The Watcher faces a ‘Reckoning’ next March

‘Reckoning War: Trial of the Watcher’ will tie into next year’s big Fantastic Four storyline.

The Watcher isn’t one for the spotlight — he prefers to watch — but that changes next year in Reckoning War: Trial of the Watcher, a one-shot special that ties into the Fantastic Four: Reckoning War storyline by Dan Slott, Carlos Pacheco and Rachael Stott.

Slott will be joined by the wonderful Javier Rodríguez for the one-shot, which will “shed light on the First War that rocked the Marvel Universe.”

“One of the key players in all of this is Uatu,” Slott said to Newsarama. “[The original war] is something the Watchers have been keenly aware of, and the possible thought of it happening again brought Uatu back. Maybe it’s time for the Watcher to stop watching and start doing.”

Continue reading “The Watcher faces a ‘Reckoning’ next March”

Smash Pages Q&A: Terry Blas on ‘Lifetime Passes’

The writer and artist discusses his new graphic novel ‘Lifetime Passes’ from the Surely imprint at Abrams Books.

Terry Blas has been writing and drawing comics for years. A member of Helioscope Studio, he’s written graphic novels like Hotel Dare and Dead Weight, and made the webcomic Briar Hollow.

His new book Lifetime Passes, which he made with Claudia Aguirre, is the debut book from the Surely imprint at Abrams Books. Curated by Mark Tamaki, the imprint publishes LGBTQIA+ stories by LGBTQIA+ creators, and this book feels very much of a piece with Blas’ other work, while also being deeper and powerful in really interesting ways. It’s a darkly comedic premise that is thoughtful and moving and in Jackie, the main character, Blas and Aguirre have created one of the great teenage characters in comics.

Continue reading “Smash Pages Q&A: Terry Blas on ‘Lifetime Passes’”

Williamson + Leomacs go rogue on new DC Black Label title

The Flash’s villains take the spotlight as they go for one last, big heist — robbing Gorilla Grodd.

DC Comics has announced Rogues, the rare un-Batman project from DC’s Black Label imprint, by Joshua Williamson (Batman, Robin, Flash) and Leomacs (the wonderful Basketful of Heads).

The four-issue, prestige format series will feature the Flash’s rogue gallery 10 years after they disbanded, as Captain Cold brings them together for one more heist. And what a heist it is — he wants to rob Gorilla Grodd.

“Rogues is unlike anything I’ve done at DC,” said Williamson. “It’s closer to my own creator-owned works. It’s a crime book full of super-science, dark humor, lost civilizations, and crazy action set pieces, but it’s all played straight, with the dark edge and morality-play qualities of classic noir stories. Rogues takes everything we love about these classic characters and sends them violently crashing into a noir story that makes the ideal DC Black Label series.”

Continue reading “Williamson + Leomacs go rogue on new DC Black Label title”

Mignola + Hinkle set a course into danger for ‘Radio Spaceman’

The two-issue miniseries will arrive next March.

Mike Mignola and Greg Hinkle are plotting a course into mystery, mayhem, monsters and more in Radio Spaceman, a two-issue miniseries coming from Dark Horse next year.

Mignola and Hinkle will be joined by colorist Dave Stewart and letterer Clem Robins on what the press release calls a “standalone steampunk space adventure.”

“Radio Spaceman started in very much the way Hellboy did—A fast sketch done just for fun and a funny name that just popped into my head,” said Mignola. “That was during the early days of covid-19, when I was banging out sketches to entertain myself and posting them online. People seemed to like the guy, and I liked him—I did five or six sketches of him, but had no plans to do anything REAL with him. I didn’t have a story for him until, suddenly, one day I did. I wasn’t trying. It just happened. I don’t remember how exactly, but I’m suspecting it was one of those things that came to me in the shower. Most of the best ideas happen there.”

Continue reading “Mignola + Hinkle set a course into danger for ‘Radio Spaceman’”

Free Comic Book Day 2022 will include more than 45 titles

Bunny Mask, Donald Duck, Pokemon, Barbaric and more will see action on comics’ favorite holiday.

Following the announcement earlier this week of the 11 Gold Sponsor titles, Diamond Comics Distributors has announced the much longer list of Silver Sponsor titles, which brings the total number of free comics coming May 7 to 46.

The titles were chosen by a committee of comic shop retailers, and the new additions include titles from BOOM! Studios, ABLAZE, Titan Comics, AfterShock Comics, Fantagraphics, Vault, Mad Cave and more. They feature many well-known properties, from the Avengers and Donald Duck to The Walking Dead and Pokemon, as well as newer titles like Bunny Mask, Barbaric and Hollow, a new BOOM! Studios graphic novel that the company will preview on Free Comic Book Day.

Here’s a look at the 35 silver titles:

Continue reading “Free Comic Book Day 2022 will include more than 45 titles”

Young + Strahm’s ‘Twig’ will debut next year

Young teases the new series about a fantastical journey.

Skottie Young and Kyle Strahm will debut a new comic at Image Comics next summer called Twig. A teaser for the comic appeared in the final issue of The Me You Love in the Dark, which came out earlier this month.

