Category: Comic Books

Marvel will release a series of team-up one-shots by J. Michael Straczynski

The prolific writer will team with Will Robson, Bernard Chang and more on team-ups featuring Spider-Man, Captain America, Galactus and Doctor Doom, among others.

Captain America writer  J. Michael Straczynski will write an eclectic series of one-shots for Marvel next year, each featuring a different art team and a different set of characters “in unexpected team-ups or action-packed showdowns.”

Straczynski will work with artists Will Robson, Bernard Chang, Elena Casagrande, Germán Peralta, Juan Ferreyra and Phil Noto on the one-shots, which feature oddball team-ups like Doctor Doom and Rocket Raccoon, as well as battles between the likes of Ghost Rider and Galactus.

“I like to go where the fun is, and the idea of putting together Marvel characters who had either never been paired before, or only minimally, seemed like it would be a ton of fun, and it was even more of a blast than I anticipated,” Straczynski said.

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Michel Fiffe’s ‘Death of Copra’ will bring the story to a ‘high octane’ end

The long-running indie comics sensation concludes with a final four-issue miniseries that begins in January.

As the saying goes, all good things must come to an end. Michel Fiffe’s excellent self-published series Copra will meet its final fate in Death of Copra, a four-issue miniseries that kicks off In January.

“The whole thing is bittersweet, which is perfect in a way,” said Fiffe. “The story of Copra is one of duality: brutal but tender, bombast as defined by human nuance, crafted with a love of comics history while guided by an eye towards the future.”

The final miniseries will be published by Image Comics, rather than self-published by Fiffe. Image published the series for about six issues just prior to the pandemic, but Fiffe returned to self-publishing it for issues #38-45. Image continued to publish collections of the material.

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Jason Aaron, Kieron Gillen + more help celebrate 10 years of Star Wars comics at Marvel with ‘A New Legacy’

The one-shot will put a spotlight on the Star Wars characters who debuted in comic books.

Next year will mark 10 years since Marvel reclaimed the license to create Star Wars comics (and more than 12 years since Disney bought Lucasfilm, in case you were wondering) and to celebrate Marvel will release a one-shot that will spotlight many of the creators and characters who have been part of this new era.

January’s Star Wars: A New Legacy will include stories by Kieron Gillen, Jason Aaron and Charles Soule, three writers who have contributed to the line since its relaunch, along with recent Star Wars artists Ramon Rosanas, Leonard Kirk and Salva Espin. Their stories will feature characters who made their debut in the comics, including Doctor Aphra, Sana Starros, Scar Squadron, Krrsantan the Wookiee bounty hunter and more.

“This is the monumental moment we’ve been waiting for: celebrating a decade of the re-union of Marvel Comics and Star Wars!” editor Mark Paniccia said. “We’ve got a great package here with some of the most influential Star Wars comic writers in recent history along with amazing art. It is so cool to spotlight as many of the Marvel-created characters as we could. Longtime and new fans alike will get a kick in the thrusters with this!”

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The Guardians of the Galaxy will land in the Ultimate Universe in January

Deniz Camp and Juan Frigeri introduce a new but familiar team to the Ultimate Universe.

The Guardians of the Galaxy are coming to the Ultimate Universe — or at least a new version of the team is. Star-Lord, Captain Marvel, Cosmo and the Ultimate Nullifier will make their debut in January’s The Ultimate #8 by Deniz Camp and Juan Frigeri.

The story in that issue will focus on America Chavez, as a group of galactic travelers “from a far-flung, Maker-free future” show up looking for her.

“The creative goal we set for ourselves on Ultimates—in addition to telling complete stories every issue—was to create (or recreate) characters interesting enough to sustain readers’ imaginations and their own series, if they had to,” Camp said. “Whether we’ve succeeded on either count is up to the readers to decide, but the reaction so far has been really special. I am so grateful for it, and am doing my best to be worthy of it.”

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DSTLRY’s holiday anthology ‘Through the Boughs: A Yuletide Offering’ brings ‘pure cottage-core’ stories by James Tynion IV + more

Unwrap the new collection this December.

