Top Shelf will release Alan Moore’s ‘The Moon and Serpent Bumper Book of Magic’ in October

The grimoire promises ‘endless necromantic fun for all the family.’

The long-delayed The Moon and Serpent Bumper Book of Magic by writer and author Alan Moore and his magical mentor Steve Moore will finally materialize in October from Top Shelf Comix and UK publisher Knockabout Ltd.

This “celebration of magic and the occult” will feature prose, illustration and sequential art, with contributions by several of Alan Moore’s previous colleagues, including John Coulthart, Steve Parkhouse, Rick Veitch, Ben Wickey and the late Kevin O’Neill.

“One of the great honors of my publishing career has been to work with Alan Moore on so many monumental projects, like From Hell and Lost Girls,” said Chris Staros, editor-in-chief of Top Shelf Productions. “The Moon and Serpent Bumper Book of Magic represents an amazing capstone, created by Alan and Steve, and brilliantly brought to life by five unforgettable artists. It’s been a privilege to watch those magical minds spend years building this grimoire, and I’m proud to join Knockabout in finally sharing it with the world.”

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Quick Hits | Graphic novels face scrutiny in Texas schools

Plus: Todd McFarlane wants ‘Batman/Spawn’ to be the biggest comic of the century! ‘Still Alive’ wins another award! And a look at Alan Moore’s funny funnybooks!

Book challenges | A police officer employed by Katy ISD, a suburb of Houston, Texas, removed a copy of the graphic novel Flamer by Mike Curato from high school shelves after a woman filed a criminal complaint alleging the district was providing “harmful” material to minors. The removal occurred last month, when school wasn’t in session, and was later returned to shelves after police concluded “the claim was unsubstantiated.”

The book had previously been challenged, reviewed and approved for high schools by a committee after earlier challenges by parents — although it was removed from junior high shelves at the time. The woman also threatened to report the district to the Texas Rangers if they didn’t remove the book.

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What Are You Reading? | ‘Punderworld’ delivers ‘a fully fleshed out world of relationships, Greek lore and bang-on comedic timing’

See what the Smash Pages crew has been reading lately, including ‘JLA,’ Ka-Zar, ‘Defenders,’ ‘Blue & Gold’ and more.

Welcome to What Are You Reading?, our look at what the Smash Pages crew has been checking off their “to read” list lately. Today’s edition includes thoughts on recent issues of Defenders, Justice League Infinity, Ka-Zar: Lord of the Savage Land and The Me You Love in the Dark, as well collections of JLA, Punderworld and SHIELD, among others.

Let us know what you’ve been reading lately in the comments or on social media.

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Comics Lowdown | Alan Moore script on eBay

Plus: New graphic novels by the Mayor of Montreal and rapper Rico Nasty

Auction Watch: An unpublished Alan Moore script is being auctioned off on eBay. The 35-page script was written circa 1997 for a Wildstorm one-shot, Gen13 Annual: The Coming of the Collector!, which was never completed or published.

Scott Dunbier, who is auctioning off the script, acquired it when he was an editor at Wildstorm. Proceeds from the auction, which has Moore’s blessing, will benefit inker Bob Wiacek, who is suffering from vision problems that prevent him from working.

You can also donate directly to Wiacek via this GoFundMe project.

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Comics Lowdown | UCS will no longer distribute DC Comics starting in January

Plus: News on Terrific Production, Archie Comics, Rebellion, L.A. Comic-Con and more.

Distributors: UCS Comics Distributors, one of the two comics distributors that began working with DC Comics during the COVID-19 industry shutdown earlier this year, has told retailers they will no longer distribute DC’s books as of January 2021. Their accounts will be serviced by Lunar Distribution, the other distributor for DC that came into being during the pandemic. UCS was formed by retailer Midtown Comics, while Lunar was formed by Discount Comic Book Service.

So is UCS going away? Not according to the email they sent to retailers, which you can read over at The Beat. It says “UCS is not closing. We will be offering other exciting items that stores can use!” So it’ll be interesting to see what they offer in the future. John Jackson Miller has additional commentary.

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Quoted: Warren Ellis on Alan Moore’s retirement

“He changed everything.”

The publication of the last issue of League of Extraordinary Gentlemen brings the end of Alan Moore’s comic book writing career. In his weekly email newsletter, Warren Ellis marks the occasion with a few words about the writer:

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IDW Publishing launches Kickstarter for quarterly hardcover ‘magazine’

New project out of their Portland, Oregon office will offer interviews, opinion pieces and more about ‘all aspects of the creative culture.’

IDW Publishing has launched a Kickstarter for Full Bleed, a hardcover “magazine” curated and edited by IDW Publishing’s Dirk Wood and CEO and Publisher Ted Adams. This is the first project coming out of their Portland, Oregon office, which was announced late last year.

Not to be confused with Matt Maxwell’s Full Bleed column-turned-book about the comics industry, IDW describes the project as a “brand-new quarterly, hand-crafted, print only, 200-page hardcover.” It will include interviews, short stories, opinion pieces and of course comics, covering “all aspects of the creative culture, and beyond — comics, music, film, TV, fine art, photography, design, politics and more.”

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Moore, O’Neill to conclude ‘League of Extraordinary Gentlemen’ with ‘The Tempest’

Six-issue series to serve as conclusion to Moore and O’Neill’s “equally legendary comic-book careers.”

At Comic-Con International, Top Shelf Comix and Knockabout announced the final edition of Alan Moore and Kevin O’Neill’s League of Extraordinary Gentlemen epic. The last chapter featuring their crazy, cross-continuity adventures will be titled, appropriately, The Tempest. Per Top Shelf, it will also conclude both gentleman’s comics careers.

From the press release:

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Comics Lowdown: Satire comic gets Warsaw Comics Festival in trouble

Plus: profiles on ‘Black’ creator Kwanza Osajyefo and ‘Top Ten’ artist Gene Ha, the Ledger Awards shortlist, and Montreal’s AstroBooks turns to crowdfunding to pay its tax bills.

The Warsaw (Poland) Comics Festival will lose three years’ worth of city subsidies, totaling $44,500, because a comic ridiculing Polish nationalists was distributed at this year’s event. Tomasz Lesniak and Rafal Skarzycki’s Poland: The Champion of Poland, lampooned nationalists, racists and anti-Semites, and that didn’t sit well with the local nationalists, who complained to the city council. The council released a statement saying, “After reviewing the comic we explicitly declare that we do not accept its content,” and announced it would sanction the festival.

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