Young and Strahm will be joined by colorist Jean-Francois Beaulieu and letterer Nate Piekos, both of whom worked with Young and artist Jorge Corona on The Me You Love in the Dark. The teaser says the comic will be about “a fantastical journey of hope, heartache and the determination to overcome insurmountable odds.”

Here’s the teaser:

Continue reading “Young + Strahm’s ‘Twig’ will debut next year”

A new Sorceress Supreme debuts from Marvel in March

Following the events of ‘The Death of Doctor Strange,’ a new but familiar face takes over the mantle from Stephen Strange.

Jed MacKay and Marcelo Ferreira will continue the story of the fall and rise of Marvel’s Sorcerer Supreme in Strange, a new series set to debut in March.

Strange follows The Death of Doctor Strange, the miniseries that is currently chronicling the murder of Stephen Strange, the introduction of a younger version of himself (Magic!) and the return of Clea, Doctor Strange’s longtime love interest/wife/fellow magic user.

And in the new series, she becomes much more than just that.

Continue reading “A new Sorceress Supreme debuts from Marvel in March”

Waid + Mora bring Batman + Superman (+ Seinfeld?) together for ‘World’s Finest’

DC resurrects the long-running title next March.

Mark Waid made his return to DC last year with a short Dark Nights: Death Metal story, but he’ll be back in earnest next year writing Batman/Superman: World’s Finest.

The new series will feature artwork by Dan Mora and will debut in March, but readers can get their first glimpse of what to expect in Detective Comics #1050 in January.

Here’s the cover:

Continue reading “Waid + Mora bring Batman + Superman (+ Seinfeld?) together for ‘World’s Finest’”

David Michelinie returns to write Venom in a new ‘Lethal Protector’ miniseries

The co-creator of Venom returns for a story set in Venom’s past.

David Michelinie, the writer of Amazing Spider-Man, Iron Man and other titles who co-created Venom, Carnage and War Machine, will return to Marvel for a new miniseries featuring Venom.

Venom: Lethal Protector — which shares a name with a 1993 miniseries also written by Michelinie — will be set in the past and feature artwork by Ivan Fiorelli.

“Getting to do a multi-issue story with the original Venom was like sitting down to dinner with an old friend—who wants to eat your brain for dessert!” Michelinie told Marvel.com. “It was both fun and exciting, and I hope people enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it.”

Continue reading “David Michelinie returns to write Venom in a new ‘Lethal Protector’ miniseries”

Dragotta + Goellner unlock ‘Ghost Cage’ in March

The three-issue miniseries is about a super-scientist cleaning up his ‘most monstrous secrets.’

East of West co-creator Nick Dragotta will team with Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles writer Caleb Goellner for a three-issue series from Image Comics called Ghost Cage.

The duo will work with letterer/designer Rus Wooten, cover artist Frank Martin Jr. and editor David Brothers on the project. Each issue will run 44 pages with screen-toned black and white art.

“Finishing up East of West, I felt ready to start writing and drawing my own comics,” said Dragotta. “Caleb Goellner agreed to co-write with me, and we cooked up Ghost Cage. We set out to make something that feels immediate, urgent, so it’s in screen-toned black and white, hot off the drawing board. We wanted to let the story breathe, so we went with 44-page issues. And lastly, we wanted to tell a story that will make us examine the things we sacrifice on a daily basis, the bits of us that we give up to survive.”

Continue reading “Dragotta + Goellner unlock ‘Ghost Cage’ in March”

Free Comic Book Day 2022 Gold titles revealed

Diamond Comics Distributors has revealed the 11 gold-tiered titles you can get for free next May.

Diamond Comics Distributors has revealed the 11 “gold sponsor” titles that retailers will have available on Free Comic Book Day 2022, which is scheduled for May 7.

“This year’s lineup of titles has something for every kind of comic fan,” said Ashton Greenwood, Free Comic Book Day spokesperson. “We’re excited for FCBD to return to the first Saturday in May, and we can’t wait to celebrate the day with another incredible line up of comic book titles. We hope fans will safely visit their local comic shops to celebrate and to pick up a few of the great titles available this year.”

Free Comic Book Day returns to its traditional May date next year after a couple of years where the pandemic caused a bit of a shuffle — but what’s new, right? This past year the event was held in August, while in 2020 the date went through several changes before ultimately being cancelled — but comics were still delivered to retailers for distribution as they saw fit during the summer.

Here’s a look at the Gold Sponsor titles; the Silver titles will likely be announced soon as well. Also, there are no DC titles on the list, since they no longer use Diamond, but it’s a safe bet they’ll have free comics available in May as well.

Continue reading “Free Comic Book Day 2022 Gold titles revealed”

Can’t Wait for Comics | A cold winter’s comics list

New comics arrive this week from Peach Momoko, Becky Cloonan, Michael Conrad, Jorge Corona, Stephen DeKnight 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. It feels like a lighter week than usual, unless you’re a Tom King fan — then DC has you covered.

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:

Also, 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 | A cold winter’s comics list”