on the Avengers. Knowing all who have worked with these characters before me and the history of Squadron Supreme made this opportunity truly special,” Veregge said. “Being able to share their stories in the same spirit and voice as my ancestors for today’s audience is not only an honor as a Native American storyteller, but as a comic book fan as well.”
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