Smash Pages Q&A: M.S. Harkness on ‘Tinderella’

Minnesota-based artist M.S. Harkness has been making comics and minicomics for a few years now, like Prizefighter, Normal Girl and A Savage Journey to the Heart of an Anime Convention. Kilgore Books just released her debut graphic novel, Tinderella.

The autobiographical tale is about dating, as the title makes clear, and it’s funny, living up to the title’s promise. It’s also a sharp and thoughtful look at life in one’s 20s — or a nightmarish and horrifying reminder of life in one’s 20s, depending on the reader. The book was excerpted in The Comics Journal before it was published, and I reached out to M.S. to ask about the book and how she works.

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Nominees announced for the 2018 British Fantasy Awards

‘Bitch Planet,’ ‘Monstress,’ ‘The Wicked + The Divine’ among this year’s nominees for the comics category.

The British Fantasy Society has announced the nominees for the 2018 British Fantasy Awards, including the “Best Comic/Graphic Novel” category.

The entrants are selected after two rounds of nominations, and votes are tallied from the members of the British Fantasy Society and FantasyCon. Winners will be announced Oct. 21 at FantasyCon 2018. Monstress took home the award last year.

The nominees in the “Best Comic/Graphic Novel” category include:

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Spider-Man, Doctor Strange co-creator Steve Ditko, 90, passes away

The pioneer of psychedelic surreal comic book art impacted culture like no other.

by Stephanie Chan and James Vicari

Legendary comic book artist Stephen J. Ditko has passed away at his home at the age of 90. In a statement to the Hollywood Reporter, the New York Police Department said that Ditko’s body was found on June 29th. The cause of death has not been released, but it is believed that he passed away two days prior to being discovered.

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Death cults and depravity descend in post-apocalyptic ‘Death Orb’

New title from Ryan Ferrier, Alejandro Aragon and Chris O’Halloran follows a “heartbroken, axe-wielding wasteland survivor in search of his wife and son.”

Writer Ryan Ferrier (D4VE) artist Alejandro Aragon (Robocop) and colorist Chris O’Halloran (Ice Cream Man) are headed back to the future — a post-apocalyptic, mutant infested, nightmarish future in Death Orb, a new miniseries from Dark Horse Comics.

“We’re going off the rails with this one,” Ferrier said on Twitter.

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Smash Pages Q&A: Veronica Fish

The artist of ‘Archie,’ ‘Silk,’ ‘Slam!’ and more discusses her latest project ‘Blackwood,’ collaborating with Andy Fish and Evan Dorkin, and more.

Veronica Fish has made a name for herself with her work for Archie (Archie) and Marvel (Spider-Woman, Silk), as well as with books Slam!, the roller derby comic that she created with writer Pamela Ribon, and The Wendy Project, written by Melissa Jane Osborne. The latter overlaid the story of Peter Pan with a girl’s real trauma and was a visually stunning work by Fish that really showed off a masterful sense of design and color.

Fish’s new comic is Blackwood. Written by Evan Dorkin (Beasts of Burden, Dork) and published by Dark Horse Comics, the miniseries follows a group of students who arrive at a small college to learn magic. The Dean kills himself in the opening scene, and the students find the only thing stranger than the locals are the teachers. The setup may sound familiar, but the characters and the creatures in the book really stand out. And the art is as accomplished as it is different from Fish’s other comics. The second issue of Blackwood came out this week, and I asked Fish a few questions about the book.

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DC Universe app to offer comics as well

The new app will include ‘decades of comics creations’ via a subscription service, in addition to new TV shows, classic movies, a community forum and more.

DC Comics has been talking about their forthcoming digital app for a while now, announcing that it will be the home of new TV shows like Teen Titans, Doom Patrol, Swamp Thing and a new season of the animated Young Justice animated series, among others. But today they announced it will be more than a streaming service — it will also feature comics.

While Marvel Unlimited and comiXology Unlimited both offer “all you can eat” subscription models through their services, DC Comics has yet to offer a similar service for their comics. But the new service, DC Universe, will change that.

“DC Universe is so much more than a streaming service. It’s a welcoming place for everyone to immerse themselves in their own level of DC fandom, with the epic characters, stories and experiences they have come to expect from DC,” said Jim Lee, chief creative officer and publisher, DC Entertainment. “We are investing in and creating original, high-quality shows including the new Titans series, and curating the most beloved nostalgic content, while at the same time elevating the comic reading experience to new heights. Nothing this robust has ever been offered to fans before.”

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Support free speech with these ‘retro’ CBLDF designs

Get shirts, hats, phone cases and more featuring artwork by Frank Miller, Jeff Smith, Mike Allred, James Kochalka, Jim Lee and many others.

Over the years comic creators have donated artwork to the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund for use on membership cards, T-shirts and other premiums. Many of them quickly sold out and haven’t been available for a while — until now. CBLDF has launched a Threadless shop, offering shirts and other items featuring some of their “retro” artwork.

