JK Parkin

Sunday Comics | The Superman/Batman fan comic that was nominated for an Eisner

Check out free comics on the web from Chan Chau, Connor Willumsen, Kerry Callen and more.

Here’s a round up of some of the best comics we’ve seen online recently. If we missed something, let us know in the comments below.

The 2021 Eisner Award nominees were released last week, so let’s start off by highlighting two of the comics nominated in the “Best Short Story” category. Up first is “Soft Lead” by cartoonist Chan Chau, a fan comic about Clark Kent and Bruce Wayne. Is this the first time a fan comic has ever been nominated for an Eisner? I’m guessing the answer is yes. Chau is also nominated in that same category for their short story “Parts of Us,” which appeared in the anthology Elements: Earth, A Comic Anthology by Creators of Color. They’re also currently working on the next Baby-Sitters Club graphic novel.

“I’m having an incredibly hard time coming up with words, but this all came as a huge shock,” Chau said about the double nomination. These two stories have been very dear to me, and to have them recognized means the world.”

“Soft Lead” re-imagines Clark Kent as a cartoonist, and the Daily Planet publishes his comic strips about his cat. He has a bit of a crisis as he contemplates whether it’s selfish to be doing something he enjoys — drawing cats — instead of saving the world. Luckily, he has a fan in Bruce Wayne.

Mail Call | ‘Spawn’s Universe’ #1 orders exceed 200,000

Check out all kinds of announcements and previews from Skybound, Marvel, Bad Idea, AfterShock and more!

Mail Call is a roundup of the announcements we’ve received from comics publishers in our mailboxes recently that we haven’t already covered. Hit the links for more information.

Never let it be said that kids don’t still love chains. Image Comics and Todd McFarlane Productions sent out a release this week touting that the upcoming Spawn’s Universe #1 has shattered the record for “Image Comics’ top selling, first issue comic book of the 21^st century by selling well over 200K units.”

The release goes on to mention that the comic is only the beginning for this year’s Spawn-pocalypse; Spawn’s Universe #1 will arrive in June, followed by King Spawn #1 in August, Gunslinger #1 in October and The Scorched #1 in December.

Sarah Gaydos and Oni Press Lion Forge ‘part ways’

James Lucas Jones will step back into the editor-in-chief role as Oni looks for a replacement.

Oni Press Lion Forge Publishing Group editor-in-chief Sarah Gaydos has left the company, according to a post on Oni Press’ Twitter feed.

The tweet says that Gaydos and Oni have “mutually agreed to part ways, effective immediately. We would like to extend our thanks and appreciation to Sarah for her time, passion, energy, and work during her tenure as Editor in Chief and wish her all the best in her future endeavors.”

“I’d like to take a minute to thank the entire Oni team, as well as the many incredible creators I had the pleasure of working with,” Gaydos said in the statement. “I’m grateful for the opportunity, and I look forward to what’s next.”

Marvel’s ‘Darkhold’ event returns to the schedule in September

The event, which was delayed by the pandemic, will feature Scarlet Witch, Doctor Doom and more.

Marvel’s long-brewing Darkhold event returns to the schedule for September with Darkhold Alpha by Steve Orlando and Cian Tormey.

The event, which would feature the return of the most evil tome in the Marvel Universe, was originally slated to start last June, but then the pandemic hit, the world shut down and publishers had to revisit their planned releases for the spring and summer.

The event will kick off with an “Alpha” issue, which will be followed by a series of one-shots starring different Marvel characters — a format Marvel used for its recent Man-Thing anniversary event, which was also spearheaded by Orlando. This event will feature both Scarlet Witch and Doctor Doom, as well as characters like Spider-Man, Iron Man and Blade.

“At last, we’re ready to open the Darkhold together,” Orlando told Marvel.com. “Scarlet Witch and Doctor Doom are two of Marvel’s most intimidating icons! And I am so excited for you all to get on board with this journey that pushes Wanda to the limit, as five of Marvel’s biggest heroes must overcome the nightmares held by the Darkhold’s pages, to stand with Wanda against one of her oldest enemies.”

Jackson Hyde will take center stage in ‘Aquaman: The Becoming’

The second Aqualad will get a six-issue miniseries starting in September.

This article from The Hollywood Reporter reveals that Jackson Hyde, a.k.a Aqualad, will get his own miniseries in September titled Aquaman: The Becoming.

It’s tucked into a bigger story about both DC and Marvel’s Pride Month efforts, but THR reveals the creative team — Brandon Thomas and Diego Olortegui, with covers by David Talaski — as well as the first issue’s cover:

‘Fables’ returns from DC Black Label for a crossover + a new 12-issue run

Bigby Wolf will meet Batman in a six-issue series this September as ‘Fables’ returns for a 12-issue run next May.

Fables, the long-running Vertigo series by Bill Willingham, Mark Buckingham, Steve Leialoha and many others, will make its return later this year and in 2022 with several new projects.

First, September brings Batman vs. Bigby! A Wolf in Gotham, a six-issue miniseries featuring Fables’ resident detective, Bigby Wolf, teaming up with Batman for a case in Gotham. It will be released under DC’s Black Label imprint. Willingham will work with Brain Level, Jay Leisten, and Lee Loughridge on the project.

