Slugfest | SDCC news + more

Today’s round-up includes items on Ms. Marvel, ‘Operation Sunshine,’ Zod, Supergirl and more.

Slugfest is a roundup of cool announcements about projects coming to a shelf near you from comics creators, publishers and more. Today’s edition includes some San Diego news we didn’t get to this past week, plus a few other items to note. Hit the links for more information.

If you read the Hellfire Gala 2023 special this week, then you know Ms. Marvel is playing a big role in what happens next to our favorite mutants. At San Diego, Marvel revealed more about Ms. Marvel: The New Mutant, the Fall of X miniseries featuring the recently resurrected Inhuman/mutant.

Here’s a look at the covers for the first three issues, along with the solicitation information (which was “hidden” when Marvel originally released their solicitations, to keep everything a surprise).

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Space Usagi hunts Yokai in a new one-shot this October

Stan Sakai and Emi Fujii channel the supernatural in this outer space tale.

Stan Sakai will return to the future version of his popular ronin rabbit in Space Usagi: Yokai Hunter this fall.

The full-color one-shot by Sakai and colorist Emi Fujii, who is coloring the current Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles/Usagi Yojimbo: WhereWhen miniseries, will find Usagi facing supernatural horrors in outer space. It will be published by Dark Horse Comics under Sakai’s Dogu Publishing imprint.

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‘Giant Robot Hellboy’ is exactly what it sounds like

And that word would be ‘awesome,’ as Mike Mignola and Duncan Fegredo pit Hellboy against giant monsters.

Hellboy creator Mike Mignola and artist Duncan Fegredo will team with colorist Dave Stewart and letterer Clem Robins for what could end up being the most brilliant Hellboy story of all time — Giant Robot Hellboy.

The project was inspired by Mignola’s pencil drawings from Mike Mignola: The Quarantine Sketchbook — as well as his fellow artists Geof Darrow and Art Adams.

Giant Robot Hellboy is my very obvious nod to all those Japanese giant monster movies—which I actually have no particular love for. What I DO love is listening to Geof Darrow and Art Adams TALK about those movies—so really, I guess this series was inspired by those guys,” Mignola said. “I had the idea for this one a long time ago but figured it was too silly to actually do—then the pandemic came along and I started to do all those sketches I would post online. I had never given a serious thought to what a giant robot Hellboy would look like but I knocked out a few sketches and I liked them—and so the thing started to seem like something that could actually be done.”

While Mignola did the initial sketches, he felt like the idea would work better with a different artist.

“But I knew I wasn’t the artist for it and I knew both Arthur and Geof were busy with other things, so the only other artist I thought of was Duncan,” he said. “I had no idea how Duncan would respond. Too silly? I didn’t know,  but I figured I’d pitch it to him and if he said no that would be an end to it. The rest is history.”

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Douek + Cormack hit the throttle on ‘Drive Like Hell’ at Dark Horse

The new miniseries kicks into overdrive in October.

Rich Douek and Alex Cormack, who powered through Sea of Sorrows, Breath of Shadows and Road of Bones at IDW, are taking a different road with their next project. Dark Horse Comics will publish Drive Like Hell, a new four-issue miniseries from the duo, beginning in October.

Letterer Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou rounds out the creative team. Dark Horse describes it as a “fast-paced action-adventure that goes full throttle into hellscape horror,” as a pair of thieves’ escape plan from the perfect heist involves getting away in a car owned by the devil.

“When I started writing Drive Like Hell, I had one rule,” Douek said. “If I had an idea that seemed too crazy, too extreme, or too outrageous, I had to go ahead and do it. The result is a story that I hope is as fun to read as it was to write.”

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Hold on to your heads: Dark Horse announces ‘Headless Horseman Halloween Annual’

The anthology will come out in October, of course.

Dark Horse heads to Sleepy Hollow this October for Headless Horseman Halloween Annual, an anthology of “five terrifying tales to warm up your cold soul.”

“Doing a Halloween-themed anthology has always been a dream of mine, and we were able to assemble a fantastic crew of creators to help carry out that vision,” said editor Megan Walker. “The book is full of fun, creepy and iconic stories that will scare and delight readers. I can’t wait for everyone to get their hands on it!”

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Smash Pages Q&A | Adam Cesare and David Stoll on ‘Dead Mall’

The two creators discuss their love for malls, their approach to ‘mall horror,’ the potential for a sequel and more.

Horror novelist Adam Cesare‘s signature novel has a title that contains the two scariest words in the English language, Clown in a Cornfield, so right from the get-go you know that he gets horror. He’s also been adding comics to his resume over the last few years, having worked on Power Rangers comics, Jim Henson’s The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance and more.

David Stoll, meanwhile, was the artist for Pantomime, a Mad Cave title with writer Christopher Sebela from a few years back. The story featured students at a school for the deaf who become thieves, and I still remember how clever the visuals were in communicating what was being said and heard by the deaf characters.

The two of them more recently united on Dead Mall, a four-issue miniseries from Dark Horse Comics. Along with letterer Justin Birch, they told a complete story that combined horror and mall culture. The story takes place in — and is narrated by — the Penn Mills Galleria, a former mall that’s about to be demolished when a group of kids decide to visit it one last time. Only they find it isn’t quite so empty.

The miniseries was recently collected into a trade paperback by Dark Horse Comics, and it’s available now in comic shops and bookstores everywhere. I spoke with Both Cesare and Stoll about the story, abandoned malls and more.