For instance, you can get a shirt featuring Mike Allred’s Lady Liberty drawing, which graced the cover of a CBLDF anthology in 2014. There’s also Frank Miller’s Defiant Fist, which would look great on a throw pillow. Or this patriotic Bone artwork, if you’re looking for something for the kids. Additional artwork by Cliff Chiang, Terry Moore, Jim Lee, Judd Winick and more can also be found on the site.

Proceeds benefit the fund, so head on over to Threadless to check them out.

Smash Pages Q&A: Emma Beeby on ‘Mata Hari’

The UK-based writer discusses her work on the Dark Horse/Berger Books title about the famous femme fatale.

Emma Beeby will perhaps always be known as the first woman to write Judge Dredd in the pages of 2000 A.D. She’s written other comics including Robbie Burns: Witch Hunter, Judge Anderson, Doctor Who, and created series for 2000 A.D., in addition to writing audio plays and games and films. She’s a contributor to the amazing (and all female) lineup of creators responsible for the 2000 A.D. Sci-fi Special, which was just released in the UK.

This year Berger Books has been publishing Mata Hari, a comics miniseries written by Beeby that explores the life of the titular spy and femme fatale. People might know the name Mata Hari, but much of what is known about her is myth and lies and misinformation. In the miniseries, Beeby tries to explore all of these things. Mata Hari is a hard character to love, a complicated antihero who dealt with a lot of things in her life that sound very contemporary and relevant.

Mata Hari #4 is out this week from Berger Books/Dark Horse Comics, and Emma was kind enough to answer a few questions about the book and how she worked.

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Nominees announced for the 2018 Ringo Awards

The nominees for the Ringo Awards have been announced, marking the second year for the awards program named for artist Mike Wieringo, who passed away in 2007.

While fans could participate in the nomination process, only comic book professionals can vote for the winners. The awards will be presented at Baltimore Comic-Con Sept. 29.

Congratulations to all the nominees:

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DeMatteis + Cavallaro travel the cosmos and more in ‘Impossible, Incorporated’

The creative team behind ‘The Life And Times Of Savior 28’ returns with a new five-issue series this September.

A long-gestating project by J.M. DeMatteis and Mike Cavallaro will see the light of day in September, when IDW Publishing will release Impossible, Incorporated, a five-issue comic book miniseries about a 17-year-old and her train that can travel to “other worlds, new dimensions, parallel universes and through time itself.”

“I’ve been bouncing around the idea for Impossible, Inc. with Mike Cavallaro for five or six years now. We wanted to create something that had the innocence of Silver Age comics; the expansive imagination of Jack Kirby; a cosmic perspective on life; and – most of all – a big, beating heart at its core. A story that could explore the quantum corners of both the universe and the human soul. Now that dream is a reality and we’ve uncorked a tale that we hope meets our goals and delights our audience,” DeMatteis said in the press release. “I’ve been blown away by Mike’s art, which has a power and purity of vision that encompasses both infinity and intimacy. We hope comic book readers join us on this journey. We’re having a blast and we think that they will, too.”

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Walmart to offer exclusive ‘giant’ anthologies from DC — with new content

New material by Jimmy Palmiotti, Amanda Conner, Dan Jurgens, Tim Seeley, Tom King, Brian Michael Bendis and Andy Kubert joins past stories in new monthly line.

DC Comics and Walmart have teamed up to offer an exclusive line of 100-page “giant” anthologies at the big-box retailer. The anthologies will feature a mix of previously published and new materiel, including new material by Jimmy Palmiotti, Amanda Conner, Patrick “Patch” Zircher, Brian Michael Bendis, Dan Jurgens, Tim Seeley, Rick Leonardi, Steve Buccellato, Andy Kubert, Scott Eaton and Tom King.

“We are extraordinarily excited about working with Walmart to expand the reach of our books,” said DC Publisher Dan DiDio in a statement. “These new monthly books combine new and accessible stories with reprints of classic comic series. It’s a great way for new readers to get into comics and follow the characters they’ve grown to love in TV and film.”

Each of the four titles – Superman Giant, Justice League Of America Giant, Batman Giant and Teen Titans Giant – will arrive in stores by July 1. Beginning in August, the Superman and Justice League titles will arrive in week one of each month, with Batman and Teen Titans arriving approximately two weeks later. They’ll cost $4.99.

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Sam Kieth returns to the Maxx with ‘Batman/The Maxx: Arkham Dreams’

IDW and DC Comics team up to publish a five-issue miniseries starring the Dark Knight and Arkham’s newest patient: The Maxx.

Sam Kieth’s The Maxx hasn’t been seen in about a decade, but that changes in September when IDW Publishing and DC Comics come together to present Batman/The Maxx: Arkham Dreams. The first issue of the five-issue miniseries, written and drawn by Kieth, will feature covers by Kieth and DC CCO/Publisher Jim Lee.
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