Riad Sattouf named Grand Prix winner at 50th annual Angoulême

The creator of ‘The Arab of the Future’ wins the French festival’s biggest prize.

Riad Sattouf, the creator of The Arab of the Future and Esther’s Notebook, has won this year’s Grand Prix at the Angoulême International Comics Festival.

The 44-year-old French cartoonist, who has also directed feature films, was quoted as saying “I am deeply honored and moved. It’s the centerpiece that was missing at the top of my ego pyramid” upon accepting the award.

Sattouf is best known for The Arab of the Future, or L’Arabe du Futur, his six-book collection about growing up in Libya and Syria in the 1970s and 1980s. Four of them have been released in the United States. He’s also a former contributor to France’s satirical publication Charlie Hebdo and is the creator of the Esther’s Notebooks comic strip, a collection of which was released this month in the United States.

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Marvel announces a new ‘Alien’ title by Shalvey and Broccardo

The xenomorphs return in April.

Marvel has announced that Declan Shalvey (Moon Knight, Time Before Time) and Andrea Broccardo (Doctor Strange/Punisher: Magic Bullets, Doctor Aphra) will create the next Alien series. It kicks off in April and features a new cast taking on the xenomorphs on an icy moon.

“It’s incredibly exciting to take on such a brilliant franchise …the potential for great stories is limitless,” Shalvey said. “I feel like the themes from the films remain quite relevant to today, which makes me feel like we’re able to tell contemporary stories set in that iconic universe. I’m very much hoping to channel the mood and atmosphere of those films while doing something new and Andrea has done an incredible job of putting the reader in that recognizable world. With this new series, I think we have a really interesting addition to the lore of Alien.”

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Fu Chang returns in ‘Archie Jumbo Comics Digest’ #337

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

Today, courtesy of Archie Comics, we’re pleased to present a preview of Archie Jumbo Comics Digest #337, which comes out Feb. 2.

The digest will contain two new stories, the first by Francis Bonnet, Rex Lindsey and Glenn Whitmore. It features the return of Fu Chang, the Golden Age detective from the 1940s who solved crime in San Francisco. He’s also the inspiration for Jake Chang, the new Archie character introduced earlier this year who will star in his own show on The CW.

The second story features Little Archie and the Boy Buddies, aka Roy and Dusty, AKA the sidekicks of the Wizard and the Shield. They’re investigating Grimloch Island, which is rumored to be haunted, but really a friend of Little Archie lives there and could do without the company. I like how people refer to Little Archie as “Little Archie” instead of just “Archie,” like the “Little” isn’t implied. This one is by Tom DeFalco, Bill Galvan and Ben Galvan, with Whitmore once again on colors and Jack Morelli on letters.

Below you’ll find previews of both stories, plus a complete classic Little Archie story by Dexter Taylor featuring dinosaurs. Enjoy!

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DC will launch new Titans, Cyborg + Green Lantern titles

Dawn of DC continues in May.

DC has revealed three more titles and their creative teams for their 2023 Dawn of DC publishing initiative, which Publisher Jim Lee called “one of our most ambitious initiatives ever” and “a chance for us to tell bigger and bolder stories across our line” when it was announced back in November.

Today brings news of three new titles featuring some old favorites, all of which will kick off in May:

  • Titans by Tom Taylor and Nicola Scott, which is not surprising given the end of Nightwing #100 earlier this month
  • Green Lantern by Jeremy Adams and Xermánico, which will feature a main story focus on Hal Jordan, with a back-up by Phillip Kennedy Johnson and Osvaldo Montos focusing on John Stewart.
  • Cyborg by Morgan Hampton, a graduate of The Milestone Initiative Talent Development Program, along with Tom Raney.

They also released an updated infographic on their plans for 2023:

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Slugfest | Gustavo Duarte’s ‘Speechless’ arrives in print in April

Plus: Jimmie Robinson, Mecha Archie, Sins of Sinister, Dead Romans and more.

Slugfest is a roundup of cool announcements about projects coming to a shelf near you from comics creators, publishers and more. Hit the links for more information.

DC Comics will release a print collection of the digital series Speechless by cartoonist Gustavo Duarte in April.

The series has been appearing on the DC Universe Infinite app, with three issues featuring Harley Quinn, Cyborg and Superman appearing thus far. Like much of the Brazilian creator’s comics, each chapter is wordless.

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Dennis Culver reveals ‘Unstoppable Doom Patrol’ scratch-off variant covers

Each cover will include a random Crazy Jane personality under the scratch off by artist Chris Burnham and colorist Brian Reber.

Dennis Culver, the writer of DC’s upcoming Dawn of DC title The Unstoppable Doom Patrol, has revealed five “scratch off” variant covers for the first issue by series artist Chris Burnham and colorist Brian Reber.

The covers will feature Doom Patrol member Crazy Jane looking in a mirror, which can then be scratched off to reveal one of five of her personalities. I mean, if you’re inclined to scratch it off. I totally would, but I’m sure that’s akin to opening a polybagged version of those Rob Liefeld X-Force covers from back in the day so I could see the back of the trading cards that were included.

