Category: Comic Books

Oni Press will tell us how to get to ‘Sesame Street’ this August

Joey Esposito and Austin Baechle bring Grover back to comics for a four-issue miniseries.

Everything’s A-OK down at Oni Press, which announced a partnership with Sesame Workshop to bring Big Bird, Grover and the gang back to comics.

The four-issue Sesame Street: Grover Lends a Hand miniseries will begin in August, by writer Joey Esposito and artist Austin Baechle.

“We are incredibly excited and grateful to be able to partner with the incomparable Sesame Street, who has been at the forefront of children’s education since its inception in 1969,” Editor Megan Brown said. “As someone who grew up with the likes of Big Bird, Elmo and more, it’s been a joy to be able to enter this world and add to its comics legacy. We hope that readers of all ages will enjoy the wonderful and heartwarming antics of Grover, Bert & Ernie, The Count, Cookie Monster and all the other residents as they take a trip down Sesame Street!”

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Archie’s horror heroines unite in ‘The Cursed Library Alpha’

‘All of this matters. There is a fabric.’

If you picked up Archie’s Free Comic Book Day title this year, The Cursed Library, then you know it served as a prelude to a bigger event that will unite the Archie Horror-verse. All the various threads laid out in the Archie Horror line’s one-shots over the last few years will come together in The Cursed Library Alpha, the first of three issues that’ll be released later this year.

Magdalene Visaggio and Eliot Rahal will co-write the event, which will feature artwork by Craig Cermak. They’re joined by colorist Matt Herms and letterer Jack Morelli.

“The Cursed Library event that Mags and I have been asked to helm is unlike any other moment in Archie Comics history,” Rahal said. “It’s both a throughline and nexus point that weaves together everything in the Archie Horror universe that’s happened so far. Its goal is to provide shape to the world that has been created. The Cursed Library is essentially saying: ‘All of this matters. There is a fabric.’”

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Rob Liefeld’s final Deadpool comic kicks off in August

The five-issue miniseries ‘Deadpool Team-Up’ brings the character together with Wolverine, Spider-Gwen, Crystar and more.

It seems like Deadpool is all about the team-ups these days. Not only will he and Wolverine buddy it up in their big road trip movie this summer, but now Marvel has announced that Rob Liefeld’s final Deadpool comic will bring the Merc with a Mouth together with several friends, new and old, in this miniseries.

Deadpool Team-Up will be written and drawn by Liefeld, who is also doing the covers. As for who exactly Deadpool is teaming up with, it’s an eclectic mix of Marvel mainstays and obscure choices: Wolverine, the Hulk, Spider-Gwen, Crystar (the Crystal Warrior!) and Major X, another Liefeld creation.

“Everyone has that one comic with that obscure character that they always wanted more of,” Liefeld said. “l, myself, have several of these and I pulled them from relative obscurity from the deepest corners of the Marvel Universe and placed them next to Deadpool, right at the center of an all new, cataclysmic adventure!”

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Murewa Ayodele + Lucas Werneck unleash a ‘Storm’ at Marvel

The new ongoing series featuring the Omega-level mutant begins in October.

Marvel has revealed more details on the upcoming Storm solo title, which was teased in the initial X-Men: From the Ashes line announcement. The new title will be written by Akogun: Brutalizer of Gods writer Murewa Ayodele and drawn by Immortal X-Men artist Lucas Werneck, and will feature Storm in an enhanced role: prime protector of the planet.

“As a fan of Storm, her duties to the X-Men and what she stands for in various real-world communities, I would like to assure the audience that Storm is in danger. Extremely so,” Ayodele said. “We love Ororo Munroe, and that is why we have crafted a thrilling story that will put the strength of her character on wide-open display.”

Storm will operate out of Atlanta from a new headquarters, where she will be “making decisions that will forecast the future of the Marvel Universe.” Oh yeah, and she’s also joining the Avengers.