“I’ve wanted to do this since the very first year of Fables,” Willingham said. “Why? Because Batman is a detective, and Bigby is a detective, and I love a well-crafted story crossing over characters from two different fictional worlds. It’s automatically a fish-out-of-water story for at least one of the main characters, and that sort of story always works. Plus, I knew from the very beginning of Fables that my fictional universe would allow for many ways to get Bigby Wolf into the DCU and Gotham City. Even though those cosmic story structures wouldn’t be introduced in the Fables books for a year or more, they were baked in from the very beginning.”

Nominees announced for the 2021 Eisner Awards

Winners will be announced during a virtual ceremony in July.

Comic-Con International announced the nominees today for the 2021 Eisner Awards, which are traditionally given out in San Diego every July. Like last year, though, the awards will be presented during a virtual ceremony as part of Comic-Con@Home.

CCI has also announced a two-step voting process, no doubt to address issues with last year’s vote. The first step is for prospective voters to apply at https://form.jotform.com/211246268258054. After filling out the form, voters will be invited to go to the ballot and cast their votes. The deadline for voting is June 30.

There’s also one new category this year: Best Graphic Memoir. “In previous years, autobiographical works had been included in the Best Reality-Based Work category,” CCI’s statement on the new category reads “But this year’s judges found there to be so many high-quality reality-based works, including numerous memoirs, that the new category was required.”

Congratulations to all the nominees in all categories, which you can see below.

AfterShock announces ‘Search for Hu’ by Orlando, Tsuei + Rubine

The new series will debut in September.

Writers Jon Tsuei and Steve Orlando will team with artist Rubine, colorist DC Alonso and letterer Carlos M. Mangual for Search for Hu, a new series from AfterShock Comics.

Search for Hu is about a man, Aaron Tse, who discovers his family has ties to organized crime in the worst way possible, sending him across an ocean to protect his parents.

“Search for Hu is a first of its kind cross-cultural action thriller, digging into a shared history of Jewish and Chinese lineage dating back to the Russian Revolution,” Orlando said. “It’s about the cultural connections we never expect, something Jon and I discovered together. But that’s the tapestry. The story is about a man, Aaron Tse, who discovers this part of his family’s past in the most explosive way possible: when it comes back to haunt them.”

Can’t Wait for Comics | DC celebrates Pride Month; ‘Ant’ returns; 80 years of Archie

Check out new comics this week from N.K. Jemisin, Jamal Campbell, Matthew Rosenberg, Jason Aaron, Erica D’Urso, Fred Van Lente, Dan Parent, Kyle Starks, Chris Schweizer 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. This week brings new comics and graphic novels from Marvel, DC, Dark Horse, AfterShock Comics, Viz and more.

Check out a few highlights below, or visit Diamond’s website for this week’s almost complete list of new comics arriving in stores — you can visit Lunar Distribution’s home page to see DC’s release — and the comiXology new releases page for what’s available digitally.

Marvel announces ‘The Death of Doctor Strange’ for September

Jed MacKay and Lee Garbett will show ‘what happens to the world if Doctor Strange isn’t in it.’

In September, a Marvel character will once again face death’s door in The Death of Doctor Strange, a five-issue miniseries by Jed MacKay and Lee Garbett.

The Sorcerer Supreme will follow in the footsteps of Captain America, Wolverine, Nightcrawler, Batman and many other heroes who were killed in the line of battle.

“‘What happens to the world if Doctor Strange isn’t in it?’ It’s a question that I’m excited to show people the answer to in Death of Doctor Strange,” MacKay told Marvel.com. “Strange has been a Marvel fixture from the early days, but now, his time has run out and as a Strange fan, it’s been my bittersweet privilege to shepherd him through his last day and the effects that snowball out of it. We’ve cooked up a whale of a story to send Strange off with, and I can’t wait for people to join us on it!”

Hawkarang-in-the-eye: Heroes Reborn roundtable, week 5

Same Hawk-time, same Hawk-channel: Carla, Tom, Shane and JK continue to discuss Marvel’s latest comics event.

We are back this week for our fifth Heroes Reborn roundtable, where we break down the latest Marvel crossover issue by issue. This week Shane Bailey, Tom Bondurant, Carla Hoffman and I talk about Heroes Reborn #5, as well as two tie-in issues: American Knight and Marvel Double Action. It’s Bat-week! Three out of four bloggers would probably agree it’s also the best week of the event thus far.

You can read part one of our roundtable discussions here, part two here, part three here and part four here.

‘Marvel Multiverse’ tabletop RPG coming next year

Marvel will introduce the D616 System of play in 2022’s ‘Playtest Rulebook’ and look for fan feedback before the game’s official launch in 2023.

Marvel is getting back into role-playing games next year, as they’ve teamed up with author/game designer Matt Forbeck (Shotguns & Sorcery RPG, The Marvel Encyclopedia) to create the Marvel Multiverse Role-Playing Game.

They’ll start with the “Playtest Rulebook,” which will define the rules of play — the cleverly titled “D616 System” — and include profiles so fans can play as their Marvel favorites or create their own Marvel hero. According to Marvel, they’ll be looking for feedback from fans on the playtest rules before the game’s full release in 2023.

“As a lifelong Marvel fan and gamer, this project is a dream come true,” Forbeck told Marvel.com. “Fortunately, after writing a couple editions of The Marvel Encyclopedia and designing tabletop games professionally for over 30 years, I feel ready to help make this the best Marvel TTRPG experience ever. I can’t wait for everyone to have the chance to play it!”

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