Following the release later this month of Come Find Me: An Autumnal Offering, DSTLRY’s seasonal anthologies will continue in December with Through the Boughs: A Yuletide Offering.

The holiday-themed anthology will include stories by an impressive list of creators, including James Tynion IV, Patrick McHale, Jim Campbell, Jensine Eckwall, Ryan Andrews, Sweeney Boo, K. Wroten, Grim Wilkins and Molly Mendoza.

“There’s something special about the holidays,” Tynion IV said. “I’ve always been drawn to the strange little stories we like to tell each other in the dead of winter, the strange warmth that comes from the coldest months. I can’t wait for everyone to see the strange little story I’ve cooked up here with the incredible Jensine Eckwall.”

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Ultron isn’t the only villain joining the West Coast Avengers

Meet Blue Bolt, ‘the biggest jerk in the Marvel Universe.’

Marvel’s West Coast Avengers relaunch announcement came with a surprise addition to the line-up in Ultron, one of the Avengers greatest foes. He’ll be joined by one of their not-so-greatest foes in Blue Bolt, a new character created by Gerry Duggan and Danny Kim.

Chad Braxton, a.k.a. Blue Bolt, is a former henchman with “unrefined lightning-based abilities” who joins the team as part of a prison release program. “Reckless, undisciplined, and downright rude, Blue Bolt may just be the biggest jerk in the entire Marvel Universe,” Marvel.com says. Blue Bolt joins a long list of former villains who have been members, including Hawkeye, Scarlet Witch, Quicksilver, Black Widow and Sandman, among others.

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‘Behemoth’ is the story of a bus swallowed by a Kaiju

The giant monster miniseries by Grant Sputore, Ryan Engle, Jay Martin and Frank Cvetkovic, arrives in January from Dark Horse Comics.

Grant Sputore and Ryan Engle, two filmmakers with resumes that include monster movies, will team up to write Behemoth, a new miniseries coming from Dark Horse next year. They’re joined by Jay Martin, creator of Lost Boy, on art, and letterer Frank Cvetkovic.

Spurtore is the director of the next as-yet-untitled film in Legendary’s Godzilla/King Kong line, while Engle wrote the 2018 film Rampage, based on the video game about giant monsters. So naturally their first comic is about a Kaiju and the people on a bus who get eaten by it — which is where the story starts.

“Being a life-long Kaiju fan, I quite frequently find myself imagining giant monsters rampaging through whatever city I happen to be in,” Sputore said, mirroring something I’ve done myself. “Enjoying one such vision, back in 2022, I found myself struck by a thought: ‘How have we had 70 years of giant monster movies, but no one has ever told the story of the poor souls trapped inside a subway car as it’s devoured by a Kaiju?’ From that moment, I’ve been on a long journey to bring this David vs. Goliath story to life, with the help of Ryan and Jay’s boundless genius. Most recently, I’ve been invited to play in Legendary’s Monsterverse, which is clearly a dream come true for a kaiju fan like me – but for those interested, my first foray into the world of Kaiju storytelling can be found within the wild pages of Behemoth.”

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DC + Sega team up for a Sonic + Justice League collaboration

Ian Flynn will write a five-issue miniseries featuring Sonic characters mashed up with DC heroes.

Who is faster, Superman, Flash … or Sonic? DC and Sega will put that question to the test next year as they partner to bring together Sonic the Hedgehog and the Justice League.

The collaboration will include a five-issue miniseries written by longtime Sonic scribe Ian Flynn. No artist for the project was named, but Dc will publish it next year.

According to DC, the event “features an unprecedented crossover event where the Justice League and Team Sonic must unite to save their worlds from a major threat.” And by unite, they must mean a mash-up, based on the images they shared of Shadow as Batman, Knuckles as Superman, Sonic as The Flash and more:

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Luana Vecchio returns to the world of ‘Lovesick’ with ‘Doll Parts’

The four-issue miniseries kicks off in December.

Image Comics has announced the sequel to Luana Vecchio’s Lovesick, the “dark sexploitation series” by the artist of Bolero. Doll Parts: A Lovesick Tale will present the origin of Domino, the dark web dominatrix who appeared in the first series.

