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DC’s October solicitations arrived this week, showcasing all the new storylines and changes to creative team that Scott Snyder and Joshua Williamson promised in their video earlier in the week. Yes, the sun has set on the Dawn of DC, and now we’re moving into the All In era.
I pulled out some of the highlights below. To see DC’s full solicitations, you can find them over on The Beat.
Continue reading “Slugfest | DC’s October solicitations bring new creative teams + storylines”The supernatural mystery begins in October.
Author and wrestler AJ Mendez (Crazy Is My Superpower) and actress Aimee Garcia (Dexter, Lucifer) are no strangers to comics, having written licensed titles for IDW like Glow and Dungeons and Dragons. Their next project is an original, though, for Magma Comix — a supernatural mystery that ties into Mexico’s Day of the Dead festival and features artwork by Spanish artist Belén Culebras.
Day of the Dead Girl is about a coroner investigating murders within a witch coven led by her brujas mother. They have to put aside their differences to stop a supernatural serial killer.
“Growing up, I didn’t see comics that reflected my Mexican heritage, so I’m thrilled to create Day of the Dead Girl with AJ and spotlight our rich Latino culture to readers,” Garcia said. “Not only will Belén Culebras’ stunning visuals thrust readers into the midst of a joyful Day of the Dead celebration, but this story will cut to the core of what binds us all together … death.”
The four-issue miniseries featuring the cuddly ‘Star Wars’ warriors begins this fall.
The Ewoks will return to comics this fall in a new miniseries by Steve Orlando, Álvaro López and Laura Braga. To mark the 40th anniversary of the TV movie Caravan of Courage: An Ewok Adventure, Marvel will reveal a crisis that occurred on the Endor moon following the events of Return of the Jedi.
“Forty years of Ewoks! Sometimes, a lot of the times, this job is just a dream—and for someone who grew up watching Return of the Jedi after every single Sunday Ski Trip, getting the chance to celebrate them and explore their world in the aftermath of the second Death Star’s fall is truly beyond belief,” Orlando said. “When I was young, the Ewoks got me in the door—Wicket was my hero, a young hero like me (like I was back then) going on adventures with Princess Leia herself!”
The Ewoks are a somewhat divisive subject for Star Wars fans, seen either as savage, noble warriors or a “bunch of muppets,” depending on who you ask. But their legacy stretched beyond Return of the Jedi, starring in two made-for-TV movies, an animated series and a comics series as part of Marvel’s Star line.
Massive Publishing and Masked Republic team up for a hellish roadtrip comic by Michael Kingston, Kevin Kleinrock and artist El Terrorifico Dr. Napalm.
Follwoing the recent launch of the Luchaverse comic featuring Rey Mysterio, Massive Publishing and Masked Republic have announced another title featuring a wrestling legend — Vampiro: Rockabilly Apocalypse.
Although originally from Canada, Vampiro made his name wrestling and promoting in Mexico starting in the 1990s. He has also appeared in WCW, TNA and NWA, and as a commentator on Lucha Underground (which is ripe for a comic reboot *coughcough*).
The comic will be written by Michael Kingston and features art by Martin Pouso, aka El Terrorifico Dr. Napalm, a cartoonist, illustrator, musician and tattoo artist from Montevideo, Uruguay.
“I was featured in dozens of comics in Mexico in the 90s, but it’s always been one of my dreams to have my very own book.” Vampiro said, “The vision for the series Masked Republic and Michael Kingston laid out was right up my alley – fast cars, rock and roll, and an impending apocalypse to fend off. I really think that both fans of mine and comic readers who just love great stories and may be less familiar with who I am are going to love being along for this wild ride.”
Continue reading “SDCC | Wrestling legend Vampiro hits the road in ‘Vampiro: Rockabilly Apocalypse’”The science fiction maxi-series will kick off in November.
