Month: April 2024

Stephanie Phillips + Alessandro Miracolo send ‘Phoenix’ into space this summer

Jean Grey once again wields the power of the Phoenix in the new ‘From the Ashes’ series.

Jean Grey will once again soar the spaceways as Phoenix in a new series coming later this year by Stephanie Phillips (Grim) and Alessandro Miracolo (White Widow).

Part of the “From the Ashes” publishing initiative that follows the end of the current Krakoa era in the X-Men titles, the new series will spin directly out of the final Krakoa issues we’re seeing hit stores between now and the summer, in particular X-Men Forever and Rise of the Powers of X. While Marvel’s a little coy on what exactly happens to bring Jean Grey and the Phoenix back together, the new series has them working in apparent harmony.

“Jean is one of the most powerful characters I’ve ever written,” Phillips said. “The beauty and challenge to Jean is that she is imbued with a cosmic force alongside the morals, shortcomings, and empathy of a human being. The dichotomy between those two is something incredibly special about Jean, and means that she is constantly doing a dance between humanity and absolute power.”

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Smash Pages Q&A | S.E. Case on ‘Rigsby WI’

The creator of the slice-of-life webcomic discusses its first print collection, her approach to creating the small-town setting and drawing on her teenage experiences to bring her characters to life.

S.E. Case is four chapters in on Rigsby, WI, a webcomic she’s been posting since 2019. The comic is about four average Wisconsin teenagers and the trials and tribulations they encounter with their friends, their families and their futures. While the teenagers may be average, the strip is anything but, as Case has brought to life four characters who will make you laugh, cry, yell and ultimately remember what life was like when you knew everything and nothing at the same time.

Case has teamed up with Iron Circus Comics to publish the first print collection of the webcomic, which is up now on the crowdfunding site BackerKit.

Here’s the description from the publisher: Sometimes as a teen in a small town, you can feel trapped — trapped enough to want to gnaw off your own leg to escape. Bethany has gotten some much needed stability in Rigsby, WI — she’s away from her oppressively disapproving mother, and the other local teens Jeordie, Erik and Anna have welcomed her in — and together the four of them know how to escape from the world that is closing in on them. While Case’s vibrant art and naturalistic writing doesn’t shy away from the rougher experiences and feelings of teens, it also covers the truly important topics like, “is Phish a good band?”, “is the neck the dong of the torso?” and “Ernest Hemingway: Was he a piece of shit?” Nostalgic, sweet, bitter and funny all at once, Rigsby WI feels like a teenage afternoon spent with friends, with all the pathos, boredom and absurdity inherent therein. 

I spoke with Case about the campaign, as well as the webcomics’ small-town setting, why now was the right time for a print collection and, yes, is Phish a good band?

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Fantagraphics will release Joe Matt’s final issue of ‘Peepshow’ this summer

The new issue will arrive almost 17 years after issue #14 was released.

Fantagraphics has announced plans to release Peepshow #15, the final issue in the series by late cartoonist Joe Matt.

Matt passed away unexpectedly last year before finishing the issue after a 17-year gap since issue #14 was released. With only four pages of art left to be inked, Fantagraphics enlisted cartoonist Chester Brown to finish the issue.

“Peepshow is amongst the great bodies of autobiographical work in the history of comics,” said Eric Reynolds, VP and Co-publisher of Fantagraphics. “I’m grateful to Joe’s friends, and to Joe’s family, who have come together to put his final work out into the world where it belongs.”

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Geoffrey Thorne + Marcus To will bring X-Force back ‘From the Ashes’ this summer

Forge, Betsy Braddock, Rachel Summers and more will headline the rebooted X-title.

Forge, the X-Men’s resident inventor, has a plan to repair the world, and that solution is X-Force. Geoffrey Thorne and Marcus To will helm the new team book with a familiar title this summer as a part of Marvel’s “From the Ashes” X-Men reboot.

First launched in the early 1990s by writer/artist Rob Liefeld, X-Force has long held the role of the team that would go to extremes to help mutantkind. In this latest iteration, Forge “will bear witness to everything broken in the world,” and he assembles an “off the books” team to fix it that includes Rachel Summers, Betsy Braddock, Sage, Surge and Tank.

“I cannot believe the reaction to my pitch with, ‘That sounds like X-Force to us,'” Thorne said. “It’s a new vibe and a different mission, but it’s still X-Force. Looking at all the books coming out under this banner, I’ll just paraphrase the prophet, Sheryl Crow: ‘All I wanna do is have some fun.’ Looking at what I’m getting to do and what the others are bringing, I’m absolutely not the only one.”

