Author: JK Parkin

Eric Powell recruits Becky Cloonan, Mike Mignola, James Harren for a spooky Christmas anthology

‘Four Gathered on Christmas Eve’ continues the Victorian tradition of telling spooky stories on Christmas Eve.

The Goon creator Eric Powell is a fan of both Christmas and horror, so it’s only natural he’d put together a crew of elves to help deliver Four Gathered on Christmas Eve, an anthology of Victorian-style Christmas Eve ghost stories coming from Dark Horse this winter.

“As someone who unapologetically loves Christmas and spooky stories, I’ve always been intrigued that telling ghost stories used to be a regular part of the tradition,” said Powell. “I’ve been kicking around the idea of doing a Victorian Christmas Ghost book for a while and was thrilled when three of my favorite comic creators agreed to join me.”

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Snyder + Albuquerque reunite for the post-apocalyptic ‘Duck and Cover’

The new title debuts on Comixology next week.

The American Vampire creative team of Scott Snyder and Rafael Albuquerque will sink their teeth into 1950s Cold-War era insanity in Duck and Cover, a new title debuting from Comixology Originals next week.

The title refers to the civil defense drills common in the 1950s, where kids would practice hiding under their desks in case nuclear war broke out. In the comic, schools desks end up being the only real protection from nuclear bombs that obliterate the United States, leaving the country in the hands of its children.

“Duck and Cover is a character driven thrill-ride that blends elements of manga, 1950’s Americana, and post-apocalyptic lore to create something truly unique,” Snyder said in the press release.

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Nominees announced for the 2023 Hugo Awards

The winners will be announced in October.

The nominees have been announced for the 2023 Hugo Awards, which includes a “Best Graphic Story or Comic” category.

Presented annually since 1955, the Hugo Awards recognize the best science fiction in books, comics, movies, TV and more. The Hugo Award for Best Graphic Story has been awarded since 2009, with previous winners including volumes of Saga, Ms. Marvel, Girl Genius, Sandman: Overture, LaGuardia, Far Sector and Monstress, which is up for the award again this year.

And the nominees are …

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Top Shelf will bring Élodie Durand’s ‘Transitions’ to the U.S.

Based on true events, the graphic novel is about a mother whose child is transgender.

Top Shelf Productions will bring Parenthesis creator Élodie Durand’s new graphic novel to English-speaking readers this fall. Evan McGorray will translate the French graphic novel, which is about a mother, Anne Marbot, who learns her biological daughter is transitioning into a man.

Transitions: A Mother’s Journey is based on true events. “When I met Anne, there was no resource in France for parents living through the transition of their child,” Durand said. “Anne felt powerless to understand or support her son. She had this desire to bear witness for others, to find a way to help.”

Anne invited Durand to adapt Anne’s experience into Transitions. “As I began to research the issues, it was like a relief for me to explore the role of gender in our private and public lives. It became clear that gender is a concern for us all — that this intimate story is also the story of every family.”

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Can’t Wait for Comics | ‘Knight Terrors’ begins

Check out new comics and graphic novels arriving this week by Joshua Williamson, Howard Porter, Jeremy Haun, W. Maxwell Prince, Martin Simmonds, Ann Nocenti, Shaky Kane, Scott Snyder, Tula Lotay, Rafer Roberts, Mike Norton, Sarah Myer and more.

Welcome to Can’t Wait for Comics, your guide to what comics are arriving in comic book stores, bookstores and on digital. Despite it being a holiday week in the United States, it’s pretty big week for comics, as DC starts their big summer event, Captain America celebrates a milestone and Pink Lemonade gets collected.

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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‘Minor Threats’ gets a spinoff miniseries starring ‘The Alternates’

Tim Seeley, Christopher Mitten and Tess Fowler join Patton Oswalt and Jordan Blum on the September-debuting series.

Minor Threats, the genre-bending superhero mystery by Patton Oswalt, Jordan Blum and Scott Hepburn, will get a spinoff miniseries in September. Oswalt and Blum will be joined by co-writer Tim Seeley, with Christopher Mitten and Tess Fowler on art.

“I love the first Minor Threats series so much that I couldn’t help but imagine another team of lovable losers in their world–this time, a squad of forgotten superheroes who got rebooted, and now crave their old lives so bad it borders on addiction,” Seeley said. “Jordan and Patton not only liked the idea, they added their creativity to make something that fits their universe perfectly!”

While Minor Threats paid tribute to the Bronze Age of comics and the “grim and gritty” titles of the 1980s, From the World of Minor Threats: The Alternates has a different era in its heart.

“If the first Minor Threats series was a love letter to the c-list working class supervillains, then The Alternates is one for the early Vertigo comics of the 90s like Doom Patrol, Swamp Thing and Animal Man,” said Blum. “Forgotten goofy heroes pulled into a suddenly ‘mature’ existence that both humanizes and alienates them. Tim is such a master and historian of comics, we were so thrilled with the new sandbox he built for us all to play in — once again offering a fresh and unique point of view we hadn’t yet seen explored in superhero comics. This story of existence, addiction, recovery and monster smashing was beautifully rendered thanks to the art of Christopher Mitten and paintings by Tess Fowler. “

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Mark Russell + Ramon Rosanas invite you to their ‘Rumpus Room’

AWA presents a new parable about billionaires, skin cream and revenge.

Second Coming and Not All Robots writer Mark Russell is back at AWA Studios this fall for a new miniseries, Rumpus Room, with artist Ramon Rosanas.

