You may have noticed it’s a big week for comics industry news. ComicsPRO, the comics retailer organization, is holding its annual industry conference in Glendale, Calif. this week, and it’s being attended by comic retailers, publishers, distributors and creators. Skybound’s chief Robert Kirkman is delivering the keynote address later this week.
Publishers traditionally flood the zone with announcements timed to the meeting, and this year is no exception. Here’s a roundup of more announcements that caught our eye so far:
BOOM! Studios Will launch ‘Fall of the House of Slaughter’ miniseries in May
BOOM! Studios announced a new miniseries set in the Something is Killing the Children universe, with House of Slaughter writer Tate Brombal and You’ll Do Bad Things artist Adriano Turtulici taking the reins for Fall of the House of Slaughter.
The four-issue series centers on a power struggle within the House of Slaughter as its aging leader, the Old Dragon, nears the end of his reign and the organization’s various factions jockey for control. Fall of the House of Slaughter #1 arrives in comic shops May 6.
IDW Will release ‘The Last Ronin — Training Day’ one-shot prequel this July
IDW will release The Last Ronin — Training Day, a one-shot prequel set between issues #3 and #4 of the original The Last Ronin series, this July. Co-creators Kevin Eastman and Tom Waltz return as writers, with art by the Escorza brothers and Ben Bishop, colors by Luis Antonio Delgado and lettering by Shawn Lee.
The story follows Michelangelo as he takes Casey Marie Jones under his wing as a student, set over a loose 24-hour period. Eastman and Waltz describe it as an “interim” release ahead of The Last Ronin III. “In a way, this is a love letter to fans, but it’s also a conversation we’re having with fans because the Roninverse just continues to expand beyond anything we expected,” Waltz told Entertainment Weekly.
Skybound + Hasbro announce second ‘G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero’ Kickstarter campaign
Skybound, Image Comics and Hasbro will launch a Kickstarter campaign for G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero Compendium Sets 1+2 on March 24, expanding on their previous campaign. The new campaign collects more than 300 issues from both the Marvel and IDW runs of the series, spanning 1994 to 2022, across eight hardcover volumes.
“I am really glad that there will finally be a quality compendium of the continuation of my run on G.I. JOE: A Real American Hero beyond the initial Marvel run and into the IDW issues,” said longtime G.I. Joe writer Larry Hama. “This will be the first time that a uniform hard-bound edition will be produced that includes the first 300 issues, along with covers and many exclusive extras. A real must for loyal fans and completists!”
Fans can sign up for updates at GIJoeKickstarter.com ahead of the March 24 launch.
Dark Horse partners with Terry Moore for new imprint launching in October
Dark Horse Comics and Strangers in Paradise creator Terry Moore have partnered to form a new imprint debuting in October, The Beat reports.
Moore, who self-published for decades as Abstract Studios, lost his distributor when Diamond Comic Distributors shuttered, making the Dark Horse partnership a significant development for his catalog. The imprint launches with Strangers in Paradise Omnibus, Vol. 1, collecting the first three volumes of Moore’s cult classic series alongside bonus content, newly designed pages and a new cover by Moore.
Dark Horse says it will continue to repackage and reprint Moore’s full body of work following the launch. Strangers in Paradise Omnibus Vol. 1 arrives Oct. 13.
Dark Horse announces three-series slate with Zack Kaplan for 2026
Writer Zack Kaplan and Dark Horse Comics announced a multi-title deal spanning three new series.
First out of the gate is Only the Savage Are Left, a post-apocalyptic action series with artist Stefano Raffaele, arriving June 3. Later in the year comes The Smart Division, a sci-fi crime thriller with artist John J. Pearson about an AI app that helps users commit the perfect crime and the FBI agents hunting it down. Kaplan and Dark Horse will also team for Kill All Immortals III, the concluding chapter of his Viking action trilogy, with artist Francesco Manna. The latter two titles don’t have firm release dates yet.
“My experience with Dark Horse over the past several years has been a testament to their commitment to creators, and I’m thrilled to partner with them to raise the bar in 2026,” Kaplan said. “I’m joined by three amazing artists at the top of their game, Stefano, John and Francesco, we’re gonna focus on dynamic and dramatic stories, and we’re going all in to give readers something special.”
Fantagraphics brings back bestselling Jaime Hernandez ‘Love and Rockets’ #24 T-shirt
Finally, I don’t think this one is related to ComicsPro exactly, but I thought it was a fun one to end with. Fantagraphics has restocked its popular T-shirt featuring Jaime Hernandez’s iconic cover image from Love and Rockets #24, this time with slime green lettering. The two-color silk screen is printed by hand in Seattle on what the publisher describes as a super soft tee, available in sizes S–3XL … I mean, it was. Only a few sizes remain a few hours after it went on sale, so hurry over there if you’re interested,