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Coca-Cola + Marvel’s new campaign brings more than 30 comics characters to Coke cans

A new ad for the campaign features Colossus, Daredevil and more delivering a Coke to a comic shop employee.

Coca-Cola and Marvel has teamed up for a new marketing program that includes Marvel Comics characters appearing on cans, along with a TV commercial, prizes and an immersive augmented reality experience.

Titled Coca-Cola x Marvel: The Heroes, the campaign will bring a line of exclusive cans and bottles of Coca-Cola and Coca-Cola Zero Sugar products that will feature more than 30 Marvel characters in red, white and black tones. Cans will feature Hulk, Iron Man, Black Panther, Deadpool, Juggernaut, Nick Fury, Super Skrull, Cable and more.

The real star here, though, has to be the fun new commercial. Not only is it set in a comic shop, but it also features the comic book versions of Colossus, Daredevil, Black Widow and more trying to deliver a bottle of Coke to an employee:

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Can’t Wait for Wednesday | Enter the ‘House of Brainiac’

Check out what new comics and graphic novels are arriving this week by Joshua Williamson, Rafa Sandoval, Tony Fleecs, Dave Wachter, Erica Schultz, Cullen Bunn, Patrick Piazzalunga, Kevin Maguire, Travis Dandro, Emily Carroll and more.

Welcome to Can’t Wait for Wednesday, your guide to what comics are arriving in comic book stores, bookstores and on digital.

This week the House of Brainiac kicks off in the Superman Family and related titles, while another comic emerges from the Spawn universe. Meanwhile, Winnie-the-Pooh entering the public domain nets us a beautiful new graphic novel, while a classic by Emily Carroll returns to print.

I’ve pulled out some of the highlights below, but for the complete list of everything you might find at your local comic shop and on digital this week, you’ll want to check out one or more of the following:

As a reminder, things can change and what you find on the above lists may differ from what’s actually arriving in your local shop. So always check with your comics retailer for the final word on availability.

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‘Gender Queer,’ ‘Flamer’ among the most banned books of 2023

For the third year in a row, a record number of books were challenged in libraries and schools.

Gender Queer by Maia Kobabe was once again the most challenged book in libraries in 2023, as reported today by the American Library Association. This makes the third year in a row that the graphic novel about gender identity has topped the list.

Gender Queer was one of seven books in the top 10 that was challenged based on LGBTQIA+ content, along with two other graphic novels — Flamer by Mike Curato, which was the fifth most challenged book, and Let’s Talk About It by Erika Moen and Matthew Nolan, which was the ninth.

“In looking at the titles of the most challenged books from last year, it’s obvious that the pressure groups are targeting books about LGBTQIA+ people and people of color,” said ALA President Emily Drabinski. “At ALA, we are fighting for the freedom to choose what you want to read. Shining a light on the harmful workings of these pressure groups is one of the actions we must take to protect our right to read.”

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‘Dark Knights of Steel’ sequel ‘Allwinter’ begins in July

DC enlists fantasy novelist Jay Kristoff and Spanish artist Tirso to continue the Elseworlds story.

As announced last year at the New York Comic Con, DC has several Elseworlds projects in the works for 2024. While June will bring Gotham by Gaslight: The Kryptonian Age #1 by Andy Diggle and Leandro Fernandez, DC has shared more details on July’s Dark Knights of Steel: Allwinter this week.

The spinoff of Dark Knights of Steel will continue the story of a medieval world populated by versions of DC characters. It’s by fantasy novelist Jay Kristoff and Spanish artist Tirso, who recently signed an exclusive contract with the publisher.

The duo will continue the story from the first volume by Tom Taylor and Yasmine Putri. Taylor returns to write a back-up story for the miniseries, with art by Riccardo Federici.

“Dark Knights of Steel was one of my favorite reads; it combines a super-attractive universe with an unbeatable team dynamic,” Tirso said. “Working as a team with Jay, in this universe, has been one of my best professional experiences so far.

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Slugfest | Black Widow gets ‘Venomous’ in a new one-shot

Plus news and announcements on Hellverine, Misty, Nick Cagnetti, Paul Pope, Blood Hunt, Briar, Joy Operations and more!

Slugfest is a roundup of cool announcements about projects coming to a shelf near you that we haven’t otherwise covered. Hit the links for more information.

