Author: JK Parkin

Dark Crisis expands with five specials focused on the Justice League members who just died

‘Dark Crisis’ will run through December with multiple tie-ins, crossover issues and more.

DC has revealed more of their plans for Dark Crisis, the big event series spearheaded by Joshua Williamson that kicked off in Justice League #75 with the “death” of several members of the Justice League.

I put “death” in quotes because with this latest announcement, we find out that all those dead Leaguers will appear in a series of specials over the next few months, with the big conclusion to the event expected to land in December.

Here’s a look at what’s been announced thus far:

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R. Kikuo Johnson’s ‘No One Else’ wins the 2022 L.A Times Book Prize

The graphic novel about a family on Maui dealing with grief was published by Fantagraphics last fall.

The Los Angeles Times has awarded R. Kikuo Johnson’s No One Else its annual Book Prize for 2022 in the Graphic Novel/Comics category.

“I once believed that awards were given mostly on merit, but obviously luck and other factors have just as much to do with it, and that makes me even more grateful that the dice rolled my way this time,” Johnson said on Instagram. “The five other finalists made beautiful books that make me proud to be a cartoonist and so thankful to the generation of artists before us who built the doorways that we get to walk through.”

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Can’t Wait for Comics | ‘Last Call’ for Cooke’s Parker, plus ‘Twig,’ Obi-Wan and more

This week’s list includes new comics and graphic novels from Darwyn Cooke, Skottie Young, Kyle Strahm, Nyla Rose, Steve Orlando, David Cutler, Peter Milligan, Artecida, Zack Kaplan, Guilherme Balbi and more.

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

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.

Continue reading “Can’t Wait for Comics | ‘Last Call’ for Cooke’s Parker, plus ‘Twig,’ Obi-Wan and more”

Mark Gruenwald, P. Craig Russell + four more inducted into Eisner Hall of Fame

Judges chose six individuals for automatic induction and 17 for voters to choose from.

Six individuals will automatically be inducted into the Will Eisner Hall of Fame this summer, with four more to be chosen by voters before the Eisner Awards ceremony at Comic-Con International in San Diego.

Those four will be chosen from a field of 17, which include many names that make you stop and think, “Wait, they’re not in the Hall of Fame yet?” It’s a loaded field, leading to some hard choices for voters: Howard Chaykin, Gerry Conway, Kevin Eastman, Steve Englehart, Moto Hagio, Larry Hama, Jeffrey Catherine Jones, David Mazzucchelli, Jean-Claude Mézières, Grant Morrison, Gaspar Saladino, Jim Shooter, Garry Trudeau, Ron Turner, George Tuska, Mark Waid and Cat Yronwode.

The judges chose the following six people for automatic induction into the HoF:

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Rest in peace, Neal Adams

The prolific artist, editor and comics advocate passed away from sepsis earlier this week.

Legendary comics creator Neal Adams — an artist, editor and advocate for creator rights — passed away Thursday in New York due to complications from sepsis, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Adams was 80 years old.

Over the course of his career, Adams brought his revolutionary art style, renderings, faces and figures to the pages of Batman, X-Men, Green Lantern/Green Arrow, Superman vs. Muhammad Ali, Avengers and countless others. His work with Denny O’Neil on Batman and later Green Lantern/Green Arrow in the 1970s helped push comics storytelling into a new era, where the emphasis on superhumans was as much on the “human” aspect as the “super.”

“There are few comic book artists whose work has echoed across the decades more than Neal Adams and it was a great shock to discover that this legend has passed away,” J.M. DeMatteis said on his blog. ” His work with the brilliant Denny O’Neil on Batman redefined the character and the same team exploded the superhero genre (and my sixteen-year-old mind) with the ‘all new, all now’ Green Lantern/Green Arrow series.”

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Nick Pitarra’s ‘Ax-Wielder Jon’ chops through its crowdfunding goal

The new graphic novel is available now through the crowfunding site Zoop.

Ax-Wielder Jon is a new graphic novel by Nick Pitarra, artist of The Manhattan Projects, The Red Wing and more, and just a few days into its crowdfunding campaign it has more than doubled its stated goal of $25,000.

The graphic novel is currently available through the comics crowdfunding Zoop, where it has raised more than $65,000. The 148-page graphic novel is complete, according to the campaign page, and it’s about “a ruthless killer in a world of monsters and mayhem” who “makes a precious discovery and learns what a man is willing to lose to protect what he loves most.”

Pitarra’s hyper-detailed art is a thing of beauty, and this project looks like it puts it under a much-deserved spotlight.