It wouldn’t be Comic-Con season without some announcements of celebrities writing (or producing, or “based on a concept by”-ing) comics. In this case, Venom actor Tom Hardy is working with an impressive array of talent to bring a comic called Arcbound to Dark Horse.
Hardy is working with veteran writers Scott Snyder and Frank Tieri, and artist Ryan Smallman and colorist Frank William on the science fiction story.
“I’ve been lucky enough throughout my career to work with some of the biggest, most inventive talents in the industry. So when I was given the opportunity to work with Frank Tieri, Ryan Smallman, and, of course, Tom Hardy, I jumped at it,” Snyder said. “These are all creators that have an innate understanding of how characters tick and what makes their narratives sing across all kinds of media. Getting to craft a brand new universe with such immense creative voices is beyond a treat for me, and I can’t wait to share what we’ve been crafting this past year with all of you. Arcbound is going to blow you away!”
Continue reading “SDCC | Dark Horse announces ‘Arcbound’ by Scott Snyder, Frank Tieri, Tom Hardy + Ryan Smallman”Created 10 years ago by Felipe Smith and Tradd Moore, the young Ghost Rider returns to comics in a Marvel’s Voices special.
Jason Aaron left Robbie Reyes trapped inside the God Quarry at the end of his Avengers run, but if you’ve been wondering what the former Avenger has been up to, you can find out in October’s Ghost Rider: Robbie Reyes Special.
The anthology, which will include the Marvel’s Voices branding on the cover, will feature a new story by writer Carlos Hernandez and artist Moises Hidalgo that not only shows what Robbie Reyes has been up to since getting stuck, but also how his family and friends have reacted to the loss.
Continue reading “Marvel celebrates Hispanic Heritage Month this year with ‘Ghost Rider: Robbie Reyes Special’”The seven-issue miniseries set in a chaotic new world begins this fall.
Rumors of the demise of the Black Hammer universe were … well, not exactly exaggerated, but sometimes endings bring new beginnings.
With that in mind, Jeff Lemire returns to a rearranged universe with Black Hammer: Spiral City, which “follows a new cast of heroes struggling to survive in a chaotic new world.” The miniseries also features artwork by Danish comics artist Teddy Kristiansen, who you probably know from drawing The Sandman, It’s a Bird and a lot of other great-looking comics.
“Teaming with one of my all-time favorite artists, Teddy Kristiansen, I knew this book needed to be special,” said Lemire. “It’s a brand-new era for the Black Hammer Universe. New stories, new characters, and a whole new direction. Black Hammer: The End was the culmination of the last eight years of storytelling, and now Black Hammer: Spiral City is truly a new beginning. It’s both a great jumping on point for curious readers, and a bold new direction for long time fans.”
Continue reading “SDCC | Jeff Lemire + Teddy Kristiansen present a ‘new beginning’ in ‘Black Hammer: Spiral City’”The graphic novel will arrive on the digital platform in September, followed by a print edition from Dark Horse next year.
Comixology Originals will publish the revenge tale Neptune in September by Tremor Dose writer Michael Conrad and debuting artist Nathan Ooten.
They’re joined by letterer Kyle Arends on the project, which is described as “a bleak examination of the capitalist machine.” The story revolves around a former prison inmate investigating the mysterious death of his brother.
“Following books like Tremor Dose and Double Walker isn’t easy, I remain quite proud of both of those stories,” Conrad said. “With Neptune, I wanted to rip something from the headlines and address it in a graphic novel. The result feels far less like ‘entertainment’ and more like observing a car crash, a thing you don’t wish to see, but can’t look away from. Nathan Ooten nailed it; each page manages to be at once a beautiful display of his multimedia approach to sequential art, and a profane representation of quite vile subject matter.”
Continue reading “SDCC | Comixology + Dark Horse announces ‘Neptune’ by Michael Conrad + Nathan Ooten”The publisher has shared creative teams and cover art for three Absolute Universe titles, along with plans for several DCU series in the post-‘Absolute Power’ era.