If you’ve been reading Venom of late, you know that the Black Widow — who already has a cool spider name — has gone and gotten herself a symbiote. This summer, writer Erica Schultz and artist Luciano Vecchio will “unleash Natasha Romanoff’s full potential as a symbiote warrior” in a new one-shot.

Black Widow: Venomous will not only show the super-spy figuring out how to work with her new partner, but will also set the stage for the upcoming Venom War event.

“Who doesn’t want to write Natasha Romanoff? And with a badass symbiote, it didn’t take much to convince me,” Schultz said. “Luciano Vecchio’s art is so amazing. It’s been so fun to delve into Nat’s spy craft techniques, and you just may learn something new about her.”

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Clay McCormack + Ricardo López-Ortiz tag-team on the wrestling crime drama ‘Hard Style Juice!’

The five-issue digital series will debut from Comixology Originals on April 16.

Just in time for Wrestlemania, Comixology Originals has announced Hard Style Juice!, which brings together the worlds of family crime and pro wrestling.

Writer Clay McCormack, artist Ricardo López-Ortiz, colorist Heather Moore and letterer DC Hopkins have formed a stable and will bring the story of King Castro and his family to the arena. Or, in this case, to Amazon and their digital comics platform.

“Pro wrestling and comic books have always felt like two sides of the same coin for me, so combining the two was a no-brainer,” McCormack said. “Hard Style Juice! is a crime drama, but instead of organized crime the family is dedicated to the glitz and spectacle of professional wrestling.”

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‘Robin Lives!’ will show what might have happened if Jason Todd never died

‘From the DC Vault: Death in the Family: Robin Lives!’ kicks off in July.

The death of Jason Todd at the hands of the Joker — aided by a 1-900 number and 5,343 fans — is a story that has lived in infamy within the annals of comicdom since “Batman: Death in the Family” first hit comic shelves in 1988. But what if Robin hadn’t died? What if 73 more people had called the number that asked DC not to kill him?

Writer J.M. DeMatteis and artist Rick Leonardi will explore that alternate reality in From the DC Vault: Death in the Family: Robin Lives! (Which is quite the title; maybe they should have just called it “Life in the Family”) The four-issue miniseries follows last year’s “faux-simile” edition of Batman #428, which featured the alternative ending to the story that Jim Starlin and Jim Aparo created back in the 1980s in case fans showed Jason Todd mercy.

“Continuing this classic, and controversial, story and following in the footsteps of Jim Starlin and Jim Aparo, two creators I greatly admire, has been both a challenge and a joy,” said DeMatteis. “This is a great opportunity to tell a story that’s big on action, but also takes a very deep dive into the heads of our main characters as we ponder what would have happened if Jason Todd had survived The Joker’s brutal attack. And having a master like Rick Leonardi bringing it to life visually? I couldn’t ask for anything more.”

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Mad Cave announces the supernatural horror series ‘The Last Wardens’

Elliot Sperl, Amit Tishler and Rui Silveira head back to the 1970s for a grindhouse-inspired adventure.

Co-writers Elliot Sperl and Amit Tishler will team with artist Rui Silveira, colorist Francesco Segala and letterer Frank Cvetkovic for The Last Wardens, a “supernatural crime drama” coming from Mad Cave Studios this summer.

“The Last Wardens is a sheep in wolf’s clothing,” Tishler said. “It’s designed to subvert expectations! The setting, atmosphere and visual style are clearly inspired by classic horror films, but the story’s lore, setting and structure are more akin to modern epics. Chaotic violence clashes with complex emotional drama, as the comic explores the theme of FAILURE, and how to chew it up, spit it out and ask for seconds. The series is the brainchild of a creative collaboration between Elliot and me, and despite differing in tone from personal works, it has all the elements I love in a story: historical fiction, supernatural elements, a slowly unraveling mystery…and some ridiculous amount of gore.”

The story focuses on small-town girl Daneille, whose long-lost brother returns from the Vietnam War in the 1970s with a mutation and a team of paranormal misfits on his trail.

“I’m a huge fan of ‘Rubber Monster Suit’ horror movies, and creating a comic that harkens back to the VHS-era has been a blast! But packing references into The Last Wardens was never the end goal, EVERY design choice in this series is intentional,” Sperl said. “For example, the 1970s setting plays a major role in our cast’s journeys, skills and the tools they have at their disposal. But the story wouldn’t pack half the punches if it wasn’t told through the lens of our POV character. Danielle Pryer is the heart and soul of this story, and the heartbreaking choices she’s forced to make are what turn this mayhem-fueled adventure into something that readers can connect with on a deeper level.”

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