“After finishing Lovesick, I knew I couldn’t stay away from Domino for long,” said Vecchio. “But before going back to the Lovesick Club, I knew I had to take a step back and explore Domino’s heart, dive into those sad eyes and return to her origins, back to Madeleine. I’ve always dreamed of writing a coming-of-age thriller-horror set in the 2000s, the very years I was a teenager myself. Doll Parts: A Lovesick Tale explores what it means to be a young girl in a world where youth is a double-edged sword, both a strength and a vulnerability. I’m incredibly proud of what I’ve created and the themes I’ve tackled, I believe the comic world needs a character like Madeleine.”

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Al Ewing + Steve Lieber ‘get groovy’ with ‘Metamorpho: The Element Man’ this December

‘This is 100% fun comics, delivered with total confidence, visceral joy and absolutely no winking to the camera.’

Some announcements just make you want to smile, like this one: Al Ewing and Steve Lieber will team up for a new series featuring Metamorpho, as part of DC’s All In initiative. Or maybe that should be “Al In,” considering it’s one of Ewing’s first major projects with the publisher.

Metamorpho: The Element Man will feature “done-in-ones” stories that build up to something bigger, according to Ewing, who is paired with Lieber of Jimmy Olsen fame. They’re joined by Lee Loughridge on colors.

“This is 100% fun comics, delivered with total confidence, visceral joy and absolutely no winking to the camera,” Ewing said. “It’s a love letter to Bob Haney, Ramona Fradon and the spirit of superheroes at their wildest and weirdest—we’re aiming to catch the essential fab-freakiness of Metamorpho like lightning in a bottle and get groovy with it in our own special way.”

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Dark Horse books a FastPass to ‘Ripperland’ next year

Steve Orlando, John Harris Dunning and Alessandro Oliveri bring a murderer from the past to an England that’s become the most magical place on Earth.

“What would Jack the Ripper think of an England that was turned into a theme park?” might not be a question you’ve ever asked yourself, but it’ll get answered next year in a new miniseries coming from Dark Horse Comic.

Ripperland is co-written by Steve Orlando and John Harris Dunning, with art and cover art by Alessandro Oliveri, colors by Francesca Vivaldi and letters by Fabio Amelia. And yes, it is indeed about Jack the Ripper time-traveling to 2188 England to discover the country became a Victorian-themed amusement park because it needed the money after Brexit.

“Ripperland is unlike any book I’ve ever been part of–and I mean that in the best possible way,” Orlando said. “John and Alessandro are incredible talents, and the alchemy between us, across borders and across oceans, has created something truly special! This is Westworld meets From Hell in a gorgeous speculative fiction package! The streets of tomorrow’s London call…to yesterday! I can’t wait for everyone to see it!”

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Dan Watters + Hayden Sherman team for ‘Batman: Dark Patterns’ in December

The 12-issue maxi-series will feature four different cases from the early days of Batman’s career.

Home Sick Pilots writer Dan Watters and Absolute Wonder Woman artist Hayden Sherman will revisit the early days of Batman’s career in Batman: Dark Patterns, which will delve into “four mysterious cases as he attempts to cement his place as Gotham City’s protector while the city itself fights back against him.”

Watters and Sherman are joined by colorist Tríona Farrell and letterer Frank Cvetkovic for the 12-issue series, which will be broken into three-issue story arcs that focus on a specific case. The first one, “We Are Wounded,” involves a series of “sickeningly gruesome murders sending shock waves through Gotham City.”

“I love the strangeness of Batman. A man dressed as a huge, gothic bat, solving crimes in a hostile city of black magicians, mad scientists, and superstitious, cowardly criminals. I’ve always wanted to write a series of mystery stories that would home in on that aspect of the character- a dweller in the shadows of Gotham’s towering, dilapidated spires,” said Watters. “After watching The Batman, this desire was reaffirmed. Batman: Dark Patterns explores the pulpiest part of the Dark Knight’s rich history and gives readers an entirely new perspective on the early years of DC’s Dark Detective.”

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