Rumps Room tells the story of a psychotic billionaire who needs a special cream to hide his skin condition. That cream is made from people, so naturally he kidnaps all the people he hates and locks them in his Rumpus Room, letting them vote for his next victim.

“Rumpus Room is a parable for how in American civilization, on some level, we’re set against each other by forces that are too powerful for us to reach,” Russell said. “It parallels the underlying assumption of American life as well: ‘I can’t do anything about the real things that are destroying me, so I’ll take all my rage out against the people who cross me.’ Rumpus Room is about this misguided anger that we all have and how it weaponizes us against each other.”

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The Reuben Award: NCS announces nominees for Cartoonist of the Year

The winner will be revealed in September.

The National Cartoonist Society has announced the nominees for the 2022 Cartoonist of the Year, commonly known as The Reuben Award. These follow the NCS divisional award nominees, which were announced in early June.

This year’s list includes several cartoonists who have been previously nominated, and one notable new addition for comic book fans:

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Here are the Transformers Daniel Warren Johnson will use in the new Skybound series

See the Autobots and Decepticons who will throw down in the new series.

With their surprise reveal of a whole new universe featuring both G.I. Joe and Transformers in the pages of Void Rival #1, Skybound has revealed the teams of Autobots and Decepticons that will star in the new series by Daniel Warren Johnson.

It sounds like the series is a reboot back to the time when the Transformers first arrived on Earth:

Transformers #1 begins an all-new era for the iconic Robots in Disguise from Daniel Warren Johnson (Extremity, Do a Powerbomb, DC’s Wonder Woman: Dead Earth) and colorist Mike Spicer (Stillwater, Murder Falcon). Optimus Prime was supposed to have led the Autobots to victory. Instead, the fate of Cybertron is unknown, and his allies have crash-landed far from home, alongside their enemies—the Decepticons. As these titanic forces renew their war on Earth, one thing is immediately clear: the planet will never be the same. New alliances are struck. Battle lines are redrawn. And humanity’s only hope for survival is Optimus Prime. 

Here’s who arrives with Optimus Prime:

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(Mr.) Justice is served in this preview of ‘World of Archie Jumbo Comics Digest’ #131

Check out an exclusive preview of two new stories coming in next week’s digest from Archie Comics.

Mr. Justice and Darkling help keep Riverdale’s summer interesting and fun in these previews of two new stories coming in World of Archie Jumbo Comics Digest #131, which arrives in stores July 5.

In the first story, Reggie is up to his old tricks until Moose calls him on it — which brings the attention of Mr. Justice. The gallant Moose is rewarded with super powers for his efforts, much to the chagrin of that goofus Reggie. It’s courtesy of writer Ian Flynn, artists Bill Galvan and Jim Amash, colorist Glenn Whitmore and letterer Jack Morelli.

Then in the second story, we find out that the mystical hero Darkling, who doesn’t like beaches, isn’t a fan of fireworks, either. When she tries to make them more to her liking, something goes wrong. This one is written and drawn by Dan Parent, with Bob Smith on inks. They’re joined by Whitmore and Morelli as well.

Check out both previews below, as well as a complete classic Archie story by J. Torres and Craig Boldman.

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Valiant, Alien Books announce a publishing partnership

Alien Books will take over publishing comics for Valiant, with plans to increase the overall number of titles featuring Valiant characters.

Valiant Entertainment has announced a publishing partnership with Alien Books, where Valiant is essentially outsourcing their publishing to the fledgling publisher. According to Popverse, the deal will see Alien Books “take over all publishing of Valiant properties.”

This is not completely unexpected; the surprising part — and good news for fans of the characters — is that Valiant’s comic line isn’t just fading away. For the past couple years Valiant’s output has declined considerably, with the publishing line seemingly on life support as they published somewhere between 0-2 titles per month. The press release said Alien would “expand Valiant’s publishing capabilities,” with clarifications from Popverse and the Beat both saying this is pretty much the end of Valiant publishing their own comics (and graphic novels and the like). The Beat adds that “some remaining Valiant staffers will stay on to work on the transition.”

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Smash Pages Q&A | Cullen Bunn + Brian Hurtt on the return of ‘The Sixth Gun’

The creators of the horror/Western ‘yarn’ talk about returning to their signature creation with a new Kickstarter project.

The 50-issue The Sixth Gun series — along with its several spin-off series — was a hallmark of independent comics publishing from 2010 to 2016. Co-creators Cullen Bunn and Brian Hurtt not only created a compelling “yarn” of a story that combined horror with the Western genre, but they also did a phenomenal job of creating a world that always seemed ripe for more exploration.

They wrapped up the initial story of Becky Montcrief, Arnold Drake and the battle for control of six mystical guns, and now Oni Press has announced The Sixth Gun Deluxe Omnibus Library, which is currently up on Kickstarter. Not only are they releasing all the issues of The Sixth Gun, plus all the spinoff miniseries, plus the spinoff series Shadow Roads, in this deluxe format, but Bunn and Hurtt are also creating new material for it — three new prelude stories will unlock as the campaign reaches new milestones over the course of its 30-day run. It’s also a precursor to a new The Sixth Gun project coming in 2025 for the comic’s 15th anniversary.

I spoke with both creators about what it’s like to return to The Sixth Gun after all this time, their collaborative process and what to expect from the new material they’re creating.

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