If you missed the YouTube video yesterday, DC has revealed their next publishing initiative, All In, which will see several creative team changes and the birth of a whole new universe. Headed up by Scott Snyder and Joshua Williamson, the Absolute Universe will come into being thanks to Darkseid in October’s All In one-shot.
And today DC revealed some of the creative teams you can expect to see on some of the Absolute titles and the regular DC titles.
Starting first with the DC Absolute Universe — which is what they’re calling it in the press release, so we can assume that’s the official name — the line will launch with Absolute Batman by Scott Snyder and Nick Dragotta, as revealed yesterday. The first issue will come out Oct. 9. It’ll be followed by Kelly Thompson and Hayden Sherman’s reinvention of Wonder Woman “from the ground up” in Absolute Wonder Woman #1, due out Oct. 23. Then you have Jason Aaron and Rafa Sandoval launching Absolute Superman #1 on Nov. 6.
“The creation of the AbsoluteUniverse is how I always imagined coming back to DC, and DC All In will be a great jumping-on point for new readers as well as lapsed fans to discover new stories to love and the chance to explore the new directions in store for DC’s core series lineup,” Snyder said in the press release.
Here’s more details and cover art for those titles, along with several DCU titles (which they refer to as the “Core Line” in the press release):
Continue reading “DC reveals more details on their ‘All In’ line-ups”The horror-comedy title arrives from Dark Horse this fall.
Filmmakers David Ian McKendry and Rebekah McKendry will team with artist Tyler Jenkins and letterer Justin Birch for Barstow, a horror comedy coming from Dark Horse later this year.
The McKendrys are the husband and wife team who worked on horror films like Glorious and All the Creatures Were Stirring. Jenkins, meanwhile, is the award-winning artist of titles like Grass Kings and Hairball.
Continue reading “Horror filmmakers David Ian + Rebekah McKendry head to ‘Barstow’ with Tyler Jenkins + Justin Birch”The 12-issue series begins in October.
The creative team behind beloved runs of Daredevil, Captain America and Black Widow will bring their magic to DC this fall, as Mark Waid and Chris Samnee present Batman and Robin: Year One.
The series will focus on the early days of the relationship between Bruce Wayne and his new ward, Dick Grayson, as they navigate their new roles both as superheroes and father/son. It’ll also introduce a new mob boss, The General, and feature Two-Face.
“While Batman and Robin are the stars of this tale and get most of the panel time, at its heart, this isn’t a Batman/Robin story, it’s a Bruce/Dick story,” Waid said. “It takes place only a month or two after Bruce adopted Dick, and it’s sinking in for Bruce that he has no idea how to be a father to a kid that age. He has no role model—his own father was long dead by the time he was Dick’s age. Nothing he’s ever done has prepared him for this, and Alfred—wise as he is—doesn’t have much experience here either.”
DC will launch the Absolute Universe this October, a new line of comics spearheaded by Snyder and Williamson.
Joshua Williamson and Scott Snyder took to YouTube today to announce DC’s next big publishing initiative, the Absolute Universe, as well as DC All In, a one-shot coming in October that will introduce a new universe of DC characters as well as spotlight upcoming storylines in the regular DCU.
If that’s confusing, think of it like this: DC is launching their own version of the Ultimate Universe, which will run parallel to the regular DC Universe. It’s creation, though, is part of the story in DC All In.
Williamson and Snyder will co-write the DC All In one-shot flipbook, which will feature art by Daniel Sampere and Wes Craig. Sampere’s story will focus on the post-Absolute Power DC Universe, while Craig’s will introduce the Absolute Universe — which has an interesting origin.
“If the main universe is sort of predicated on Superman energy right … then this universe is kind of founded on Darkseid energy,” Snyder said, which he described as chaotic, dangerous and wild.
Continue reading “Joshua Williamson + Scott Snyder are ‘All In’ on DC this fall”