“But when you’re an Omega-level mutant, few things can test your limits, and even fewer things can shatter those limits,” Ayodele said. “For our Storm series, one thing we would like fans to remember is that there are threats that are beyond Omega. Prepare yourselves for an extraordinary display of superheroism that leaves knuckles bloody, knees bashed in, and mountains cratered.”

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Dazzler hits the road in a new miniseries by Jason Loo + Rafael Loureiro

The world tour begins in September.

It’s been decades since Dazzler has headlined her own series, but this September she returns to the spotlight in a four-issue miniseries by Jason Loo and Rafael Loureiro.

Part of the From the Ashes initiative, Dazzler is heading out on tour in a post-Krakoa world to promote mutant rights and celebrate her music career. She’ll be joined by her squad, which includes a whole bunch of mutants — head of security Domino, personal guard Strong Guy, one-man roadie Multiple Man, drummer Shark Girl, and publicist Wind Dancer.

“Rafael and I are giving everyone backstage access to the greatest show of the decade: the Dazzler World Tour!” Loo said. “Sounds exciting? Not for Dazzler when she’s facing tons of pressure from all sorts of people trying to cancel her shows. But she’s not going down without a fight.”

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Marvel celebrates 50 years of Iron Fist in August

The anthology will feature stories by Chris Claremont, Lan Medina, Alyssa Wong, Ron Randal and more.

Marvel will celebrate the 50th anniversary of the first appearance of Iron Fist in August with a one-shot anthology featuring stories about both Danny Rand and Lin Lie.

The character first appeared in Marvel Premiere #15, published in 1974, in a story by Roy Thomas and Gil Kane. Since then Iron Fist has had his own title on numerous occasions, as well as appearing in places like Avengers, Defenders, Heroes for Hire and the long-running Power Man & Iron Fist title. We’ve also learned that the “Iron Fist” is a legacy, as various characters wielded it prior to Danny Rand, and we’ve seen others use it after him — including the young monk Pei, Wakandan bad ass Okoye and Lie, the former Sword Master.

Following his appearance in Marvel Premiere, Iron Fist spun off into his own title by Chris Claremont and John Byrne, which ran in the mid-1970s and featured appearances by Iron Man, Captain America, the X-Men and Sabretooth, who debuted in the title. For the anniversary one-shot, Claremont will team with artist Lan Medina for a new story from early in Danny’s career that will guest star Wolverine.

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A Storm is coming to ‘Avengers’

And so is artist Valerio Schiti.

The Avengers will get a new member and a new artist in August following in the wake of both Blood Hunt and Fall of the House of X. Valerio Schiti will join Jed MacKay on the title, as they welcome Storm from the X-Men to the team.

“As a reader, I am a great fan of Jed’s run, and I really love the way he writes the team: not just as fellow soldiers, but as a group of friends with a shared past,” Schiti said. “At the same time, he doesn’t hold back on action and fight scenes! The balance between these two moods is exactly what excites me the most when I have to start a new gig!”

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Jenny Sparks will return in a DC Black Label miniseries by Tom King + Jeff Spokes

The six-issue miniseries, which also features Batman and Captain Atom, begins in August.

The leader of The Authority will return in a new miniseries by Tom King and Jeff Spokes this summer. Jenny Sparks will be published by DC’s Black Label imprint and will feature Batman and Captain Atom as well.

“Jenny Sparks is an epic, thrilling, mind-blowing series in the tradition of Strange Adventures, Mister Miracle and The Human Target,” King said. “The Spirit of the 20th Century comes to the 21st to try to save five men and women taken hostage by an out-of-control and infinitely powered Captain Atom. Through this lens, we’ll explore the grip of Jenny’s time on our own; how, despite all our desperate prayers, the sins of our past refuse to die away. Featuring astonishing art by Jeff Spokes (seriously, it’s so damn good), Jenny Sparks seeks to set the bar in superhero comics, to show how our heroes can illuminate and define our moment.”

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Emily Carroll, Vincy Lim + more win at the 2024 Doug Wright Awards

The annual awards that recognize Canadian comic creators were presented at a ceremony in Toronto on Saturday.