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Bunn + Hurtt + Crabtree reunite for ‘The Midnite Show’

The miniseries from the team behind ‘The Sixth Gun’ features silver screen monsters coming to life at a film festival.

The The Sixth Gun team of Cullen Bunn, Brian Hurtt and Bill Crabtree are reuniting — not only on more The Sixth Gun, but on a new horror miniseries from Dark Horse titled The Midnite Show.

Letterer Jim Campbell will join them for the story of a cursed movie that was never finished, but when found footage pops up at a festival, so do real-life versions of the silver screen monsters.

“I’ve been calling this book ‘popcorn horror.’ It’s a book that’s full of chills and thrills. Our heroes are in terrible danger,” said Bunn. “The monsters they are facing are terrifying. But this story is also a lot of fun! A horror romp with action, humor, heart and a lot of bloodshed. These monsters mean bloody business!”

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Slugfest | Mary Jane officially becomes a superhero in ‘Amazing Spider-Man’ #31

Plus: News on the Witcher’s next comic series, White Widow, ‘Coda’ returns, Ram V and Filipe Andrade reunite, ‘Killer Queens’ is back, and more.

Slugfest is a roundup of cool announcements about projects coming to a shelf near you. Hit the links for more information.

Marvel has been teasing Mary Jane Watson’s new power set, most notably in the recent Mary Jane & Black Cat miniseries, but the longtime supporting character will put on a costume and go full superhero in Amazing Spider-Man #31.

The oversized issue will not only feature a story by the regular creative team of Zeb Wells and John Romita Jr., but also will include a story by Celeste Bronfman and Alba Glez that features Mary Jane suiting up to become Jackpot.

Here’s a look at her costume, designed by Humberto Ramos:

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Eric Powell recruits Becky Cloonan, Mike Mignola, James Harren for a spooky Christmas anthology

‘Four Gathered on Christmas Eve’ continues the Victorian tradition of telling spooky stories on Christmas Eve.

The Goon creator Eric Powell is a fan of both Christmas and horror, so it’s only natural he’d put together a crew of elves to help deliver Four Gathered on Christmas Eve, an anthology of Victorian-style Christmas Eve ghost stories coming from Dark Horse this winter.

“As someone who unapologetically loves Christmas and spooky stories, I’ve always been intrigued that telling ghost stories used to be a regular part of the tradition,” said Powell. “I’ve been kicking around the idea of doing a Victorian Christmas Ghost book for a while and was thrilled when three of my favorite comic creators agreed to join me.”

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‘Minor Threats’ gets a spinoff miniseries starring ‘The Alternates’

Tim Seeley, Christopher Mitten and Tess Fowler join Patton Oswalt and Jordan Blum on the September-debuting series.

Minor Threats, the genre-bending superhero mystery by Patton Oswalt, Jordan Blum and Scott Hepburn, will get a spinoff miniseries in September. Oswalt and Blum will be joined by co-writer Tim Seeley, with Christopher Mitten and Tess Fowler on art.

“I love the first Minor Threats series so much that I couldn’t help but imagine another team of lovable losers in their world–this time, a squad of forgotten superheroes who got rebooted, and now crave their old lives so bad it borders on addiction,” Seeley said. “Jordan and Patton not only liked the idea, they added their creativity to make something that fits their universe perfectly!”

While Minor Threats paid tribute to the Bronze Age of comics and the “grim and gritty” titles of the 1980s, From the World of Minor Threats: The Alternates has a different era in its heart.

“If the first Minor Threats series was a love letter to the c-list working class supervillains, then The Alternates is one for the early Vertigo comics of the 90s like Doom Patrol, Swamp Thing and Animal Man,” said Blum. “Forgotten goofy heroes pulled into a suddenly ‘mature’ existence that both humanizes and alienates them. Tim is such a master and historian of comics, we were so thrilled with the new sandbox he built for us all to play in — once again offering a fresh and unique point of view we hadn’t yet seen explored in superhero comics. This story of existence, addiction, recovery and monster smashing was beautifully rendered thanks to the art of Christopher Mitten and paintings by Tess Fowler. “

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Dan Schkade + Brennan Wagner create a new hero for Portland in ‘Saint John’

Dark Horse Comics and Portland Gear team up on the four-issue miniseries.

Portland-based publisher Dark Horse Comics has teamed up with apparel company Portland Gear for Saint John, which introduces a new superhero operating in the Oregon city.

Local artist Brennan Wagner will team with writer Dan Schkade and letterer Frank Cvetkovic on the four-issue miniseries that introduces a hero “built for the quirks that make the city unique.”

“A few years ago, I set out to create a positive storyline for the city and utilize the connections I’ve had in town for many years.” said Marcus Harvey, founder and owner of Portland Gear. “With the assistance of Brennan, Dan and Mike Richardson, the idea of a superhero for Portland came to life—an individual radiating positivity and dedicated to community building. Portland is a magical place, and I believe that employing the medium of a comic book would provide a unique opportunity to share its wonders with the world.”

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Love, Assassin Style: Jensen, Baruschel, Micelli + Esposito will ‘Tear Us Apart’

The new miniseries will steal your heart in September.

The Flash writer Van Jensen will team with actor Jay Baruschel and The Ballad of Sang artist Alessandro Micelli for a new miniseries about death cults, assassins … and love.

Tear Us Apart features two teenagers who are being trained to be assassins falling for each other. Award-winning letterer Taylor Esposito rounds out the creative team.

“This comic is a love letter to the 1990s,” Jensen said. “A story we can all relate to: A boy and a girl meet and fall in love, and the only thing between them and a happy ending is a horde of the world’s best killers.”

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