‘Behemoth’ is the story of a bus swallowed by a Kaiju

The giant monster miniseries by Grant Sputore, Ryan Engle, Jay Martin and Frank Cvetkovic, arrives in January from Dark Horse Comics.

Grant Sputore and Ryan Engle, two filmmakers with resumes that include monster movies, will team up to write Behemoth, a new miniseries coming from Dark Horse next year. They’re joined by Jay Martin, creator of Lost Boy, on art, and letterer Frank Cvetkovic.

Spurtore is the director of the next as-yet-untitled film in Legendary’s Godzilla/King Kong line, while Engle wrote the 2018 film Rampage, based on the video game about giant monsters. So naturally their first comic is about a Kaiju and the people on a bus who get eaten by it — which is where the story starts.

“Being a life-long Kaiju fan, I quite frequently find myself imagining giant monsters rampaging through whatever city I happen to be in,” Sputore said, mirroring something I’ve done myself. “Enjoying one such vision, back in 2022, I found myself struck by a thought: ‘How have we had 70 years of giant monster movies, but no one has ever told the story of the poor souls trapped inside a subway car as it’s devoured by a Kaiju?’ From that moment, I’ve been on a long journey to bring this David vs. Goliath story to life, with the help of Ryan and Jay’s boundless genius. Most recently, I’ve been invited to play in Legendary’s Monsterverse, which is clearly a dream come true for a kaiju fan like me – but for those interested, my first foray into the world of Kaiju storytelling can be found within the wild pages of Behemoth.”

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Dark Horse books a FastPass to ‘Ripperland’ next year

Steve Orlando, John Harris Dunning and Alessandro Oliveri bring a murderer from the past to an England that’s become the most magical place on Earth.

“What would Jack the Ripper think of an England that was turned into a theme park?” might not be a question you’ve ever asked yourself, but it’ll get answered next year in a new miniseries coming from Dark Horse Comic.

Ripperland is co-written by Steve Orlando and John Harris Dunning, with art and cover art by Alessandro Oliveri, colors by Francesca Vivaldi and letters by Fabio Amelia. And yes, it is indeed about Jack the Ripper time-traveling to 2188 England to discover the country became a Victorian-themed amusement park because it needed the money after Brexit.

Ripperland is unlike any book I’ve ever been part of–and I mean that in the best possible way,” Orlando said. “John and Alessandro are incredible talents, and the alchemy between us, across borders and across oceans, has created something truly special! This is Westworld meets From Hell in a gorgeous speculative fiction package! The streets of tomorrow’s London call…to yesterday! I can’t wait for everyone to see it!”

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‘The Bad Batch’ headline their first comic in January

Clone Force 99 hunt a Separatist ghost agent in a new miniseries from Dark Horse Comics.

The Bad Batch show on Disney + may have ended, but that doesn’t mean the adventure is over for Hunter, Wrecker, Crosshair and Tech. Dark Horse and Lucasfilm have announced Clone Force 99 will appear in their first comic miniseries next year.

Titled Star Wars: Hyperspace Stories: The Bad Batch: Ghost Agents — I’m sorry, that’s an ungodly amount of colons there — the miniseries is written by Michael Moreci and illustrated by Reese Hannigan, Elisabetta D’Amico and Michael Atiyeh, with lettering by Comicraft.

“I think everyone who knows my Star Wars work knows I love the Clone Wars,” Moreci said. “And the Bad Batch is probably my favorite part of that. They’re just so cool and unique; they’re like 1980s action heroes dropped into the Star Wars universe, and I love that. I’m after that look and feel–it’s going to be a lot of fun, and I’m just thrilled to bring more Bad Batch stories to life!”

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Kyle Starks + Patrick Piazzalunga bring ‘Those Not Afraid’ to Dark Horse

Two serial killers compete to break the record for the most murders in the miniseries, which debuts next year.

Kyle Starks, writer of Where Monsters Lie, Sexcastle and much more, will team with Monsters Are My Business artist Patrick Piazzalunga for Those Not Afraid, the story of a twisted competition between two serial killers.

Starks said the title for the project was inspired by Richard Ramirez, the serial killer known as The Night Stalker, and in particular when he said: “We’ve all got the power in our hands to kill, but most people are afraid to use it. The ones who aren’t afraid control life itself.” Probably known best for his horror and humor writing, Starks said he also wanted to do something that was more in the True Crime vein.

“I wanted to dip my foot narratively into that world – to step away from humor at all, to lean hard into the terrifying depths of that world and the terrifying creatures who inhabit it,” Starks said. “With Those Not Afraid, I ask the question, ‘What if two serial killers enter into a terrible competition to break the record for murders?’ If you are a fan of – or know a fan of – true crime and serial killers Those Not Afraid is going to be the book for you.”