The winners of the 2024 Doug Wright Awards were announced this weekend at a ceremony that was livestreamed from the Arts & Letters Club in Toronto, as a part of TCAF weekend. The ceremony was hosted by cartoonist Dustin Harbin.

The Doug Wright Awards honor “the best work and most promising talent in Canadian comics,” and have been awarded annually since 2005.

Emily Carroll took home the award for “Best Book” for A Guest in the House, which was published by First Second last August. The graphic novel won the L.A. Times Book Prize earlier this year and has been nominated for a Lambda Literary Award as well.

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The ‘Conan the Barbarian’ title from Free Comic Book Day unites the ‘Howardverse’

Jim Zub and Jonas Scharf’s story is free to download and kicks off the ‘Battle of the Black Stone’ event.

Last Saturday was Free Comic Book Day, and Titan participated by releasing Conan: Battle of the Black Stone, which was more than just a Conan story. And now they’ve made it available as a free download on their website.

(As an aside, you can find several of the 2024 FCBD offerings on Comixology as free downloads, including those from Marvel, DC and Dark Horse).

The story by regular Conan the Barbarian scribe Jim Zub and artist Jonas Scharf starts out like any other Conan story might begin, with the unruly barbarian slicing his way through his enemies, but it takes a turn when Conan spots a symbol on the necklace of a fallen foe. This symbol:

(If you haven’t read the issue and don’t want any SPOILERS, then I’d suggest clicking the link in the first paragraph before reading on …)

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‘Gotham City Sirens’ returns in August for a four-week event

Leah Williams, Matteo Lolli, Daniel Hillyard, Brandt & Stein, and more will bring Catwoman, Poison Ivy and Harley Quinn together again.

The Gotham City Sirens will converge once more for a four-week miniseries in August, temporarily replacing the ongoing titles for Catwoman, Harley Quinn, and Poison Ivy that month.

DC announced the miniseries today, which will be written by Leah Williams with artwork by Matteo Lolli, Daniel Hillyard and Brandt & Stein. Triona Farrell will color each issue, while Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou provides lettering.

In addition to Catwoman, Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy, the miniseries will feature Punchline, White Rabbit and “the cowboy-henchmen sensation soon to be sweeping the nation known as the Nasty Boys.” Here’s a look at the Nasty Boys, as designed by Lolli:

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Emma Frost + Kitty Pryde prove the X-Men are still ‘Exceptional’ this September

Eve L. Ewing and Carmen Carnero send the duo back to school this fall to train a new generation of mutants.

The post-Krakoa world of the X-Men continues to take shape as Marvel shares more details on Eve L. Ewing and Carmen Carnero’s plans for Exceptional X-Men.

Along with X-Men and Uncanny X-Men, this new title will serve as the third “flagship” title for the From the Ashes line. It focuses on two popular mutants who have had a love/hate thing going since they were introduced, Kitty Pryde and Emma Frost. Together they’ll train three new mutants whose powers recently revealed themselves — the metallic and whip-wielding Bronze, the emotion-stirring Axo and the stealth-skilled fighter Melee.

“Regarding the young mutants, I think the whole team fell in love with all three of them,” Carnero said. “I love that they are such opposites. Eve had very clear personalities, hobbies, musical tastes, how they feel… And when it came to designing them, it all developed naturally, and the whole team had a clear vision of what their final looks would be. I can’t wait for readers to meet them.”

This is a full circle moment for Kitty Pryde, who started her tenure with the X-Men as a recruit to Professor Xavier’s School for Gifted Youngsters, way back in Uncanny X-Men #129. That’s also the first issue where we met the Hellfire Club’s White Queen, Emma Frost.

“Longtime fans of Kitty Pryde can count on the kinds of adventures you expect from her as a classic favorite, while I hope new and old readers alike will get to love this all-new team of young mutants,” Ewing said. “Kitty, the one-time kid sister figure of the X-Men, has to reckon with her own memories—good and bad—of being a child of Xavier as she navigates a role as leader and mentor for a new generation of mutants who are trying to make their way in a time of crisis.”

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