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Frank Miller, Dan DiDio team to form ‘Frank Miller Presents’

The new publishing venture plans to release a sequel to Miller’s ‘Ronin,’ ‘Sin City’ and more.

Frank Miller, whose career has led him from comics to movies and TV and from Marvel to DC to Dark Horse and more, has announced plans to form his own comics company, Frank Miller Presents.

Miller will serve as president and editor-in-chief, according to The Hollywood Reporter, while former DC Comics publisher Dan DiDio will serve as publisher for the new company. Silenn Thomas, the CEO of Frank Miller Ink, joins them as COO of the new venture.

Per the article, the new company will not only serve as the home for a new Ronin sequel series and a Sin City prequel set in the Old West, it’ll also be the home of new titles by new creators — something Miller says is important to him.

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Superboy + Suicide Squad Dark move on to the DC Round Robin finals

From 16 pitches fans have narrowed the field to the final two — but only one can win and become a real series.

From 16 pitches featuring a variety of characters, fans have narrowed the 2022 DC Round Robin tournament down to two — Suicide Squad: Dark by Zac Thompson and Garry Brown, and Superboy: The Man of Tomorrow by Kenny Porter and Jahnoy Lindsay.

But only one of these two creative teams can move on and win the tournament, but when that will happen hasn’t been announced yet.

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Nominees announced for the 2022 Ignyte Awards

‘Count,’ ‘Abbott: 1973’ and more were nominated in the comics category this year.

The nominees have been announced for the third annual Ignyte Awards, which “celebrate the vibrancy and diversity of the current and future landscapes of science fiction, fantasy, and horror by recognizing incredible feats in storytelling and outstanding efforts toward inclusivity of the genre.”

The awards are given out in conjunction with FIYAHCON, a virtual convention centering the perspectives and celebrating the contributions of BIPOC in speculative fiction.

The awards include a comics category. Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler, which was adapted into a graphic novel by Damian Duffy and John Jennings, won the award last year.

The nominees for the comics category this year include:

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Can’t Wait for Comics | Two Captains America, a new Slayer and Kaijumax’s conclusion

Check out new comics + graphic novels this week from Zander Cannon, Benjamin Percy, Adam Kubert, Grace Ellis, Hannah Templer, Sarah Gailey, Irene Flores and more.

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

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.

Continue reading “Can’t Wait for Comics | Two Captains America, a new Slayer and Kaijumax’s conclusion”

‘Comics for Ukraine: Sunflower Seeds’ anthology supports Ukraine relief efforts

A comics anthology featuring an impressive line-up of talent that’s being offered through Zoop will benefit Operation USA.

A new anthology featuring the works of Walt Simonson, Kurt Busiek, John Layman, Rob Guillory, Stan Sakai, Sergio Aragones, Dave Gibbons and more will benefit relief efforts in the war-torn Ukraine.

Comics for Ukraine: Sunflower Seeds can be purchased in several variations from the comics crowdfunding website Zoop, which will donate proceeds to Operation USA. The charitable organization is raising money to support Ukrainian refugees on the ground in Poland and other nearby countries.

The project is being edited by Scott Dunbier, who currently works at IDW and heads up the Artist’s Edition line. The campaign ends in May, when funds will be collected and sent to Operation USA, and delivery of the final books is expected to be wrapped up by December.

“Like everyone, I have been sickened by the atrocities perpetrated on the Ukrainian people for nearly two months,” said Dunbier, “and I had to do something, anything, to try and help. The comic-book community is full of good and caring people who have stepped up to say, ‘I stand with Ukraine,’ and to contribute to this book.”

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Matt Kindt + Dark Horse team for new Flux House imprint

New imprint will kick off with a new Mind MGMT comic and will be the exclusive home of Kindt’s creator-owned comics.

Matt Kindt will team with his longtime publisher Dark Horse on a new imprint, Flux House, that will become the exclusive home of his creator-owned comics.

“Flux House is inspired by Fluxus – an avant-garde art movement from the 1950s that was an extension of Surrealists and Dadaists,” Kindt said in the press release. “The Fluxus movement focused on the creative process and experimental art forms. Their trademarks include accessibility, absurdism, and a sense of humor. If you’ve seen me burn or cut one of my books apart at a signing, you already have a sense of where I’m going with this. Flux House aims to embody all of these elements. It won’t be limited by traditional forms of books and print. And the story format will, as the name implies, always be in flux.”

The first title to be published by the new imprint will be Mind MGMT: Bootleg, which is set in the same universe as the previous Mind MGMT series. Written by Kindt, he’ll be joined by artists Farel Dalrymple, Jill Thompson, David Rubín and Matt Lesniewski for the four-issue series.

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