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Dark Horse will publish Richard Corben’s final graphic novel

A special edition hardcover of ‘Dimwood’ will arrive next April.

As part of their publishing partnership with Fantagor Press, Dark Horse Comics has announced plans to release the final work of legendary underground artist Richard Corben, who passed away in 2020.

Dimwood is about a woman who returns to her childhood home to try to recover missing pieces in her memory. Written and illustrated by Corben and lettered by Nate Piekos, the hardcover includes a dust jacket, an introduction by author Joe Lansdale, an epilogue by project art director José Villarrubia and other bonus material.

“I’m excited to share his new story that he poured all of his imagination and artistic vision into,” his widow, Dona Corben, said in 2022 when the partnership was announced. “I’m incredibly proud of him as an artist and a person, and touched that his work means so much to so many.”

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Chris Roberson + Michael Avon Oeming sit in ‘The Shadow of the Golden Crane’ this January

The adventures of B.P.R.D. agent Sue Xiang continue in a four-issue miniseries.

Chris Roberson and Michael Avon Oeming will continue the story of B.P.R.D. agent Sue Xiang and her family’s connect to the clandestine Golden Crane Society in The Shadow of the Golden Crane, which will debut in January.

Xiang’s connection to this mysterious group first surfaced about 10 years ago, in one of the first stories Roberson wrote that was set within Mike Mignola’s Hellboy universe.

“As far back as Hellboy and the B.P.R.D.: 1953 we have teased the idea that there is some connection between Susan Xiang, an agent of the B.P.R.D. with psychic abilities, and an organization called the Golden Crane Society, a secret society that protected the people of China from otherworldly threats for centuries,” Roberson said. “Susan was raised on stories of the Golden Crane, and when she was seven there was an incident involving her uncle and some jiangshi (Chinese ‘hopping vampires’) that we have so far only caught glimpses of. In The Shadow of the Golden Crane, we follow Susan and her fellow B.P.R.D. agents Hellboy and Victor Koestler as she uses her abilities to unlock the secrets of the Golden Crane Society.

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The Minor Threats universe continues to expand this year with ‘The Brood’

Heath Corson, I.N.J Culbard and Nate Piekos introduce the dysfunctional family of the world’s greatest villain.

Patton Oswalt, Jordan Blum and Scott Hepburn’s Minor Threats line-up will expand again in December with From the World of Minor Threats: The Brood.

The new series will be written by screenwriter Heath Corson, who worked on TV’s Animal Kingdom and He-Man and the Masters of the Universe. He’ll be joined by artist I.N.J Culbard (Tales from the Umbrella Academy: You Look Like DeathSalamandre), and letterer Nate Piekos. “The Brood” refers to the family of about Napoleon Archimedes, the world’s greatest supervillain, who is ready to pass the family business onto one of his three kids. It follows in the footsteps of the original Minor Threats miniseries and its sequel, as well as the spin-off series Barfly and The Alternates.

“The two major influences were Succession and then Wes Anderson’s Royal Tenenbaums, which you can very much see in Ian’s art and color palette,” said Corson. “The idea came when I was watching the film and thinking: What if this was the continuing story of Gene Hackman’s Lex Luthor? What if he married Ms. Teschmacher, had three children, and tried to raise them in the family business? So, Napleon’s brood was always his big idea: Have a dynasty. Eventually, you’ll outlive the heroes… AND WIN.”

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SDCC Slugfest | Star Wars, DuckTales, Thundarr + more

Today’s round-up of SDCC and related news includes items on a Junkyard Joe action figure, new titles coming from Dynamite, a big sale by Fantagraphics and more.

Slugfest is a roundup of cool announcements about projects coming to a shelf near you. With the San Diego Comic Con in full force, this edition covers news from today I haven’t already covered, plus a few items from the lead-up to the show. Hit the links for more information.

The first full day of the San Diego Comic-Con brought plenty of news and tiodbits from comic publishers, following a very busy couple of weeks for comic news. It’s hard to believe a week has already passed since DC’s All In announcement. But here we are! So let’s jump in.

We ‘ll start with some Star Wars comic news, which these days spans multiple publishers. Lucasfilm hosted a publishing panel today that covered several upcoming releases, including the Battle of Jakku comic coming from Marvel this fall. Today’s panel also brought the news that phase 3 of the Star Wars: The High Republic will come to a close next year, and Cavan Scott and Marika Cresta will help wrap it up at Marvel with a comic titled Fear of the Jedi:

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SDCC | Dark Horse rolls a 20, picks up Dungeons & Dragons + Magic: The Gathering licenses

New titles are expected from the partnership next summer.