Here’s a look at the unscratched cover:

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‘TMNT: Last Ronin’ expands with a new one-shot, director’s cut

IDW announces a tie-in story focused on April O’Neil as well as a ‘director’s cut’ version of the ‘Lost Years’ miniseries.

Tomorrow sees the release of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin–Lost Years #1, the first issue of a new miniseries that serves as prequel to IDW recent smash hit Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin, an “Old Man Logan” approach to the latter years of your favorite heroes in a half shell. To accompany that series, IDW has announced Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin—Lost Day Special, a one-shot that will “straddle both the past and the future of the Last Ronin universe.”

The 40-page special issue, available in May, is by writers Kevin Eastman and Tom Waltz, illustrator Ben Bishop and colorist Luis Antonio Delgado. The story will be told from the point of view of April O’Neil, as she and her daughter raise for new mutant turtles.

“As Tom Waltz and I dig deep into the evolution of New York City post-Last Ronin, the Lost Day tale brings the future of all things TMNT up close and very personal,” Eastman said. “Buckle up, things are about to get messy!”

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Preliminary ballot announced for this year’s Bram Stoker Awards

The annual awards recognize “superior achievement” in horror and dark fiction, including graphic novels.

The Horror Writers Association has announced the preliminary ballot for the 2022 Bram Stoker Awards. The annual awards for horror/dark fiction include a “Superior Achievement in a Graphic Novel” category.

The graphic novel category includes 10 selections that voting members can choose from to select the final ballot and eventual winner. The final ballot is expected to be announced in late February.

Four selections this year come from Image, while three were published by BOOM! Studios. Of particular note is that James Tynion IV appears on the ballot for four different works — The Closet, The Nice House on the Lake, House of Slaughter and Something is Killing the Children.

The preliminary books listed in the graphic novel category are:

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Can’t Wait for Comics | Atone for the ‘Sins of Sinister’ this Wednesday

Check out new comics and graphic novels arriving this week by G. Willow Wilson, Jamie McKelvie, Ram V, Ivan Reis, Rafael Albuquerque, Ryan Parrott, Dan Mora, Paul B. Rainey, Kieron Gillen, Lucas Werneck, Cullen Bunn and more.

Welcome to Can’t Wait for Comics, your guide to what comics are arriving in comic book stores, bookstores and on digital.

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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Dark Horse will publish Sierra Barnes’ ‘Hans Vogel is Dead’

The webcomic comes to print in the U.S. later this year.

Dark Horse has announced plans to publish Hans Vogel is Dead, the webcomic by cartoonist and painter Sierra Barnes, as a trilogy of graphic novels.

Described as “anti-fascist fairytale about a World War II fighter pilot navigating the afterlife,” Hans Vogel is Dead debuted on the web in 2015. Cast Iron Books funded a previously printing through Kickstarter and published the first volume in the UK. The first paperback volume from Dark Horse will feature new cover art as well as an expanded sketchbook section.

“Hans Vogel is a passion project that I’ve poured so much love, research, and work into over the last few years, and I can hardly believe how lucky I am to see this weird little webcomic get set loose on the world,” Barnes said. “I’m so thankful to everyone who read and supported Hans and Reineke in their journey over the years, and I hope you’re as excited as I am to see them continue to grow and their adventure keep going. Thank you, thank you all!”

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Ghost Rider + Wolverine will team up this summer in ‘Weapons of Vengeance’

Two Marvel anti-heroes reunite courtesy of writer Benjamin Percy and artist Geoff Shaw.

Writer Benjamin Percy has been tearing it up in the pages of Ghost Rider and Wolverine, and come this summer he’ll bring the two characters together for Weapons of Vengeance.

The event will kick off, naturally, with an Alpha issue, titled Ghost Rider/Wolverine: Weapons of Vengeance. Drawn by Geoff Shaw, the Alpha issue will recount the first encounter between Johnny Blaze and Wolverine.

“Wolverine is metal. Ghost Rider is metal. Together, their adamantium and chrome weigh in as HEAVY METAL!” Percy told Marvel.com. “You know how Metallica and Iron Maiden have toured together, shredded out songs, wailed on music videos? This is a little like that. I write the sheet music that Geoff Shaw brings to pyrotechnic, guitar-smashing life. You’re in for a head-banging good time, I promise.”

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Higgins, Clark + more will play some ‘Deep Cuts’ in April

The new anthology series looks back at the history of jazz.

Kyle Higgins has been slowly but surely building up a new superhero universe — the Massive-verse — over the last few years, but his next project at Image Comics is a departure from that. Higgins will team with Radiant Black co-writer Joe Clark for Deep Cuts, an anthology series inspired by the history of jazz music.

Higgins and Clark will jam with several artists on the series, including Danilo Beyruth, Helena Masellis, Diego Greco, Ramón K Pérez, Juni Ba and Toby Cypress, with all issues colored by Igor Monti, who they’ve worked with on Radiant Black, Inferno Girl Red and Supermassive. The covers will all connect, spanning 60 iconic years of music history and featuring artwork by Chris Brunner and Rico Renzi.

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