Dark Horse Comics and Wizards of the Coast have announced that Dark Horse will publish comics, graphic novels and art books based on Dungeons & Dragons and Magic: The Gathering. They plan to release the first titles as part of the deal next summer.

“If you’d told my 12-year-old self I’d get to work with incredible writers and artists to craft comics for Dungeons & Dragons and Magic: The Gathering, alongside such thoughtful and creative stewards of these licenses, I wouldn’t have believed you,” said Dark Horse senior editor Spencer Cushing. “The opportunity to work with Wizards of the Coast is a dream come true.”

Dark Horse joins a list of publishers who brought Dungeons & Dragons to comics since the late 1980s, when DC worked with TSR, its original owners, to create comics based on Dragonlance, the Forgotten Realms, Spelljammers and more. IDW has had the license since 2010, publishing a wide range of titles base don the role-playing game and even working with Dark Horse on a Stranger Things crossover.

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SDCC | It’s Christmas in July (and August, and September …) in ‘Christmas 365’

Mikey Way, Jonathan Rivera and Piotr Kowalski get jolly in a new miniseries coming from Dark Horse this December.

It’s beginning to look a lot like Comic-Con, as a few hours before the big event starts, Dark Horse has announced Christmas 365, a four-issue miniseries by Mikey Way, Jonathan Rivera and Piotr Kowalski.

“Like most kids growing up, I never wanted Christmas to end,” Way said. “When it’s over, you’re left having to wait an entire year for that magical feeling to return. I would often fantasize…what if it never had to end? That very thought was what sparked this story. But as the saying goes, is too much of a good thing not so good?”

Way is the bassist for My Chemical Romance, where his bandmate, brother and fellow comics writer, Gerard Way, is the lead singer. He’s also written Collapser for DC Comics. Rivera worked on Cave Carson Has a Cybernetic Eye, part of Gerard Way’s Young Animal imprint a few years back. Kowalski, meanwhile, is the artist of Where Monsters Lie and its upcoming sequel; the graphic novel Skinner, which came out this week; and a whole lot more. The creative team is rounded out by Brad Simpson on colors and Joshua Reed on letters.

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SDCC | Ariela Kristantina returns to Comixology Originals for ‘The Girl Who Draws on Whales’

The new graphic novel arrives on digital in October and in print from Dark Horse Comics next March.

Ariela Kristantina, the artist of the Comixology Original graphic novel Adora and the Distance, is working again with the digital comics platform on a new original graphic novel she’ll both write and draw: The Girl Who Draws on Whales.

The OGN will arrive on the digital platform in October, and features colors by Sarah Stern, letters by Bernardo Brice and edits by Will Dennis. Inspired by her homeland of Indonesia, Kristantina’s post-apocalyptic story is about a flooded Earth where the remaining villages are separated by water — but connected by the art they draw on whales.

“Creating The Girl Who Draws on Whales has been a deeply personal and exhilarating experience,” Kristantina said. “Living in the island nation of Indonesia, surrounded by the beauty and mystery of the sea, I drew inspiration from the rich landscapes and diverse cultures of our islands. Through Wangi and Banyu’s story, I wanted to capture the bravery it takes to defy expectations and the strength found in siblinghood. This journey of art, courage, and discovery reflects the resilience of our spirit and the magic that storytelling brings to life. I hope readers feel the same sense of wonder and connection that I felt while crafting this tale.”

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SDCC | Mignola + Stenbeck return to the Hellboy-verse for ‘The Serpent in the Garden: Ed Grey and the Last Battle for England’

The three-issue miniseries begins in November.

With SDCC on the horizon AND it being the 30th anniversary of Hellboy, it only makes sense we’d get some news from Mike Mignola this week. And now we have, in the form of The Serpent in the Garden: Ed Grey and the Last Battle for England, a new miniseries by Mignola, artist Ben Stenbeck, colorist Dave Stewart and letterer Clem Robins.

The series stars paranormal investigator Ed Grey, who first appeared in Hellboy: Wake the Devil and went on to star in Sir Edward Grey: Witchfinder. This new series finds him going up against famed sorceress Morgan Le Fay in a battle for England.

“Ed Grey feels to me like he took off like a rocket,” said Mignola. “He was my ‘regular guy’ occult detective but then just kept going. Being dismembered and stitched back together didn’t even slow him down. He became a magician and flew around doing stuff. He decided to take on some of Hellboy’s curse and everything just kept beating him and he just kept getting up, and before too long, I just felt bad for him and wanted to give him a quiet place to sit down – retire in peace. BUT he had just one more (I hope) thing to do and then not only could he retire but he could retire another of my favorite characters. Let’s hope both of them can finally relax after this one last battle for England.”

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